public inbox for linux-kernel@vger.kernel.org
 help / color / mirror / Atom feed
* [PATCH -tip v2 1/3] x86/segment: Introduce savesegment_mem16() helper to write segment selectors to memory
@ 2026-04-01  8:58 Uros Bizjak
  2026-04-01  8:58 ` [PATCH -tip v2 2/3] x86/process: Use savesegment_mem16() when saving segment selectors Uros Bizjak
  2026-04-01  8:58 ` [PATCH -tip v2 3/3] x86/kexec: Use savesegment_mem16() for segment register save in crash_setup_regs() Uros Bizjak
  0 siblings, 2 replies; 3+ messages in thread
From: Uros Bizjak @ 2026-04-01  8:58 UTC (permalink / raw)
  To: x86, linux-kernel
  Cc: Uros Bizjak, H. Peter Anvin, Thomas Gleixner, Ingo Molnar,
	Borislav Petkov, Dave Hansen

Introduce a new helper, savesegment_mem16(), that stores a segment
selector directly into a u16 (or compatible) memory location without
using an intermediate general-purpose register.

To support this, split the existing SAVE_SEGMENT macro into two parts:

SAVE_SEGMENT_VAR(): retains the current behavior of reading a segment
register into an unsigned long via a register.
SAVE_SEGMENT_PTR(): adds a new variant that writes the 16-bit selector
directly to memory.

The combined SAVE_SEGMENT() macro now generates both helpers for each
segment register.

The new savesegment_mem16() interface is preferred over savesegment()
when the value only needs to be stored (e.g. into a struct field),
avoiding an unnecessary register move and making the intent clearer.

No functional change for existing users of savesegment().

Signed-off-by: Uros Bizjak <ubizjak@gmail.com>
Suggested-by: "H. Peter Anvin" <hpa@zytor.com>
Cc: Thomas Gleixner <tglx@kernel.org>
Cc: Ingo Molnar <mingo@kernel.org>
Cc: Borislav Petkov <bp@alien8.de>
Cc: Dave Hansen <dave.hansen@linux.intel.com>
---
v2: Rename storesegment() to savesegment_mem16().
---
 arch/x86/include/asm/segment.h | 31 ++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++-
 1 file changed, 30 insertions(+), 1 deletion(-)

diff --git a/arch/x86/include/asm/segment.h b/arch/x86/include/asm/segment.h
index dbd90fede5e7..5c5b95fda284 100644
--- a/arch/x86/include/asm/segment.h
+++ b/arch/x86/include/asm/segment.h
@@ -344,7 +344,7 @@ static inline void __loadsegment_fs(u16 value)
 /*
  * Save a segment register away:
  */
-#define SAVE_SEGMENT(seg)				\
+#define SAVE_SEGMENT_VAR(seg)				\
 static inline unsigned long __savesegment_##seg(void)	\
 {							\
 	unsigned long v;				\
@@ -352,6 +352,16 @@ static inline unsigned long __savesegment_##seg(void)	\
 	return v;					\
 }
 
+#define SAVE_SEGMENT_PTR(seg)				\
+static inline void __savesegment_##seg##_ptr(u16 *p)	\
+{							\
+	asm volatile("movw %%" #seg ",%0" : "=m" (*p));	\
+}
+
+#define SAVE_SEGMENT(seg)				\
+	SAVE_SEGMENT_VAR(seg)				\
+	SAVE_SEGMENT_PTR(seg)
+
 SAVE_SEGMENT(cs)
 SAVE_SEGMENT(ss)
 SAVE_SEGMENT(ds)
@@ -359,10 +369,29 @@ SAVE_SEGMENT(es)
 SAVE_SEGMENT(fs)
 SAVE_SEGMENT(gs)
 
+#undef SAVE_SEGMENT_VAR
+#undef SAVE_SEGMENT_PTR
 #undef SAVE_SEGMENT
 
+/*
+ * savesegment(seg, var) - Read a segment register into an unsigned long.
+ *
+ * Reads the segment selector via a general-purpose register into an
+ * unsigned long. Preferred when the value is needed in a register for
+ * subsequent arithmetic or comparison.
+ */
 #define savesegment(seg, var) ((var) = __savesegment_##seg())
 
