kernel / Documentation / bpf / bpf_iterators.rst

=============
BPF Iterators
=============

--------
Overview
--------

BPF supports two separate entities collectively known as "BPF iterators": BPF
iterator *program type* and *open-coded* BPF iterators. The former is
a stand-alone BPF program type which, when attached and activated by user,
will be called once for each entity (task_struct, cgroup, etc) that is being
iterated. The latter is a set of BPF-side APIs implementing iterator
functionality and available across multiple BPF program types. Open-coded
iterators provide similar functionality to BPF iterator programs, but gives
more flexibility and control to all other BPF program types. BPF iterator
programs, on the other hand, can be used to implement anonymous or BPF
FS-mounted special files, whose contents are generated by attached BPF iterator
program, backed by seq_file functionality. Both are useful depending on
specific needs.

When adding a new BPF iterator program, it is expected that similar
functionality will be added as open-coded iterator for maximum flexibility.
It's also expected that iteration logic and code will be maximally shared and
reused between two iterator API surfaces.

------------------------
Open-coded BPF Iterators
------------------------

Open-coded BPF iterators are implemented as tightly-coupled trios of kfuncs
(constructor, next element fetch, destructor) and iterator-specific type
describing on-the-stack iterator state, which is guaranteed by the BPF
verifier to not be tampered with outside of the corresponding
constructor/destructor/next APIs.

Each kind of open-coded BPF iterator has its own associated
struct bpf_iter_<type>, where <type> denotes a specific type of iterator.
bpf_iter_<type> state needs to live on BPF program stack, so make sure it's
small enough to fit on BPF stack. For performance reasons its best to avoid
dynamic memory allocation for iterator state and size the state struct big
enough to fit everything necessary. But if necessary, dynamic memory
allocation is a way to bypass BPF stack limitations. Note, state struct size
is part of iterator's user-visible API, so changing it will break backwards
compatibility, so be deliberate about designing it.

All kfuncs (constructor, next, destructor) have to be named consistently as
bpf_iter_<type>_{new,next,destroy}(), respectively. <type> represents iterator
type, and iterator state should be represented as a matching
`struct bpf_iter_<type>` state type. Also, all iter kfuncs should have
a pointer to this `struct bpf_iter_<type>` as the very first argument.

Additionally:
  - Constructor, i.e., `bpf_iter_<type>_new()`, can have arbitrary extra
    number of arguments. Return type is not enforced either.
  - Next method, i.e., `bpf_iter_<type>_next()`, has to return a pointer
    type and should have exactly one argument: `struct bpf_iter_<type> *`
    (const/volatile/restrict and typedefs are ignored).
  - Destructor, i.e., `bpf_iter_<type>_destroy()`, should return void and
    should have exactly one argument, similar to the next method.
  - `struct bpf_iter_<type>` size is enforced to be positive and
    a multiple of 8 bytes (to fit stack slots correctly).

Such strictness and consistency allows to build generic helpers abstracting
important, but boilerplate, details to be able to use open-coded iterators
effectively and ergonomically (see libbpf's bpf_for_each() macro). This is
enforced at kfunc registration point by the kernel.

Constructor/next/destructor implementation contract is as follows:
  - constructor, `bpf_iter_<type>_new()`, always initializes iterator state on
    the stack. If any of the input arguments are invalid, constructor should
    make sure to still initialize it such that subsequent next() calls will
    return NULL. I.e., on error, *return error and construct empty iterator*.
    Constructor kfunc is marked with KF_ITER_NEW flag.

  - next method, `bpf_iter_<type>_next()`, accepts pointer to iterator state
    and produces an element. Next method should always return a pointer. The
    contract between BPF verifier is that next method *guarantees* that it
    will eventually return NULL when elements are exhausted. Once NULL is
    returned, subsequent next calls *should keep returning NULL*. Next method
    is marked with KF_ITER_NEXT (and should also have KF_RET_NULL as
    NULL-returning kfunc, of course).

