April 2026 - dev

[PATCH v1] tcp: Handle errors from tcp_send_flag()
by Anshu Kumari 21 Apr '26

21 Apr '26

tcp_send_flag() can return error codes from tcp_prepare_flags() failing TCP_INFO, or from failure to collect buffers on the vhost-user path. These errors indicate the connection requires resetting. Most callers of tcp_send_flag() were ignoring the error code and carrying on as if nothing was wrong. Check the return value at each call site and handle the error appropriately: - in tcp_data_from_tap(), return -1 so the caller resets - in tcp_tap_handler(), goto reset - in tcp_timer_handler()/tcp_sock_handler()/tcp_conn_from_sock_finish(), call tcp_rst() and return - in tcp_tap_conn_from_sock(), set CLOSING flag (flow not yet active) - in tcp_keepalive(), call tcp_rst() and continue the loop - in tcp_flow_migrate_target_ext(), goto fail The call in tcp_rst_do() is left unchecked: we are already resetting, and tcp_sock_rst() still needs to run regardless. Bug: https://bugs.passt.top/show_bug.cgi?id=194 Signed-off-by: Anshu Kumari <anskuma(a)redhat.com> --- tcp.c | 59 ++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++--------------- 1 file changed, 44 insertions(+), 15 deletions(-) diff --git a/tcp.c b/tcp.c index 8ea9be8..9ce671a 100644 --- a/tcp.c +++ b/tcp.c @@ -1917,7 +1917,9 @@ static int tcp_data_from_tap(const struct ctx *c, struct tcp_tap_conn *conn, "keep-alive sequence: %u, previous: %u", seq, conn->seq_from_tap); - tcp_send_flag(c, conn, ACK); + if (tcp_send_flag(c, conn, ACK)) + return -1; + tcp_timer_ctl(c, conn); if (setsockopt(conn->sock, SOL_SOCKET, SO_KEEPALIVE, @@ -2043,14 +2045,16 @@ eintr: * Then swiftly looked away and left. */ conn->seq_from_tap = seq_from_tap; - tcp_send_flag(c, conn, ACK); + if (tcp_send_flag(c, conn, ACK)) + return -1; } if (errno == EINTR) goto eintr; if (errno == EAGAIN || errno == EWOULDBLOCK) { - tcp_send_flag(c, conn, ACK | DUP_ACK); + if (tcp_send_flag(c, conn, ACK | DUP_ACK)) + return -1; return p->count - idx; } @@ -2070,7 +2074,8 @@ out: */ if (conn->seq_dup_ack_approx != (conn->seq_from_tap & 0xff)) { conn->seq_dup_ack_approx = conn->seq_from_tap & 0xff; - tcp_send_flag(c, conn, ACK | DUP_ACK); + if (tcp_send_flag(c, conn, ACK | DUP_ACK)) + return -1; } return p->count - idx; } @@ -2084,7 +2089,8 @@ out: conn_event(c, conn, TAP_FIN_RCVD); } else { - tcp_send_flag(c, conn, ACK_IF_NEEDED); + if (tcp_send_flag(c, conn, ACK_IF_NEEDED)) + return -1; } return p->count - idx; @@ -2122,7 +2128,10 @@ static void tcp_conn_from_sock_finish(const struct ctx *c, return; } - tcp_send_flag(c, conn, ACK); + if (tcp_send_flag(c, conn, ACK)) { + tcp_rst(c, conn); + return; + } /* The client might have sent data already, which we didn't * dequeue waiting for SYN,ACK from tap -- check now. @@ -2308,7 +2317,9 @@ int tcp_tap_handler(const struct ctx *c, uint8_t pif, sa_family_t af, goto reset; } - tcp_send_flag(c, conn, ACK); + if (tcp_send_flag(c, conn, ACK)) + goto reset; + conn_event(c, conn, SOCK_FIN_SENT); return 1; @@ -2388,7 +2399,9 @@ int tcp_tap_handler(const struct ctx *c, uint8_t pif, sa_family_t af, } conn_event(c, conn, SOCK_FIN_SENT); - tcp_send_flag(c, conn, ACK); + if (tcp_send_flag(c, conn, ACK)) + goto reset; + ack_due = 0; /* If we received a FIN, but the socket is in TCP_ESTABLISHED @@ -2478,7 +2491,11 @@ static void tcp_tap_conn_from_sock(const struct ctx *c, union flow *flow, conn->wnd_from_tap = WINDOW_DEFAULT; - tcp_send_flag(c, conn, SYN); + if (tcp_send_flag(c, conn, SYN)) { + conn_flag(c, conn, CLOSING); + return; + } + conn_flag(c, conn, ACK_FROM_TAP_DUE); tcp_get_sndbuf(conn); @@ -2585,7 +2602,10 @@ void tcp_timer_handler(const struct ctx *c, union epoll_ref ref) return; if (conn->flags & ACK_TO_TAP_DUE) { - tcp_send_flag(c, conn, ACK_IF_NEEDED); + if (tcp_send_flag(c, conn, ACK_IF_NEEDED)) { + tcp_rst(c, conn); + return; + } tcp_timer_ctl(c, conn); } else if (conn->flags & ACK_FROM_TAP_DUE) { if (!(conn->events & ESTABLISHED)) { @@ -2598,7 +2618,10 @@ void tcp_timer_handler(const struct ctx *c, union epoll_ref ref) tcp_rst(c, conn); } else { flow_trace(conn, "SYN timeout, retry"); - tcp_send_flag(c, conn, SYN); + if (tcp_send_flag(c, conn, SYN)) { + tcp_rst(c, conn); + return; + } conn->retries++; conn_flag(c, conn, SYN_RETRIED); tcp_timer_ctl(c, conn); @@ -2662,8 +2685,11 @@ void tcp_sock_handler(const struct ctx *c, union epoll_ref ref, tcp_data_from_sock(c, conn); if (events & EPOLLOUT) { - if (tcp_update_seqack_wnd(c, conn, false, NULL)) - tcp_send_flag(c, conn, ACK); + if (tcp_update_seqack_wnd(c, conn, false, NULL) && + tcp_send_flag(c, conn, ACK)) { + tcp_rst(c, conn); + return; + } } return; @@ -2903,7 +2929,8 @@ static void tcp_keepalive(struct ctx *c, const struct timespec *now) if (conn->tap_inactive) { flow_dbg(conn, "No tap activity for least %us, send keepalive", KEEPALIVE_INTERVAL); - tcp_send_flag(c, conn, KEEPALIVE); + if (tcp_send_flag(c, conn, KEEPALIVE)) + tcp_rst(c, conn); } /* Ready to check fot next interval */ @@ -3926,7 +3953,9 @@ int tcp_flow_migrate_target_ext(struct ctx *c, struct tcp_tap_conn *conn, int fd if (tcp_set_peek_offset(conn, peek_offset)) goto fail; - tcp_send_flag(c, conn, ACK); + if (tcp_send_flag(c, conn, ACK)) + goto fail; + tcp_data_from_sock(c, conn); if ((rc = tcp_epoll_ctl(conn))) { -- 2.53.0

