Re: [linux-pm] Re: [PATCH] Remove process freezer from suspend to RAM pathway

Miklos Szeredi
2007-07-03T15:47:30Z

> > > > So to summarize, the plan that makes things work with fuse is:
> > > >
> > > >  - For STR, don't do the freezer thing.
> > > >
> > > >  - For STD, don't sys_sync() after you froze
> > > >
> > > > There might be -other- issues, but that should get you through some of
> > >
> > > At the risk of repeating myself. Character device drivers are written
> > > with the assumption that normal io and suspend/resume do not race
> > > with each other due to the freezer.
> > > What do you intend to do about that?
> >
> > Oliver, can you please explain your worries in a bit more detail?
> >
> > I don't claim to know anything about how STR or hibernate works, but
> > neither seem to have any problem with I/O on the fuse device "racing"
> > with them.
>
> The problem is not with fuse. The problem is generic in nature.
>
> If you remove the freezer, user space remains active until the last CPU
> goes into suspend. It can do syscalls. Or do you know a clean way to exempt
> only the tasks fuse might use?
>
> Now device drivers have a guaranteed temporal sequence:
>
> last io -> suspend() -> resume() [or disconnect()] -> new io
>
> This is because suspend() is called after the freezer goes into action. If
> you remove the freezer, you need to deal with
>
> 1. io to suspended devices
> 2. resume() assuming that the device is in the state suspend() left it
> 3. io changing a device's state while suspend is saving it
>
> and you need to fix this for all device drivers, not just those fuse is
> involved with.

Fuse is not involved with _any_ device drivers. It is fully unaware
of suspend issues and I think that's how it should stay ;)

> Removing the freezer means doing a more or less full
> audit of every driver and additional locking in many drivers.

How about a "CONFIG_NOFREEZE (experimental): only turn this on if you
want to fix buggy drivers that can fail during suspend with the
freezer turned off"?

I'm guessing quite a few kernel developers would be willing to turn on
such an option.

Miklos