FWIW, I'm still interested but I'm late with my home work---I have just sent the iw9p wip PDF almost on the deadline...
I will start to gather your late explanations to update the documentation that I have started, and will switch to the new git repository, in order to resume testing, preferably on real hardware (I'd like too to find a cheap x86 multicores because I'm limited in this area, and I'm mainly interested in RISC-V these days, if only for the instructions metrics of the x86 line: 1338 instructions, thousands of pages to try to read; I prefer "The RISC-V Reader"...). On Sun, Feb 09, 2025 at 10:43:25AM -0800, ron minnich wrote: > Frank, while NIX is limited to x86, for now, the four key functions are > pretty compact, and I'm planning to get it working on other architectures, > or help others interested, as interest allows. I've got no love for the x86 > and the x86 vendors at this point. > > In terms of whether NIX goes into 9front upstream, the issue is that there > is a small footprint: a new struct member in Mach (NIX); some changes to > startup code (mainly in mp). It's not just "enable a device" -- it has a > certain impact on core code. > > Ori sensibly said that unless we can show a real demand for it, putting it > in 9front front branch might not make sense. From what I can see so far, > keeping it as a small branch of 9front should be easy to keep going. > > If the interest rises, then, perhaps, it goes into 9front front branch. We > have to wait and see. > > Please take a look if you can, I'm interested in comments (when phrased as > code they'll get more attention however :-) > > > > On Sun, Feb 9, 2025 at 6:09?AM Frank D. Engel, Jr. <fde...@fjrhome.net> > wrote: > > > > > Two questions I am wondering about: > > > > 1. Is this still limited to x86 only, as I think was suggested on an > > earlier thread related to this effort, or has it been generalized to work > > across other CPU architectures? > > > > 2. As this evidently needs to be "enabled" by configuring processors to > > act as ACs, once generalized across architectures to whatever extent is > > possible and tested as stable, would there be any reason not to roll this > > into 9front itself rather than keeping it as a separate project? > > > > > > On 2/9/25 02:07, ron minnich wrote: > > > > NIX this evening. Test on 4 core laptop. > > > > fshalt -r does not end well on my laptop; it's the usual issue with > > drivers not dealing that well with a warm reset, and hardware being hard. > > > > So: I modified bootrc to drop me into rc before it starts mounting file > > systems and such. I added execac to the image. fshalt -r 9pc64 and I can > > run execac as a test. > > > > And it works on my T420 :-) > > > > So, next step: try the fixed time quantum (FTQ) benchmark: > > github.com/rminnich/ftq and compare noise results from a TC and an AC. > > > > ftq measures interference that can cause scaling issues in supercomputers, > > more here: > > https://www.researchgate.net/publication/4123211_Analysis_of_microbenchmarks_for_performance_tuning_of_clusters > > > > We developed FTQ at LANL to measure noise. Some results here: > > https://docs.google.com/presentation/d/1_BsQaO_0hdz8RSW1PAzMH6rVDQmdkwupfTmr-x5EXq4/edit?usp=sharing > > > > In 2003 we got far better FTQ results on Plan 9 than on linux, which is > > why in 2003 I started the Plan 9 for supercomputing project. We got really > > good results on Blue Gene in 2007. > > > > in 2011, I got the best results ever measured, and still the best on just > > about everything I've ever seen in 25 years, using NIX on an AC. These > > would have been great results on machine in single user mode, but they were > > achieved on a fully booted machine running rio -- since the AC was left > > alone to do its thing. > > > > Here's hoping that still holds; I'll try it tomorrow. Will be pretty nice > > to see if it works out. > > > > But ... NIX is ready enough for you to try. I have no idea if it's any use > > for anyone, but thanks to Paul for getting this port off the ground, and > > Thierry, who kicked it into gear by asking the right question at the right > > time. > > > > github.com/rminnich/9front, 9front branch > > > > On Sat, Feb 8, 2025 at 9:16?AM Paul Lalonde <paul.a.lalo...@gmail.com> > > wrote: > > > >> Nice! Congratulations! > >> > >> > >> > >> On Sat, Feb 8, 2025, 9:13?a.m. ron minnich <rminn...@gmail.com> wrote: > >> > >>> ok that's fixed and: > >>> > >>> % ratrace -c execac -c 1 /bin/date > >>> 98 execac Running 204326 0x1prepage: base 0x7ffffefff000 top > >>> 0x7ffffffff000 > >>> prepage: base 0x200000 top 0x400000 > >>> prepage: base 0x400000 top 0x406000 > >>> prepage: base 0x406000 top 0x406000 > >>> /bin/date: timezone: file does not exist: '/env/timezone' > >>> = process exited > >>> % k > >>> > >>> I *think* that means it worked. > >>> > >>> First execac I've run in ... well ... a long time. > >>> > >>> On Sat, Feb 8, 2025 at 8:17?AM ron minnich <rminn...@gmail.com> wrote: > >>> > >>>> The new default branch is 9front. https://github.com/rminnich/9front > >>>> > >>>> I just pushed a commit that: > >>>> 1. has the execac command use sysr1 for now > >>>> 2. drops bootrc into a shell before root is mounted so you can poke > >>>> around and run execac > >>>> 3. adds ratrace, execac, and date > >>>> > >>>> When you build nix, look in systab.h, replace > >>>> [SYSR1] sysr1, > >>>> with > >>>> [SYSR1] sysexecac > >>>> > >>>> it's just easier to coopt sysr1 for now > >>>> > >>>> when you boot, make sure you have at least 2 cores; when it drops to a > >>>> shell, try this > >>>> execac -c 1 /bin/date > >>>> That would run /bin/date on core 1. > >>>> > >>>> In a perfect world. > >>>> > >>>> well ... > >>>> qunlock called with qlock not held, from 0xffffffff8021e5c2 > >>>> qunlock called with qlock not held, from 0xffffffff8021e5c2 > >>>> > >>>> oops. > >>>> > >>>> If you know how to debug qemu with gdb, well, here's a place to start. > >>>> Or just look at what's at that PC in the kernel, and see what it might > >>>> be > >>>> > >>>> > >>>> > >>>> *9fans <https://9fans.topicbox.com/latest>* / 9fans / see discussions > > <https://9fans.topicbox.com/groups/9fans> + participants > > <https://9fans.topicbox.com/groups/9fans/members> + delivery options > > <https://9fans.topicbox.com/groups/9fans/subscription> Permalink > > <https://9fans.topicbox.com/groups/9fans/Tc4be07fc1c6ad31c-M554dde1d1703d80e2afe9d53> > > > > -- Thierry Laronde <tlaronde +AT+ kergis +dot+ com> http://www.kergis.com/ http://kertex.kergis.com/ Key fingerprint = 0FF7 E906 FBAF FE95 FD89 250D 52B1 AE95 6006 F40C ------------------------------------------ 9fans: 9fans Permalink: https://9fans.topicbox.com/groups/9fans/Tc4be07fc1c6ad31c-M902b16eceeab5a5fc6c4be72 Delivery options: https://9fans.topicbox.com/groups/9fans/subscription
