From 09ec5a7a41d951ad7a1ef61391896df4a1f5fc18 Mon Sep 17 00:00:00 2001 From: Jorge Aparicio Date: Sun, 21 Apr 2019 20:45:24 +0200 Subject: [PATCH 1/3] document internals note that this assumes that RFC #155 has been implemented --- book/en/src/SUMMARY.md | 7 +- book/en/src/internals.md | 5 + book/en/src/internals/access.md | 158 ++++++ book/en/src/internals/ceilings.md | 79 ++- book/en/src/internals/critical-sections.md | 515 ++++++++++++++++++ .../src/internals/interrupt-configuration.md | 74 +++ book/en/src/internals/late-resources.md | 115 ++++ book/en/src/internals/non-reentrancy.md | 84 +++ book/en/src/internals/tasks.md | 398 +++++++++++++- book/en/src/internals/timer-queue.md | 337 +++++++++++- 10 files changed, 1767 insertions(+), 5 deletions(-) create mode 100644 book/en/src/internals/access.md create mode 100644 book/en/src/internals/critical-sections.md create mode 100644 book/en/src/internals/interrupt-configuration.md create mode 100644 book/en/src/internals/late-resources.md create mode 100644 book/en/src/internals/non-reentrancy.md diff --git a/book/en/src/SUMMARY.md b/book/en/src/SUMMARY.md index bde2b8d270..873410a52e 100644 --- a/book/en/src/SUMMARY.md +++ b/book/en/src/SUMMARY.md @@ -10,6 +10,11 @@ - [Starting a new project](./by-example/new.md) - [Tips & tricks](./by-example/tips.md) - [Under the hood](./internals.md) + - [Interrupt configuration](./internals/interrupt-configuration.md) + - [Non-reentrancy](./internals/non-reentrancy.md) + - [Access control](./internals/access.md) + - [Late resources](./internals/late-resources.md) + - [Critical sections](./internals/critical-sections.md) - [Ceiling analysis](./internals/ceilings.md) - - [Task dispatcher](./internals/tasks.md) + - [Software tasks](./internals/tasks.md) - [Timer queue](./internals/timer-queue.md) diff --git a/book/en/src/internals.md b/book/en/src/internals.md index 0ef55e62e6..15da97a8d7 100644 --- a/book/en/src/internals.md +++ b/book/en/src/internals.md @@ -4,3 +4,8 @@ This section describes the internals of the RTFM framework at a *high level*. Low level details like the parsing and code generation done by the procedural macro (`#[app]`) will not be explained here. The focus will be the analysis of the user specification and the data structures used by the runtime. + +We highly suggest that you read the embedonomicon section on [concurrency] +before you dive into this material. + +[concurrency]: https://github.com/rust-embedded/embedonomicon/pull/48 diff --git a/book/en/src/internals/access.md b/book/en/src/internals/access.md new file mode 100644 index 0000000000..513cef1b5a --- /dev/null +++ b/book/en/src/internals/access.md @@ -0,0 +1,158 @@ +# Access control + +One of the core foundations of RTFM is access control. Controlling which parts +of the program can access which static variables is instrumental to enforcing +memory safety. + +Static variables are used to share state between interrupt handlers, or between +interrupts handlers and the bottom execution context, `main`. In normal Rust +code it's hard to have fine grained control over which functions can access a +static variable because static variables can be accessed from any function that +resides in the same scope in which they are declared. Modules give some control +over how a static variable can be accessed by they are not flexible enough. + +To achieve the fine-grained access control where tasks can only access the +static variables (resources) that they have specified in their RTFM attribute +the RTFM framework performs a source code level transformation. This +transformation consists of placing the resources (static variables) specified by +the user *inside* a `const` item and the user code *outside* the `const` item. +This makes it impossible for the user code to refer to these static variables. + +Access to the resources is then given to each task using a `Resources` struct +whose fields correspond to the resources the task has access to. There's one +such struct per task and the `Resources` struct is initialized with either a +mutable reference (`&mut`) to the static variables or with a resource proxy (see +section on [critical sections](critical-sections.html)). + +The code below is an example of the kind of source level transformation that +happens behind the scenes: + +``` rust +#[rtfm::app(device = ..)] +const APP: () = { + static mut X: u64: 0; + static mut Y: bool: 0; + + #[init(resources = [Y])] + fn init(c: init::Context) { + // .. user code .. + } + + #[interrupt(binds = UART0, resources = [X])] + fn foo(c: foo::Context) { + // .. user code .. + } + + #[interrupt(binds = UART1, resources = [X, Y])] + fn bar(c: bar::Context) { + // .. user code .. + } + + // .. +}; +``` + +The framework produces codes like this: + +``` rust +fn init(c: init::Context) { + // .. user code .. +} + +fn foo(c: foo::Context) { + // .. user code .. +} + +fn bar(c: bar::Context) { + // .. user code .. +} + +// Public API +pub mod init { + pub struct Context<'a> { + pub resources: Resources<'a>, + // .. + } + + pub struct Resources<'a> { + pub Y: &'a mut bool, + } +} + +pub mod foo { + pub struct Context<'a> { + pub resources: Resources<'a>, + // .. + } + + pub struct Resources<'a> { + pub X: &'a mut u64, + } +} + +pub mod bar { + pub struct Context<'a> { + pub resources: Resources<'a>, + // .. + } + + pub struct Resources<'a> { + pub X: &'a mut u64, + pub Y: &'a mut bool, + } +} + +/// Implementation details +const APP: () = { + // everything inside this `const` item is hidden from user code + + static mut X: u64 = 0; + static mut Y: bool = 0; + + // the real entry point of the program + unsafe fn main() -> ! { + interrupt::disable(); + + // .. + + // call into user code; pass references to the static variables + init(init::Context { + resources: init::Resources { + X: &mut X, + }, + // .. + }); + + // .. + + interrupt::enable(); + + // .. + } + + // interrupt handler that `foo` binds to + #[no_mangle] + unsafe fn UART0() { + // call into user code; pass references to the static variables + foo(foo::Context { + resources: foo::Resources { + X: &mut X, + }, + // .. + }); + } + + // interrupt handler that `bar` binds to + #[no_mangle] + unsafe fn UART1() { + // call into user code; pass references to the static variables + bar(bar::Context { + resources: bar::Resources { + X: &mut X, + Y: &mut Y, + }, + // .. + }); + } +}; +``` diff --git a/book/en/src/internals/ceilings.md b/book/en/src/internals/ceilings.md index 2c645a4d43..c13df537db 100644 --- a/book/en/src/internals/ceilings.md +++ b/book/en/src/internals/ceilings.md @@ -1,3 +1,80 @@ # Ceiling analysis -**TODO** +A resource *priority ceiling*, or just *ceiling*, is the dynamic