3 5

[PATCH v2 00/13] Improvements to static checker invocation
by David Gibson 21 Apr '26

21 Apr '26

While working on pesto, I ran into a number of awkward errors with the static checkers. This series reworks the invocation of the checkers in a way that will let us deal with that. As a bonus, it also gives us static checking for passt-repair and qrap. It also makes a few other cleanups to the Makefile that seemed natural along the way. v2: - Fixed nasty test failure in test/build/build.py David Gibson (13): Makefile: Use make variables for static checker configuration cppcheck: Split out essential defines into a BASE_CPPFLAGS variable Makefile: Remove preprocessor flags from $(FLAGS) Makefile: Remove non-standard $(FLAGS) variable Makefile: Make conditional definition of $(BIN) clearer Makefile: Use common binary compilation rule Makefile: Remove unhelpful $(HEADERS) variable Makefile: Add header dependencies for secondary binaries Makefile: Split static checker targets passt-repair: Split out inotify handling to its own function passt-repair: Simplify construction of Unix path from inotify passt-repair: Run static checkers qrap: Run static checkers Makefile | 106 ++++++++++++++++----------- linux_dep.h | 2 +- passt-repair.c | 171 ++++++++++++++++++++++++-------------------- qrap.c | 42 ++++++----- test/build/build.py | 4 +- 5 files changed, 190 insertions(+), 135 deletions(-) -- 2.53.0

