net: release dst entry in dev_hard_start_xmit()

One point of contention in high network loads is the dst_release() performed
when a transmited skb is freed. This is because NIC tx completion calls
dev_kree_skb() long after original call to dev_queue_xmit(skb).

CPU cache is cold and the atomic op in dst_release() stalls. On SMP, this is
quite visible if one CPU is 100% handling softirqs for a network device,
since dst_clone() is done by other cpus, involving cache line ping pongs.

It seems right place to release dst is in dev_hard_start_xmit(), for most
devices but ones that are virtual, and some exceptions.

David Miller suggested to define a new device flag, set in alloc_netdev_mq()
(so that most devices set it at init time), and carefuly unset in devices
which dont want a NULL skb->dst in their ndo_start_xmit().

List of devices that must clear this flag is :

- loopback device, because it calls netif_rx() and quoting Patrick :
    "ip_route_input() doesn't accept loopback addresses, so loopback packets
     already need to have a dst_entry attached."
- appletalk/ipddp.c : needs skb->dst in its xmit function

- And all devices that call again dev_queue_xmit() from their xmit function
(as some classifiers need skb->dst) : bonding, vlan, macvlan, eql, ifb, hdlc_fr

Signed-off-by: Eric Dumazet <dada1@cosmosbay.com>
Signed-off-by: David S. Miller <davem@davemloft.net>

1 files changed, 3 insertions, 0 deletions

diff --git a/include/linux/if.h b/include/linux/if.h
index 1108f3e..b9a6229 100644
--- a/include/linux/if.h
+++ b/include/linux/if.h
@@ -67,6 +67,9 @@
 #define IFF_ISATAP	0x80		/* ISATAP interface (RFC4214)	*/
 #define IFF_MASTER_ARPMON 0x100		/* bonding master, ARP mon in use */
 #define IFF_WAN_HDLC	0x200		/* WAN HDLC device		*/
+#define IFF_XMIT_DST_RELEASE 0x400	/* dev_hard_start_xmit() is allowed to
+					 * release skb->dst
+					 */
 
 #define IF_GET_IFACE	0x0001		/* for querying only */
 #define IF_GET_PROTO	0x0002