[PATCH v3 0/5] Support the FEAT_HDBSS introduced in Armv9.5

Tian Zheng posted 5 patches 1 month, 2 weeks ago
Documentation/virt/kvm/api.rst       |  16 +++++
arch/arm64/include/asm/cpufeature.h  |   5 ++
arch/arm64/include/asm/esr.h         |   7 ++
arch/arm64/include/asm/kvm_host.h    |  17 +++++
arch/arm64/include/asm/kvm_mmu.h     |   1 +
arch/arm64/include/asm/kvm_pgtable.h |   4 ++
arch/arm64/include/asm/sysreg.h      |  11 +++
arch/arm64/kernel/cpufeature.c       |  12 ++++
arch/arm64/kvm/arm.c                 | 102 +++++++++++++++++++++++++++
arch/arm64/kvm/hyp/pgtable.c         |   6 ++
arch/arm64/kvm/hyp/vhe/switch.c      |  19 +++++
arch/arm64/kvm/mmu.c                 |  70 ++++++++++++++++++
arch/arm64/kvm/reset.c               |   3 +
arch/arm64/tools/cpucaps             |   1 +
arch/arm64/tools/sysreg              |  29 ++++++++
include/uapi/linux/kvm.h             |   1 +
tools/include/uapi/linux/kvm.h       |   1 +
17 files changed, 305 insertions(+)
[PATCH v3 0/5] Support the FEAT_HDBSS introduced in Armv9.5
Posted by Tian Zheng 1 month, 2 weeks ago
This series of patches add support to the Hardware Dirty state tracking
Structure(HDBSS) feature, which is introduced by the ARM architecture
in the DDI0601(ID121123) version.

The HDBSS feature is an extension to the architecture that enhances
tracking translation table descriptors' dirty state, identified as
FEAT_HDBSS. This feature utilizes hardware assistance to achieve dirty
page tracking, aiming to significantly reduce the overhead of scanning
for dirty pages.

The purpose of this feature is to make the execution overhead of live
migration lower to both the guest and the host, compared to existing
approaches (write-protect or search stage 2 tables).

After these patches, users(such as qemu) can use the
KVM_CAP_ARM_HW_DIRTY_STATE_TRACK ioctl to enable or disable the HDBSS
feature before and after the live migration.

v2:
https://lore.kernel.org/linux-arm-kernel/20251121092342.3393318-1-zhengtian10@huawei.com/

v2->v3 changes:
- Remove the ARM64_HDBSS configuration option and ensure this feature
is only enabled in VHE mode.
- Move HDBSS-related variables to the arch-independent portion of the
kvm structure.
- Remove error messages during HDBSS enable/disable operations
- Change HDBSS buffer flushing from handle_exit to vcpu_put,
check_vcpu_requests, and kvm_handle_guest_abort.
- Add fault handling for HDBSS including buffer full, external abort,
and general protection fault (GPF).
- Add support for a 4KB HDBSS buffer size, mapped to the value 0b0000.
- Add a second argument to the ioctl to turn HDBSS on or off.

Tian Zheng (1):
  KVM: arm64: Document HDBSS ioctl

eillon (4):
  arm64/sysreg: Add HDBSS related register information
  KVM: arm64: Add support to set the DBM attr during memory abort
  KVM: arm64: Add support for FEAT_HDBSS
  KVM: arm64: Enable HDBSS support and handle HDBSSF events

 Documentation/virt/kvm/api.rst       |  16 +++++
 arch/arm64/include/asm/cpufeature.h  |   5 ++
 arch/arm64/include/asm/esr.h         |   7 ++
 arch/arm64/include/asm/kvm_host.h    |  17 +++++
 arch/arm64/include/asm/kvm_mmu.h     |   1 +
 arch/arm64/include/asm/kvm_pgtable.h |   4 ++
 arch/arm64/include/asm/sysreg.h      |  11 +++
 arch/arm64/kernel/cpufeature.c       |  12 ++++
 arch/arm64/kvm/arm.c                 | 102 +++++++++++++++++++++++++++
 arch/arm64/kvm/hyp/pgtable.c         |   6 ++
 arch/arm64/kvm/hyp/vhe/switch.c      |  19 +++++
 arch/arm64/kvm/mmu.c                 |  70 ++++++++++++++++++
 arch/arm64/kvm/reset.c               |   3 +
 arch/arm64/tools/cpucaps             |   1 +
 arch/arm64/tools/sysreg              |  29 ++++++++
 include/uapi/linux/kvm.h             |   1 +
 tools/include/uapi/linux/kvm.h       |   1 +
 17 files changed, 305 insertions(+)

