Linux Virtualization - Oct 2017 - [PATCH net-next] vhost_net: conditionally enable tx polling

We always poll tx for socket, this is sub optimal since:

- we only want to be notified when sndbuf is available
- this will slightly increase the waitqueue traversing time and more
  important, vhost could not benefit from commit
  commit 9e641bdcfa4e
  ("net-tun: restructure tun_do_read for better sleep/wakeup
efficiency")
  even if we've stopped rx polling during handle_rx() since tx poll
  were still left in the waitqueue.

Pktgen from a remote host to VM over mlx4 shows 5.5% improvements on
rx PPS. (from 1.27Mpps to 1.34Mpps)

Cc: Wei Xu <wexu at redhat.com>
Cc: Matthew Rosato <mjrosato at linux.vnet.ibm.com>
Signed-off-by: Jason Wang <jasowang at redhat.com>
---
 drivers/vhost/net.c | 11 ++++++++---
 1 file changed, 8 insertions(+), 3 deletions(-)

diff --git a/drivers/vhost/net.c b/drivers/vhost/net.c
index 68677d9..286c3e4 100644
--- a/drivers/vhost/net.c
+++ b/drivers/vhost/net.c
@@ -471,6 +471,7 @@ static void handle_tx(struct vhost_net *net)
 		goto out;
 
 	vhost_disable_notify(&net->dev, vq);
+	vhost_net_disable_vq(net, vq);
 
 	hdr_size = nvq->vhost_hlen;
 	zcopy = nvq->ubufs;
@@ -556,6 +557,8 @@ static void handle_tx(struct vhost_net *net)
 					% UIO_MAXIOV;
 			}
 			vhost_discard_vq_desc(vq, 1);
+			if (err == -EAGAIN)
+				vhost_net_enable_vq(net, vq);
 			break;
 		}
 		if (err != len)
@@ -1145,9 +1148,11 @@ static long vhost_net_set_backend(struct vhost_net *n,
unsigned index, int fd)
 		r = vhost_vq_init_access(vq);
 		if (r)
 			goto err_used;
-		r = vhost_net_enable_vq(n, vq);
-		if (r)
-			goto err_used;
+		if (index == VHOST_NET_VQ_RX) {
+			r = vhost_net_enable_vq(n, vq);
+			if (r)
+				goto err_used;
+		}
 
 		oldubufs = nvq->ubufs;
 		nvq->ubufs = ubufs;
-- 
2.7.4

On Tue, Oct 31, 2017 at 06:27:20PM +0800, Jason Wang
wrote:
> We always poll tx for socket, this is sub optimal since:
> 
> - we only want to be notified when sndbuf is available
> - this will slightly increase the waitqueue traversing time and more
>   important, vhost could not benefit from commit
>   commit 9e641bdcfa4e
>   ("net-tun: restructure tun_do_read for better sleep/wakeup
efficiency")
>   even if we've stopped rx polling during handle_rx() since tx poll
>   were still left in the waitqueue.
> 
> Pktgen from a remote host to VM over mlx4 shows 5.5% improvements on
> rx PPS. (from 1.27Mpps to 1.34Mpps)
> 
> Cc: Wei Xu <wexu at redhat.com>
> Cc: Matthew Rosato <mjrosato at linux.vnet.ibm.com>
> Signed-off-by: Jason Wang <jasowang at redhat.com>
> ---
Now that vhost_poll_stop happens on data path
a lot, I'd say
        if (poll->wqh)
there should be unlikely().

>  drivers/vhost/net.c | 11 ++++++++---
>  1 file changed, 8 insertions(+), 3 deletions(-)
> 
> diff --git a/drivers/vhost/net.c b/drivers/vhost/net.c
> index 68677d9..286c3e4 100644
> --- a/drivers/vhost/net.c
> +++ b/drivers/vhost/net.c
> @@ -471,6 +471,7 @@ static void handle_tx(struct vhost_net *net)
>  		goto out;
>  
>  	vhost_disable_notify(&net->dev, vq);
> +	vhost_net_disable_vq(net, vq);
>  
>  	hdr_size = nvq->vhost_hlen;
>  	zcopy = nvq->ubufs;
> @@ -556,6 +557,8 @@ static void handle_tx(struct vhost_net *net)
>  					% UIO_MAXIOV;
>  			}
>  			vhost_discard_vq_desc(vq, 1);
> +			if (err == -EAGAIN)
> +				vhost_net_enable_vq(net, vq);
>  			break;
>  		}
>  		if (err != len)
I would probably just enable it unconditionally here. Why not?

