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> [Matthew Wilcox] said: why not just use threads? The answer was that "mmap_lock sucks". Not a good enough answer IMHO. I've hit problems with mmap_lock scala
by scottlamb 4y ago
> [Matthew Wilcox] said: why not just use threads? The answer was that "mmap_lock sucks".
Not a good enough answer IMHO. I've hit problems with mmap_lock scalability too, but my understanding is there's ongoing efforts to solve them via Maple Trees. I'd so much rather have threads Just Work Well than a Linux-only, half-process half-thread interface that almost no one will use.
- cyphar 4y agoMatthew Wilcox is one of the people who developed Maple Trees in the first place[1]. I don't particularly like the sound of this interface either but if he views the mmap_lock issue to be that fundamental then he's one of the few people who would know. [1]: https://lwn.net/Articles/845507/ https://lwn.net/Articles/845507/
- scottlamb 4y agoOh, thanks. I feel silly for not associating his name with that. > if he views the mmap_lock issue to be that fundamental then he's one of the few people who would know. Very disappointing news if so. :-( But I don't see anything in this recent article to suggest that it's unsolvable. https://lwn.net/Articles/893906/ https://lwn.net/Articles/893906/ It'd be a shame to carry around a weird extra interface indefinitely because mmap_lock scalability didn't happen quite soon enough.