[PATCH v4 00/16] Remove PG_private by using page/folio->private checks instead

[PATCH v4 00/16] Remove PG_private by using page/folio->private checks instead

[Zi Yan]

Hi all,

This patchset removes PG_private to make space for upcoming PG_folio for
identifying pages from a folio (more details in Note below). Instead of
checking PG_private, all code is changed to check page/folio->private !=
NULL instead.

MM people are cc'd on all patches and subsystem people are cc'd on the
cover letter and corresponding patches.

Patch 6 is picked up separately in f2fs tree, but since mm-new does not
have it yet, it is sent for MM testing.

Overview
===
Most code uses folio_attach/detach/change_private() functions, so folio
refcount is increased and decreased when folio->private is set and reset,
respectively. There is no need to change them.

Changes are needed for exceptional users:
1. zsmalloc uses PG_private to indicate first component zpdesc page and
   page->private is used to store zspage in zpdesc. To remove PG_private,
   is_first_zpdesc() is replaced by pointer comparison.

2. kernel/events/ring_buffer.c stores page order in page->private.
   Replacing PG_private with page->private != NULL works.

3. drivers/xen/grant-table.c stores xen_page_foreign in page->private,
   where on 32-bit, a pointer to xen_page_foreign is stored; on 64-bit,
   page->private is used as xen_page_foreign. PG_private check is replaced
   by page->private != NULL on 32-bit for xen_page_foreign deallocation.
   On 64-bit, page->private is cleared unconditionally since {domid=0,
   gref=0} (xen_page_foreign can be 0) is valid.

4. fs/crypto/crypto.c stores a folio pointer in page->private, PG_private
   checks are replaced by page->private != NULL.

5. fs/erofs has two different uses:

    5a. folio->private is used to form a reversed list of
    the outputs of readahead_folio(). readahead_folio_last() is added to
    output folios in reversed order, so that ->private is no longer needed.

    5b. folio->private is used as an in-flight I/O counter. Convert the
    code to use folio_attach/detach/get_private() and add bias==1 to the
    counter to avoid folio->private being zero.

6. fs/nfs/write.c: folio refcount maintenance is in a bigger scope than
   folio->private. So folio_attach/detach/get_private() is not used.
   Nothing to change.

7. fs/f2fs uses attach_page_private() to first reset folio->private then
   immediately sets PAGE_PRIVATE_NOT_POINTER bit on it. Change it to use
   attach_page_private() to set PAGE_PRIVATE_NOT_POINTER bit directly to
   avoid folio->private == NULL gap inside set_page_private_##name().

8. hugetlb uses folio_change_private(folio, NULL) without folio refcount
   maintenance. Change it to folio->private = NULL.

After the above changes, PG_private ops are converted to
page/folio->private ops.

folio_has_attached_private() is added to check filesystem-only private data
by excluding swapcache and hugetlb folios, because swapcache folios overlap
swp_entry_t swap with ->private and hugetlb sets its own flags in
->private.

Note
===
1. KPF_PRIVATE is removed after PG_private is removed.

2. Documentation/mm/hugetlbfs_reserv.rst is outdated, so I did not remove
   PG_private related text. It should be rewritten.

3. PG_folio is planned to be set on every page from a folio in
   page_rmappable_folio(), so folios with any order (currently
   PG_large_rmappable is used to identify >0 order folios, but not order-0
   folios) can be identified. Then vm_insert_*() can correctly reject all
   folios and rmap code will only see folios. Eventually, page_folio()
   will return NULL for non-folio pages by checking PG_folio, but before
   that all existing users that treat compound pages as folios will need
   to be converted.

Tests
===
1. allmodconfig build passed.

2. zsmalloc is tested using ext4 on a 1GB lz4 zram:
    2a. zram load + zsmalloc compaction;
    2b. concurrent zspage migration via memory compaction;
    2c. confirmed that multi-page zspages actually formed.

    Details: https://github.com/x-y-z/linux-dev/blob/b4/remove-pg_private/test_zsmalloc.md

3. erofs is tested on images created with -C4096 and lz4hc, lzma,
   deflate, and zstd algorithms:
   3a. cold read of all files, verify checksums match source;
   3b. readahead + reclaim/migration race.

   Details: https://github.com/x-y-z/linux-dev/blob/b4/remove-pg_private/test_erofs.md

4. fscrypt is tested on software-encrypted ext4 with writes to exercise
   bounce pages.

   Details: https://github.com/x-y-z/linux-dev/blob/b4/remove-pg_private/test_fscrypt.md

5. f2fs is tested on an image with inline_data,compress_algorithm=lz4:
    5a. INLINE_INODE — lots of tiny files;
    5b. REF_RESOURCE + general writeback — buffered write churn with fsync;
    5c. ONGOING_MIGRATION — force GC / page migration;
    5d. ATOMIC_WRITE — atomic-write ioctl path.

