perf data: Allow filtering conversion by time range

This adds a feature to allow restricting the range of converted samples
with a range string like perf-script and perf-report --time.

Committer testing:

Put a probe on the ICMP receive path handling broadcast packets:

# perf probe icmp_rcv:64
Added new event:
probe:icmp_rcv_L64 (on icmp_rcv:64)

You can now use it in all perf tools, such as:

perf record -e probe:icmp_rcv_L64 -aR sleep 1

# perf record -e probe:icmp_rcv_L64 ping -c 10 -b 127.255.255.255
WARNING: pinging broadcast address
PING 127.255.255.255 (127.255.255.255) 56(84) bytes of data.
^C
--- 127.255.255.255 ping statistics ---
10 packets transmitted, 0 received, 100% packet loss, time 9217ms

[ perf record: Woken up 1 times to write data ]
[ perf record: Captured and wrote 0.034 MB perf.data (10 samples) ]

# perf script
ping 52785 [009] 5847.300394: probe:icmp_rcv_L64: (ffffffffaadb337e)
ping 52785 [009] 5848.325018: probe:icmp_rcv_L64: (ffffffffaadb337e)
ping 52785 [009] 5849.349007: probe:icmp_rcv_L64: (ffffffffaadb337e)
ping 52785 [009] 5850.372979: probe:icmp_rcv_L64: (ffffffffaadb337e)
ping 52785 [009] 5851.396988: probe:icmp_rcv_L64: (ffffffffaadb337e)
ping 52785 [009] 5852.420954: probe:icmp_rcv_L64: (ffffffffaadb337e)
ping 52785 [009] 5853.444934: probe:icmp_rcv_L64: (ffffffffaadb337e)
ping 52785 [009] 5854.468926: probe:icmp_rcv_L64: (ffffffffaadb337e)
ping 52785 [009] 5855.492914: probe:icmp_rcv_L64: (ffffffffaadb337e)
ping 52785 [009] 5856.516883: probe:icmp_rcv_L64: (ffffffffaadb337e)
#

Now get some slices using perf script:

# perf script --time 40%
ping 52785 [009] 5847.300394: probe:icmp_rcv_L64: (ffffffffaadb337e)
ping 52785 [009] 5848.325018: probe:icmp_rcv_L64: (ffffffffaadb337e)
ping 52785 [009] 5849.349007: probe:icmp_rcv_L64: (ffffffffaadb337e)
ping 52785 [009] 5850.372979: probe:icmp_rcv_L64: (ffffffffaadb337e)
# perf script --time 40%-60%
ping 52785 [009] 5851.396988: probe:icmp_rcv_L64: (ffffffffaadb337e)
ping 52785 [009] 5852.420954: probe:icmp_rcv_L64: (ffffffffaadb337e)
#

And finally use this new feature:

# perf data convert --to-json out.json --time 0%-10%
[ perf data convert: Converted 'perf.data' into JSON data 'out.json' ]
[ perf data convert: Converted and wrote 0.001 MB (1 samples) ]
[ perf data convert: Skipped 9 samples ]
# cat out.json
{
"linux-perf-json-version": 1,
"headers": {
"header-version": 1,
"captured-on": "2026-01-06T22:26:40Z",
"data-offset": 520,
"data-size": 34648,
"feat-offset": 35168,
"hostname": "number",
"os-release": "6.17.12-300.fc43.x86_64",
"arch": "x86_64",
"cpu-desc": "AMD Ryzen 9 9950X3D 16-Core Processor",
"cpuid": "AuthenticAMD,26,68,0",
"nrcpus-online": 32,
"nrcpus-avail": 32,
"perf-version": "6.19.rc4.gf4c270685d3d",
"cmdline": [
"/home/acme/bin/perf"
]
},
"samples": [
{
"timestamp": 5847300394661,
"pid": 52785,
"tid": 52785,
"cpu": 9,
"comm": "ping",
"callchain": [
{
"ip": "0xffffffffaadb337f",
"symbol": "icmp_rcv",
"dso": "[kernel.kallsyms]"
}
],
"__probe_ip": "ffffffffaadb337e"
}
]
}
#