+/*
+ * savesegment_mem16(seg, loc) - Store a segment register directly
+ *                               to u16 (or compatible) location.
+ *
+ * Writes the 16-bit segment selector directly to memory, bypassing any
+ * intermediate general-purpose register. Preferred over savesegment()
+ * for simply saving a segment register to a u16 (or compatible) location.
+ */
+#define savesegment_mem16(seg, loc) __savesegment_##seg##_ptr(&(loc))
+
 #endif /* !__ASSEMBLER__ */
 #endif /* __KERNEL__ */
 
-- 
2.53.0


^ permalink raw reply related	[flat|nested] 3+ messages in thread

* [PATCH -tip v2 2/3] x86/process: Use savesegment_mem16() when saving segment selectors
  2026-04-01  8:58 [PATCH -tip v2 1/3] x86/segment: Introduce savesegment_mem16() helper to write segment selectors to memory Uros Bizjak
@ 2026-04-01  8:58 ` Uros Bizjak
  2026-04-01  8:58 ` [PATCH -tip v2 3/3] x86/kexec: Use savesegment_mem16() for segment register save in crash_setup_regs() Uros Bizjak
  1 sibling, 0 replies; 3+ messages in thread
From: Uros Bizjak @ 2026-04-01  8:58 UTC (permalink / raw)
  To: x86, linux-kernel
  Cc: Uros Bizjak, Thomas Gleixner, Ingo Molnar, Borislav Petkov,
	Dave Hansen, H. Peter Anvin

Switch segment save sites in copy_thread() and save_fsgs() from
savesegment() to the newly introduced savesegment_mem16() helper.

These call sites only store the segment selector into a u16 field
and do not require the value in a general-purpose register. Using
savesegment_mem16() avoids the unnecessary register intermediate
and better matches the intended use.

The generated code is improved from, e.g.:

     34f:	8c c0                	mov    %es,%eax
     351:	66 89 83 08 0c 00 00 	mov    %ax,0xc08(%rbx)

to a single direct store:

     34f:	8c 83 08 0c 00 00    	mov    %es,0xc08(%rbx)

This is a mechanical follow-up to the introduction of
savesegment_mem16(), with no functional change.

Signed-off-by: Uros Bizjak <ubizjak@gmail.com>
Cc: Thomas Gleixner <tglx@kernel.org>
Cc: Ingo Molnar <mingo@kernel.org>
Cc: Borislav Petkov <bp@alien8.de>
Cc: Dave Hansen <dave.hansen@linux.intel.com>
Cc: "H. Peter Anvin" <hpa@zytor.com>
---
 arch/x86/kernel/process.c    | 4 ++--
 arch/x86/kernel/process_64.c | 4 ++--
 2 files changed, 4 insertions(+), 4 deletions(-)

diff --git a/arch/x86/kernel/process.c b/arch/x86/kernel/process.c
index 4c718f8adc59..f7a38345980c 100644
--- a/arch/x86/kernel/process.c
+++ b/arch/x86/kernel/process.c
@@ -197,8 +197,8 @@ int copy_thread(struct task_struct *p, const struct kernel_clone_args *args)
 	p->thread.gsindex = current->thread.gsindex;
 	p->thread.gsbase = current->thread.gsbase;
 
-	savesegment(es, p->thread.es);
-	savesegment(ds, p->thread.ds);
+	savesegment_mem16(es, p->thread.es);
+	savesegment_mem16(ds, p->thread.ds);
 
 	if (p->mm && (clone_flags & (CLONE_VM | CLONE_VFORK)) == CLONE_VM)
 		set_bit(MM_CONTEXT_LOCK_LAM, &p->mm->context.flags);
diff --git a/arch/x86/kernel/process_64.c b/arch/x86/kernel/process_64.c
index b85e715ebb30..619b46f9bcba 100644
--- a/arch/x86/kernel/process_64.c
+++ b/arch/x86/kernel/process_64.c
@@ -275,8 +275,8 @@ static __always_inline void save_base_legacy(struct task_struct *prev_p,
 
 static __always_inline void save_fsgs(struct task_struct *task)
 {
-	savesegment(fs, task->thread.fsindex);
-	savesegment(gs, task->thread.gsindex);
+	savesegment_mem16(fs, task->thread.fsindex);
+	savesegment_mem16(gs, task->thread.gsindex);
 	if (static_cpu_has(X86_FEATURE_FSGSBASE)) {
 		/*
 		 * If FSGSBASE is enabled, we can't make any useful guesses
-- 
2.53.0