priority that +any task must have to safely access the resource memory. Ceiling analysis is +relatively simple but critical to the memory safety of RTFM applications. + +To compute the ceiling of a resource we must first collect a list of tasks that +have access to the resource -- as the RTFM framework enforces access control to +resources at compile time it also has access to this information at compile +time. The ceiling of the resource is simply the highest logical priority among +those tasks. + +`init` and `idle` are not proper tasks but they can access resources so they +need to be considered in the ceiling analysis. `idle` is considered as a task +that has a logical priority of `0` whereas `init` is completely omitted from the +analysis -- the reason for that is that `init` never uses (or needs) critical +sections to access static variables. + +In the previous section we showed that a shared resource may appear as a mutable +reference or behind a proxy depending on the task that has access to it. Which +version is presented to the task depends on the task priority and the resource +ceiling. If the task priority is the same as the resource ceiling then the task +gets a mutable reference to the resource memory, otherwise the task gets a +proxy -- this also applies to `idle`. `init` is special: it always gets a +mutable reference to resources. + +An example to illustrate the ceiling analysis: + +``` rust +#[rtfm::app(device = ..)] +const APP: () = { + // accessed by `foo` (prio = 1) and `bar` (prio = 2) + // CEILING = 2 + static mut X: u64 = 0; + + // accessed by `idle` (prio = 0) + // CEILING = 0 + static mut Y: u64 = 0; + + #[init(resources = [X])] + fn init(c: init::Context) { + // mutable reference because this is `init` + let x: &mut u64 = c.resources.X; + + // mutable reference because this is `init` + let y: &mut u64 = c.resources.Y; + + // .. + } + + // PRIORITY = 0 + #[idle(resources = [Y])] + fn idle(c: idle::Context) -> ! { + // mutable reference because priority (0) == resource ceiling (0) + let y: &'static mut u64 = c.resources.Y; + + loop { + // .. + } + } + + #[interrupt(binds = UART0, priority = 1, resources = [X])] + fn foo(c: foo::Context) { + // resource proxy because task priority (1) < resource ceiling (2) + let x: resources::X = c.resources.X; + + // .. + } + + #[interrupt(binds = UART1, priority = 2, resources = [X])] + fn bar(c: foo::Context) { + // mutable reference because task priority (2) == resource ceiling (2) + let x: &mut u64 = c.resources.X; + + // .. + } + + // .. +}; +``` diff --git a/book/en/src/internals/critical-sections.md b/book/en/src/internals/critical-sections.md new file mode 100644 index 0000000000..54f02ac829 --- /dev/null +++ b/book/en/src/internals/critical-sections.md @@ -0,0 +1,515 @@ +# Critical sections + +When a resource (static variable) is shared between two, or more, tasks that run +at different priorities some form of mutual exclusion is required to access the +memory in a data race free manner. In RTFM we use priority-based critical +sections to guarantee mutual exclusion (see the [Immediate Priority Ceiling +Protocol][ipcp]). + +[ipcp]: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Priority_ceiling_protocol + +The critical section consists of temporarily raising the *dynamic* priority of +the task. While a task is within this critical section all the other tasks that +may request the resource are *not allowed to start*. + +How high must the dynamic priority be to ensure mutual exclusion on a particular +resource? The [ceiling analysis](ceiling-analysis.html) is in charge of +answering that question and will be discussed in the next section. This section +will focus on the implementation of the critical section. + +## Resource proxy + +For simplicity, let's look at a resource shared by two tasks that run at +different priorities. Clearly one of the task can preempt the other; to prevent +a data race the *lower priority* task must use a critical section when it needs +to modify the shared memory. On the other hand, the higher priority task can +directly modify the shared memory because it can't be preempted by the lower +priority task. To enforce the use of a critical section on the lower priority +task we give it a *resource proxy*, whereas we give a mutable reference +(`&mut-`) to the higher priority task. + +The example below shows the different types handed out to each task: + +``` rust +#[rtfm::app(device = ..)] +const APP: () = { + static mut X: u64 = 0; + + #[interrupt(binds = UART0, priority = 1, resources = [X])] + fn foo(c: foo::Context) { + // resource proxy + let mut x: resources::X = c.resources.X; + + x.lock(|x: &mut u64| { + // critical section + *x += 1 + }); + } + + #[interrupt(binds = UART1, priority = 2, resources = [X])] + fn bar(c: foo::Context) { + let mut x: &mut u64 = c.resources.X; + + *x += 1; + } + + // .. +}; +``` + +Now let's see how these types are created by the framework. + +``` rust +fn foo(c: foo::Context) { + // .. user code .. +} + +fn bar(c: bar::Context) { + // .. user code .. +} + +pub mod resources { + pub struct X { + // .. + } +} + +pub mod foo { + pub struct Resources { + pub X: resources::X, + } + + pub struct Context { + pub resources: Resources, + // .. + } +} + +pub mod bar { + pub struct Resources<'a> { + pub X: rtfm::Exclusive<'a, u64>, // newtype over `&'a mut u64` + } + + pub struct Context { + pub resources: Resources, + // .. + } +} + +const APP: () = { + static mut X: u64 = 0; + + impl rtfm::Mutex for resources::X { + type T = u64; + + fn lock(&mut self, f: impl FnOnce(&mut u64) -> R) -> R { + // we'll check this in detail later + } + } + + #[no_mangle] + unsafe fn UART0() { + foo(foo::Context { + resources: foo::Resources { + X: resources::X::new(/* .. */), + }, + // .. + }) + } + + #[no_mangle] + unsafe fn UART1() { + bar(bar::Context { + resources: bar::Resources { + X: rtfm::Exclusive(&mut X), + }, + // .. + }) + } +}; +``` + +## `lock` + +Let's now zoom into the critical section itself. In this example, we have to +raise the dynamic priority to at least `2` to prevent a data race. On the +Cortex-M architecture the dynamic priority can be changed by writing to the +`BASEPRI` register. + +The semantics of the `BASEPRI` register are as follows: + +- Writing a value of `0` to `BASEPRI` disables its functionality. +- Writing a non-zero value to `BASEPRI` changes the priority level required for + interrupt preemption. However, this only has an effect when the written value + is *lower* than the priority level of current execution context, but note that + a lower hardware priority level means higher logical priority + +Thus the dynamic priority at any point in time can be computed as + +``` rust +dynamic_priority = max(hw2logical(BASEPRI), hw2logical(static_priority)) +``` + +Where `static_priority` is the priority programmed in the NVIC for the current +interrupt, or a logical `0` when the current context is `idle`. + +In this particular example we could implement the critical section as follows: + +> **NOTE:** this is a simplified implementation + +``` rust +impl rtfm::Mutex for resources::X { + type T = u64; + + fn lock(&mut self, f: F) -> R + where + F: FnOnce(&mut u64) -> R, + { + unsafe { + // start of critical section: raise dynamic priority to `2` + asm!