--
2.33.0
Re: [PATCH v3 0/5] Support the FEAT_HDBSS introduced in Armv9.5
Posted by Leonardo Bras 1 week, 3 days ago
On Wed, Feb 25, 2026 at 12:04:16PM +0800, Tian Zheng wrote:
> This series of patches add support to the Hardware Dirty state tracking
> Structure(HDBSS) feature, which is introduced by the ARM architecture
> in the DDI0601(ID121123) version.
> 
> The HDBSS feature is an extension to the architecture that enhances
> tracking translation table descriptors' dirty state, identified as
> FEAT_HDBSS. This feature utilizes hardware assistance to achieve dirty
> page tracking, aiming to significantly reduce the overhead of scanning
> for dirty pages.
> 
> The purpose of this feature is to make the execution overhead of live
> migration lower to both the guest and the host, compared to existing
> approaches (write-protect or search stage 2 tables).
> 
> After these patches, users(such as qemu) can use the
> KVM_CAP_ARM_HW_DIRTY_STATE_TRACK ioctl to enable or disable the HDBSS
> feature before and after the live migration.
> 
> v2:
> https://lore.kernel.org/linux-arm-kernel/20251121092342.3393318-1-zhengtian10@huawei.com/
> 
> v2->v3 changes:
> - Remove the ARM64_HDBSS configuration option and ensure this feature
> is only enabled in VHE mode.
> - Move HDBSS-related variables to the arch-independent portion of the
> kvm structure.
> - Remove error messages during HDBSS enable/disable operations
> - Change HDBSS buffer flushing from handle_exit to vcpu_put,
> check_vcpu_requests, and kvm_handle_guest_abort.
> - Add fault handling for HDBSS including buffer full, external abort,
> and general protection fault (GPF).
> - Add support for a 4KB HDBSS buffer size, mapped to the value 0b0000.
> - Add a second argument to the ioctl to turn HDBSS on or off.
> 
> Tian Zheng (1):
>   KVM: arm64: Document HDBSS ioctl
> 
> eillon (4):
>   arm64/sysreg: Add HDBSS related register information
>   KVM: arm64: Add support to set the DBM attr during memory abort
>   KVM: arm64: Add support for FEAT_HDBSS
>   KVM: arm64: Enable HDBSS support and handle HDBSSF events
> 
>  Documentation/virt/kvm/api.rst       |  16 +++++
>  arch/arm64/include/asm/cpufeature.h  |   5 ++
>  arch/arm64/include/asm/esr.h         |   7 ++
>  arch/arm64/include/asm/kvm_host.h    |  17 +++++
>  arch/arm64/include/asm/kvm_mmu.h     |   1 +
>  arch/arm64/include/asm/kvm_pgtable.h |   4 ++
>  arch/arm64/include/asm/sysreg.h      |  11 +++
>  arch/arm64/kernel/cpufeature.c       |  12 ++++
>  arch/arm64/kvm/arm.c                 | 102 +++++++++++++++++++++++++++
>  arch/arm64/kvm/hyp/pgtable.c         |   6 ++
>  arch/arm64/kvm/hyp/vhe/switch.c      |  19 +++++
>  arch/arm64/kvm/mmu.c                 |  70 ++++++++++++++++++
>  arch/arm64/kvm/reset.c               |   3 +
>  arch/arm64/tools/cpucaps             |   1 +
>  arch/arm64/tools/sysreg              |  29 ++++++++
>  include/uapi/linux/kvm.h             |   1 +
>  tools/include/uapi/linux/kvm.h       |   1 +
>  17 files changed, 305 insertions(+)
> 
> --
> 2.33.0
> 


Hi Tian,

I was thinking: maybe instead of putting the HDBSS (and HACDBS) stuff 
across a bunch of KVM files, we should try to focus them all on a single 
arch/arm64/kvm/dirty_bit.c file (plus a header such as 
arch/arm64/include/asm/kvm_dirty_bit.h).

What is your opinion on that?

