/** * ========================================================================= * File : lockfree.h * Project : 0 A.D. * Description : lock-free synchronized data structures. * * @author Jan.Wassenberg@stud.uni-karlsruhe.de * ========================================================================= */ /* * Copyright (c) 2005 Jan Wassenberg * * Redistribution and/or modification are also permitted under the * terms of the GNU General Public License as published by the * Free Software Foundation (version 2 or later, at your option). * * This program is distributed in the hope that it will be useful, but * WITHOUT ANY WARRANTY; without even the implied warranty of * MERCHANTABILITY or FITNESS FOR A PARTICULAR PURPOSE. */ #ifndef LOCKFREE_H__ #define LOCKFREE_H__ #include "posix_types.h" // uintptr_t /* [KEEP IN SYNC WITH WIKI] overview -------- this module provides several implicitly thread-safe data structures. rather than allowing only one thread to access them at a time, their operations are carefully implemented such that they take effect in one atomic step. data consistency problems are thus avoided. this novel approach to synchronization has several advantages: - deadlocks are impossible; - overhead due to OS kernel entry is avoided; - graceful scaling to multiple processors is ensured. mechanism --------- the basic primitive that makes this possible is "compare and swap", a CPU instruction that performs both steps atomically. it compares a machine word against the expected value; if equal, the new value is written and an indication returned. otherwise, another thread must have been writing to the same location; the operation is typically retried. this instruction is available on all modern architectures; in some cases, emulation in terms of an alternate primitive (LL/SC) is necessary. memory management ----------------- one major remaining problem is how to free no longer needed nodes in the data structure. in general, we want to reclaim their memory for arbitrary use; this isn't safe as long as other threads are still accessing them. the RCU algorithm recognizes that all CPUs having entered a quiescent state means that no threads are still referencing data. lacking such kernel support, we use a similar mechanism - "hazard pointers" are set before accessing data; only if none are pointing to a node can it be freed. until then, they are stored in a per-thread 'waiting list'. this approach has several advantages over previous algorithms (typically involving reference count): the CAS primitive need only operate on single machine words, and space/time overhead is much reduced. usage notes ----------- useful "payload" in the data structures is allocated when inserting each item: additional_bytes are appended. rationale: see struct Node definition. since lock-free algorithms are subtle and easy to get wrong, an extensive self-test is included. terminology ----------- "atomic" means indivisible; in this case, other CPUs cannot interfere with such an operation. "race conditions" are potential data consistency problems resulting from lack of thread synchronization. "deadlock" is a state where several threads are waiting on one another and no progress is possible. "thread-safety" is understood to mean the preceding two problems do not occur. "scalability" is a measure of how efficient synchronization is; overhead should not increase significantly with more processors. "linearization point" denotes the time at which an external observer believes a lock-free operation to have taken effect. */ // // lock-free singly linked list // struct LFList { void* head; }; // make ready a previously unused(!) list object. if a negative error // code (currently only ERR::NO_MEM) is returned, the list can't be used. extern LibError lfl_init(LFList* list); // call when list is no longer needed; should no longer hold any references. extern void lfl_free(LFList* list); // return pointer to "user data" attached to , // or 0 if not found in the list. extern void* lfl_find(LFList* list, uintptr_t key); // insert into list in order of increasing key. ensures items are unique // by first checking if already in the list. returns 0 if out of memory, // otherwise a pointer to "user data" attached to . the optional // return variable indicates whether was added. extern void* lfl_insert(LFList* list, uintptr_t key, size_t additional_bytes, int* was_inserted); // remove from list; return -1 if not found, or 0 on success. extern LibError lfl_erase(LFList* list, uintptr_t key); // // lock-free hash table (chained, fixed size) // struct LFHash { LFList* tbl; uint mask; }; // make ready a previously unused(!) hash object. table size will be // ; this cannot currently be expanded. if a negative error // code (currently only ERR::NO_MEM) is returned, the hash can't be used. extern LibError lfh_init(LFHash* hash, size_t num_entries); // call when hash is no longer needed; should no longer hold any references. extern void lfh_free(LFHash* hash); // return pointer to "user data" attached to , // or 0 if not found in the hash. extern void* lfh_find(LFHash* hash, uintptr_t key); // insert into hash if not already present. returns 0 if out of memory, // otherwise a pointer to "user data" attached to . the optional // return variable indicates whether was added. extern void* lfh_insert(LFHash* hash, uintptr_t key, size_t additional_bytes, int* was_inserted); // remove from hash; return -1 if not found, or 0 on success. extern LibError lfh_erase(LFHash* hash, uintptr_t key); #endif // #ifndef LOCKFREE_H__