1 13

[PATCH 00/13] Improvements to static checker invocation
by David Gibson 21 Apr '26

21 Apr '26

While working on pesto, I ran into a number of awkward errors with the static checkers. This series reworks the invocation of the checkers in a way that will let us deal with that. As a bonus, it also gives us static checking for passt-repair and qrap. It also makes a few other cleanups to the Makefile that seemed natural along the way. David Gibson (13): Makefile: Use make variables for static checker configuration cppcheck: Split out essential defines into a BASE_CPPFLAGS variable Makefile: Remove preprocessor flags from $(FLAGS) Makefile: Remove non-standard $(FLAGS) variable Makefile: Make conditional definition of $(BIN) clearer Makefile: Use common binary compilation rule Makefile: Remove unhelpful $(HEADERS) variable Makefile: Add header dependencies for secondary binaries Makefile: Split static checker targets passt-repair: Split out inotify handling to its own function passt-repair: Simplify construction of Unix path from inotify passt-repair: Run static checkers qrap: Run static checkers Makefile | 106 ++++++++++++++++++------------ linux_dep.h | 2 +- passt-repair.c | 171 +++++++++++++++++++++++++++---------------------- qrap.c | 42 +++++++----- 4 files changed, 188 insertions(+), 133 deletions(-) -- 2.53.0

1 13

[PATCH 02/13] cppcheck: Split out essential defines into a BASE_CPPFLAGS variable
by David Gibson 21 Apr '26

21 Apr '26

Our cppcheck target need certain flags from the compiler so that they it can analyse the code correctly. Currently we extract these rather awkwardly from FLAGS / CFLAGS / CPPFLAGS. But this means we inhibit one of cppcheck's features: by default it will attempt to analyse paths for all combinations of compile time options, not just a single one. Analysing *all* paths doesn't work for us because many of the -D options we use are essential to compile at all, so unless we supply those to cppcheck, overriding the default behaviour we get many spurious errors. At the moment, however, we give cppcheck *all* our -D options, including conditional / configurable ones, not just the essential ones. All cppcheck really needs here is those essential -D options. Split those into a separate variable, and use that directly rather than the clunky $(filter) expression. Signed-off-by: David Gibson <david(a)gibson.dropbear.id.au> --- Makefile | 14 ++++++++------ 1 file changed, 8 insertions(+), 6 deletions(-) diff --git a/Makefile b/Makefile index 17e70d22..0de98375 100644 --- a/Makefile +++ b/Makefile @@ -30,11 +30,15 @@ ifeq ($(shell $(CC) -O2 -dM -E - < /dev/null 2>&1 | grep ' _FORTIFY_SOURCE ' > / FORTIFY_FLAG := -D_FORTIFY_SOURCE=2 endif +# Require preprocessor flags we can't build without +BASE_CPPFLAGS := -D_XOPEN_SOURCE=700 -D_GNU_SOURCE \ + -DPAGE_SIZE=$(shell getconf PAGE_SIZE) \ + -DVERSION=\"$(VERSION)\" + FLAGS := -Wall -Wextra -Wno-format-zero-length -Wformat-security -FLAGS += -pedantic -std=c11 -D_XOPEN_SOURCE=700 -D_GNU_SOURCE +FLAGS += -pedantic -std=c11 FLAGS += $(FORTIFY_FLAG) -O2 -pie -fPIE -FLAGS += -DPAGE_SIZE=$(shell getconf PAGE_SIZE) -FLAGS += -DVERSION=\"$(VERSION)\" +FLAGS += $(BASE_CPPFLAGS) FLAGS += -DDUAL_STACK_SOCKETS=$(DUAL_STACK_SOCKETS) PASST_SRCS = arch.c arp.c bitmap.c checksum.c conf.c dhcp.c dhcpv6.c \ @@ -195,6 +199,4 @@ CPPCHECK_FLAGS = --std=c11 --error-exitcode=1 --enable=all --force \ -D CPPCHECK_6936 cppcheck: $(PASST_SRCS) $(HEADERS) - $(CPPCHECK) $(CPPCHECK_FLAGS) \ - $(filter -D%,$(FLAGS) $(CFLAGS) $(CPPFLAGS)) $^ \ - $^ + $(CPPCHECK) $(CPPCHECK_FLAGS) $(BASE_CPPFLAGS) $^ -- 2.53.0

