namespaces: Use task_lock and not rcu to protect nsproxy

The synchronous syncrhonize_rcu in switch_task_namespaces makes setns
a sufficiently expensive system call that people have complained.

Upon inspect nsproxy no longer needs rcu protection for remote reads.
remote reads are rare.  So optimize for same process reads and write
by switching using rask_lock instead.

This yields a simpler to understand lock, and a faster setns system call.

In particular this fixes a performance regression observed
by Rafael David Tinoco <rafael.tinoco@canonical.com>.

This is effectively a revert of Pavel Emelyanov's commit
cf7b708c8d1d7a27736771bcf4c457b332b0f818 Make access to task's nsproxy lighter
from 2007.  The race this originialy fixed no longer exists as
do_notify_parent uses task_active_pid_ns(parent) instead of
parent->nsproxy.

Signed-off-by: "Eric W. Biederman" <ebiederm@xmission.com>

8 files changed, 31 insertions, 40 deletions

diff --git a/fs/namespace.c b/fs/namespace.c
index 182bc41..7187d01 100644
--- a/fs/namespace.c
+++ b/fs/namespace.c
@@ -2972,13 +2972,13 @@ static void *mntns_get(struct task_struct *task)
 	struct mnt_namespace *ns = NULL;
 	struct nsproxy *nsproxy;
 
-	rcu_read_lock();
-	nsproxy = task_nsproxy(task);
+	task_lock(task);
+	nsproxy = task->nsproxy;
 	if (nsproxy) {
 		ns = nsproxy->mnt_ns;
 		get_mnt_ns(ns);
 	}
-	rcu_read_unlock();
+	task_unlock(task);
 
 	return ns;
 }
diff --git a/fs/proc/proc_net.c b/fs/proc/proc_net.c
index 4677bb7..a63af3e 100644
--- a/fs/proc/proc_net.c
+++ b/fs/proc/proc_net.c
@@ -113,9 +113,11 @@ static struct net *get_proc_task_net(struct inode *dir)
 	rcu_read_lock();
 	task = pid_task(proc_pid(dir), PIDTYPE_PID);
 	if (task != NULL) {
-		ns = task_nsproxy(task);
+		task_lock(task);
+		ns = task->nsproxy;
 		if (ns != NULL)
 			net = get_net(ns->net_ns);
+		task_unlock(task);
 	}
 	rcu_read_unlock();
 
diff --git a/fs/proc_namespace.c b/fs/proc_namespace.c
index 1a81373..73ca174 100644
--- a/fs/proc_namespace.c
+++ b/fs/proc_namespace.c
@@ -232,17 +232,15 @@ static int mounts_open_common(struct inode *inode, struct file *file,
 	if (!task)
 		goto err;
 
-	rcu_read_lock();
-	nsp = task_nsproxy(task);
+	task_lock(task);
+	nsp = task->nsproxy;
 	if (!nsp || !nsp->mnt_ns) {
-		rcu_read_unlock();
+		task_unlock(task);
 		put_task_struct(task);
 		goto err;
 	}
 	ns = nsp->mnt_ns;
 	get_mnt_ns(ns);
-	rcu_read_unlock();
-	task_lock(task);
 	if (!task->fs) {
 		task_unlock(task);
 		put_task_struct(task);
diff --git a/include/linux/nsproxy.h b/include/linux/nsproxy.h
index b4ec59d..35fa08f 100644
--- a/include/linux/nsproxy.h
+++ b/include/linux/nsproxy.h
@@ -40,32 +40,28 @@ extern struct nsproxy init_nsproxy;
  * the namespaces access rules are:
  *
  *  1. only current task is allowed to change tsk->nsproxy pointer or
- *     any pointer on the nsproxy itself
+ *     any pointer on the nsproxy itself.  Current must hold the task_lock
+ *     when changing tsk->nsproxy.
  *
  *  2. when accessing (i.e. reading) current task's namespaces - no
  *     precautions should be taken - just dereference the pointers
  *
  *  3. the access to other task namespaces is performed like this
- *     rcu_read_lock();
- *     nsproxy = task_nsproxy(tsk);
+ *     task_lock(task);
+ *     nsproxy = task->nsproxy;
  *     if (nsproxy != NULL) {
  *             / *
  *               * work with the namespaces here
  *               * e.g. get the reference on one of them
  *               * /
  *     } / *
- *         * NULL task_nsproxy() means that this task is
+ *         * NULL task->nsproxy means that this task is
  *         * almost dead (zombie)
  *         * /
- *     rcu_read_unlock();
+ *     task_unlock(task);
  *
  */
 