("msr BASEPRI, 192" : : : "memory" : "volatile"); + + // run user code within the critical section + let r = f(&mut implementation_defined_name_for_X); + + // end of critical section: restore dynamic priority to its static value (`1`) + asm!("msr BASEPRI, 0" : : : "memory" : "volatile"); + + r + } + } +} +``` + +Here it's important to use the `"memory"` clobber in the `asm!` block. It +prevents the compiler from reordering memory operations across it. This is +important because accessing the variable `X` outside the critical section would +result in a data race. + +It's important to note that the signature of the `lock` method prevents nesting +calls to it. This is required for memory safety, as nested calls would produce +multiple mutable references (`&mut-`) to `X` breaking Rust aliasing rules. See +below: + +``` rust +#[interrupt(binds = UART0, priority = 1, resources = [X])] +fn foo(c: foo::Context) { + // resource proxy + let mut res: resources::X = c.resources.X; + + res.lock(|x: &mut u64| { + res.lock(|alias: &mut u64| { + //~^ error: `res` has already been mutably borrowed + // .. + }); + }); +} +``` + +## Nesting + +Nesting calls to `lock` on the *same* resource must be rejected by the compiler +for memory safety but nesting `lock` calls on *different* resources is a valid +operation. In that case we want to make sure that nesting critical sections +never results in lowering the dynamic priority, as that would be unsound, and we +also want to optimize the number of writes to the `BASEPRI` register and +compiler fences. To that end we'll track the dynamic priority of the task using +a stack variable and use that to decide whether to write to `BASEPRI` or not. In +practice, the stack variable will be optimized away by the compiler but it still +provides extra information to the compiler. + +Consider this program: + +``` rust +#[rtfm::app(device = ..)] +const APP: () = { + static mut X: u64 = 0; + static mut Y: u64 = 0; + + #[init] + fn init() { + rtfm::pend(Interrupt::UART0); + } + + #[interrupt(binds = UART0, priority = 1, resources = [X, Y])] + fn foo(c: foo::Context) { + let mut x = c.resources.X; + let mut y = c.resources.Y; + + y.lock(|y| { + *y += 1; + + *x.lock(|x| { + x += 1; + }); + + *y += 1; + }); + + // mid-point + + x.lock(|x| { + *x += 1; + + y.lock(|y| { + *y += 1; + }); + + *x += 1; + }) + } + + #[interrupt(binds = UART1, priority = 2, resources = [X])] + fn bar(c: foo::Context) { + // .. + } + + #[interrupt(binds = UART2, priority = 3, resources = [Y])] + fn baz(c: foo::Context) { + // .. + } + + // .. +}; +``` + +The code generated by the framework looks like this: + +``` rust +// omitted: user code + +pub mod resources { + pub struct X<'a> { + priority: &'a Cell, + } + + impl<'a> X<'a> { + pub unsafe fn new(priority: &'a Cell) -> Self { + X { priority } + } + + pub unsafe fn priority(&self) -> &Cell { + self.priority + } + } + + // repeat for `Y` +} + +pub mod foo { + pub struct Context { + pub resources: Resources, + // .. + } + + pub struct Resources<'a> { + pub X: resources::X<'a>, + pub Y: resources::Y<'a>, + } +} + +const APP: () = { + #[no_mangle] + unsafe fn UART0() { + // the static priority of this interrupt (as specified by the user) + const PRIORITY: u8 = 1; + + // take a snashot of the BASEPRI + let initial: u8; + asm!("mrs $0, BASEPRI" : "=r"(initial) : : : "volatile"); + + let priority = Cell::new(PRIORITY); + foo(foo::Context { + resources: foo::Resources::new(&priority), + // .. + }); + + // roll back the BASEPRI to the snapshot value we took before + asm!("msr BASEPRI, $0" : : "r"(initial) : : "volatile"); + } + + // similarly for `UART1` + + impl<'a> rtfm::Mutex for resources::X<'a> { + type T = u64; + + fn lock(&mut self, f: impl FnOnce(&mut u64) -> R) -> R { + unsafe { + // the priority ceiling of this resource + const CEILING: u8 = 2; + + let current = self.priority().get(); + if current < CEILING { + // raise dynamic priority + self.priority().set(CEILING); + let hw = logical2hw(CEILING); + asm!("msr BASEPRI, $0" : : "r"(hw) : "memory" : "volatile"); + + let r = f(&mut X); + + // restore dynamic priority + let hw = logical2hw(current); + asm!("msr BASEPRI, $0" : : "r"(hw) : "memory" : "volatile"); + self.priority().set(current); + + r + } else { + // dynamic priority is high enough + f(&mut X) + } + } + } + } + + // repeat for `Y` +}; +``` + +At the end the compiler will optimize the function `foo` into something like +this: + +``` rust +fn foo(c: foo::Context) { + // NOTE: BASEPRI contains the value `0` (its reset value) at this point + + // raise dynamic priority to `3` + unsafe { asm!("msr BASEPRI, 160" : : : "memory" : "volatile") } + + // the two operations on `Y` are merged into one + Y += 2; + + // BASEPRI is not modified to access `X` because the dynamic priority is high enough + X += 1; + + // lower (restore) the dynamic priority to `1` + unsafe { asm!("msr BASEPRI, 224" : : : "memory" : "volatile") } + + // mid-point + + // raise dynamic priority to `2` + unsafe { asm!("msr BASEPRI, 192" : : : "memory" : "volatile") } + + X += 1; + + // raise dynamic priority to `3` + unsafe { asm!("msr BASEPRI, 160" : : : "memory" : "volatile") } + + Y += 1; + + // lower (restore) the dynamic priority to `2` + unsafe { asm!("msr BASEPRI, 192" : : : "memory" : "volatile") } + + // NOTE: it would be sound to merge this operation on X with the previous one but + // compiler fences are coarse grained and prevent such optimization + X += 1; + + // lower (restore) the dynamic priority to `1` + unsafe { asm!