1 0

[PATCH v3 00/11] Rework forwarding option parsing
by David Gibson 21 Apr '26

21 Apr '26

This series makes a number of significant reworks to how we process forwarding options (-t, -u, -T and -U) in passt & pasta. This is largely motivated by moving towards being able to share this code with a configuration update tool. However, along the way it also enables some forwarding configurations that were technically possible with the forwarding table but couldn't be specified on the command line, in particular bug 180. There is still a bunch of work needed to make the parsing code truly shareable with pesto, but this is a solid start. v3: * Removed already merged patches * Further revisions based on Stefano's review, including * Improved example text in manpage and usage * More flexible rule dumping * Re-integrated conflict checking in fwd_rule_add() v2: * Assorted minor changes based on Stefano's review, including * Explicitly state "guest or namespace" in the manpage * Clearer description of @rulesocks field * Worked around a gcc < 15 bug causing a false positive warning * Update man page and usage() for new capabilities * Additional patches moving rule parsing out of conf.c David Gibson (11): doc: Rework man page description of port specifiers conf: Move "all" handling to port specifier conf: Allow user-specified auto-scanned port forwarding ranges conf: Move SO_BINDTODEVICE workaround to conf_ports() conf: Don't pass raw commandline argument to conf_ports_spec() fwd, conf: Add capabilities bits to each forwarding table conf, fwd: Stricter rule checking in fwd_rule_add() fwd_rule: Move ephemeral port probing to fwd_rule.c fwd, conf: Move rule parsing code to fwd_rule.[ch] fwd_rule: Move conflict checking back within fwd_rule_add() fwd: Generalise fwd_rules_info() conf.c | 434 +++-------------------------------------- fwd.c | 142 ++------------ fwd.h | 37 ---- fwd_rule.c | 563 ++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++--- fwd_rule.h | 68 ++++++- passt.1 | 72 +++++-- 6 files changed, 704 insertions(+), 612 deletions(-) -- 2.53.0

3 26

[RFC PATCH] tcp: Replace send buffer boost with EPOLLOUT monitoring
by Yumei Huang 21 Apr '26

