FreeBSD/Linux Kernel Cross Reference
sys/Documentation/robust-futex-ABI.txt

     Started by Paul Jackson <pj@sgi.com>
     
     The robust futex ABI
     --------------------
     
     Robust_futexes provide a mechanism that is used in addition to normal
     futexes, for kernel assist of cleanup of held locks on task exit.
     
     The interesting data as to what futexes a thread is holding is kept on a
    linked list in user space, where it can be updated efficiently as locks
    are taken and dropped, without kernel intervention.  The only additional
    kernel intervention required for robust_futexes above and beyond what is
    required for futexes is:
    
     1) a one time call, per thread, to tell the kernel where its list of
        held robust_futexes begins, and
     2) internal kernel code at exit, to handle any listed locks held
        by the exiting thread.
    
    The existing normal futexes already provide a "Fast Userspace Locking"
    mechanism, which handles uncontested locking without needing a system
    call, and handles contested locking by maintaining a list of waiting
    threads in the kernel.  Options on the sys_futex(2) system call support
    waiting on a particular futex, and waking up the next waiter on a
    particular futex.
    
    For robust_futexes to work, the user code (typically in a library such
    as glibc linked with the application) has to manage and place the
    necessary list elements exactly as the kernel expects them.  If it fails
    to do so, then improperly listed locks will not be cleaned up on exit,
    probably causing deadlock or other such failure of the other threads
    waiting on the same locks.
    
    A thread that anticipates possibly using robust_futexes should first
    issue the system call:
    
        asmlinkage long
        sys_set_robust_list(struct robust_list_head __user *head, size_t len);
    
    The pointer 'head' points to a structure in the threads address space
    consisting of three words.  Each word is 32 bits on 32 bit arch's, or 64
    bits on 64 bit arch's, and local byte order.  Each thread should have
    its own thread private 'head'.
    
    If a thread is running in 32 bit compatibility mode on a 64 native arch
    kernel, then it can actually have two such structures - one using 32 bit
    words for 32 bit compatibility mode, and one using 64 bit words for 64
    bit native mode.  The kernel, if it is a 64 bit kernel supporting 32 bit
    compatibility mode, will attempt to process both lists on each task
    exit, if the corresponding sys_set_robust_list() call has been made to
    setup that list.
    
      The first word in the memory structure at 'head' contains a
      pointer to a single linked list of 'lock entries', one per lock,
      as described below.  If the list is empty, the pointer will point
      to itself, 'head'.  The last 'lock entry' points back to the 'head'.
    
      The second word, called 'offset', specifies the offset from the
      address of the associated 'lock entry', plus or minus, of what will
      be called the 'lock word', from that 'lock entry'.  The 'lock word'
      is always a 32 bit word, unlike the other words above.  The 'lock
      word' holds 3 flag bits in the upper 3 bits, and the thread id (TID)
      of the thread holding the lock in the bottom 29 bits.  See further
      below for a description of the flag bits.
    
      The third word, called 'list_op_pending', contains transient copy of
      the address of the 'lock entry', during list insertion and removal,
      and is needed to correctly resolve races should a thread exit while
      in the middle of a locking or unlocking operation.
    
    Each 'lock entry' on the single linked list starting at 'head' consists
    of just a single word, pointing to the next 'lock entry', or back to
    'head' if there are no more entries.  In addition, nearby to each 'lock
    entry', at an offset from the 'lock entry' specified by the 'offset'
    word, is one 'lock word'.
    
    The 'lock word' is always 32 bits, and is intended to be the same 32 bit
    lock variable used by the futex mechanism, in conjunction with
    robust_futexes.  The kernel will only be able to wakeup the next thread
    waiting for a lock on a threads exit if that next thread used the futex
    mechanism to register the address of that 'lock word' with the kernel.
    
    For each futex lock currently held by a thread, if it wants this
    robust_futex support for exit cleanup of that lock, it should have one
    'lock entry' on this list, with its associated 'lock word' at the
    specified 'offset'.  Should a thread die while holding any such locks,
    the kernel will walk this list, mark any such locks with a bit
    indicating their holder died, and wakeup the next thread waiting for
    that lock using the futex mechanism.
    