("msr BASEPRI, 224" : : : "memory" : "volatile") } + + // NOTE: BASEPRI contains the value `224` at this point + // the UART0 handler will restore the value to `0` before returning +} +``` + +## The BASEPRI invariant + +An invariant that the RTFM framework has to preserve is that the value of the +BASEPRI at the start of an *interrupt* handler must be the same value it has +when the interrupt handler returns. BASEPRI may change during the execution of +the interrupt handler but running an interrupt handler from start to finish +should not result in an observable change of BASEPRI. + +This invariant needs to be preserved to avoid raising the dynamic priority of a +handler through preemption. This is best observed in the following example: + +``` rust +#[rtfm::app(device = ..)] +const APP: () = { + static mut X: u64 = 0; + + #[init] + fn init() { + // `foo` will run right after `init` returns + rtfm::pend(Interrupt::UART0); + } + + #[task(binds = UART0, priority = 1)] + fn foo() { + // BASEPRI is `0` at this point; the dynamic priority is currently `1` + + // `bar` will preempt `foo` at this point + rtfm::pend(Interrupt::UART1); + + // BASEPRI is `192` at this point (due to a bug); the dynamic priority is now `2` + // this function returns to `idle` + } + + #[task(binds = UART1, priority = 2, resources = [X])] + fn bar() { + // BASEPRI is `0` (dynamic priority = 2) + + X.lock(|x| { + // BASEPRI is raised to `160` (dynamic priority = 3) + + // .. + }); + + // BASEPRI is restored to `192` (dynamic priority = 2) + } + + #[idle] + fn idle() -> ! { + // BASEPRI is `192` (due to a bug); dynamic priority = 2 + + // this has no effect due to the BASEPRI value + // the task `foo` will never be executed again + rtfm::pend(Interrupt::UART0); + + loop { + // .. + } + } + + #[task(binds = UART2, priority = 3, resources = [X])] + fn baz() { + // .. + } + +}; +``` + +IMPORTANT: let's say we *forget* to roll back `BASEPRI` in `UART1` -- this would +be a bug in the RTFM code generator. + +``` rust +// code generated by RTFM + +const APP: () = { + // .. + + #[no_mangle] + unsafe fn UART1() { + // the static priority of this interrupt (as specified by the user) + const PRIORITY: u8 = 2; + + // take a snashot of the BASEPRI + let initial: u8; + asm!("mrs $0, BASEPRI" : "=r"(initial) : : : "volatile"); + + let priority = Cell::new(PRIORITY); + bar(bar::Context { + resources: bar::Resources::new(&priority), + // .. + }); + + // BUG: FORGOT to roll back the BASEPRI to the snapshot value we took before + // asm!("msr BASEPRI, $0" : : "r"(initial) : : "volatile"); + } +}; +``` + +The consequence is that `idle` will run at a dynamic priority of `2` and in fact +the system will never again run at a dynamic priority lower than `2`. This +doesn't compromise the memory safety of the program but affects task scheduling: +in this particular case tasks with a priority of `1` will never get a chance to +run. diff --git a/book/en/src/internals/interrupt-configuration.md b/book/en/src/internals/interrupt-configuration.md new file mode 100644 index 0000000000..b34b3089a6 --- /dev/null +++ b/book/en/src/internals/interrupt-configuration.md @@ -0,0 +1,74 @@ +# Interrupt configuration + +Interrupts are core to the operation of RTFM applications. Correctly setting +interrupt priorities and ensuring they remain fixed at runtime is a requisite +for the memory safety of the application. + +The RTFM framework exposes interrupt priorities as something that is declared at +compile time. However, this static configuration must be programmed into the +relevant registers during the initialization of the application. The interrupt +configuration is done before the `init` function runs. + +This example gives you an idea of the code that the RTFM framework runs: + +``` rust +#[rtfm::app(device = ..)] +const APP: () = { + #[init] + fn init(c: init::Context) { + // .. user code .. + } + + #[idle] + fn idle(c: idle::Context) -> ! { + // .. user code .. + } + + #[interrupt(binds = UART0, priority = 2)] + fn foo(c: foo::Context) { + // .. user code .. + } +}; +``` + +The framework generates an entry point that looks like this: + +``` rust +// the real entry point of the program +#[no_mangle] +unsafe fn main() -> ! { + // transforms a logical priority into a hardware / NVIC priority + fn logical2hw(priority: u8) -> u8 { + // this value comes from the device crate + const NVIC_PRIO_BITS: u8 = ..; + + // the NVIC encodes priority in the higher bits of a bit + // also a bigger numbers means lower priority + ((1 << NVIC_PRIORITY_BITS) - priority) << (8 - NVIC_PRIO_BITS) + } + + cortex_m::interrupt::disable(); + + let mut core = cortex_m::Peripheral::steal(); + + core.NVIC.enable(Interrupt::UART0); + + // value specified by the user + let uart0_prio = 2; + + // check at compile time that the specified priority is within the supported range + let _ = [(); (1 << NVIC_PRIORITY_BITS) - (uart0_prio as usize)]; + + core.NVIC.set_priority(Interrupt::UART0, logical2hw(uart0_prio)); + + // call into user code + init(/* .. */); + + // .. + + cortex_m::interrupt::enable(); + + // call into user code + idle(/* .. */) +} +``` diff --git a/book/en/src/internals/late-resources.md b/book/en/src/internals/late-resources.md new file mode 100644 index 0000000000..71157f288c --- /dev/null +++ b/book/en/src/internals/late-resources.md @@ -0,0 +1,115 @@ +# Late resources + +Some resources are initialized at runtime after the `init` function returns. +It's important that these resources (static variables) are fully initialized +before tasks are allowed to run, that is they must be initialized while +interrupts are disabled. + +The example below shows the kind of code that the framework generates to +initialize late resources. + +``` rust +#[rtfm::app(device = ..)] +const APP: () = { + // late resource + static mut X: Thing = {}; + + #[init] + fn init() -> init::LateResources { + // .. + + init::LateResources { + X: Thing::new(..), + } + } + + #[task(binds = UART0, resources = [X])] + fn foo(c: foo::Context) { + let x: &mut Thing = c.resources.X; + + x.frob(); + + // .. + } + + // .. +}; +``` + +The code generated by the framework looks like this: + +``` rust +fn init(c: init::Context) -> init::LateResources { + // .. user code .. +} + +fn foo(c: foo::Context) { + // .. user code .. +} + +// Public API +pub mod init { + pub struct LateResources { + pub X: Thing, + } + + // .. +} + +pub mod foo { + pub struct Resources<'a> { + pub X: &'a mut Thing, + } + + pub struct Context<'a> { + pub resources: Resources<'a>, + // .. + } +} + +/// Implementation details +const APP: () = { + // uninitialized static + static mut X: MaybeUninit = MaybeUninit::uninit(); + + #[no_mangle] + unsafe fn main() -> ! { + cortex_m::interrupt::disable(); + + // .. + + let late = init(..); + + // initialization of late resources + X.write(late.X); + + cortex_m::interrupt::enable(); //~ compiler fence + + // exceptions, interrupts and tasks can preempt `main` at this point + + idle(..) + } + + #[no_mangle] + unsafe fn UART0() { + foo(foo::Context { + resources: foo::Resources { + // `X` has been initialized at this point + X: &mut *X.as_mut_ptr(), + }, + // .. + }) + } +}; +``` + +An important detail here is that `interrupt::enable` behaves