21 Apr '26

Currently we use the SNDBUF boost mechanism to force TCP auto-tuning. However, it doesn't always work, and sometimes causes a lot of retransmissions. As a result, the throughput suffers. This patch replaces it with monitoring EPOLLOUT when sendmsg() failure (with EAGAIN and EWOULDBLOCK) and partial sends occur. Tested with iperf3 inside pasta: throughput is now comparable to running iperf3 directly on the host without pasta. However, retransmissions can still be elevated when RTT >= 50ms. For example, when RTT is between 200ms and 500ms, retransmission count varies from 30 to 120 in roughly 80% of test runs. Link: https://bugs.passt.top/show_bug.cgi?id=138 Suggested-by: Stefano Brivio <sbrivio(a)redhat.com> Signed-off-by: Yumei Huang <yuhuang(a)redhat.com> --- tcp.c | 57 +++++++++++++++++---------------------------------------- 1 file changed, 17 insertions(+), 40 deletions(-) diff --git a/tcp.c b/tcp.c index 9d91c3c..f7e3932 100644 --- a/tcp.c +++ b/tcp.c @@ -353,13 +353,6 @@ enum { #define LOW_RTT_TABLE_SIZE 8 #define LOW_RTT_THRESHOLD 10 /* us */ -/* Parameters to temporarily exceed sending buffer to force TCP auto-tuning */ -#define SNDBUF_BOOST_BYTES_RTT_LO 2500 /* B * s: no boost until here */ -/* ...examples: 5 MB sent * 500 ns RTT, 250 kB * 10 ms, 8 kB * 300 ms */ -#define SNDBUF_BOOST_FACTOR 150 /* % */ -#define SNDBUF_BOOST_BYTES_RTT_HI 6000 /* apply full boost factor */ -/* 12 MB sent * 500 ns RTT, 600 kB * 10 ms, 20 kB * 300 ms */ - /* Ratio of buffer to bandwidth * delay product implying interactive traffic */ #define SNDBUF_TO_BW_DELAY_INTERACTIVE /* > */ 20 /* (i.e. < 5% of buffer) */ @@ -1023,35 +1016,6 @@ size_t tcp_fill_headers(const struct ctx *c, struct tcp_tap_conn *conn, return MAX(l3len + sizeof(struct ethhdr), ETH_ZLEN); } -/** - * tcp_sndbuf_boost() - Calculate limit of sending buffer to force auto-tuning - * @conn: Connection pointer - * @tinfo: tcp_info from kernel, must be pre-fetched - * - * Return: increased sending buffer to use as a limit for advertised window - */ -static unsigned long tcp_sndbuf_boost(const struct tcp_tap_conn *conn, - const struct tcp_info_linux *tinfo) -{ - unsigned long bytes_rtt_product; - - if (!bytes_acked_cap) - return SNDBUF_GET(conn); - - /* This is *not* a bandwidth-delay product, but it's somewhat related: - * as we send more data (usually at the beginning of a connection), we - * try to make the sending buffer progressively grow, with the RTT as a - * factor (longer delay, bigger buffer needed). - */ - bytes_rtt_product = (long long)tinfo->tcpi_bytes_acked * - tinfo->tcpi_rtt / 1000 / 1000; - - return clamped_scale(SNDBUF_GET(conn), bytes_rtt_product, - SNDBUF_BOOST_BYTES_RTT_LO, - SNDBUF_BOOST_BYTES_RTT_HI, - SNDBUF_BOOST_FACTOR); -} - /** * tcp_update_seqack_wnd() - Update ACK sequence and window to guest/tap * @c: Execution context @@ -1174,8 +1138,6 @@ int tcp_update_seqack_wnd(const struct ctx *c, struct tcp_tap_conn *conn, if ((int)sendq > SNDBUF_GET(conn)) /* Due to memory pressure? */ limit = 0; - else if ((int)tinfo->tcpi_snd_wnd > SNDBUF_GET(conn)) - limit = tcp_sndbuf_boost(conn, tinfo) - (int)sendq; else limit = SNDBUF_GET(conn) - (int)sendq; @@ -2050,14 +2012,28 @@ eintr: if (errno == EAGAIN || errno == EWOULDBLOCK) { tcp_send_flag(c, conn, ACK | DUP_ACK); + uint32_t events = tcp_conn_epoll_events(conn->events, + conn->flags); + events |= EPOLLOUT; + if (flow_epoll_set(&conn->f, EPOLL_CTL_MOD, events, + conn->sock, !TAPSIDE(conn)) < 0) + debug("Failed to add EPOLLOUT"); return p->count - idx; - } return -1; } - if (n < (int)(seq_from_tap - conn->seq_from_tap)) + if (n < (int)(seq_from_tap - conn->seq_from_tap)) { partial_send = 1; + uint32_t events = tcp_conn_epoll_events(conn->events, + conn->flags); + events |= EPOLLOUT; + if (flow_epoll_set(&conn->f, EPOLL_CTL_MOD, events, conn->sock, + !TAPSIDE(conn)) < 0) + debug("Failed to add EPOLLOUT"); + } else { + tcp_epoll_ctl(conn); + } conn->seq_from_tap += n; @@ -2661,6 +2637,7 @@ void tcp_sock_handler(const struct ctx *c, union epoll_ref ref, tcp_data_from_sock(c, conn); if (events & EPOLLOUT) { + tcp_epoll_ctl(conn); if (tcp_update_seqack_wnd(c, conn, false, NULL)) tcp_send_flag(c, conn, ACK); } -- 2.53.0