    Details: https://github.com/x-y-z/linux-dev/blob/b4/remove-pg_private/test_f2fs.md
    (I did not run xfstests)

6. MM selftests passed.

LLM use
===
Claude was used to form a concrete plan on what code needs to be changed
and how to change them. The plan was reviewed by Codex until no issue was
spotted.

Plan is at: https://github.com/x-y-z/linux-dev/blob/b4/remove-pg_private/plan.md

I then followed the plan to make code changes. I did bounce ideas with
Claude how to change fs/erofs, since I did not like the original idea.
After each change, I asked Claude to review my code and git commit message.
I also asked Claude to give me test plans (see above).

At last, Codex was used to review all patches.

Comments and suggestions are welcome. Thanks.

Assisted-by: LLM
Signed-off-by: Zi Yan <ziy@nvidia.com>
---
Changes in v4:
1. dropped set_page_private(0) in balloon_retrieve(), since page->private
   is cleared at that point.
2. simplified the comment in add_hugetlb_folio().
3. additional cleanup for f2fs to remove fio->page uses and convert
   PAGE_PRIVATE_* flags and helper to folio-only.
4. added a comment for __readahead_advance().
5. added core-mm split/migration interaction information on newly added
   folio_attach/detach_private() for erofs.
6. renamed folio_test_fs_private() to folio_has_attached_private() and
   merged the commit introducing folio_test_fs_private() into its prior
   commit.
7. adjusted the patch subject: "treewide: remove folio_set/clear_private()
   *usage*"
8. split "treewide: replace PagePrivate() with page_private()" into three.
9. moved some comments in "treewide: remove PagePrivate() and PG_private
   from comments and docs" to prior patches along with code changes.
10. used PG_folio instead of __PG_folio to avoid additional
    code change in __def_pageflag_names().
- Link to v3: https://patch.msgid.link/20260907-remove-pg_private-v3-0-6ae22f9d9272@nvidia.com

Changes in v3:
1. changed folio_test_fs_private() to check PG_swapbacked instead of
   PG_swapcache for excluding swapcache folios. Because folio->private and
   PG_swapcache are not set as a whole, making folio_test_fs_private() give
   false positive, whereas PG_swapbacked is always set for swapcache
   folios.
2. added __DEF_PAGEFLAG_NAME() to show __PG_folio instead of open code.
3. f2fs change is picked up at
   https://git.kernel.org/jaegeuk/f2fs/c/5ad9409a9533, mm-new currently
   does not have it, so the patch is sent for MM testing purpose.
- Link to v2: https://patch.msgid.link/20260831-remove-pg_private-v2-0-3668159cd9e8@nvidia.com

Changes in v2:
1. removed is_first_zpdesc() in patch 1 and open coded the checks.
2. fixed wording in patch 2's commit message and clarified page_private()
   also works when ring buffer's AUX page order is 0.
3. removed the empty loop in 64-bit gnttab_pages_set_private().
4. clarified folio->private will be reset to NULL by
   fscrypt_free_bounce_page() in the commit message.
5. clarified why hugetlb needs to restore hugetlb_vmemmap_optimized.
6. renamed readahead_folio_reverse() readahead_folio_last() and
   reimplemented readahead_folio_last() by adding a new readahead_control
   private member, _forward, and a new helper __readahead_advance().
7. added a bias, 1, to erofs I/O counter, so that folio->private stays non
   NULL between folio_attach_private() and folio_detach_private().
8. converted more call sites to use folio_test_fs_private().
- Link to v1: https://lore.kernel.org/r/20260731-remove-pg_private-v1-0-142c97ba3562@nvidia.com

---
Zi Yan (16):
      mm/zsmalloc: replace PG_private with pointer comparison
      perf/ring_buffer: stop using PG_private as AUX page high-order marker
      xen/grant-table: stop setting PG_private on pages for grant mapping
      fscrypt: stop setting PG_private on bounce page
      mm/hugetlb: use direct assignment instead of folio_change_private()
      f2fs: stop using PG_private
      f2fs: convert the ->private flag helpers to folio-only
      erofs: mm/pagemap: add readahead_folio_last() to avoid folio->private
      erofs: use folio_attach/detach_private() instead of direct assignment
      mm/page-flags: check page/folio->private instead of PG_private
      treewide: remove folio_set/clear_private() usage
      ceph: replace PagePrivate() with page_private()
      md/md-bitmap: replace PagePrivate() with page_private()
      buffer: replace page_buffer() with page_private() and delete it
      treewide: remove PagePrivate() and PG_private from comments and docs
      mm/page-flags: remove PG_private

