2014-07-23 16:25:28

by Milosz Tanski

Subject: futex: wake explicit / wait on multiple memory locations

I'm using futexes to control scheduling for a userspace application with multiple queues. There's a global work queue and a specific pre-thread queue. And I would like to have a choice between waking up any thread or a specific thread.

Is there are mechanism in the futex API by which I can control which thread to wake up. Or alternatively a mechanism by which have a thread wait on multiple futex memory locations?

Thanks in advance,
- Milosz

2014-07-23 22:32:29

by Davidlohr Bueso

Subject: Re: futex: wake explicit / wait on multiple memory locations

On Wed, 2014-07-23 at 12:25 -0400, Milosz Tanski wrote:
> I'm using futexes to control scheduling for a userspace application with multiple queues.
> There's a global work queue and a specific pre-thread queue. And I would like to have a
> choice between waking up any thread or a specific thread.

I'm afraid not: the api does not have a place for such an argument:

FUTEX_WAKE
This operation wakes at most val processes waiting
on this futex address (i.e., inside FUTEX_WAIT).
The arguments timeout, uaddr2 and val3 are ignored.

In any case, when you start with this sort of thing it starts to get
messy, real fast. You have to play games with the number of tasks to
wakeup in a single futex wake call vs the "chosen" task(s).

> Is there are mechanism in the futex API by which I can control which thread to wake up.

Nope. FIFO and rt tasks always in front.

Thanks,
Davidlohr