2 1

[PATCH v6 0/4] vhost-user,tcp: Handle multiple iovec entries per virtqueue element
by Laurent Vivier 17 Apr '26

17 Apr '26

This is the TCP counterpart to the UDP multi-iov series. It converts the TCP vhost-user receive path from direct pointer arithmetic (via vu_eth(), vu_ip(), etc.) to the iov_tail abstraction, removing the assumption that all headers reside in a single contiguous buffer. With this series applied, the TCP path correctly handles virtio-net drivers that provide multiple buffers per virtqueue element (e.g. iPXE provides the vnet header in the first buffer and the frame payload in a second one), matching the support already present in the UDP path. Based-on: 20260416160926.3822963-1-lvivier(a)redhat.com v6: - Rebase on v8 of UDP series (tcp_update_csum() takes dlen rather than l4len) v5: - Use l2len variable for pcap_iov() length in tcp_vu_send_flag() - Add braces - Move pcap_iov() before vu_flush() - Remove vu_flush() from tcp_vu_send_dup(), let the caller handle it v4: - fix error during rebase, s/vu_pad_len/vu_pad/ v3: - Rebased on top of [PATCH 00/10] vhost-user: Preparatory series for multiple iovec entries per virtqueue element v2: - add "tcp: Encode checksum computation flags in a single parameter" - remove IOV_PUT_HEADER()/with_header() and use IOV_PUSH_HEADER() - don't use the iov_tail to provide the headers to the functions Laurent Vivier (4): tcp: Encode checksum computation flags in a single parameter tcp_vu: Build headers on the stack and write them into the iovec tcp_vu: Support multibuffer frames in tcp_vu_sock_recv() tcp_vu: Support multibuffer frames in tcp_vu_send_flag() iov.c | 1 - tcp.c | 25 +-- tcp_buf.c | 23 +-- tcp_internal.h | 7 +- tcp_vu.c | 403 +++++++++++++++++++++++++++++-------------------- vu_common.h | 20 --- 6 files changed, 270 insertions(+), 209 deletions(-) -- 2.53.0

1 5

[PATCH v2 0/2] vhost-user, dhcp: Fix iPXE network boot over vhost-user
by Laurent Vivier 16 Apr '26

16 Apr '26

iPXE network boot over vhost-user was broken because passt unconditionally skipped TCP/UDP checksum computation, relying on VIRTIO_NET_HDR_F_DATA_VALID to tell the guest the checksums were valid. Linux guests happened to work because their virtio-net driver honours DATA_VALID regardless of feature negotiation, but iPXE verifies checksums strictly and never negotiates VIRTIO_NET_F_GUEST_CSUM. This series handles correctly VIRTIO_NET_F_GUEST_CSUM feature to fix that and adds a minimal --dhcp-boot option that populates the BOOTP/DHCP 'file' field, providing just enough for testing iPXE UDP and TCP support. This can be tested as following: - Create an ipxe file configuration cat > boot-alpine.ipxe <<EOF kernel http://dl-cdn.alpinelinux.org/alpine/v3.23/releases/x86_64/netboot/vmlinuz-… console=ttyS0,115200 alpine_repo=http://dl-cdn.alpinelinux.org/alpine/v3.23/main modloop=http://dl-cdn.alpinelinux.org/alpine/v3.23/releases/x86_64/netboot/… initrd http://dl-cdn.alpinelinux.org/alpine/v3.23/releases/x86_64/netboot/initramf… boot EOF - Start a web server in the same directory as boot-alpine.ipxe python -m http.server 8080 - Start passt: ./passt -f --dhcp-boot http://<host ip address>:8080/boot-alpine.ipxe --vhost-user - Start QEMU without boot disk but with passt as networking backend Based-on: 20260416161618.3826904-1-lvivier(a)redhat.com v2: - Added Reviewed-by from David Gibson on both patches - Rebased on top of v6 TCP series Laurent Vivier (2): vhost_user: Offer VIRTIO_NET_F_GUEST_CSUM dhcp: Add --dhcp-boot option to set boot filename in DHCP replies conf.c | 10 ++++++++++ dhcp.c | 5 ++++- passt.1 | 6 ++++++ passt.h | 1 + tcp_vu.c | 8 ++++++-- udp_vu.c | 7 ++++--- vhost_user.c | 1 + 7 files changed, 32 insertions(+), 6 deletions(-) -- 2.53.0