 Documentation/admin-guide/kdump/vmcoreinfo.rst |  2 +-
 Documentation/filesystems/vfs.rst              |  6 +-
 arch/x86/events/intel/bts.c                    |  3 -
 arch/x86/events/intel/pt.c                     |  6 +-
 drivers/md/md-bitmap.c                         |  7 +-
 drivers/xen/grant-table.c                      | 11 ++-
 fs/ceph/addr.c                                 |  8 +--
 fs/crypto/crypto.c                             |  2 -
 fs/erofs/data.c                                | 16 +++--
 fs/erofs/zdata.c                               | 13 +---
 fs/f2fs/compress.c                             | 35 +++++----
 fs/f2fs/data.c                                 |  2 +-
 fs/f2fs/f2fs.h                                 | 99 ++++++++++----------------
 fs/f2fs/segment.c                              |  2 +-
 fs/nfs/file.c                                  |  4 +-
 fs/nfs/write.c                                 |  2 -
 fs/proc/page.c                                 |  1 -
 fs/ubifs/file.c                                |  8 +--
 include/linux/buffer_head.h                    |  6 --
 include/linux/kernel-page-flags.h              |  1 -
 include/linux/mm.h                             | 35 +++++----
 include/linux/mm_types.h                       |  4 +-
 include/linux/page-flags.h                     | 43 ++++++++---
 include/linux/pagemap.h                        | 64 ++++++++++++++---
 include/trace/events/mmflags.h                 |  2 +-
 include/trace/events/pagemap.h                 |  3 +-
 kernel/events/ring_buffer.c                    |  7 +-
 kernel/vmcore_info.c                           |  1 -
 mm/huge_memory.c                               |  3 +-
 mm/hugetlb.c                                   |  7 +-
 mm/migrate.c                                   |  3 +-
 mm/page-writeback.c                            |  3 +-
 mm/vmscan.c                                    |  2 +-
 mm/zpdesc.h                                    |  2 +-
 mm/zsmalloc.c                                  | 24 ++-----
 tools/mm/page-types.c                          |  2 -
 36 files changed, 228 insertions(+), 211 deletions(-)
---
base-commit: 3833e2f6aa6bf6af169f78a27843dfa2804be5a6
change-id: 20260728-remove-pg_private-cfe926c7f83c

Best regards,
--  
Yan, Zi

[PATCH v4 04/16] fscrypt: stop setting PG_private on bounce page

[Zi Yan]

The pointer to a plain text folio is stored in bound_page->private and
cannot be NULL until the bounce_page is freed, making PG_private redundant.

It prepares for a future commit that remove PG_private.

No functional change intended.

Assisted-by: LLM
To: Eric Biggers <ebiggers@kernel.org>
To: "Theodore Y. Ts'o" <tytso@mit.edu>
To: Jaegeuk Kim <jaegeuk@kernel.org>
Cc: linux-fscrypt@vger.kernel.org
Cc: linux-kernel@vger.kernel.org
Acked-by: Eric Biggers <ebiggers@kernel.org>
Acked-by: Usama Arif <usama.arif@linux.dev>
Acked-by: David Hildenbrand (Arm) <david@kernel.org>
Signed-off-by: Zi Yan <ziy@nvidia.com>
---
 fs/crypto/crypto.c | 2 --
 1 file changed, 2 deletions(-)

diff --git a/fs/crypto/crypto.c b/fs/crypto/crypto.c
index 5286a124b0d98..aced5c50a4601 100644
--- a/fs/crypto/crypto.c
+++ b/fs/crypto/crypto.c
@@ -65,7 +65,6 @@ void fscrypt_free_bounce_page(struct page *bounce_page)
 	if (!bounce_page)
 		return;
 	set_page_private(bounce_page, (unsigned long)NULL);
-	ClearPagePrivate(bounce_page);
 	mempool_free(bounce_page, fscrypt_bounce_page_pool);
 }
 EXPORT_SYMBOL(fscrypt_free_bounce_page);
@@ -210,7 +209,6 @@ struct page *fscrypt_encrypt_pagecache_blocks(struct folio *folio,
 			return ERR_PTR(err);
 		}
 	}
-	SetPagePrivate(ciphertext_page);
 	set_page_private(ciphertext_page, (unsigned long)folio);
 	return ciphertext_page;
 }

-- 
2.53.0

Re: [PATCH v4 00/16] Remove PG_private by using page/folio->private checks instead

[Andrew Morton]

On Sun, 13 Sep 2026 22:23:58 -0400 Zi Yan <ziy@nvidia.com> wrote:

> This patchset removes PG_private to make space for upcoming PG_folio for
> identifying pages from a folio (more details in Note below). Instead of
> checking PG_private, all code is changed to check page/folio->private !=
> NULL instead.
> 
> MM people are cc'd on all patches and subsystem people are cc'd on the
> cover letter and corresponding patches.
> 
> Patch 6 is picked up separately in f2fs tree, but since mm-new does not
> have it yet, it is sent for MM testing.