like a *compiler +fence*, which prevents the compiler from reordering the write to `X` to *after* +`interrupt::enable`. If the compiler were to do that kind of reordering there +would be a data race between that write and whatever operation `foo` performs on +`X`. + +Architectures with more complex instruction pipelines may need a memory barrier +(`atomic::fence`) instead of a compiler fence to fully flush the write operation +before interrupts are re-enabled. The ARM Cortex-M architecture doesn't need a +memory barrier in single-core context. diff --git a/book/en/src/internals/non-reentrancy.md b/book/en/src/internals/non-reentrancy.md new file mode 100644 index 0000000000..408a012e55 --- /dev/null +++ b/book/en/src/internals/non-reentrancy.md @@ -0,0 +1,84 @@ +# Non-reentrancy + +In RTFM, tasks handlers are *not* reentrant. Reentering a task handler can break +Rust aliasing rules and lead to *undefined behavior*. A task handler can be +reentered in one of two ways: in software or by hardware. + +## In software + +To reenter a task handler in software its underlying interrupt handler must be +invoked using FFI (see example below). FFI requires `unsafe` code so end users +are discouraged from directly invoking an interrupt handler. + +``` rust +#[rtfm::app(device = ..)] +const APP: () = { + static mut X: u64 = 0; + + #[init] + fn init(c: init::Context) { .. } + + #[interrupt(binds = UART0, resources = [X])] + fn foo(c: foo::Context) { + let x: &mut u64 = c.resources.X; + + *x = 1; + + //~ `bar` can preempt `foo` at this point + + *x = 2; + + if *x == 2 { + // something + } + } + + #[interrupt(binds = UART1, priority = 2)] + fn bar(c: foo::Context) { + extern "C" { + fn UART0(); + } + + // this interrupt handler will invoke task handler `foo` resulting + // in mutable aliasing of the static variable `X` + unsafe { UART0() } + } +}; +``` + +The RTFM framework must generate the interrupt handler code that calls the user +defined task handlers. We are careful in making these handlers `unsafe` and / or +impossible to call from user code. + +The above example expands into: + +``` rust +fn foo(c: foo::Context) { + // .. user code .. +} + +fn bar(c: bar::Context) { + // .. user code .. +} + +const APP: () = { + // everything in this block is not visible to user code + + #[no_mangle] + unsafe fn USART0() { + foo(..); + } + + #[no_mangle] + unsafe fn USART1() { + bar(..); + } +}; +``` + +## By hardware + +A task handler can also be reentered without software intervention. This can +occur if the same handler is assigned to two or more interrupts in the vector +table but there's no syntax for this kind of configuration in the RTFM +framework. diff --git a/book/en/src/internals/tasks.md b/book/en/src/internals/tasks.md index 85f783fbc3..401da47a05 100644 --- a/book/en/src/internals/tasks.md +++ b/book/en/src/internals/tasks.md @@ -1,3 +1,397 @@ -# Task dispatcher +# Software tasks -**TODO** +RTFM supports software tasks and hardware tasks. Each hardware task is bound to +a different interrupt handler. On the other hand, several software tasks may be +dispatched by the same interrupt handler -- this is done to minimize the number +of interrupts handlers used by the framework. + +The framework groups `spawn`-able tasks by priority level and generates one +*task dispatcher* per priority level. Each task dispatcher runs on a different +interrupt handler and the priority of said interrupt handler is set to match the +priority level of the tasks managed by the dispatcher. + +Each task dispatcher keeps a *queue* of tasks which are *ready* to execute; this +queue is referred to as the *ready queue*. Spawning a software task consists of +adding an entry to this queue and pending the interrupt that runs the +corresponding task dispatcher. Each entry in this queue contains a tag (`enum`) +that identifies the task to execute and a *pointer* to the message passed to the +task. + +The ready queue is a SPSC (Single Producer Single Consumer) lock-free queue. The +task dispatcher owns the consumer endpoint of the queue; the producer endpoint +is treated as a resource shared by the tasks that can `spawn` other tasks. + +## The task dispatcher + +Let's first take a look the code generated by the framework to dispatch tasks. +Consider this example: + +``` rust +#[rtfm::app(device = ..)] +const APP: () = { + // .. + + #[interrupt(binds = UART0, priority = 2, spawn = [bar, baz])] + fn foo(c: foo::Context) { + foo.spawn.bar().ok(); + + foo.spawn.baz(42).ok(); + } + + #[task(capacity = 2, priority = 1)] + fn bar(c: bar::Context) { + // .. + } + + #[task(capacity = 2, priority = 1, resources = [X])] + fn baz(c: baz::Context, input: i32) { + // .. + } + + extern "C" { + fn UART1(); + } +}; +``` + +The framework produces the following task dispatcher which consists of an +interrupt handler and a ready queue: + +``` rust +fn bar(c: bar::Context) { + // .. user code .. +} + +const APP: () = { + use heapless::spsc::Queue; + use cortex_m::register::basepri; + + struct Ready { + task: T, + // .. + } + + /// `spawn`-able tasks that run at priority level `1` + enum T1 { + bar, + baz, + } + + // ready queue of the task dispatcher + // `U4` is a type-level integer that represents the capacity of this queue + static mut RQ1: Queue, U4> = Queue::new(); + + // interrupt handler chosen to dispatch tasks at priority `1` + #[no_mangle] + unsafe UART1() { + // the priority of this interrupt handler + const PRIORITY: u8 = 1; + + let snapshot = basepri::read(); + + while let Some(ready) = RQ1.split().1.dequeue() { + match ready.task { + T1::bar => { + // **NOTE** simplified implementation + + // used to track the dynamic priority + let priority = Cell::new(PRIORITY); + + // call into user code + bar(bar::Context::new(&priority)); + } + + T1::baz => { + // we'll look at `baz` later + } + } + } + + // BASEPRI invariant + basepri::write(snapshot); + } +}; +``` + +## Spawning a task + +The `spawn` API is exposed to the user as the methods of a `Spawn` struct. +There's one `Spawn` struct per task. + +The `Spawn` code generated by the framework for the previous example looks like +this: + +``` rust +mod foo { + // .. + + pub struct Context<'a> { + pub spawn: Spawn<'a>, + // .. + } + + pub struct Spawn<'a> { + // tracks the dyanmic priority of the task + priority: &'a Cell, + } + + impl<'a> Spawn<'a> { + // `unsafe` and hidden because we don't want the user to tamper with it + #[doc(hidden)] + pub unsafe fn priority(&self) -> &Cell { + self.priority + } + } +} + +const APP: () = { + // .. + + // Priority ceiling for the producer endpoint of the `RQ1` + const RQ1_CEILING: u8 = 2; + + // used to track how many more `bar` messages can