KVM: race-free exit from KVM_RUN without POSIX signals

The purpose of the KVM_SET_SIGNAL_MASK API is to let userspace "kick" a VCPU out of KVM_RUN through a POSIX signal. A signal is attached to a dummy signal handler; by blocking the signal outside KVM_RUN and unblocking it inside, this possible race is closed: VCPU thread service thread -------------------------------------------------------------- check flag set flag raise signal (signal handler does nothing) KVM_RUN However, one issue with KVM_SET_SIGNAL_MASK is that it has to take tsk->sighand->siglock on every KVM_RUN. This lock is often on a remote NUMA node, because it is on the node of a thread's creator. Taking this lock can be very expensive if there are many userspace exits (as is the case for SMP Windows VMs without Hyper-V reference time counter). As an alternative, we can put the flag directly in kvm_run so that KVM can see it: VCPU thread service thread -------------------------------------------------------------- raise signal signal handler set run->immediate_exit KVM_RUN check run->immediate_exit

PBPaolo Bonzini committed 9 years ago