1 2

[PATCH v8 0/3] vhost-user,udp: Handle multiple iovec entries per virtqueue element
by Laurent Vivier 16 Apr '26

16 Apr '26

Some virtio-net drivers (notably iPXE) provide descriptors where the vnet header and the frame payload are in separate buffers, resulting in two iovec entries per virtqueue element. Currently, the RX (host to guest) path assumes a single iovec per element, which triggers: ASSERTION FAILED in virtqueue_map_desc (virtio.c:403): num_sg < max_num_sg This series reworks the UDP vhost-user receive path to support multiple iovec entries per element, fixing the iPXE crash. This series only addresses the UDP path. TCP vhost-user will be updated to use multi-iov elements in a subsequent series. Based-on: 20260416155721.3807225-1-lvivier(a)redhat.com v8: - Add Reviewed-by from David for 1/3 and 2/3 - Remove VLA to use fixed size (VIRTQUEUE_MAX_SIZE) - Rename udp_frame to datagram - Use sizeof(uh) instead of sizeof(struct udphdr) - Push back uh in memory in udp_vu_csum() v7: - In udp_vu_sock_to_tap(), introduce iov_still_needed variable - Fix iov_tail @data doc comments in udp_vu_prepare()/udp_vu_csum() - Don't rewrap the virtio checksum comment in udp_update_hdr6() - Add NULL check for uh in udp_vu_csum() v6: - Rebased on top of [PATCH 00/10] vhost-user: Preparatory series for multiple iovec entries per virtqueue element v5: - This version doesn't change the padding system regarding v4, it's a complex task that will be addressed in another version - reorder patches and add new patches - remove IOV_PUT_HEADER()/with_header() and introduce IOV_PUSH_HEADER() - don't use the iov_tail to provide the headers to the functions - move vu_set_vnethdr() to vu_flush(), extract vu_queue_notify() - move vu_flush() inside loop in tcp_vu_data_from_sock() to flush data by frame and not by full data length v4: - rebase - replace ASSERT() by assert() v3: - include the series "Decouple iovec management from virtqueues elements" - because of this series, drop: "vu_common: Accept explicit iovec counts in vu_set_element()" "vu_common: Accept explicit iovec count per element in vu_init_elem()" "vu_common: Prepare to use multibuffer with guest RX" "vhost-user,udp: Use 2 iovec entries per element" - drop "vu_common: Pass iov_tail to vu_set_vnethdr()" as the specs insures a buffer is big enough to contain vnet header - introduce "with_header()" and merge "udp: Pass iov_tail to udp_update_hdr4()/udp_update_hdr6()" and "udp_vu: Use iov_tail in udp_vu_prepare()" to use it v2: - add iov_truncate(), iov_memset() - remove iov_tail_truncate() and iov_tail_zero_end() - manage 802.3 minimum frame size Laurent Vivier (3): udp_vu: Allow virtqueue elements with multiple iovec entries iov: Introduce IOV_PUSH_HEADER() macro udp: Pass iov_tail to udp_update_hdr4()/udp_update_hdr6() iov.c | 22 ++++++++++ iov.h | 11 +++++ udp.c | 70 ++++++++++++++++------------- udp_internal.h | 4 +- udp_vu.c | 116 ++++++++++++++++++++++++++----------------------- 5 files changed, 135 insertions(+), 88 deletions(-) -- 2.53.0