be enqueued + // `U2` is the capacity of the `bar` task; a max of two instances can be queued + // this queue is filled by the framework before `init` runs + static mut bar_FQ: Queue<(), U2> = Queue::new(); + + // Priority ceiling for the consumer endpoint of `bar_FQ` + const bar_FQ_CEILING: u8 = 2; + + // a priority-based critical section + // + // this run the given closure `f` at a dynamic priority of at least + // `ceiling` + fn lock(priority: &Cell, ceiling: u8, f: impl FnOnce()) { + // .. + } + + impl<'a> foo::Spawn<'a> { + /// Spawns the `bar` task + pub fn bar(&self) -> Result<(), ()> { + unsafe { + match lock(self.priority(), bar_FQ_CEILING, || { + bar_FQ.split().1.dequeue() + }) { + Some(()) => { + lock(self.priority(), RQ1_CEILING, || { + // put the taks in the ready queue + RQ1.split().1.enqueue_unchecked(Ready { + task: T1::bar, + // .. + }) + }); + + // pend the interrupt that runs the task dispatcher + rtfm::pend(Interrupt::UART0); + } + + None => { + // maximum capacity reached; spawn failed + Err(()) + } + } + } + } + } +}; +``` + +Using `bar_FQ` to limit the number of `bar` tasks that can be spawned may seem +like an artificial limitation but it will make more sense when we talk about +task capacities. + +## Messages + +We have omitted how message passing actually works so let's revisit the `spawn` +implementation but this time for task `baz` which receives a `u64` message. + +``` rust +fn baz(c: baz::Context, input: u64) { + // .. user code .. +} + +const APP: () = { + // .. + + // Now we show the full contents of the `Ready` struct + struct Ready { + task: Task, + // message index; used to index the `INPUTS` buffer + index: u8, + } + + // memory reserved to hold messages passed to `baz` + static mut baz_INPUTS: [MaybeUninit; 2] = + [MaybeUninit::uninit(), MaybeUninit::uninit()]; + + // the free queue: used to track free slots in the `baz_INPUTS` array + // this queue is initialized with values `0` and `1` before `init` is executed + static mut baz_FQ: Queue = Queue::new(); + + // Priority ceiling for the consumer endpoint of `baz_FQ` + const baz_FQ_CEILING: u8 = 2; + + impl<'a> foo::Spawn<'a> { + /// Spawns the `baz` task + pub fn baz(&self, message: u64) -> Result<(), u64> { + unsafe { + match lock(self.priority(), baz_FQ_CEILING, || { + baz_FQ.split().1.dequeue() + }) { + Some(index) => { + // NOTE: `index` is an ownining pointer into this buffer + baz_INPUTS[index as usize].write(message); + + lock(self.priority(), RQ1_CEILING, || { + // put the task in the ready queu + RQ1.split().1.enqueue_unchecked(Ready { + task: T1::baz, + index, + }); + }); + + // pend the interrupt that runs the task dispatcher + rtfm::pend(Interrupt::UART0); + } + + None => { + // maximum capacity reached; spawn failed + Err(message) + } + } + } + } + } +}; +``` + +And now let's look at the real implementation of the task dispatcher: + +``` rust +const APP: () = { + // .. + + #[no_mangle] + unsafe UART1() { + const PRIORITY: u8 = 1; + + let snapshot = basepri::read(); + + while let Some(ready) = RQ1.split().1.dequeue() { + match ready.task { + Task::baz => { + // NOTE: `index` is an ownining pointer into this buffer + let input = baz_INPUTS[ready.index as usize].read(); + + // the message has been read out so we can return the slot + // back to the free queue + // (the task dispatcher has exclusive access to the producer + // endpoint of this queue) + baz_FQ.split().0.enqueue_unchecked(ready.index); + + let priority = Cell::new(PRIORITY); + baz(baz::Context::new(&priority), input) + } + + Task::bar => { + // looks just like the `baz` branch + } + + } + } + + // BASEPRI invariant + basepri::write(snapshot); + } +}; +``` + +`INPUTS` plus `FQ`, the free queue, is effectively a memory pool. However, +instead of using the usual *free list* (linked list) to track empty slots +in the `INPUTS` buffer we use a SPSC queue; this lets us reduce the number of +critical sections. In fact, thanks to this choice the task dispatching code is +lock-free. + +## Queue capacity + +The RTFM framework uses several queues like ready queues and free queues. When +the free queue is empty trying to `spawn` a task results in an error; this +condition is checked at runtime. Not all the operations performed by the +framework on these queues check if the queue is empty / full. For example, +returning an slot to the free queue (see the task dispatcher) is unchecked +because there's a fixed number of such slots circulating in the system that's +equal to the capacity of the free queue. Similarly, adding an entry to the ready +queue (see `Spawn`) is unchecked because of the queue capacity chosen by the +framework. + +Users can specify the capacity of software tasks; this capacity is the maximum +number of messages one can post to said task from a higher priority task before +`spawn` returns an error. This user-specified capacity is the capacity of the +free queue of the task (e.g. `foo_FQ`) and also the size of the array that holds +the inputs to the task (e.g. `foo_INPUTS`). + +The capacity of the ready queue (e.g. `RQ1`) is chosen to be the *sum* of the +capacities of all the different tasks managed by the dispatcher; this sum is +also the number of messages the queue will hold in the worst case scenario of +all possible messages being posted before the task dispatcher gets a chance to +run. For this reason, getting a slot from the free queue in any `spawn` +operation implies that the ready queue is not yet full so inserting an entry +into the ready queue can omit the "is it full?" check. + +In our running example the task `bar` takes no input so we could have omitted +both `bar_INPUTS` and `bar_FQ` and let the user post an unbounded number of +messages to this task, but if we did that it would have not be possible to pick +a capacity for `RQ1` that lets us omit the "is it full?" check when spawning a +`baz` task. In the section about the [timer queue](timer-queue.html) we'll see +how the free queue is used by tasks that have no inputs. + +## Ceiling analysis + +The queues internally used by the `spawn` API are treated like normal resources +and included in the ceiling analysis. It's important to note that these are SPSC +queues and that only one of the endpoints is behind a resource; the other +endpoint is owned by a task dispatcher. + +Consider the following example: + +``` rust +#[rtfm::app(device = ..)] +const APP: () = { + #[idle(spawn = [foo, bar])] + fn idle(c: idle::Context) -> ! { + // .. + } + + #[task] + fn foo(c: foo::Context) { + // .. + } + + #[task] + fn bar(c: bar::Context) { + // .. + } + + #[task(priority = 2, spawn = [foo])] + fn baz(c: baz::Context) { + // .. + } + + #[task(priority = 3, spawn = [bar])] + fn quux(c: quux::Context) { + // .. + } +}; +``` + +This is how the ceiling analysis would go: + +- `idle` (prio = 0) and `baz` (prio = 2) contend for the consumer endpoint of + `foo_FQ`; this leads to a priority ceiling of `2`. + +- `idle` (prio = 0) and `quux` (prio = 3) contend for the consumer endpoint of + `bar_FQ`; this leads to a priority ceiling of `3`. + +- `idle` (prio = 0), `baz` (prio = 2) and `quux` (prio = 3) all contend for the + producer endpoint of `RQ1`; this leads to a priority ceiling of `3` diff --git a/book/en/src/internals/timer-queue.md b/book/en/src/internals/timer-queue.md index 7059285244..d57463411a 100644 --- a/book/en/src/internals/timer-queue.md +++ b/book/en/src/internals/timer-queue.md @@ -1,3 +1,338 @@ # Timer queue -**TODO** +The timer queue functionality lets the user schedule tasks to run at some time +in the future. Unsurprisingly, this feature is also implemented using a queue: +a priority queue where the scheduled tasks are kept sorted by earliest scheduled +time. This feature requires a timer capable of setting up timeout interrupts. +The timer is used to trigger an interrupt when the scheduled time of a task is +up; at that point the task is removed from the timer queue and moved into the +appropriate ready queue. + +Let's see how this in implemented in code. Consider the following program: + +``` rust +#[rtfm::app(device = ..)] +const APP: () = { + // .. + + #[task(capacity = 2, schedule = [foo])] + fn foo(c: foo::Context, x: u32) { + // schedule this task to run again in 1M cycles + c.schedule.foo(c.scheduled + Duration::cycles(1_000_000), x + 1).ok(); + } + + extern "C" { + fn UART0(); + } +}; +``` + +## `schedule` + +Let's first look at the `schedule` API. + +``` rust +mod foo { + pub struct Schedule<'a> { + priority: &'a Cell, + } + + impl<'a> Schedule<'a> { + // unsafe and hidden because we don't want the user to tamper with this + #[doc(hidden)] + pub unsafe fn priority(&self) -> &Cell { + self.priority + } + } +} + +const APP: () = { + use rtfm::Instant; + + // all tasks that can be `schedule`-d + enum T { + foo, + } + + struct NotReady { + index: u8, + instant: Instant, + task: T, + } + + // The timer queue is a binary (min) heap of `NotReady` tasks + static mut TQ: TimerQueue = ..; + const TQ_CEILING: u8 = 1; + + static mut foo_FQ: Queue = Queue::new(); + const foo_FQ_CEILING: u8 = 1; + + static mut foo_INPUTS: [MaybeUninit; 2] = + [MaybeUninit::uninit(), MaybeUninit::uninit()]; + + static mut foo_INSTANTS: [MaybeUninit; 2] = + [MaybeUninit::uninit(), MaybeUninit::uninit()]; + + impl<'a> foo::Schedule<'a> { + fn foo(&self, instant: Instant, input: u32) -> Result<(), u32> { + unsafe { + let priority = self.priority(); + if let Some(index) = lock(priority, foo_FQ_CEILING, || { + foo_FQ.split().1.dequeue() + }) { + // `index` is an owning pointer into these buffers + foo_INSTANTS[index as usize].write(instant); + foo_INPUTS[index as usize].write(input); + + let nr = NotReady { + index, + instant, + task: T::foo, + }; + + lock(priority, TQ_CEILING, || { + TQ.enqueue_unchecked(nr); + }); + } else { + // No space left to store the input / instant + Err(input) + } + } + } + } +}; +``` + +This looks very similar to the `Spawn` implementation. In fact, the same +`INPUTS` buffer and free queue (`FQ`) are shared between the `spawn` and +`schedule` APIs. The main difference between the two is that `schedule` also +stores the `Instant` at which the task was scheduled to run in a separate buffer +(`foo_INSTANTS` in this case). + +`TimerQueue::enqueue_unchecked` does a bit more work that just adding the entry +into a min-heap: it also pends the system timer interrupt (`SysTick`) if the new +entry ended up first in the queue. + +## The system timer + +The system timer interrupt (`SysTick`) takes cares of two things: moving tasks +that have become ready from the timer queue into the right ready queue and +setting up a timeout interrupt to fire when the scheduled time of the next task +is up. + +Let's see the associated code. + +``` rust +const APP: () = { + #[no_mangle] + fn SysTick() { + const PRIORITY: u8 = 1; + + let priority = &Cell::new(PRIORITY); + while let Some(ready) = lock(priority, TQ_CEILING, || TQ.dequeue()) { + match ready.task { + T::foo => { + // move this task into the `RQ1` ready queue + lock(priority, RQ1_CEILING, || { + RQ1.split().0.enqueue_unchecked(Ready { + task: T1::foo, + index: ready.index, + }) + }); + + // pend the task dispatcher + rtfm::pend(Interrupt::UART0); + } + } + } + } +}; +``` + +This looks similar to a task dispatcher except that instead of running the +ready task this only places the task in the corresponding ready queue, that +way it will run at the right priority. + +`TimerQueue::dequeue` will set up a new timeout interrupt when it returns +`None`. This ties in with `TimerQueue::enqueue_unchecked`, which pends this +handler; basically, `enqueue_unchecked` delegates the task of setting up a new +timeout interrupt to the `SysTick` handler. + +## Queue capacity + +The capacity of the timer queue is chosen to be the sum of the capacities of all +`schedule`-able tasks. Like in the case of the ready queues, this means that +once we have claimed a free slot in the `INPUTS` buffer we are guaranteed to be +able to insert the task in the timer queue; this lets us omit runtime checks. + +## System timer priority + +The priority of the system timer can't set by the user; it is chosen by the +framework. To ensure that lower priority tasks don't prevent higher priority +tasks from running we choose the priority of the system timer to be the maximum +of all the `schedule`-able tasks. + +To see why this is required consider the case where two previously scheduled +tasks with priorities `2` and `3` become ready at about the same time but the +lower priority task is moved into the ready queue first. If the system timer +priority was, for example, `1` then after moving the lower priority (`2`) task +it would run to completion (due to it being higher priority than the system +timer) delaying the execution of the higher priority (`3`) task. To prevent +scenarios like these the system timer must match the highest priority of the +`schedule`-able tasks; in this example that would be `3`. + +## Ceiling analysis + +The timer queue is a resource shared between all the tasks that can `schedule` a +task and the `SysTick` handler. Also the `schedule` API contends with the +`spawn` API over the free queues. All this must be considered in the ceiling +analysis. + +To illustrate, consider the following example: + +``` rust +#[rtfm::app(device = ..)] +const APP: () = { + #[task(priority = 3, spawn = [baz])] + fn foo(c: