Messages in this thread | | | Date | Fri, 17 Feb 2006 15:31:24 -0600 | From | Joel Schopp <> | Subject | Re: [PATCH 4/7] ppc64 - Specify amount of kernel memory at boot time |
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>> This patch adds the kernelcore= parameter for ppc64. >> >> The amount of memory will requested will not be reserved in all nodes. The >> first node that is found that can accomodate the requested amount of memory >> and have remaining more for ZONE_EASYRCLM is used. If a node has memory holes, >> it also will not be used. > > One thing I think we really need to see before these go into mainline is > the ability to shrink the ZONE_EASYRCLM at runtime, and give the memory > back to NORMAL/DMA. > > Otherwise, any system starting off sufficiently small will end up having > lowmem starvation issues. Allowing resizing at least gives the admin a > chance to avoid those issues. >
I'm not too keen on calling it resizing, because that term is misleading. The resizing is one way. You can't later resize back. It's like a window that you can only close but never reopen. We should call it "runtime incremental disabling", or RID.
I don't think we need RID in order to merge these patches. RID can be merged later if people decide they want a special easy reclaim zone that could disappear at any moment. I personally fall in the camp of wanting my zones I explicitly enabled to stay put and am opposed to RID.
If only somebody had presented a solution that was flexible enough to dynamically resize reclaimable and non-reclaimable both ways. http://sourceforge.net/mailarchive/message.php?msg_id=13864331
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