  - destructor, `bpf_iter_<type>_destroy()`, is always called once. Even if
    constructor failed or next returned nothing.  Destructor frees up any
    resources and marks stack space used by `struct bpf_iter_<type>` as usable
    for something else. Destructor is marked with KF_ITER_DESTROY flag.

Any open-coded BPF iterator implementation has to implement at least these
three methods. It is enforced that for any given type of iterator only
applicable constructor/destructor/next are callable. I.e., verifier ensures
you can't pass number iterator state into, say, cgroup iterator's next method.

From a 10,000-feet BPF verification point of view, next methods are the points
of forking a verification state, which are conceptually similar to what
verifier is doing when validating conditional jumps. Verifier is branching out
`call bpf_iter_<type>_next` instruction and simulates two outcomes: NULL
(iteration is done) and non-NULL (new element is returned). NULL is simulated
first and is supposed to reach exit without looping. After that non-NULL case
is validated and it either reaches exit (for trivial examples with no real
loop), or reaches another `call bpf_iter_<type>_next` instruction with the
state equivalent to already (partially) validated one. State equivalency at
that point means we technically are going to be looping forever without
"breaking out" out of established "state envelope" (i.e., subsequent
iterations don't add any new knowledge or constraints to the verifier state,
so running 1, 2, 10, or a million of them doesn't matter). But taking into
account the contract stating that iterator next method *has to* return NULL
eventually, we can conclude that loop body is safe and will eventually
terminate. Given we validated logic outside of the loop (NULL case), and
concluded that loop body is safe (though potentially looping many times),
verifier can claim safety of the overall program logic.

------------------------
BPF Iterators Motivation
------------------------

There are a few existing ways to dump kernel data into user space. The most
popular one is the ``/proc`` system. For example, ``cat /proc/net/tcp6`` dumps
all tcp6 sockets in the system, and ``cat /proc/net/netlink`` dumps all netlink
sockets in the system. However, their output format tends to be fixed, and if
users want more information about these sockets, they have to patch the kernel,
which often takes time to publish upstream and release. The same is true for popular
tools like `ss <https://man7.org/linux/man-pages/man8/ss.8.html>`_ where any
additional information needs a kernel patch.

To solve this problem, the `drgn
<https://www.kernel.org/doc/html/latest/bpf/drgn.html>`_ tool is often used to
dig out the kernel data with no kernel change. However, the main drawback for
drgn is performance, as it cannot do pointer tracing inside the kernel. In
addition, drgn cannot validate a pointer value and may read invalid data if the
pointer becomes invalid inside the kernel.

The BPF iterator solves the above problem by providing flexibility on what data
(e.g., tasks, bpf_maps, etc.) to collect by calling BPF programs for each kernel
data object.

----------------------
How BPF Iterators Work
----------------------

A BPF iterator is a type of BPF program that allows users to iterate over
specific types of kernel objects. Unlike traditional BPF tracing programs that
allow users to define callbacks that are invoked at particular points of
execution in the kernel, BPF iterators allow users to define callbacks that
should be executed for every entry in a variety of kernel data structures.

For example, users can define a BPF iterator that iterates over every task on
the system and dumps the total amount of CPU runtime currently used by each of
them. Another BPF task iterator may instead dump the cgroup information for each
task. Such flexibility is the core value of BPF iterators.

A BPF program is always loaded into the kernel at the behest of a user space
process. A user space process loads a BPF program by opening and initializing
the program skeleton as required and then invoking a syscall to have the BPF
program verified and loaded by the kernel.

In traditional tracing programs, a program is activated by having user space
obtain a ``bpf_link`` to the program with ``bpf_program__attach()``. Once
activated, the program callback will be invoked whenever the tracepoint is
triggered in the main kernel. For BPF iterator programs, a ``bpf_link`` to the
program is obtained using ``bpf_link_create()``, and the program callback is
invoked by issuing system calls from user space.