-static inline struct nsproxy *task_nsproxy(struct task_struct *tsk)
-{
-	return rcu_dereference(tsk->nsproxy);
-}
-
 int copy_namespaces(unsigned long flags, struct task_struct *tsk);
 void exit_task_namespaces(struct task_struct *tsk);
 void switch_task_namespaces(struct task_struct *tsk, struct nsproxy *new);
diff --git a/ipc/namespace.c b/ipc/namespace.c
index 59451c1..b54468e 100644
--- a/ipc/namespace.c
+++ b/ipc/namespace.c
@@ -154,11 +154,11 @@ static void *ipcns_get(struct task_struct *task)
 	struct ipc_namespace *ns = NULL;
 	struct nsproxy *nsproxy;
 
-	rcu_read_lock();
-	nsproxy = task_nsproxy(task);
+	task_lock(task);
+	nsproxy = task->nsproxy;
 	if (nsproxy)
 		ns = get_ipc_ns(nsproxy->ipc_ns);
-	rcu_read_unlock();
+	task_unlock(task);
 
 	return ns;
 }
diff --git a/kernel/nsproxy.c b/kernel/nsproxy.c
index 8e78110..ef42d0a 100644
--- a/kernel/nsproxy.c
+++ b/kernel/nsproxy.c
@@ -204,20 +204,13 @@ void switch_task_namespaces(struct task_struct *p, struct nsproxy *new)
 
 	might_sleep();
 
+	task_lock(p);
 	ns = p->nsproxy;
+	p->nsproxy = new;
+	task_unlock(p);
 
-	rcu_assign_pointer(p->nsproxy, new);
-
-	if (ns && atomic_dec_and_test(&ns->count)) {
-		/*
-		 * wait for others to get what they want from this nsproxy.
-		 *
-		 * cannot release this nsproxy via the call_rcu() since
-		 * put_mnt_ns() will want to sleep
-		 */
-		synchronize_rcu();
+	if (ns && atomic_dec_and_test(&ns->count))
 		free_nsproxy(ns);
-	}
 }
 
 void exit_task_namespaces(struct task_struct *p)
diff --git a/kernel/utsname.c b/kernel/utsname.c
index fd39312..883aaaa 100644
--- a/kernel/utsname.c
+++ b/kernel/utsname.c
@@ -93,13 +93,13 @@ static void *utsns_get(struct task_struct *task)
 	struct uts_namespace *ns = NULL;
 	struct nsproxy *nsproxy;
 
-	rcu_read_lock();
-	nsproxy = task_nsproxy(task);
+	task_lock(task);
+	nsproxy = task->nsproxy;
 	if (nsproxy) {
 		ns = nsproxy->uts_ns;
 		get_uts_ns(ns);
 	}
-	rcu_read_unlock();
+	task_unlock(task);
 
 	return ns;
 }
diff --git a/net/core/net_namespace.c b/net/core/net_namespace.c
index 85b6269..7c6b51a 100644
--- a/net/core/net_namespace.c
+++ b/net/core/net_namespace.c
@@ -373,9 +373,11 @@ struct net *get_net_ns_by_pid(pid_t pid)
 	tsk = find_task_by_vpid(pid);
 	if (tsk) {
 		struct nsproxy *nsproxy;
-		nsproxy = task_nsproxy(tsk);
+		task_lock(tsk);
+		nsproxy = tsk->nsproxy;
 		if (nsproxy)
 			net = get_net(nsproxy->net_ns);
+		task_unlock(tsk);
 	}
 	rcu_read_unlock();
 	return net;
@@ -632,11 +634,11 @@ static void *netns_get(struct task_struct *task)
 	struct net *net = NULL;
 	struct nsproxy *nsproxy;
 
-	rcu_read_lock();
-	nsproxy = task_nsproxy(task);
+	task_lock(task);
+	nsproxy = task->nsproxy;
 	if (nsproxy)
 		net = get_net(nsproxy->net_ns);
-	rcu_read_unlock();
+	task_unlock(task);
 
 	return net;
 }