    When a thread has invoked the above system call to indicate it
    anticipates using robust_futexes, the kernel stores the passed in 'head'
    pointer for that task.  The task may retrieve that value later on by
    using the system call:
    
        asmlinkage long
        sys_get_robust_list(int pid, struct robust_list_head __user **head_ptr,
                            size_t __user *len_ptr);
    
   It is anticipated that threads will use robust_futexes embedded in
   larger, user level locking structures, one per lock.  The kernel
   robust_futex mechanism doesn't care what else is in that structure, so
   long as the 'offset' to the 'lock word' is the same for all
   robust_futexes used by that thread.  The thread should link those locks
   it currently holds using the 'lock entry' pointers.  It may also have
   other links between the locks, such as the reverse side of a double
   linked list, but that doesn't matter to the kernel.
   
   By keeping its locks linked this way, on a list starting with a 'head'
   pointer known to the kernel, the kernel can provide to a thread the
   essential service available for robust_futexes, which is to help clean
   up locks held at the time of (a perhaps unexpectedly) exit.
   
   Actual locking and unlocking, during normal operations, is handled
   entirely by user level code in the contending threads, and by the
   existing futex mechanism to wait for, and wakeup, locks.  The kernels
   only essential involvement in robust_futexes is to remember where the
   list 'head' is, and to walk the list on thread exit, handling locks
   still held by the departing thread, as described below.
   
   There may exist thousands of futex lock structures in a threads shared
   memory, on various data structures, at a given point in time. Only those
   lock structures for locks currently held by that thread should be on
   that thread's robust_futex linked lock list a given time.
   
   A given futex lock structure in a user shared memory region may be held
   at different times by any of the threads with access to that region. The
   thread currently holding such a lock, if any, is marked with the threads
   TID in the lower 29 bits of the 'lock word'.
   
   When adding or removing a lock from its list of held locks, in order for
   the kernel to correctly handle lock cleanup regardless of when the task
   exits (perhaps it gets an unexpected signal 9 in the middle of
   manipulating this list), the user code must observe the following
   protocol on 'lock entry' insertion and removal:
   
   On insertion:
    1) set the 'list_op_pending' word to the address of the 'lock entry'
       to be inserted,
    2) acquire the futex lock,
    3) add the lock entry, with its thread id (TID) in the bottom 29 bits
       of the 'lock word', to the linked list starting at 'head', and
    4) clear the 'list_op_pending' word.
   
   On removal:
    1) set the 'list_op_pending' word to the address of the 'lock entry'
       to be removed,
    2) remove the lock entry for this lock from the 'head' list,
    2) release the futex lock, and
    2) clear the 'lock_op_pending' word.
   
   On exit, the kernel will consider the address stored in
   'list_op_pending' and the address of each 'lock word' found by walking
   the list starting at 'head'.  For each such address, if the bottom 29
   bits of the 'lock word' at offset 'offset' from that address equals the
   exiting threads TID, then the kernel will do two things:
   
    1) if bit 31 (0x80000000) is set in that word, then attempt a futex
       wakeup on that address, which will waken the next thread that has
       used to the futex mechanism to wait on that address, and
    2) atomically set  bit 30 (0x40000000) in the 'lock word'.
   
   In the above, bit 31 was set by futex waiters on that lock to indicate
   they were waiting, and bit 30 is set by the kernel to indicate that the
   lock owner died holding the lock.
   
   The kernel exit code will silently stop scanning the list further if at
   any point:
   
    1) the 'head' pointer or an subsequent linked list pointer
       is not a valid address of a user space word
    2) the calculated location of the 'lock word' (address plus
       'offset') is not the valid address of a 32 bit user space
       word
    3) if the list contains more than 1 million (subject to
       future kernel configuration changes) elements.
   
   When the kernel sees a list entry whose 'lock word' doesn't have the
   current threads TID in the lower 29 bits, it does nothing with that
   entry, and goes on to the next entry.
   
   Bit 29 (0x20000000) of the 'lock word' is reserved for future use.

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