This new file aims at documenting the caches that are used by FUSE. At the moment only the symlink and the ACLs caches are described.
Signed-off-by: Luis Henriques <[email protected]> --- .../filesystems/fuse/fuse-caches.rst | 86 +++++++++++++++++++ 1 file changed, 86 insertions(+) create mode 100644 Documentation/filesystems/fuse/fuse-caches.rst diff --git a/Documentation/filesystems/fuse/fuse-caches.rst b/Documentation/filesystems/fuse/fuse-caches.rst new file mode 100644 index 000000000000..52b2558b5a68 --- /dev/null +++ b/Documentation/filesystems/fuse/fuse-caches.rst @@ -0,0 +1,86 @@ +.. SPDX-License-Identifier: GPL-2.0 + +=========== +FUSE Caches +=========== + +Introduction +============ + +This document summarises the different types of caches that are used in FUSE. +For each cache type, it attempts to document the rules that are followed to +insert, validate and invalidate data into the cache. + +symlink caching +=============== + +Whenever there's a link resolution request, the VFS will call into +``fuse_get_link()`` which will then send a ``FUSE_READLINK`` request to the +user-space FUSE server. However, the server can ask the kernel to cache all +links resolutions by setting the ``FUSE_CACHE_SYMLINKS`` flag during the +``FUSE_INIT`` negotiation. + +If this flag is set, FUSE will immediately call into the VFS +``__page_get_link()`` from the ``->get_link()`` inode operation. The first time +this is done for a specific link, it will end-up sending the ``FUSE_READLINK`` +to user-space but the link contents will then be added into page-cache. The next +time the link needs to be resolved, it will use the link content that is already +cached, and will only fallback into sending the request to use-space if the +folio isn't up-to-date. + +ACL caching +=========== + +FUSE has allowed the usage of POSIX ACLs for a long time as they could be set +and accessed simply as extended attributes. However, it was only with the +addition of the ``FUSE_POSIX_ACL`` flag that ACLs started to be fully supported. +Without this flag, ACLs can still be set, but the VFS won't use them for +performing permission checks - that would be the user-space server's +responsibility. + +Also, without setting ``FUSE_POSIX_ACL``, ACLs will not be cached by the kernel. +In this case, new inodes ``i_acl`` and ``i_default_acl`` fields will be set to +``ACL_DONT_CACHE``. + +On the other hand, if ``FUSE_POSIX_ACL`` is set during ``FUSE_INIT``, when an +ACL is accessed the VFS layer will first check if it's already cached. If it is +not, FUSE ``->get_acl`` operation is called, which will eventually send a +user-space request. Future accesses to this inode ACL will then use the cached +data. + +Setting an ACL in an inode, however, won't cache it immediately. It will send +user-space a request with the new ACL, and the FUSE server may perform some +modifications before storing it. + +On the other hand, ACLs will be removed for the cache in the following +situations: + +- When setting an ACL in an inode and the user-space server has set the + ``FUSE_POSIX_ACL`` flag, all previously cached ACLs for this inode will be + invalidated. +- When invalidating an inode through the ``FUSE_NOTIFY_INVAL_INODE`` operation. +- When ``->d_revalidate()`` is called for a dentry that requires a lookup (e.g. + it has expired) and that lookup operation is successful. +- When the VFS needs to check access rights for an inode (by calling + ``->permission()``), attributes may need to be refreshed. If that happens, + any cached ACLs for that inode will be invalidated. +- After setting an inode attribute (i.e. operation ``FUSE_SETATTR`` is sent to + user-space), the user-space server may have also updated the ACLs, so any + cached ACLs for this inode are also invalidated. +- While processing ``FUSE_READDIRPLUS`` and a new dentry is added (unless this + dentry is already being looked up (``DCACHE_PAR_LOOKUP``)) +- In general, when there is the need to sent a ``FUSE_STATX`` or + ``FUSE_GETATTR`` to user-space (e.g. because the attributes have expired). + This may happen in the following cases: + + - When doing an ``->llseek()`` on a file with ``SEEK_END``, ``SEEK_HOLE`` or + ``SEEK_DATA``. + - When the ``FUSE_AUTO_INVAL_DATA`` flag is set at ``INIT`` time (to + automatically invalidate cached pages), and a buffered read + (``->read_iter()``) past EOF is done on a non-passthrough file. + - When the ``FUSE_WRITEBACK_CACHE`` flag is set at ``INIT`` time, and a + buffered write (``->write_iter()``) past EOF is done on a non-passthrough + file. + - When the ``FUSE_AUTO_INVAL_DATA`` flag is set at ``INIT`` time and the VFS + needs to read a directory contents (``->iterate_shared()``) for a + directory that is allowed to be cached.