foo::Context) { + // .. + } + + #[task(priority = 2, schedule = [foo, baz])] + fn bar(c: bar::Context) { + // .. + } + + #[task(priority = 1)] + fn baz(c: baz::Context) { + // .. + } +}; +``` + +The ceiling analysis would go like this: + +- `foo` (prio = 3) and `baz` (prio = 1) are `schedule`-able task so the + `SysTick` must run at the highest priority between these two, that is `3`. + +- `foo::Spawn` (prio = 3) and `bar::Schedule` (prio = 2) contend over the + consumer endpoind of `baz_FQ`; this leads to a priority ceiling of `3`. + +- `bar::Schedule` (prio = 2) has exclusive access over the consumer endpoint of +`foo_FQ`; thus the priority ceiling of `foo_FQ` is effectively `2`. + +- `SysTick` (prio = 3) and `bar::Schedule` (prio = 2) contend over the timer + queue `TQ`; this leads to a priority ceiling of `3`. + +- `SysTick` (prio = 3) and `foo::Spawn` (prio = 3) both have lock-free access to + the ready queue `RQ3`, which holds `foo` entries; thus the priority ceiling of + `RQ3` is effectively `3`. + +- The `SysTick` has exclusive access to the ready queue `RQ1`, which holds `baz` + entries; thus the priority ceiling of `RQ1` is effectively `3`. + +## Changes in the `spawn` implementation + +When the "timer-queue" feature is enabled the `spawn` implementation changes a +bit to track the baseline of tasks. As you saw in the `schedule` implementation +there's an `INSTANTS` buffers used to store the time at which a task was +scheduled to run; this `Instant` is read in the task dispatcher and passed to +the user code as part of the task context. + +``` rust +const APP: () = { + // .. + + #[no_mangle] + unsafe UART1() { + const PRIORITY: u8 = 1; + + let snapshot = basepri::read(); + + while let Some(ready) = RQ1.split().1.dequeue() { + match ready.task { + Task::baz => { + let input = baz_INPUTS[ready.index as usize].read(); + // ADDED + let instant = baz_INSTANTS[ready.index as usize].read(); + + baz_FQ.split().0.enqueue_unchecked(ready.index); + + let priority = Cell::new(PRIORITY); + // CHANGED the instant is passed as part the task context + baz(baz::Context::new(&priority, instant), input) + } + + Task::bar => { + // looks just like the `baz` branch + } + + } + } + + // BASEPRI invariant + basepri::write(snapshot); + } +}; +``` + +Conversely, the `spawn` implementation needs to write a value to the `INSTANTS` +buffer. The value to be written is stored in the `Spawn` struct and its either +the `start` time of the hardware task or the `scheduled` time of the software +task. + +``` rust +mod foo { + // .. + + pub struct Spawn<'a> { + priority: &'a Cell, + // ADDED + instant: Instant, + } + + impl<'a> Spawn<'a> { + pub unsafe fn priority(&self) -> &Cell { + &self.priority + } + + // ADDED + pub unsafe fn instant(&self) -> Instant { + self.instant + } + } +} + +const APP: () = { + impl<'a> foo::Spawn<'a> { + /// Spawns the `baz` task + pub fn baz(&self, message: u64) -> Result<(), u64> { + unsafe { + match lock(self.priority(), baz_FQ_CEILING, || { + baz_FQ.split().1.dequeue() + }) { + Some(index) => { + baz_INPUTS[index as usize].write(message); + // ADDED + baz_INSTANTS[index as usize].write(self.instant()); + + lock(self.priority(), RQ1_CEILING, || { + RQ1.split().1.enqueue_unchecked(Ready { + task: Task::foo, + index, + }); + }); + + rtfm::pend(Interrupt::UART0); + } + + None => { + // maximum capacity reached; spawn failed + Err(message) + } + } + } + } + } +}; +``` From d1d2aff34baa0bc29e838f22e344c965e47ec379 Mon Sep 17 00:00:00 2001 From: Jorge Aparicio Date: Wed, 8 May 2019 14:12:07 +0200 Subject: [PATCH 2/3] fix typo --- book/en/src/internals/tasks.md | 2 +- 1 file changed, 1 insertion(+), 1 deletion(-) diff --git a/book/en/src/internals/tasks.md b/book/en/src/internals/tasks.md index 401da47a05..432c2e6e5a 100644 --- a/book/en/src/internals/tasks.md +++ b/book/en/src/internals/tasks.md @@ -131,7 +131,7 @@ mod foo { } pub struct Spawn<'a> { - // tracks the dyanmic priority of the task + // tracks the dynamic priority of the task priority: &'a Cell, } From ea02405ef0cea368707b723054b699fa423d4823 Mon Sep 17 00:00:00 2001 From: Jorge Aparicio Date: Wed, 8 May 2019 19:48:12 +0200 Subject: [PATCH 3/3] document resolution and range of Instant and Duration --- book/en/src/internals/timer-queue.md | 31 ++++++++++++++++++++++++++++ 1 file changed, 31 insertions(+) diff --git a/book/en/src/internals/timer-queue.md b/book/en/src/internals/timer-queue.md index d57463411a..436f421d15 100644 --- a/book/en/src/internals/timer-queue.md +++ b/book/en/src/internals/timer-queue.md @@ -158,6 +158,37 @@ way it will run at the right priority. handler; basically, `enqueue_unchecked` delegates the task of setting up a new timeout interrupt to the `SysTick` handler. +## Resolution and range of `Instant` and `Duration` + +In the current implementation the `DWT`'s (Data Watchpoint and Trace) cycle +counter is used as a monotonic timer. `Instant::now` returns a snapshot of this +timer; these DWT snapshots (`Instant`s) are used to sort entries in the timer +queue. The cycle counter is a 32-bit counter clocked at the core clock +frequency. This counter wraps around every `(1 << 32)` clock cycles; there's no +interrupt associated to this counter so nothing worth noting happens when it +wraps around. + +To order `Instant`s in the queue we need to compare two 32-bit integers. To +account for the wrap-around behavior we use the difference between two +`Instant`s, `a - b`, and treat the result as a 32-bit signed integer. If the +result is less than zero then `b` is a later `Instant`; if the result is greater +than zero then `b` is an earlier `Instant`. This means that scheduling a task at +an `Instant` that's `(1 << 31) - 1` cycles greater than the scheduled time +(`Instant`) of the first (earliest) entry in the queue will cause the task to be +inserted at the wrong place in the queue. There some debug assertions in place +to prevent this user error but it can't be avoided because the user can write +`(instant + duration_a) + duration_b` and overflow the `Instant`. + +The system timer, `SysTick`, is a 24-bit counter also clocked at the core clock +frequency. When the next scheduled task is more than `1 << 24` clock cycles in +the future an interrupt is set to go off in `1 << 24` cycles. This process may +need to happen several times until the next scheduled task is within the range +of the `SysTick` counter. + +In conclusion, both `Instant` and `Duration` have a resolution of 1 core clock +cycle and `Duration` effectively has a (half-open) range of `0..(1 << 31)` (end +not included) core clock cycles. + ## Queue capacity The capacity of the timer queue is chosen to be the sum of the capacities of all