Modified by Paul Jackson <pj@sgi.com>
Modified by Christoph Lameter <clameter@sgi.com>
Modified by Paul Menage <menage@google.com>
+Modified by Hidetoshi Seto <seto.hidetoshi@jp.fujitsu.com>
CONTENTS:
=========
1.5 What is memory_pressure ?
1.6 What is memory spread ?
1.7 What is sched_load_balance ?
- 1.8 How do I use cpusets ?
+ 1.8 What is sched_relax_domain_level ?
+ 1.9 How do I use cpusets ?
2. Usage Examples and Syntax
2.1 Basic Usage
2.2 Adding/removing cpus
The cpus and mems files in the root (top_cpuset) cpuset are
read-only. The cpus file automatically tracks the value of
cpu_online_map using a CPU hotplug notifier, and the mems file
-automatically tracks the value of node_states[N_MEMORY]--i.e.,
+automatically tracks the value of node_states[N_HIGH_MEMORY]--i.e.,
nodes with memory--using the cpuset_track_online_nodes() hook.
partition requested with the current, and updates its sched domains,
removing the old and adding the new, for each change.
-1.8 How do I use cpusets ?
+
+1.8 What is sched_relax_domain_level ?
+--------------------------------------
+
+In sched domain, the scheduler migrates tasks in 2 ways; periodic load
+balance on tick, and at time of some schedule events.
+
+When a task is woken up, scheduler try to move the task on idle CPU.
+For example, if a task A running on CPU X activates another task B
+on the same CPU X, and if CPU Y is X's sibling and performing idle,
+then scheduler migrate task B to CPU Y so that task B can start on
+CPU Y without waiting task A on CPU X.
+
+And if a CPU run out of tasks in its runqueue, the CPU try to pull
+extra tasks from other busy CPUs to help them before it is going to
+be idle.
+
+Of course it takes some searching cost to find movable tasks and/or
+idle CPUs, the scheduler might not search all CPUs in the domain
+everytime. In fact, in some architectures, the searching ranges on
+events are limited in the same socket or node where the CPU locates,
+while the load balance on tick searchs all.
+
+For example, assume CPU Z is relatively far from CPU X. Even if CPU Z
+is idle while CPU X and the siblings are busy, scheduler can't migrate
+woken task B from X to Z since it is out of its searching range.
+As the result, task B on CPU X need to wait task A or wait load balance
+on the next tick. For some applications in special situation, waiting
+1 tick may be too long.
+
+The 'sched_relax_domain_level' file allows you to request changing
+this searching range as you like. This file takes int value which
+indicates size of searching range in levels ideally as follows,
+otherwise initial value -1 that indicates the cpuset has no request.
+
+ -1 : no request. use system default or follow request of others.
+ 0 : no search.
+ 1 : search siblings (hyperthreads in a core).
+ 2 : search cores in a package.
+ 3 : search cpus in a node [= system wide on non-NUMA system]
+ ( 4 : search nodes in a chunk of node [on NUMA system] )
+ ( 5~ : search system wide [on NUMA system])
+
+This file is per-cpuset and affect the sched domain where the cpuset
+belongs to. Therefore if the flag 'sched_load_balance' of a cpuset
+is disabled, then 'sched_relax_domain_level' have no effect since
+there is no sched domain belonging the cpuset.
+
+If multiple cpusets are overlapping and hence they form a single sched
+domain, the largest value among those is used. Be careful, if one
+requests 0 and others are -1 then 0 is used.
+
+Note that modifying this file will have both good and bad effects,
+and whether it is acceptable or not will be depend on your situation.
+Don't modify this file if you are not sure.
+
+If your situation is:
+ - The migration costs between each cpu can be assumed considerably
+ small(for you) due to your special application's behavior or
+ special hardware support for CPU cache etc.
+ - The searching cost doesn't have impact(for you) or you can make
+ the searching cost enough small by managing cpuset to compact etc.
+ - The latency is required even it sacrifices cache hit rate etc.
+then increasing 'sched_relax_domain_level' would benefit you.
+
+
+1.9 How do I use cpusets ?
--------------------------
In order to minimize the impact of cpusets on critical kernel
memory placement, as above, the next time that the kernel attempts
to allocate a page of memory for that task.
-If a cpuset has its CPUs modified, then each task using that
-cpuset does _not_ change its behavior automatically. In order to
-minimize the impact on the critical scheduling code in the kernel,
-tasks will continue to use their prior CPU placement until they
-are rebound to their cpuset, by rewriting their pid to the 'tasks'
-file of their cpuset. If a task had been bound to some subset of its
-cpuset using the sched_setaffinity() call, and if any of that subset
-is still allowed in its new cpuset settings, then the task will be
-restricted to the intersection of the CPUs it was allowed on before,
-and its new cpuset CPU placement. If, on the other hand, there is
-no overlap between a tasks prior placement and its new cpuset CPU
-placement, then the task will be allowed to run on any CPU allowed
-in its new cpuset. If a task is moved from one cpuset to another,
-its CPU placement is updated in the same way as if the tasks pid is
-rewritten to the 'tasks' file of its current cpuset.
+If a cpuset has its 'cpus' modified, then each task in that cpuset
+will have its allowed CPU placement changed immediately. Similarly,
+if a tasks pid is written to a cpusets 'tasks' file, in either its
+current cpuset or another cpuset, then its allowed CPU placement is
+changed immediately. If such a task had been bound to some subset
+of its cpuset using the sched_setaffinity() call, the task will be
+allowed to run on any CPU allowed in its new cpuset, negating the
+affect of the prior sched_setaffinity() call.
In summary, the memory placement of a task whose cpuset is changed is
updated by the kernel, on the next allocation of a page for that task,
git.openpandora.org / pandora-kernel.git / blobdiff