Thanks!
Leo
Re: [PATCH v3 0/5] Support the FEAT_HDBSS introduced in Armv9.5
Posted by Tian Zheng 1 week, 2 days ago
On 3/31/2026 10:13 PM, Leonardo Bras wrote:
> On Wed, Feb 25, 2026 at 12:04:16PM +0800, Tian Zheng wrote:
>> This series of patches add support to the Hardware Dirty state tracking
>> Structure(HDBSS) feature, which is introduced by the ARM architecture
>> in the DDI0601(ID121123) version.
>>
>> The HDBSS feature is an extension to the architecture that enhances
>> tracking translation table descriptors' dirty state, identified as
>> FEAT_HDBSS. This feature utilizes hardware assistance to achieve dirty
>> page tracking, aiming to significantly reduce the overhead of scanning
>> for dirty pages.
>>
>> The purpose of this feature is to make the execution overhead of live
>> migration lower to both the guest and the host, compared to existing
>> approaches (write-protect or search stage 2 tables).
>>
>> After these patches, users(such as qemu) can use the
>> KVM_CAP_ARM_HW_DIRTY_STATE_TRACK ioctl to enable or disable the HDBSS
>> feature before and after the live migration.
>>
>> v2:
>> https://lore.kernel.org/linux-arm-kernel/20251121092342.3393318-1-zhengtian10@huawei.com/
>>
>> v2->v3 changes:
>> - Remove the ARM64_HDBSS configuration option and ensure this feature
>> is only enabled in VHE mode.
>> - Move HDBSS-related variables to the arch-independent portion of the
>> kvm structure.
>> - Remove error messages during HDBSS enable/disable operations
>> - Change HDBSS buffer flushing from handle_exit to vcpu_put,
>> check_vcpu_requests, and kvm_handle_guest_abort.
>> - Add fault handling for HDBSS including buffer full, external abort,
>> and general protection fault (GPF).
>> - Add support for a 4KB HDBSS buffer size, mapped to the value 0b0000.
>> - Add a second argument to the ioctl to turn HDBSS on or off.
>>
>> Tian Zheng (1):
>>    KVM: arm64: Document HDBSS ioctl
>>
>> eillon (4):
>>    arm64/sysreg: Add HDBSS related register information
>>    KVM: arm64: Add support to set the DBM attr during memory abort
>>    KVM: arm64: Add support for FEAT_HDBSS
>>    KVM: arm64: Enable HDBSS support and handle HDBSSF events
>>
>>   Documentation/virt/kvm/api.rst       |  16 +++++
>>   arch/arm64/include/asm/cpufeature.h  |   5 ++
>>   arch/arm64/include/asm/esr.h         |   7 ++
>>   arch/arm64/include/asm/kvm_host.h    |  17 +++++
>>   arch/arm64/include/asm/kvm_mmu.h     |   1 +
>>   arch/arm64/include/asm/kvm_pgtable.h |   4 ++
>>   arch/arm64/include/asm/sysreg.h      |  11 +++
>>   arch/arm64/kernel/cpufeature.c       |  12 ++++
>>   arch/arm64/kvm/arm.c                 | 102 +++++++++++++++++++++++++++
>>   arch/arm64/kvm/hyp/pgtable.c         |   6 ++
>>   arch/arm64/kvm/hyp/vhe/switch.c      |  19 +++++
>>   arch/arm64/kvm/mmu.c                 |  70 ++++++++++++++++++
>>   arch/arm64/kvm/reset.c               |   3 +
>>   arch/arm64/tools/cpucaps             |   1 +
>>   arch/arm64/tools/sysreg              |  29 ++++++++
>>   include/uapi/linux/kvm.h             |   1 +
>>   tools/include/uapi/linux/kvm.h       |   1 +
>>   17 files changed, 305 insertions(+)
>>
>> --
>> 2.33.0
>>
>
> Hi Tian,
>
> I was thinking: maybe instead of putting the HDBSS (and HACDBS) stuff
> across a bunch of KVM files, we should try to focus them all on a single
> arch/arm64/kvm/dirty_bit.c file (plus a header such as
> arch/arm64/include/asm/kvm_dirty_bit.h).
>
> What is your opinion on that?
>
> Thanks!
> Leo


Sorry for the late reply. Yes, I had the same thought before. In the 
next version, I will

move all the HDBSS-related content into the same file, such as 
arch/arm64/kvm/dirty_bit.c

and arch/arm64/include/asm/kvm_dirty_bit.h.


