[libc-commits] [libc] [libc] Cache old slabs when allocating GPU memory (PR #151866)
Joseph Huber via libc-commits
libc-commits at lists.llvm.org
Sun Aug 3 06:43:40 PDT 2025
https://github.com/jhuber6 created https://github.com/llvm/llvm-project/pull/151866
Summary:
This patch introduces a lock-free stack used to store a fixed number of
slabs. Instead of going directly through RPC memory, we instead can
consult the cache and use that. Currently, this means that ~64 MiB of
memory will remain in-use if the user completely fills the cache.
However, because we always fully destroy the object, the chunk size can
be reset so they can be fully reused.
This greatly improves performance in cases where the user has previously
accessed malloc, lowering the difference between an implementation that
does not free slabs at all and one that does.
We can also skip the expensive zeroing step if the old chunk size was
smaller than the previous one. Smaller chunk sizes need a larger
bitfield, and because we know for a fact that the number of users
remaining in this slab is zero thanks to the reference counting we can
guarantee that the bitfield is all zero like when it was initialized.
>From 649647e237dff2bbfa99b47333da54ca26b6a40c Mon Sep 17 00:00:00 2001
From: Joseph Huber <huberjn at outlook.com>
Date: Sat, 2 Aug 2025 19:20:57 -0500
Subject: [PATCH] [libc] Cache old slabs when allocating GPU memory
Summary:
This patch introduces a lock-free stack used to store a fixed number of
slabs. Instead of going directly through RPC memory, we instead can
consult the cache and use that. Currently, this means that ~64 MiB of
memory will remain in-use if the user completely fills the cache.
However, because we always fully destroy the object, the chunk size can
be reset so they can be fully reused.
This greatly improves performance in cases where the user has previously
accessed malloc, lowering the difference between an implementation that
does not free slabs at all and one that does.
We can also skip the expensive zeroing step if the old chunk size was
smaller than the previous one. Smaller chunk sizes need a larger
bitfield, and because we know for a fact that the number of users
remaining in this slab is zero thanks to the reference counting we can
guarantee that the bitfield is all zero like when it was initialized.
---
libc/src/__support/GPU/CMakeLists.txt | 7 ++
libc/src/__support/GPU/allocator.cpp | 38 +++++-
libc/src/__support/GPU/fixedstack.h | 111 ++++++++++++++++++
.../src/__support/GPU/CMakeLists.txt | 13 ++
.../src/__support/GPU/fixedstack_test.cpp | 44 +++++++
5 files changed, 211 insertions(+), 2 deletions(-)
create mode 100644 libc/src/__support/GPU/fixedstack.h
create mode 100644 libc/test/integration/src/__support/GPU/fixedstack_test.cpp
diff --git a/libc/src/__support/GPU/CMakeLists.txt b/libc/src/__support/GPU/CMakeLists.txt
index f8fdfeb9da9df..72a7879f72224 100644
--- a/libc/src/__support/GPU/CMakeLists.txt
+++ b/libc/src/__support/GPU/CMakeLists.txt
@@ -9,6 +9,12 @@ add_header_library(
utils.h
)
+add_header_library(
+ fixedstack
+ HDRS
+ fixedstack.h
+)
+
add_object_library(
allocator
SRCS
@@ -23,4 +29,5 @@ add_object_library(
libc.src.__support.CPP.bit
libc.src.__support.CPP.new
.utils
+ .fixedstack
)
diff --git a/libc/src/__support/GPU/allocator.cpp b/libc/src/__support/GPU/allocator.cpp
index 250bebdbb7d81..6989252f6ed89 100644
--- a/libc/src/__support/GPU/allocator.cpp
+++ b/libc/src/__support/GPU/allocator.cpp
@@ -20,6 +20,7 @@
#include "src/__support/CPP/atomic.h"
#include "src/__support/CPP/bit.h"
#include "src/__support/CPP/new.h"
+#include "src/__support/GPU/fixedstack.h"
#include "src/__support/GPU/utils.h"
#include "src/__support/RPC/rpc_client.h"
#include "src/__support/threads/sleep.h"
@@ -39,6 +40,9 @@ constexpr static uint32_t MIN_ALIGNMENT = MIN_SIZE - 1;
// The number of times to attempt claiming an in-progress slab allocation.
constexpr static uint32_t MAX_TRIES = 1024;
+// The number of previously allocated slabs we will keep in memory.