1 3

[PATCH v3 00/10] vhost-user: Preparatory series for multiple iovec entries per virtqueue element
by Laurent Vivier 16 Apr '26

16 Apr '26

Currently, the vhost-user path assumes each virtqueue element contains exactly one iovec entry covering the entire frame. This assumption breaks as some virtio-net drivers (notably iPXE) provide descriptors where the vnet header and the frame payload are in separate buffers, resulting in two iovec entries per virtqueue element. This series refactors the vhost-user data path so that frame lengths, header sizes, and padding are tracked and passed explicitly rather than being derived from iovec sizes. This decoupling is a prerequisite for correctly handling padding of multi-buffer frames. The changes in this series can be split in 3 groups: - New iov helpers (patches 1-2): iov_memset() and iov_memcpy() operate across iovec boundaries. These are needed by the final patch to pad and copy frame data when a frame spans multiple iovec entries. - Structural refactoring (patches 3-5): Move vnethdr setup into vu_flush(), separate virtqueue management from socket I/O in the UDP path, and pass iov arrays explicitly instead of using file-scoped state. These changes make it possible to pass explicit frame lengths through the stack, which is required to pad frames independently of iovec layout. - Explicit length passing throughout the stack (patches 6-10): Thread explicit L4, L2, frame, and data lengths through checksum, pcap, vu_flush(), and tcp_fill_headers(), replacing lengths that were previously derived from iovec sizes. With lengths tracked explicitly, the final patch can centralise Ethernet frame padding into vu_collect() and a new vu_pad() helper that correctly pads frames spanning multiple iovec entries. v3: - csum_udp4()/csum_udp6()/udp_vu_csum receive payload length (dlen) rather than l4len - Add a length parameter to write_remainder() and use it in pcap_frame() v2: - Rename iov_memcopy() to iov_memcpy() and use clearer parameter names - Use clearer code in pcap_frame() - Add braces around bodies in pcap.c and tcp_vu.c for style consistency - Extract l2len variable in tap_add_packet() and tcp_vu_send_flag() to avoid repeating the same expression - Fix indentation alignment of iov_skip_bytes() arguments in tcp_vu_c - Introduce fill_size variable in vu_flush() - Reposition comment for ETH_ZLEN in vu_collect() Laurent Vivier (10): iov: Introduce iov_memset() iov: Add iov_memcpy() to copy data between iovec arrays vu_common: Move vnethdr setup into vu_flush() udp_vu: Move virtqueue management from udp_vu_sock_recv() to its caller udp_vu: Pass iov explicitly to helpers instead of using file-scoped array checksum: Pass explicit L4 length to checksum functions pcap: Pass explicit L2 length to pcap_iov() vu_common: Pass explicit frame length to vu_flush() tcp: Pass explicit data length to tcp_fill_headers() vhost-user: Centralise Ethernet frame padding in vu_collect() and vu_pad() checksum.c | 43 +++++++----- checksum.h | 6 +- iov.c | 78 ++++++++++++++++++++++ iov.h | 5 ++ pcap.c | 28 +++++--- pcap.h | 2 +- tap.c | 10 +-- tcp.c | 14 ++-- tcp_buf.c | 3 +- tcp_internal.h | 2 +- tcp_vu.c | 66 ++++++++++--------- udp.c | 5 +- udp_vu.c | 173 +++++++++++++++++++++++++------------------------ util.c | 31 +++++++-- util.h | 3 +- vu_common.c | 58 ++++++++++------- vu_common.h | 5 +- 17 files changed, 338 insertions(+), 194 deletions(-) -- 2.53.0

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