Tian


>
>
Re: [PATCH v3 0/5] Support the FEAT_HDBSS introduced in Armv9.5
Posted by Leonardo Bras 1 week, 1 day ago
On Thu, Apr 02, 2026 at 10:40:37AM +0800, Tian Zheng wrote:
> 
> On 3/31/2026 10:13 PM, Leonardo Bras wrote:
> > On Wed, Feb 25, 2026 at 12:04:16PM +0800, Tian Zheng wrote:
> > > This series of patches add support to the Hardware Dirty state tracking
> > > Structure(HDBSS) feature, which is introduced by the ARM architecture
> > > in the DDI0601(ID121123) version.
> > > 
> > > The HDBSS feature is an extension to the architecture that enhances
> > > tracking translation table descriptors' dirty state, identified as
> > > FEAT_HDBSS. This feature utilizes hardware assistance to achieve dirty
> > > page tracking, aiming to significantly reduce the overhead of scanning
> > > for dirty pages.
> > > 
> > > The purpose of this feature is to make the execution overhead of live
> > > migration lower to both the guest and the host, compared to existing
> > > approaches (write-protect or search stage 2 tables).
> > > 
> > > After these patches, users(such as qemu) can use the
> > > KVM_CAP_ARM_HW_DIRTY_STATE_TRACK ioctl to enable or disable the HDBSS
> > > feature before and after the live migration.
> > > 
> > > v2:
> > > https://lore.kernel.org/linux-arm-kernel/20251121092342.3393318-1-zhengtian10@huawei.com/
> > > 
> > > v2->v3 changes:
> > > - Remove the ARM64_HDBSS configuration option and ensure this feature
> > > is only enabled in VHE mode.
> > > - Move HDBSS-related variables to the arch-independent portion of the
> > > kvm structure.
> > > - Remove error messages during HDBSS enable/disable operations
> > > - Change HDBSS buffer flushing from handle_exit to vcpu_put,
> > > check_vcpu_requests, and kvm_handle_guest_abort.
> > > - Add fault handling for HDBSS including buffer full, external abort,
> > > and general protection fault (GPF).
> > > - Add support for a 4KB HDBSS buffer size, mapped to the value 0b0000.
> > > - Add a second argument to the ioctl to turn HDBSS on or off.
> > > 
> > > Tian Zheng (1):
> > >    KVM: arm64: Document HDBSS ioctl
> > > 
> > > eillon (4):
> > >    arm64/sysreg: Add HDBSS related register information
> > >    KVM: arm64: Add support to set the DBM attr during memory abort
> > >    KVM: arm64: Add support for FEAT_HDBSS
> > >    KVM: arm64: Enable HDBSS support and handle HDBSSF events
> > > 
> > >   Documentation/virt/kvm/api.rst       |  16 +++++
> > >   arch/arm64/include/asm/cpufeature.h  |   5 ++
> > >   arch/arm64/include/asm/esr.h         |   7 ++
> > >   arch/arm64/include/asm/kvm_host.h    |  17 +++++
> > >   arch/arm64/include/asm/kvm_mmu.h     |   1 +
> > >   arch/arm64/include/asm/kvm_pgtable.h |   4 ++
> > >   arch/arm64/include/asm/sysreg.h      |  11 +++
> > >   arch/arm64/kernel/cpufeature.c       |  12 ++++
> > >   arch/arm64/kvm/arm.c                 | 102 +++++++++++++++++++++++++++
> > >   arch/arm64/kvm/hyp/pgtable.c         |   6 ++
> > >   arch/arm64/kvm/hyp/vhe/switch.c      |  19 +++++
> > >   arch/arm64/kvm/mmu.c                 |  70 ++++++++++++++++++
> > >   arch/arm64/kvm/reset.c               |   3 +
> > >   arch/arm64/tools/cpucaps             |   1 +
> > >   arch/arm64/tools/sysreg              |  29 ++++++++
> > >   include/uapi/linux/kvm.h             |   1 +
> > >   tools/include/uapi/linux/kvm.h       |   1 +
> > >   17 files changed, 305 insertions(+)
> > > 
> > > --
> > > 2.33.0
> > > 
> > 
> > Hi Tian,
> > 
> > I was thinking: maybe instead of putting the HDBSS (and HACDBS) stuff
> > across a bunch of KVM files, we should try to focus them all on a single
> > arch/arm64/kvm/dirty_bit.c file (plus a header such as
> > arch/arm64/include/asm/kvm_dirty_bit.h).
> > 
> > What is your opinion on that?
> > 
> > Thanks!
> > Leo
> 
> 
> Sorry for the late reply. Yes, I had the same thought before. In the next
> version, I will
> 
> move all the HDBSS-related content into the same file, such as
> arch/arm64/kvm/dirty_bit.c
> 
> and arch/arm64/include/asm/kvm_dirty_bit.h.
> 
> 
> Tian
> 
> 
> > 
> > 


Awesome! Then I will work my HACDBS enablement that way as well.

Thanks!
Leo