^ permalink raw reply related	[flat|nested] 3+ messages in thread

* [PATCH -tip v2 3/3] x86/kexec: Use savesegment_mem16() for segment register save in crash_setup_regs()
  2026-04-01  8:58 [PATCH -tip v2 1/3] x86/segment: Introduce savesegment_mem16() helper to write segment selectors to memory Uros Bizjak
  2026-04-01  8:58 ` [PATCH -tip v2 2/3] x86/process: Use savesegment_mem16() when saving segment selectors Uros Bizjak
@ 2026-04-01  8:58 ` Uros Bizjak
  1 sibling, 0 replies; 3+ messages in thread
From: Uros Bizjak @ 2026-04-01  8:58 UTC (permalink / raw)
  To: x86, linux-kernel
  Cc: Uros Bizjak, Thomas Gleixner, Ingo Molnar, Borislav Petkov,
	Dave Hansen, H. Peter Anvin

Replace open-coded inline assembly used to read segment registers
(ss, cs, and on 32-bit ds/es) in crash_setup_regs() with
savesegment_mem16() helper.

This function only stores the segment selector into a u16 field
and does not require the value in a general-purpose register. Using
savesegment_mem16() avoids the unnecessary register intermediate
and better matches the intended use.

The generated code is improved from, e.g.:

     131:	8c d0                	mov    %ss,%eax
     133:	66 89 84 24 a0 00 00 	mov    %ax,0xa0(%rsp)
     13a:	00

to a single direct store:

     131:	8c 94 24 a0 00 00 00 	mov    %ss,0xa0(%rsp)

This is a mechanical follow-up to the introduction of
savesegment_mem16(), with no functional change.

Signed-off-by: Uros Bizjak <ubizjak@gmail.com>
Cc: Thomas Gleixner <tglx@kernel.org>
Cc: Ingo Molnar <mingo@kernel.org>
Cc: Borislav Petkov <bp@alien8.de>
Cc: Dave Hansen <dave.hansen@linux.intel.com>
Cc: "H. Peter Anvin" <hpa@zytor.com>
---
v2: New patch.
---
 arch/x86/include/asm/kexec.h | 8 ++++----
 1 file changed, 4 insertions(+), 4 deletions(-)

diff --git a/arch/x86/include/asm/kexec.h b/arch/x86/include/asm/kexec.h
index 5cfb27f26583..90a8d7ca7cf8 100644
--- a/arch/x86/include/asm/kexec.h
+++ b/arch/x86/include/asm/kexec.h
@@ -106,11 +106,11 @@ static inline void crash_setup_regs(struct pt_regs *newregs,
 		asm volatile("mov %%r14,%0" : "=m"(newregs->r14));
 		asm volatile("mov %%r15,%0" : "=m"(newregs->r15));
 #endif
-		asm volatile("mov %%ss,%k0" : "=a"(newregs->ss));
-		asm volatile("mov %%cs,%k0" : "=a"(newregs->cs));
+		savesegment_mem16(ss, newregs->ss);
+		savesegment_mem16(cs, newregs->cs);
 #ifdef CONFIG_X86_32
-		asm volatile("mov %%ds,%k0" : "=a"(newregs->ds));
-		asm volatile("mov %%es,%k0" : "=a"(newregs->es));
+		savesegment_mem16(ds, newregs->ds);
+		savesegment_mem16(es, newregs->es);
 #endif
 		asm volatile("pushf\n\t"
 			     "pop %0" : "=m"(newregs->flags));
-- 
2.53.0


^ permalink raw reply related	[flat|nested] 3+ messages in thread

end of thread, other threads:[~2026-04-01  8:58 UTC | newest]

Thread overview: 3+ messages (download: mbox.gz follow: Atom feed
-- links below jump to the message on this page --
2026-04-01  8:58 [PATCH -tip v2 1/3] x86/segment: Introduce savesegment_mem16() helper to write segment selectors to memory Uros Bizjak
2026-04-01  8:58 ` [PATCH -tip v2 2/3] x86/process: Use savesegment_mem16() when saving segment selectors Uros Bizjak
2026-04-01  8:58 ` [PATCH -tip v2 3/3] x86/kexec: Use savesegment_mem16() for segment register save in crash_setup_regs() Uros Bizjak

This is a public inbox, see mirroring instructions
for how to clone and mirror all data and code used for this inbox