Next, let us see how you can use the iterators to iterate on kernel objects and
read data.

------------------------
How to Use BPF iterators
------------------------

BPF selftests are a great resource to illustrate how to use the iterators. In
this section, we’ll walk through a BPF selftest which shows how to load and use
a BPF iterator program.   To begin, we’ll look at `bpf_iter.c
<https://git.kernel.org/pub/scm/linux/kernel/git/bpf/bpf-next.git/tree/tools/testing/selftests/bpf/prog_tests/bpf_iter.c>`_,
which illustrates how to load and trigger BPF iterators on the user space side.
Later, we’ll look at a BPF program that runs in kernel space.

Loading a BPF iterator in the kernel from user space typically involves the
following steps:

* The BPF program is loaded into the kernel through ``libbpf``. Once the kernel
  has verified and loaded the program, it returns a file descriptor (fd) to user
  space.
* Obtain a ``link_fd`` to the BPF program by calling the ``bpf_link_create()``
  specified with the BPF program file descriptor received from the kernel.
* Next, obtain a BPF iterator file descriptor (``bpf_iter_fd``) by calling the
  ``bpf_iter_create()`` specified with the ``bpf_link`` received from Step 2.
* Trigger the iteration by calling ``read(bpf_iter_fd)`` until no data is
  available.
* Close the iterator fd using ``close(bpf_iter_fd)``.
* If needed to reread the data, get a new ``bpf_iter_fd`` and do the read again.

The following are a few examples of selftest BPF iterator programs:

* `bpf_iter_tcp4.c <https://git.kernel.org/pub/scm/linux/kernel/git/bpf/bpf-next.git/tree/tools/testing/selftests/bpf/progs/bpf_iter_tcp4.c>`_
* `bpf_iter_task_vmas.c <https://git.kernel.org/pub/scm/linux/kernel/git/bpf/bpf-next.git/tree/tools/testing/selftests/bpf/progs/bpf_iter_task_vmas.c>`_
* `bpf_iter_task_file.c <https://git.kernel.org/pub/scm/linux/kernel/git/bpf/bpf-next.git/tree/tools/testing/selftests/bpf/progs/bpf_iter_task_file.c>`_

Let us look at ``bpf_iter_task_file.c``, which runs in kernel space:

Here is the definition of ``bpf_iter__task_file`` in `vmlinux.h
<https://facebookmicrosites.github.io/bpf/blog/2020/02/19/bpf-portability-and-co-re.html#btf>`_.
Any struct name in ``vmlinux.h`` in the format ``bpf_iter__<iter_name>``
represents a BPF iterator. The suffix ``<iter_name>`` represents the type of
iterator.

::

    struct bpf_iter__task_file {
            union {
                struct bpf_iter_meta *meta;
            };
            union {
                struct task_struct *task;
            };
            u32 fd;
            union {
                struct file *file;
            };
    };

In the above code, the field 'meta' contains the metadata, which is the same for
all BPF iterator programs. The rest of the fields are specific to different
iterators. For example, for task_file iterators, the kernel layer provides the
'task', 'fd' and 'file' field values. The 'task' and 'file' are `reference
counted
<https://facebookmicrosites.github.io/bpf/blog/2018/08/31/object-lifetime.html#file-descriptors-and-reference-counters>`_,
so they won't go away when the BPF program runs.

Here is a snippet from the  ``bpf_iter_task_file.c`` file:

::

  SEC("iter/task_file")
  int dump_task_file(struct bpf_iter__task_file *ctx)
  {
    struct seq_file *seq = ctx->meta->seq;
    struct task_struct *task = ctx->task;
    struct file *file = ctx->file;
    __u32 fd = ctx->fd;

    if (task == NULL || file == NULL)
      return 0;

    if (ctx->meta->seq_num == 0) {
      count = 0;
      BPF_SEQ_PRINTF(seq, "    tgid      gid       fd      file\n");
    }

    if (tgid == task->tgid && task->tgid != task->pid)
      count++;

    if (last_tgid != task->tgid) {
      last_tgid = task->tgid;
      unique_tgid_count++;
    }

    BPF_SEQ_PRINTF(seq, "%8d %8d %8d %lx\n", task->tgid, task->pid, fd,
            (long)file->f_op);
    return 0;
  }

In the above example, the section name ``SEC(iter/task_file)``, indicates that
the program is a BPF iterator program to iterate all files from all tasks. The
context of the program is ``bpf_iter__task_file`` struct.

