Mainline fast symbol resolution for kernel module loading

Summary

Mainline fast symbol resolution for kernel module loading

Proposer

Tim Bird

Description

Symbol resolution for loading kernel modules can take a long time, since the current symbol lookup mechanism in the kernel is a linear lookup.

Various projects have demonstrated improved the symbol resolution time for kernel modules, using either binary trees or hash tables. Each approach has its pros and cons, but as of January 2010 neither approach has been mainlined.

This project would consist of mainlining one of these approaches to reducing symbol resolution time for kernel loadable modules.

Related work

• Alan Jenkins binary search patches
  • http://lkml.org/lkml/2009/11/2/289
• Carmelo Amoroso hash table approach
  • Media:C_AMOROSO_Fast_lkm_loader_ELC-E_2009.pdf

Scope

Maybe 1 month?