From mboxrd@z Thu Jan 1 00:00:00 1970 Date: Tue, 13 May 2008 17:55:50 -0700 (PDT) From: Linus Torvalds Subject: Re: [patch 2/2] fix SMP data race in pagetable setup vs walking In-Reply-To: <20080514003417.GA24516@wotan.suse.de> Message-ID: References: <20080505112021.GC5018@wotan.suse.de> <20080505121240.GD5018@wotan.suse.de> <20080506095138.GE10141@wotan.suse.de> <20080513080143.GB19870@wotan.suse.de> <20080514003417.GA24516@wotan.suse.de> MIME-Version: 1.0 Content-Type: TEXT/PLAIN; charset=US-ASCII Sender: owner-linux-mm@kvack.org Return-Path: To: Nick Piggin Cc: Hugh Dickins , linux-arch@vger.kernel.org, Linux Memory Management List , Paul McKenney List-ID: On Wed, 14 May 2008, Nick Piggin wrote: > > Uh, I don't follow your logic. The "reference" Linux memory model > requires it, so I don't see how you can justify saying it is wrong > just because a *specific* architecture doesn't need it. You're thinking about it the wrong way. NO specific architecture requires it except for alpha, and alpha already has it. Nobody else is *ever* likely to want it ever again. In other words, it's not a "reference model". It's an "alpha hack". We do not want to copy it in code that doesn't need or want it. And that's especially true when it's not needed at all, and adding it just makes a really simple macro much more complex and totally unreadable. If it was about adding something to a function that was already a real function, it would be different. If you coudl write it as a nice inline function, it would be different. But when that alpha hack turns a regular (simple) #define into a thing of horror, the downside is much *much* bigger than any (non-existent) upside. Linus -- To unsubscribe, send a message with 'unsubscribe linux-mm' in the body to majordomo@kvack.org. For more info on Linux MM, see: http://www.linux-mm.org/ . Don't email: email@kvack.org