The user space program invokes the BPF iterator program running in the kernel
by issuing a ``read()`` syscall. Once invoked, the BPF
program can export data to user space using a variety of BPF helper functions.
You can use either ``bpf_seq_printf()`` (and BPF_SEQ_PRINTF helper macro) or
``bpf_seq_write()`` function based on whether you need formatted output or just
binary data, respectively. For binary-encoded data, the user space applications
can process the data from ``bpf_seq_write()`` as needed. For the formatted data,
you can use ``cat <path>`` to print the results similar to ``cat
/proc/net/netlink`` after pinning the BPF iterator to the bpffs mount. Later,
use  ``rm -f <path>`` to remove the pinned iterator.

For example, you can use the following command to create a BPF iterator from the
``bpf_iter_ipv6_route.o`` object file and pin it to the ``/sys/fs/bpf/my_route``
path:

::

  $ bpftool iter pin ./bpf_iter_ipv6_route.o  /sys/fs/bpf/my_route

And then print out the results using the following command:

::

  $ cat /sys/fs/bpf/my_route


-------------------------------------------------------
Implement Kernel Support for BPF Iterator Program Types
-------------------------------------------------------

To implement a BPF iterator in the kernel, the developer must make a one-time
change to the following key data structure defined in the `bpf.h
<https://git.kernel.org/pub/scm/linux/kernel/git/bpf/bpf-next.git/tree/include/linux/bpf.h>`_
file.

::

  struct bpf_iter_reg {
            const char *target;
            bpf_iter_attach_target_t attach_target;
            bpf_iter_detach_target_t detach_target;
            bpf_iter_show_fdinfo_t show_fdinfo;
            bpf_iter_fill_link_info_t fill_link_info;
            bpf_iter_get_func_proto_t get_func_proto;
            u32 ctx_arg_info_size;
            u32 feature;
            struct bpf_ctx_arg_aux ctx_arg_info[BPF_ITER_CTX_ARG_MAX];
            const struct bpf_iter_seq_info *seq_info;
  };

After filling the data structure fields, call ``bpf_iter_reg_target()`` to
register the iterator to the main BPF iterator subsystem.

The following is the breakdown for each field in struct ``bpf_iter_reg``.

.. list-table::
   :widths: 25 50
   :header-rows: 1

   * - Fields
     - Description
   * - target
     - Specifies the name of the BPF iterator. For example: ``bpf_map``,
       ``bpf_map_elem``. The name should be different from other ``bpf_iter`` target names in the kernel.
   * - attach_target and detach_target
     - Allows for target specific ``link_create`` action since some targets
       may need special processing. Called during the user space link_create stage.
   * - show_fdinfo and fill_link_info
     - Called to fill target specific information when user tries to get link
       info associated with the iterator.
   * - get_func_proto
     - Permits a BPF iterator to access BPF helpers specific to the iterator.
   * - ctx_arg_info_size and ctx_arg_info
     - Specifies the verifier states for BPF program arguments associated with
       the bpf iterator.
   * - feature
     - Specifies certain action requests in the kernel BPF iterator
       infrastructure. Currently, only BPF_ITER_RESCHED is supported. This means
       that the kernel function cond_resched() is called to avoid other kernel
       subsystem (e.g., rcu) misbehaving.
   * - seq_info
     - Specifies the set of seq operations for the BPF iterator and helpers to
       initialize/free the private data for the corresponding ``seq_file``.