AI review claims to have found a pre-existing critical level deadlock
in f2fs:

	https://sashiko.dev/#/patchset/20260913-remove-pg_private-v4-0-848550f7574e@nvidia.com

it also had a few things to say about this patchset and, as always,
hugetlb.c.


Thanks, The MM bits appear adequately reviewed and review of the non-MM
bits are, as usual:

  Great to have but I won't permit lack of other-than-MM review to
  block MM improvements.

So I'll queue it all up and shall push it into -next after a few days.

Acks from non-MM maintainers are appreciated.

If a non-MM patch appears in linux-next I'll autodrop the mm.git copy
of that patch.

Re: [PATCH v4 00/16] Remove PG_private by using page/folio->private checks instead

[Zi Yan]

On 13 Sep 2026, at 23:39, Andrew Morton wrote:

> On Sun, 13 Sep 2026 22:23:58 -0400 Zi Yan <ziy@nvidia.com> wrote:
>
>> This patchset removes PG_private to make space for upcoming PG_folio for
>> identifying pages from a folio (more details in Note below). Instead of
>> checking PG_private, all code is changed to check page/folio->private !=
>> NULL instead.
>>
>> MM people are cc'd on all patches and subsystem people are cc'd on the
>> cover letter and corresponding patches.
>>
>> Patch 6 is picked up separately in f2fs tree, but since mm-new does not
>> have it yet, it is sent for MM testing.
>
> AI review claims to have found a pre-existing critical level deadlock
> in f2fs:
>
> 	https://sashiko.dev/#/patchset/20260913-remove-pg_private-v4-0-848550f7574e@nvidia.com
>
> it also had a few things to say about this patchset and, as always,
> hugetlb.c.

It seems that Sashiko overwrote my patch reviews with the reviews to
Matthew’s md patches. :/ I wonder if there is a way of recovering them.

>
>
> Thanks, The MM bits appear adequately reviewed and review of the non-MM
> bits are, as usual:
>
>   Great to have but I won't permit lack of other-than-MM review to
>   block MM improvements.
>
> So I'll queue it all up and shall push it into -next after a few days.
>
> Acks from non-MM maintainers are appreciated.
>
> If a non-MM patch appears in linux-next I'll autodrop the mm.git copy
> of that patch.

Thanks.

Best Regards,
Yan, Zi

Re: [PATCH v4 00/16] Remove PG_private by using page/folio->private checks instead

[Matthew Wilcox]

On Sun, Sep 13, 2026 at 10:23:58PM -0400, Zi Yan wrote:
>       md/md-bitmap: replace PagePrivate() with page_private()
>       buffer: replace page_buffer() with page_private() and delete it

Sorry, looks like I screwed up git send-email usage.  I'm proposing
replacing these two patches wth the three I sent.

Re: [PATCH v4 00/16] Remove PG_private by using page/folio->private checks instead

[David Hildenbrand (Arm)]

On 9/14/26 06:21, Matthew Wilcox wrote:
> On Sun, Sep 13, 2026 at 10:23:58PM -0400, Zi Yan wrote:
>>       md/md-bitmap: replace PagePrivate() with page_private()
>>       buffer: replace page_buffer() with page_private() and delete it
> 
> Sorry, looks like I screwed up git send-email usage.  I'm proposing
> replacing these two patches wth the three I sent.

For everybody CCed wondering "which patches":

https://lore.kernel.org/r/20260914041830.2072626-1-willy@infradead.org
https://lore.kernel.org/r/20260914041830.2072626-2-willy@infradead.org
https://lore.kernel.org/r/20260914041830.2072626-3-willy@infradead.org

-- 
Cheers,

David

Re: [f2fs-dev] [PATCH v4 00/16] Remove PG_private by using page/folio->private checks instead

[patchwork-bot+f2fs]

Hello:

This series was applied to jaegeuk/f2fs.git (dev)
by Jaegeuk Kim <jaegeuk@kernel.org>:

On Sun, 13 Sep 2026 22:23:58 -0400 you wrote:
> Hi all,
> 
> This patchset removes PG_private to make space for upcoming PG_folio for
> identifying pages from a folio (more details in Note below). Instead of
> checking PG_private, all code is changed to check page/folio->private !=
> NULL instead.
> 
> [...]

Here is the summary with links:
  - [f2fs-dev,v4,06/16] f2fs: stop using PG_private
    https://git.kernel.org/jaegeuk/f2fs/c/60105162524e
  - [f2fs-dev,v4,07/16] f2fs: convert the ->private flag helpers to folio-only
    (no matching commit)

You are awesome, thank you!
-- 
Deet-doot-dot, I am a bot.
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