Re: [PATCH v4] panic: add an option to replay all the printk message in buffer

[Sergey Senozhatsky <sergey.senozhatsky@gmail.com>]

On (04/26/19 09:49), Petr Mladek wrote:
> On Thu 2019-04-25 21:32:17, Feng Tang wrote:
> > Currently on panic, kernel will lower the loglevel and print out
> > pending printk msg only with console_flush_on_panic().
> > 
> > Add an option for users to configure the "panic_print" to replay
> > all dmesg in buffer, some of which they may have never seen due
> > to the loglevel setting, which will help panic debugging .
> > 
> > @@ -2539,6 +2540,11 @@ void console_flush_on_panic(void)
> >  	 */
> >  	console_trylock();
> >  	console_may_schedule = 0;
> > +
> > +	if (mode == CONSOLE_REPLAY_ALL) {
> > +		console_seq = log_first_seq;
> > +		console_idx = log_first_idx;
> 
> Ah, log_first_seq and log_first_idx are synchronized by
> logbuf_log.
> 
> console_flush_on_panic(CONSOLE_REPLAY_ALL) is called
> when only one CPU is running but it is not guaranteed.
> 
> Therefore we should use:
> 
> 	if (mode == CONSOLE_REPLAY_ALL) {
> 		unsigned long flags;
> 
> 		logbuf_lock_irqsave(flags);
> 		console_seq = log_first_seq;
> 		console_idx = log_first_idx;
> 		logbuf_unlock_irqrestore(flags);
> 	}

I thought about it, and I don't think I see how we can race with
anything here.

Suppose we have panic on CPUA and cactive CPUB in console_unlock():

- if it's not in atomic context, then the moment it does

	call_console_drivers();
	printk_safe_exit_irqrestore(flags);  << IPI

  IPI will take it down.

- If IPI doesn't take it down, then NMI will.

- But, more importantly, if that CPUB is in atomic context, then panic
  CPUA will spin, waiting for that CPUB to handoff printing, before
  panic CPU will even try to stop all CPUs.

	pr_emerg("Kernel panic - not syncing: %s\n", buf)

  is the point of 'synchronization' - panic CPU will wait for
  current console owner.

  Hmm, we might have a bit of a problem here, maybe.

	-ss