`Click here
<https://lore.kernel.org/bpf/[e-mail]/>`_
to see an implementation of the ``task_vma`` BPF iterator in the kernel.

---------------------------------
Parameterizing BPF Task Iterators
---------------------------------

By default, BPF iterators walk through all the objects of the specified types
(processes, cgroups, maps, etc.) across the entire system to read relevant
kernel data. But often, there are cases where we only care about a much smaller
subset of iterable kernel objects, such as only iterating tasks within a
specific process. Therefore, BPF iterator programs support filtering out objects
from iteration by allowing user space to configure the iterator program when it
is attached.

--------------------------
BPF Task Iterator Program
--------------------------

The following code is a BPF iterator program to print files and task information
through the ``seq_file`` of the iterator. It is a standard BPF iterator program
that visits every file of an iterator. We will use this BPF program in our
example later.

::

  #include <vmlinux.h>
  #include <bpf/bpf_helpers.h>

  char _license[] SEC("license") = "GPL";

  SEC("iter/task_file")
  int dump_task_file(struct bpf_iter__task_file *ctx)
  {
        struct seq_file *seq = ctx->meta->seq;
        struct task_struct *task = ctx->task;
        struct file *file = ctx->file;
        __u32 fd = ctx->fd;
        if (task == NULL || file == NULL)
                return 0;
        if (ctx->meta->seq_num == 0) {
                BPF_SEQ_PRINTF(seq, "    tgid      pid       fd      file\n");
        }
        BPF_SEQ_PRINTF(seq, "%8d %8d %8d %lx\n", task->tgid, task->pid, fd,
                        (long)file->f_op);
        return 0;
  }

----------------------------------------
Creating a File Iterator with Parameters
----------------------------------------

Now, let us look at how to create an iterator that includes only files of a
process.

First,  fill the ``bpf_iter_attach_opts`` struct as shown below:

::

  LIBBPF_OPTS(bpf_iter_attach_opts, opts);
  union bpf_iter_link_info linfo;
  memset(&linfo, 0, sizeof(linfo));
  linfo.task.pid = getpid();
  opts.link_info = &linfo;
  opts.link_info_len = sizeof(linfo);

``linfo.task.pid``, if it is non-zero, directs the kernel to create an iterator
that only includes opened files for the process with the specified ``pid``. In
this example, we will only be iterating files for our process. If
``linfo.task.pid`` is zero, the iterator will visit every opened file of every
process. Similarly, ``linfo.task.tid`` directs the kernel to create an iterator
that visits opened files of a specific thread, not a process. In this example,
``linfo.task.tid`` is different from ``linfo.task.pid`` only if the thread has a
separate file descriptor table. In most circumstances, all process threads share
a single file descriptor table.

Now, in the userspace program, pass the pointer of struct to the
``bpf_program__attach_iter()``.

::

  link = bpf_program__attach_iter(prog, &opts);
  iter_fd = bpf_iter_create(bpf_link__fd(link));

If both *tid* and *pid* are zero, an iterator created from this struct
``bpf_iter_attach_opts`` will include every opened file of every task in the
system (in the namespace, actually.) It is the same as passing a NULL as the
second argument to ``bpf_program__attach_iter()``.

The whole program looks like the following code:

::

  #include <stdio.h>
  #include <unistd.h>
  #include <bpf/bpf.h>
  #include <bpf/libbpf.h>
  #include "bpf_iter_task_ex.skel.h"

  static int do_read_opts(struct bpf_program *prog, struct bpf_iter_attach_opts *opts)
  {
        struct bpf_link *link;
        char buf[16] = {};
        int iter_fd = -1, len;
        int ret = 0;