+constexpr static uint32_t CACHED_SLABS = 32;
+
static_assert(!(ARRAY_SIZE & (ARRAY_SIZE - 1)), "Must be a power of two");
namespace impl {
@@ -185,20 +189,35 @@ struct Slab {
struct alignas(MIN_SIZE) Header {
uint32_t chunk_size;
uint32_t global_index;
+ uint32_t cached_chunk_size;
};
// Initialize the slab with its chunk size and index in the global table for
// use when freeing.
Slab(uint32_t chunk_size, uint32_t global_index) {
Header *header = reinterpret_cast<Header *>(memory);
+ header->cached_chunk_size = cpp::numeric_limits<uint32_t>::max();
header->chunk_size = chunk_size;
header->global_index = global_index;
}
+ // Reset the memory with a new index and chunk size, not thread safe.
+ Slab *reset(uint32_t chunk_size, uint32_t global_index) {
+ Header *header = reinterpret_cast<Header *>(memory);
+ header->cached_chunk_size = header->chunk_size;
+ header->chunk_size = chunk_size;
+ header->global_index = global_index;
+ return this;
+ }
+
// Set the necessary bitfield bytes to zero in parallel using many lanes. This
// must be called before the bitfield can be accessed safely, memory is not
// guaranteed to be zero initialized in the current implementation.
void initialize(uint64_t uniform) {
+ // If this is a re-used slab the memory is already set to zero.
+ if (get_cached_chunk_size() <= get_chunk_size())
+ return;
+
uint32_t size = (bitfield_bytes(get_chunk_size()) + sizeof(uint32_t) - 1) /
sizeof(uint32_t);
impl::uniform_memset(get_bitfield(), 0, size, uniform);
@@ -236,6 +255,11 @@ struct Slab {
return reinterpret_cast<const Header *>(memory)->chunk_size;
}
+ // Get the chunk size that was previously used.
+ uint32_t get_cached_chunk_size() const {
+ return reinterpret_cast<const Header *>(memory)->cached_chunk_size;
+ }
+
// Get the location in the memory where we will store the global index.
uint32_t get_global_index() const {
return reinterpret_cast<const Header *>(memory)->global_index;
@@ -337,6 +361,9 @@ struct Slab {
uint8_t memory[SLAB_SIZE];
};
+// A global cache of previously allocated slabs for efficient reuse.
+static FixedStack<Slab *, CACHED_SLABS> slab_cache;
+
/// A wait-free guard around a pointer resource to be created dynamically if
/// space is available and freed once there are no more users.
struct GuardPtr {
@@ -408,6 +435,11 @@ struct GuardPtr {
reinterpret_cast<Slab *>(cpp::numeric_limits<uintptr_t>::max()),
cpp::MemoryOrder::RELAXED, cpp::MemoryOrder::RELAXED)) {
count = cpp::numeric_limits<uint32_t>::max();
+
+ Slab *cached = nullptr;
+ if (slab_cache.pop(cached))
+ return cached->reset(cpp::forward<Args>(args)...);
+
void *raw = impl::rpc_allocate(sizeof(Slab));
if (!raw)
return nullptr;
@@ -475,8 +507,10 @@ struct GuardPtr {
if (gpu::get_lane_id() == uint32_t(cpp::countr_zero(mask)) &&
ref.release(cpp::popcount(mask))) {
Slab *p = ptr.load(cpp::MemoryOrder::RELAXED);
- p->~Slab();
- impl::rpc_free(p);
+ if (!slab_cache.push(p)) {
+ p->~Slab();
+ impl::rpc_free(p);
+ }
cpp::atomic_thread_fence(cpp::MemoryOrder::RELEASE);
ptr.store(nullptr, cpp::MemoryOrder::RELAXED);
}
diff --git a/libc/src/__support/GPU/fixedstack.h b/libc/src/__support/GPU/fixedstack.h
new file mode 100644
index 0000000000000..6ceaa2fc73355
--- /dev/null
+++ b/libc/src/__support/GPU/fixedstack.h
@@ -0,0 +1,111 @@
+//===-- A lock-free data structure for a fixed capacity stack ---*- C++ -*-===//
+//
+// Part of the LLVM Project, under the Apache License v2.0 with LLVM Exceptions.
