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From: Grant Grundler <grundler@parisc-linux.org>
To: "Michael S. Zick" <mszick@morethan.org>
Cc: Kyle McMartin <kyle@mcmartin.ca>,
	John David Anglin <dave@hiauly1.hia.nrc.ca>,
	parisc-linux@lists.parisc-linux.org
Subject: Re: [parisc-linux] Heavy Iron Reference Docs
Date: Tue, 2 May 2006 00:24:42 -0600	[thread overview]
Message-ID: <20060502062442.GC14414@colo.lackof.org> (raw)
In-Reply-To: <200604301828.26318.mszick@morethan.org>

On Sun, Apr 30, 2006 at 06:28:26PM -0500, Michael S. Zick wrote:
> On Sun April 30 2006 18:01, Michael S. Zick wrote:
> > 
> > Scratches head...
> > 
> > I wonder where Joel has his processors installed in relation to the
> > two busses?  Both on same buss or one per buss?  Would his lockups
> > go away if he picked the other relationship?
> > 
> > I will ask him.  (or perhaps I just did)
> >
> 
> Browsing old parisc spinlock code, I find a comment that the N4K
> can only have one outstanding PxTLB transaction at a time.

The original document says:
	The Merced bus is designed to only support a single broadcast
	PxTLB transaction in progress at a time, and this must be guaranteed
	by software. Software must semaphore to guarantee that only one
	processor is trying to issue a broadcast PxTLB at a time.

	Local PxTLBs, however, have no restrictions, since they are executed
	entirely on the issuing processor.

> Is it not the PxTLB transactions that implement the inter-processor
> coherency?

I don't think so.

> 
> Which is of course required for inter-processor spinlocks to work.
> 
> And, of course, this being Linux, the queue is protected by a spinlock!

PA-RISC _only_ has a spinlock.

> Did someone just shoot themselves in the foot?

Do you honestly think the HP HW engineers were _that_ stupid?

They occasionally make mistakes....but designing an SMP machine
that doesn't have at least one working atomic op would be a bit
over the top. ;)

grant
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  reply	other threads:[~2006-05-02  6:24 UTC|newest]

Thread overview: 16+ messages / expand[flat|nested]  mbox.gz  Atom feed  top
2006-04-30  3:50 [parisc-linux] Heavy Iron Reference Docs Michael S. Zick
2006-04-30  4:36 ` John David Anglin
2006-04-30 17:13   ` Kyle McMartin
2006-04-30 21:25     ` John David Anglin
2006-04-30 23:01       ` Michael S. Zick
2006-04-30 23:28         ` Michael S. Zick
2006-05-02  6:24           ` Grant Grundler [this message]
2006-05-02 11:27             ` Michael S. Zick
2006-04-30 23:30         ` John David Anglin
2006-05-01  3:23           ` Michael S. Zick
2006-05-02  6:00       ` Grant Grundler
2006-05-02 15:10         ` John David Anglin
2006-05-02 15:13           ` Kyle McMartin
2006-05-02 15:41             ` John David Anglin
2006-04-30  7:03 ` Grant Grundler
2006-04-30 13:12   ` Michael S. Zick

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