Re: proposal: use admin command (and aq) of the device to query config space

["Michael S. Tsirkin" <mst@redhat.com>]

On Tue, Aug 01, 2023 at 07:09:14AM +0000, Parav Pandit wrote:
> One line proposal: 
> Let's use new admin command and admin q for all device types to query device config space for new fields. (always).
> 
> Details below.
> 
> Query of device capabilities and configuration using DMA interface.
> Need: 
> Currently device configuration space is exposed as read only registers. It is growing rapidly.
> Some devices may be even multi-functionality device in coming future such as net + clock + rdma device.
> For a PCI transport implementing such ever-growing capabilities, configuration is burdensome as plain registers.
> Hence, it is required for the driver to query capabilities and configuration using a DMA interface.
> 
> Interface requirements:
> 1. Maintain backward compatibility for existing defined configuration fields to stay as registers.

This is both too specific and too vague.  I think you mean "device
should be able to optionally support both config access over DMA and support
existing transitional and non-transitional virtio pci drivers".

> 2. Any new field added must be accessed via DMA interface, regardless of device implementation (hw/sw etc).
> Results in single driver code regardless of device implementation.
> 3. A device must be able to choose, starting from which field driver must query 
> such configuration via DMA interface. This field offset must be greater than currently defined configuration field.

2 and 3 look like implementation more than like a requirement.
Try to think what your actual requirement is.

> 4. Any driver to device query operation must not be mandated to be
> mediated by the owner device for PCI VFs or SIOV or SF devices. Driver must be able to
> communicate query capabilities and configuration fields directly to
> the device regardless of device type being PCI PF, VF, SF/SIOV device uniformly.

I don't really know what does it mean to communicate directly with SIOV device.
neither do I know query is and what capabilities are.

> 5. When having multi-functionality device in future, it is desired to not always
> query all the configuration but may be able to query per-functionality configurations.
> For example, query only steering capabilities, query only rdma capabilities or query only clock capabilities.

I don't know what query is and what capabilities are. Do you mean
"access part of config space"?


> 6. The driver should be able to query config/capabilities without
> polling for the DMA completion, in other words, the driver should be able to get
> notification from the device when DMA command completes.
> 7. The driver should be able to utilize existing interrupt vector and/or
> virtqueue for query and set operation without demanding
> additional interrupt vector whenever possible.

additional over what? existing where?

> 
> There are multiple options for DMA interface.
> Some of these options are listed below that we would like to consider fulfilling above requirements.


Cc: Zhu Lingshan <lingshan.zhu@intel.com>

Zhu Lingshan are you still interested in a transport for SIOV (what was
called transport vq)? Clearly SIOV needs this as part of the transport.

-- 
MST