+// See https://llvm.org/LICENSE.txt for license information.
+// SPDX-License-Identifier: Apache-2.0 WITH LLVM-exception
+//
+//===----------------------------------------------------------------------===//
+
+#ifndef LLVM_LIBC_SRC___SUPPORT_GPU_FIXEDSTACK_H
+#define LLVM_LIBC_SRC___SUPPORT_GPU_FIXEDSTACK_H
+
+#include "src/__support/CPP/atomic.h"
+#include "src/__support/threads/sleep.h"
+
+#include <stdint.h>
+
+namespace LIBC_NAMESPACE_DECL {
+
+// A lock-free fixed size stack backed by an underlying array of data. It
+// supports push and pop operations in a completely lock-free manner.
+template <typename T, uint32_t CAPACITY> struct alignas(16) FixedStack {
+ // The index is stored as a 20-bit value and cannot index into any more.
+ static_assert(CAPACITY < 1024 * 1024, "Invalid buffer size");
+
+ // The head of the free and used stacks. Represents as a 20-bit index combined
+ // with a 44-bit ABA tag that is updated in a single atomic operation.
+ uint64_t free;
+ uint64_t used;
+
+ // The stack is a linked list of indices into the underlying data
+ uint32_t next[CAPACITY];
+ T data[CAPACITY];
+
+ // Get the 20-bit index into the underlying array from the head.
+ LIBC_INLINE static constexpr uint32_t get_node(uint64_t head) {
+ return static_cast<uint32_t>(head & 0xfffff);
+ }
+
+ // Increment the old ABA tag and merge it into the new index.
+ LIBC_INLINE static constexpr uint64_t make_head(uint64_t orig,
+ uint32_t node) {
+ return static_cast<uint64_t>(node) | (((orig >> 20ul) + 1ul) << 20ul);
+ }
+
+ // Attempts to pop data from the given stack by making it point to the next
+ // node. We repeatedly attempt to write to the head using compare-and-swap,
+ // expecting that it has not been changed by any other thread.
+ LIBC_INLINE uint32_t pop_impl(cpp::AtomicRef<uint64_t> head) {
+ uint64_t orig = head.load(cpp::MemoryOrder::RELAXED);
+
+ for (;;) {
+ if (get_node(orig) == CAPACITY)
+ return CAPACITY;
+
+ uint32_t node =
+ cpp::AtomicRef(next[get_node(orig)]).load(cpp::MemoryOrder::RELAXED);
+ if (head.compare_exchange_strong(orig, make_head(orig, node),
+ cpp::MemoryOrder::ACQUIRE,
+ cpp::MemoryOrder::RELAXED))
+ break;
+ }
+ return get_node(orig);
+ }
+
+ // Attempts to push data to the given stack by making it point to the new
+ // node. We repeatedly attempt to write to the head using compare-and-swap,
+ // expecting that it has not been changed by any other thread.
+ LIBC_INLINE uint32_t push_impl(cpp::AtomicRef<uint64_t> head, uint32_t node) {
+ uint64_t orig = head.load(cpp::MemoryOrder::RELAXED);
+ for (;;) {
+ next[node] = get_node(orig);
+ if (head.compare_exchange_strong(orig, make_head(orig, node),
+ cpp::MemoryOrder::RELEASE,
+ cpp::MemoryOrder::RELAXED))
+ break;
+ }
+ return get_node(head.load(cpp::MemoryOrder::RELAXED));
+ }
+
+public:
+ // Initialize the free stack to be full and the used stack to be empty. We use
+ // the capacity of the stack as a sentinel value.
