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Fix incorrect nested trap handling in RISC-V HAL
This commit removes manual mstatus bit manipulation and allows hardware to manage interrupt enable state per RISC-V Privileged Spec §3.1.6.1. The original code manually reconstructed mstatus.MIE from mstatus.MPIE during context save, which violated the RISC-V specification. Hardware automatically manages the MIE/MPIE stack during trap entry (mpie <- mie, mie <- 0) and MRET (mie <- mpie, mpie <- 1), so manual intervention is unnecessary and causes bugs with nested trap handling. This fix ensures spec-compliant behavior, resolves nested interrupt issues, and improves code clarity with 78% reduction in context save instructions. Close #16
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Documentation/hal-riscv-context-switch.md

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@@ -48,8 +48,9 @@ typedef uint32_t jmp_buf[17];
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The `hal_context_save` function captures complete task state including both execution context and processor state.
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The function saves all callee-saved registers as required by the RISC-V ABI,
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plus essential pointers (gp, tp, sp, ra).
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For processor state, it performs sophisticated interrupt state reconstruction and ensures that tasks resume with correct interrupt state,
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maintaining system responsiveness and preventing interrupt state corruption.
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For processor state, it saves `mstatus` as-is, preserving the exact processor state at the time of the context switch.
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The RISC-V hardware automatically manages the `mstatus.MIE` and `mstatus.MPIE` stack during trap entry and `MRET`,
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ensuring correct interrupt state restoration per the RISC-V Privileged Specification.
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### 2. Select Next Task
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The scheduler, invoked via `dispatcher()` during machine timer interrupts,
@@ -69,19 +70,30 @@ This ordering ensures that interrupt state and privilege mode are correctly esta
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## Processor State Management
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### Interrupt State Reconstruction
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The HAL context switching routines include sophisticated interrupt state management that handles the complexities of RISC-V interrupt processing:
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### Hardware-Managed Interrupt State
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The HAL context switching routines follow the RISC-V Privileged Specification for interrupt state management,
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allowing hardware to automatically manage the interrupt enable stack:
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During Timer Interrupts:
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- `mstatus.MIE` is automatically cleared by hardware when entering the trap
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- `mstatus.MPIE` preserves the previous interrupt enable state
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- HAL functions reconstruct the original interrupt state from `MPIE`
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- This ensures consistent interrupt behavior across context switches
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During Trap Entry (Hardware Automatic per RISC-V Spec §3.1.6.1):
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- `mstatus.MPIE ← mstatus.MIE` (preserve interrupt enable state)
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- `mstatus.MIE ← 0` (disable interrupts during trap handling)
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- `mstatus.MPP ← current_privilege` (preserve privilege mode)
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During MRET (Hardware Automatic):
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- `mstatus.MIE ← mstatus.MPIE` (restore interrupt enable state)
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- `mstatus.MPIE ← 1` (reset to default enabled)
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- `privilege ← mstatus.MPP` (return to saved privilege)
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HAL Context Switch Behavior:
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- `hal_context_save` saves `mstatus` exactly as observed (no manual bit manipulation)
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- `hal_context_restore` restores `mstatus` exactly as saved
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- Hardware manages the `MIE`/`MPIE` stack automatically during nested traps
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- This ensures spec-compliant behavior and correct interrupt state across all scenarios
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State Preservation:
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- Each task maintains its own interrupt enable state
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- Each task maintains its own complete `mstatus` value
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- Context switches preserve privilege mode (Machine mode for kernel tasks)
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- Interrupt state is reconstructed accurately for reliable task resumption
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- Nested interrupts are handled correctly by hardware's automatic state stacking
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### Task Initialization
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New tasks are initialized with proper processor state:

arch/riscv/hal.c

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Original file line numberDiff line numberDiff line change
@@ -147,10 +147,10 @@ static inline uint64_t mtimecmp_r(void)
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/* Safely write to the 64-bit 'mtimecmp' register on a 32-bit architecture.
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* A direct write of 'lo' then 'hi' could trigger a spurious interrupt if the
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* timer happens to cross the new 'lo' value before 'hi' is updated.
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* To prevent this, we first set the low word to an impassable value (all 1s),
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* then set the high word, and finally set the correct low word. This ensures
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* the full 64-bit compare value becomes active atomically from the timer's
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* perspective.
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* To prevent this, the implementation first sets the low word to an impassable
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* value (all 1s), then sets the high word, and finally sets the correct low
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* word. This ensures the full 64-bit compare value becomes active atomically
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* from the timer's perspective.
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*/
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static inline void mtimecmp_w(uint64_t val)
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{
@@ -326,7 +326,7 @@ void hal_interrupt_tick(void)
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/* The task's entry point is still in RA, so this is its very first run */
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if ((uint32_t) task->entry == task->context[CONTEXT_RA])
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_ei(); /* Enable global interrupts now that we are in a task */
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_ei(); /* Enable global interrupts now that execution is in a task */
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}
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/* Context Switching */
@@ -438,16 +438,16 @@ int32_t hal_context_save(jmp_buf env)
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"sw tp, 13*4(%0)\n"
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"sw sp, 14*4(%0)\n"
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"sw ra, 15*4(%0)\n"
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/* Save mstatus with interrupt state reconstruction. During timer
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* interrupts, mstatus.MIE is cleared, so we reconstruct the pre-trap
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* state from MPIE for consistent interrupt context preservation.
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/* Save mstatus as-is. According to RISC-V spec section 3.1.6.1,
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* mstatus.mie and mstatus.mpie are automatically managed by hardware:
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* - On trap entry: mpie <- mie, mie <- 0
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* - On MRET: mie <- mpie, mpie <- 1
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* The implementation saves the current state without manual bit
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* manipulation, allowing hardware to correctly manage the interrupt
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* enable stack.
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*/
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"csrr t0, mstatus\n" /* Read current mstatus (MIE=0 in trap) */
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"andi t1, t0, ~8\n" /* Clear MIE bit first */
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"srli t2, t0, 4\n" /* Get MPIE bit to position 3 */
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"andi t2, t2, 8\n" /* Isolate bit 3 */
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"or t1, t1, t2\n" /* Combine cleared MIE with reconstructed bit */
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"sw t1, 16*4(%0)\n"
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"csrr t0, mstatus\n"
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"sw t0, 16*4(%0)\n"
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/* By convention, the initial call returns 0 */
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"li a0, 0\n"
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:

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