On Thu, May 15, 2025 at 06:23:14PM +0000, Pasha Tatashin wrote:
> Introduce the user-space interface for the Live Update Orchestrator
> via ioctl commands, enabling external control over the live update
> process and management of preserved resources.
>
> Create a misc character device at /dev/liveupdate. Access
> to this device requires the CAP_SYS_ADMIN capability.
>
> A new UAPI header, <uapi/linux/liveupdate.h>, defines the necessary
> structures. The magic number is registered in
> Documentation/userspace-api/ioctl/ioctl-number.rst.
>
> Signed-off-by: Pasha Tatashin <pasha.tatashin@xxxxxxxxxx>
...
> -/**
> - * enum liveupdate_state - Defines the possible states of the live update
> - * orchestrator.
> - * @LIVEUPDATE_STATE_NORMAL: Default state, no live update in progress.
> - * @LIVEUPDATE_STATE_PREPARED: Live update is prepared for reboot; the
> - * LIVEUPDATE_PREPARE callbacks have completed
> - * successfully.
> - * Devices might operate in a limited state
> - * for example the participating devices might
> - * not be allowed to unbind, and also the
> - * setting up of new DMA mappings might be
> - * disabled in this state.
> - * @LIVEUPDATE_STATE_FROZEN: The final reboot event
> - * (%LIVEUPDATE_FREEZE) has been sent, and the
> - * system is performing its final state saving
> - * within the "blackout window". User
> - * workloads must be suspended. The actual
> - * reboot (kexec) into the next kernel is
> - * imminent.
> - * @LIVEUPDATE_STATE_UPDATED: The system has rebooted into the next
> - * kernel via live update the system is now
> - * running the next kernel, awaiting the
> - * finish event.
> - *
> - * These states track the progress and outcome of a live update operation.
> - */
> -enum liveupdate_state {
> - LIVEUPDATE_STATE_NORMAL = 0,
> - LIVEUPDATE_STATE_PREPARED = 1,
> - LIVEUPDATE_STATE_FROZEN = 2,
> - LIVEUPDATE_STATE_UPDATED = 3,
> -};
> -
Nit: this seems an unnecessary churn, these definitions can go to
include/uapi from the start.
> diff --git a/include/uapi/linux/liveupdate.h b/include/uapi/linux/liveupdate.h
> +/**
> + * struct liveupdate_fd - Holds parameters for preserving and restoring file
> + * descriptors across live update.
> + * @fd: Input for %LIVEUPDATE_IOCTL_FD_PRESERVE: The user-space file
> + * descriptor to be preserved.
> + * Output for %LIVEUPDATE_IOCTL_FD_RESTORE: The new file descriptor
> + * representing the fully restored kernel resource.
> + * @flags: Unused, reserved for future expansion, must be set to 0.
> + * @token: Output for %LIVEUPDATE_IOCTL_FD_PRESERVE: An opaque, unique token
> + * generated by the kernel representing the successfully preserved
> + * resource state.
> + * Input for %LIVEUPDATE_IOCTL_FD_RESTORE: The token previously
> + * returned by the preserve ioctl for the resource to be restored.
> + *
> + * This structure is used as the argument for the %LIVEUPDATE_IOCTL_FD_PRESERVE
> + * and %LIVEUPDATE_IOCTL_FD_RESTORE ioctls. These ioctls allow specific types
> + * of file descriptors (for example memfd, kvm, iommufd, and VFIO) to have their
> + * underlying kernel state preserved across a live update cycle.
> + *
> + * To preserve an FD, user space passes this struct to
> + * %LIVEUPDATE_IOCTL_FD_PRESERVE with the @fd field set. On success, the
> + * kernel populates the @token field.
> + *
> + * After the live update transition, user space passes the struct populated with
> + * the *same* @token to %LIVEUPDATE_IOCTL_FD_RESTORE. The kernel uses the @token
> + * to find the preserved state and, on success, populates the @fd field with a
> + * new file descriptor referring to the fully restored resource.
> + */
> +struct liveupdate_fd {
> + int fd;
> + __u32 flags;
> + __u64 token;
> +};
Consider using __aligned_u64 here for size-based versioning.
> +
> +/* The ioctl type, documented in ioctl-number.rst */
> +#define LIVEUPDATE_IOCTL_TYPE 0xBA
...
> +/**
> + * LIVEUPDATE_IOCTL_EVENT_PREPARE - Initiate preparation phase and trigger state
> + * saving.
This (and others below) is more a command than an event IMHO. Maybe just
LIVEUPDATE_IOCTL_PREPARE?
> + * Argument: None.
> + *
> + * Initiates the live update preparation phase. This action corresponds to
> + * the internal %LIVEUPDATE_PREPARE kernel event and can also be triggered
This action is a reason for LIVEUPDATE_PREPARE event, isn't it?
The same applies to other IOCTL_EVENTS
> + * by writing '1' to ``/sys/kernel/liveupdate/prepare``. This typically
> + * triggers the main state saving process for items marked via the PRESERVE
> + * ioctls. This occurs *before* the main "blackout window", while user
> + * applications (e.g., VMs) may still be running. Kernel subsystems
> + * receiving the %LIVEUPDATE_PREPARE event should serialize necessary state.
> + * This command does not transfer data.
I'm not sure I follow what this sentence means.
--
Sincerely yours,
Mike.