+ LIBC_INLINE constexpr FixedStack() : free(0), used(CAPACITY), data{} {
+ for (uint32_t i = 0; i < CAPACITY; ++i)
+ next[i] = i + 1;
+ }
+
+ LIBC_INLINE bool push(const T &val) {
+ uint32_t node = pop_impl(cpp::AtomicRef(free));
+ if (node == CAPACITY)
+ return false;
+
+ data[node] = val;
+ push_impl(cpp::AtomicRef(used), node);
+ return true;
+ }
+
+ LIBC_INLINE bool pop(T &val) {
+ uint32_t node = pop_impl(cpp::AtomicRef(used));
+ if (node == CAPACITY)
+ return false;
+
+ val = data[node];
+ push_impl(cpp::AtomicRef(free), node);
+ return true;
+ }
+};
+
+} // namespace LIBC_NAMESPACE_DECL
+
+#endif // LLVM_LIBC_SRC___SUPPORT_GPU_FIXEDSTACK_H
diff --git a/libc/test/integration/src/__support/GPU/CMakeLists.txt b/libc/test/integration/src/__support/GPU/CMakeLists.txt
index e066830f6cc0d..1fb175b92ef2a 100644
--- a/libc/test/integration/src/__support/GPU/CMakeLists.txt
+++ b/libc/test/integration/src/__support/GPU/CMakeLists.txt
@@ -27,3 +27,16 @@ add_integration_test(
LOADER_ARGS
--threads 64
)
+
+add_libc_test(
+ fixedstack_test
+ SUITE
+ libc-support-gpu-tests
+ SRCS
+ fixedstack_test.cpp
+ DEPENDS
+ libc.src.__support.GPU.fixedstack
+ LOADER_ARGS
+ --threads 32
+ --blocks 16
+)
diff --git a/libc/test/integration/src/__support/GPU/fixedstack_test.cpp b/libc/test/integration/src/__support/GPU/fixedstack_test.cpp
new file mode 100644
index 0000000000000..fde51df325ab8
--- /dev/null
+++ b/libc/test/integration/src/__support/GPU/fixedstack_test.cpp
@@ -0,0 +1,44 @@
+//===-- Integration test for the lock-free stack --------------------------===//
+//
+// Part of the LLVM Project, under the Apache License v2.0 with LLVM Exceptions.
+// See https://llvm.org/LICENSE.txt for license information.
+// SPDX-License-Identifier: Apache-2.0 WITH LLVM-exception
+//
+//===----------------------------------------------------------------------===//
+
+#include "src/__support/GPU/fixedstack.h"
+#include "src/__support/GPU/utils.h"
+#include "test/IntegrationTest/test.h"
+
+using namespace LIBC_NAMESPACE;
+
+static FixedStack<uint32_t, 2048> global_stack;
+
+void run() {
+ // We need enough space in the stack as threads in flight can temporarily
+ // consume memory before they finish comitting it back to the stack.
+ ASSERT_EQ(gpu::get_num_blocks() * gpu::get_num_threads(), 512);
+
+ uint32_t val;
+ uint32_t num_threads = static_cast<uint32_t>(gpu::get_num_threads());
+ for (int i = 0; i < 256; ++i) {
+ EXPECT_TRUE(global_stack.push(UINT32_MAX))
+ EXPECT_TRUE(global_stack.pop(val))
+ ASSERT_TRUE(val < num_threads || val == UINT32_MAX);
+ }
+
+ EXPECT_TRUE(global_stack.push(static_cast<uint32_t>(gpu::get_thread_id())));
+ EXPECT_TRUE(global_stack.push(static_cast<uint32_t>(gpu::get_thread_id())));
+ EXPECT_TRUE(global_stack.pop(val));
+ ASSERT_TRUE(val < num_threads || val == UINT32_MAX);
+
+ // Fill the rest of the stack with the default value.
+ while (!global_stack.push(UINT32_MAX))
+ ;
+}
+
+TEST_MAIN(int argc, char **argv, char **envp) {
+ run();
+
+ return 0;
+}
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