        link = bpf_program__attach_iter(prog, opts);
        if (!link) {
                fprintf(stderr, "bpf_program__attach_iter() fails\n");
                return -1;
        }
        iter_fd = bpf_iter_create(bpf_link__fd(link));
        if (iter_fd < 0) {
                fprintf(stderr, "bpf_iter_create() fails\n");
                ret = -1;
                goto free_link;
        }
        /* not check contents, but ensure read() ends without error */
        while ((len = read(iter_fd, buf, sizeof(buf) - 1)) > 0) {
                buf[len] = 0;
                printf("%s", buf);
        }
        printf("\n");
  free_link:
        if (iter_fd >= 0)
                close(iter_fd);
        bpf_link__destroy(link);
        return 0;
  }

  static void test_task_file(void)
  {
        LIBBPF_OPTS(bpf_iter_attach_opts, opts);
        struct bpf_iter_task_ex *skel;
        union bpf_iter_link_info linfo;
        skel = bpf_iter_task_ex__open_and_load();
        if (skel == NULL)
                return;
        memset(&linfo, 0, sizeof(linfo));
        linfo.task.pid = getpid();
        opts.link_info = &linfo;
        opts.link_info_len = sizeof(linfo);
        printf("PID %d\n", getpid());
        do_read_opts(skel->progs.dump_task_file, &opts);
        bpf_iter_task_ex__destroy(skel);
  }

  int main(int argc, const char * const * argv)
  {
        test_task_file();
        return 0;
  }

The following lines are the output of the program.
::

  PID 1859

     tgid      pid       fd      file
     1859     1859        0 ffffffff82270aa0
     1859     1859        1 ffffffff82270aa0
     1859     1859        2 ffffffff82270aa0
     1859     1859        3 ffffffff82272980
     1859     1859        4 ffffffff8225e120
     1859     1859        5 ffffffff82255120
     1859     1859        6 ffffffff82254f00
     1859     1859        7 ffffffff82254d80
     1859     1859        8 ffffffff8225abe0

------------------
Without Parameters
------------------

Let us look at how a BPF iterator without parameters skips files of other
processes in the system. In this case, the BPF program has to check the pid or
the tid of tasks, or it will receive every opened file in the system (in the
current *pid* namespace, actually). So, we usually add a global variable in the
BPF program to pass a *pid* to the BPF program.

The BPF program would look like the following block.

  ::

    ......
    int target_pid = 0;

    SEC("iter/task_file")
    int dump_task_file(struct bpf_iter__task_file *ctx)
    {
          ......
          if (task->tgid != target_pid) /* Check task->pid instead to check thread IDs */
                  return 0;
          BPF_SEQ_PRINTF(seq, "%8d %8d %8d %lx\n", task->tgid, task->pid, fd,
                          (long)file->f_op);
          return 0;
    }

The user space program would look like the following block:

  ::

    ......
    static void test_task_file(void)
    {
          ......
          skel = bpf_iter_task_ex__open_and_load();
          if (skel == NULL)
                  return;
          skel->bss->target_pid = getpid(); /* process ID.  For thread id, use gettid() */
          memset(&linfo, 0, sizeof(linfo));
          linfo.task.pid = getpid();
          opts.link_info = &linfo;
          opts.link_info_len = sizeof(linfo);
          ......
    }

``target_pid`` is a global variable in the BPF program. The user space program
should initialize the variable with a process ID to skip opened files of other
processes in the BPF program. When you parametrize a BPF iterator, the iterator
calls the BPF program fewer times which can save significant resources.

---------------------------
Parametrizing VMA Iterators
---------------------------

By default, a BPF VMA iterator includes every VMA in every process.  However,
you can still specify a process or a thread to include only its VMAs. Unlike
files, a thread can not have a separate address space (since Linux 2.6.0-test6).
Here, using *tid* makes no difference from using *pid*.

----------------------------
Parametrizing Task Iterators
----------------------------

A BPF task iterator with *pid* includes all tasks (threads) of a process. The
BPF program receives these tasks one after another. You can specify a BPF task
iterator with *tid* parameter to include only the tasks that match the given
*tid*.