> @@ -1145,9 +1148,11 @@ static long vhost_net_set_backend(struct vhost_net
*n, unsigned index, int fd)
>  		r = vhost_vq_init_access(vq);
>  		if (r)
>  			goto err_used;
> -		r = vhost_net_enable_vq(n, vq);
> -		if (r)
> -			goto err_used;
> +		if (index == VHOST_NET_VQ_RX) {
> +			r = vhost_net_enable_vq(n, vq);
> +			if (r)
> +				goto err_used;
> +		}
>  
>  		oldubufs = nvq->ubufs;
>  		nvq->ubufs = ubufs;
This last chunk seems questionable. If queue has stuff in it
when we connect the backend, we'll miss a wakeup.
I suspect this can happen during migration.

> -- 
> 2.7.4

On 2017?11?01? 00:36, Michael S. Tsirkin wrote:
> On Tue, Oct 31, 2017 at 06:27:20PM +0800, Jason Wang wrote:
>> We always poll tx for socket, this is sub optimal since:
>>
>> - we only want to be notified when sndbuf is available
>> - this will slightly increase the waitqueue traversing time and more
>>    important, vhost could not benefit from commit
>>    commit 9e641bdcfa4e
>>    ("net-tun: restructure tun_do_read for better sleep/wakeup
efficiency")
>>    even if we've stopped rx polling during handle_rx() since tx
poll
>>    were still left in the waitqueue.
>>
>> Pktgen from a remote host to VM over mlx4 shows 5.5% improvements on
>> rx PPS. (from 1.27Mpps to 1.34Mpps)
>>
>> Cc: Wei Xu <wexu at redhat.com>
>> Cc: Matthew Rosato <mjrosato at linux.vnet.ibm.com>
>> Signed-off-by: Jason Wang <jasowang at redhat.com>
>> ---
> Now that vhost_poll_stop happens on data path
> a lot, I'd say
>          if (poll->wqh)
> there should be unlikely().
It has been there since 8241a1e466cd ("vhost_net: stop polling socket 
during rx processing"). So it will be used for rx path too which 
unlikely() does not work as well as the case in tx.

>
>
>>   drivers/vhost/net.c | 11 ++++++++---
>>   1 file changed, 8 insertions(+), 3 deletions(-)
>>
>> diff --git a/drivers/vhost/net.c b/drivers/vhost/net.c
>> index 68677d9..286c3e4 100644
>> --- a/drivers/vhost/net.c
>> +++ b/drivers/vhost/net.c
>> @@ -471,6 +471,7 @@ static void handle_tx(struct vhost_net *net)
>>   		goto out;
>>   
>>   	vhost_disable_notify(&net->dev, vq);
>> +	vhost_net_disable_vq(net, vq);
>>   
>>   	hdr_size = nvq->vhost_hlen;
>>   	zcopy = nvq->ubufs;
>> @@ -556,6 +557,8 @@ static void handle_tx(struct vhost_net *net)
>>   					% UIO_MAXIOV;
>>   			}
>>   			vhost_discard_vq_desc(vq, 1);
>> +			if (err == -EAGAIN)
>> +				vhost_net_enable_vq(net, vq);
>>   			break;
>>   		}
>>   		if (err != len)
> I would probably just enable it unconditionally here. Why not?
>
I thought we only care about the case of tun_sock_write_space() and for 
the errors other than -EAGAIN, they have nothing to do with polling.
>> @@ -1145,9 +1148,11 @@ static long vhost_net_set_backend(struct
vhost_net *n, unsigned index, int fd)
>>   		r = vhost_vq_init_access(vq);
>>   		if (r)
>>   			goto err_used;
>> -		r = vhost_net_enable_vq(n, vq);
>> -		if (r)
>> -			goto err_used;
>> +		if (index == VHOST_NET_VQ_RX) {
>> +			r = vhost_net_enable_vq(n, vq);
>> +			if (r)
>> +				goto err_used;
>> +		}
>>   
>>   		oldubufs = nvq->ubufs;
>>   		nvq->ubufs = ubufs;
> This last chunk seems questionable. If queue has stuff in it
> when we connect the backend, we'll miss a wakeup.
> I suspect this can happen during migration.
Unless qemu pass a tap which s already had pending tx packets.

I can remove this chuck, but if guest does not transmit any packet, rx 
can't benefit from this.

Thanks
>
>
>> -- 
>> 2.7.4