Signed-off-by: Derek Foreman <[e-mail]>
Tested-by: Arnaldo Carvalho de Melo <[e-mail]>
Cc: Adrian Hunter <[e-mail]>
Cc: Alexander Shishkin <[e-mail]>
Cc: Ian Rogers <[e-mail]>
Cc: Ingo Molnar <[e-mail]>
Cc: James Clark <[e-mail]>
Cc: Jiri Olsa <[e-mail]>
Cc: Mark Rutland <[e-mail]>
Cc: Namhyung Kim <[e-mail]>
Cc: Peter Zijlstra <[e-mail]>
Signed-off-by: Arnaldo Carvalho de Melo <[e-mail]>

tools/perf/Documentation/perf-data.txt

···
 --force::
 	Don't complain, do it.
 
+--time::
+	Only convert samples within given time window: <start>,<stop>. Times
+	have the format seconds.nanoseconds. If start is not given (i.e. time
+	string is ',x.y') then analysis starts at the beginning of the file. If
+	stop time is not given (i.e. time string is 'x.y,') then analysis goes
+	to end of file. Multiple ranges can be separated by spaces, which
+	requires the argument to be quoted e.g. --time "1234.567,1234.789 1235,"
+
+	Also support time percent with multiple time ranges. Time string is
+	'a%/n,b%/m,...' or 'a%-b%,c%-%d,...'.
+
+	For example:
+	Select the second 10% time slice:
+
+	  perf data convert --to-json out.json --time 10%/2
+
+	Select from 0% to 10% time slice:
+
+	  perf data convert --to-json out.json --time 0%-10%
+
+	Select the first and second 10% time slices:
+
+	  perf data convert --to-json out.json --time 10%/1,10%/2
+
+	Select from 0% to 10% and 30% to 40% slices:
+
+	  perf data convert --to-json out.json --time 0%-10%,30%-40%
+
 -v::
 --verbose::
         Be more verbose (show counter open errors, etc).

tools/perf/builtin-data.c

···
 struct perf_data_convert_opts opts = {
 	.force = false,
 	.all = false,
+	.time_str = NULL,
 };
 
 const struct option data_options[] = {
···
 #endif
 		OPT_BOOLEAN('f', "force", &opts.force, "don't complain, do it"),
 		OPT_BOOLEAN(0, "all", &opts.all, "Convert all events"),
+		OPT_STRING(0, "time", &opts.time_str, "str",
+			   "Time span of interest (start,stop)"),
 		OPT_END()
 	};
 

tools/perf/util/data-convert-bt.c

···
 #include "util.h"
 #include "clockid.h"
 #include "util/sample.h"
+#include "util/time-utils.h"
 
 #ifdef HAVE_LIBTRACEEVENT
 #include <event-parse.h>
···
 	struct perf_tool	tool;
 	struct ctf_writer	writer;
 
+	struct perf_time_interval *ptime_range;
+	int range_size;
+	int range_num;
+
 	u64			events_size;
 	u64			events_count;
 	u64			non_sample_count;
+	u64			skipped;
 
 	/* Ordered events configured queue size. */
 	u64			queue_size;
···
 
 	if (WARN_ONCE(!priv, "Failed to setup all events.\n"))
 		return 0;
+
+	if (perf_time__ranges_skip_sample(c->ptime_range, c->range_num, sample->time)) {
+		++c->skipped;
+		return 0;
+	}
 
 	event_class = priv->event_class;
 
···
 	if (IS_ERR(session))
 		return PTR_ERR(session);
 
+	if (opts->time_str) {
+		err = perf_time__parse_for_ranges(opts->time_str, session,
+						  &c.ptime_range,
+						  &c.range_size,
+						  &c.range_num);
+		if (err < 0)
+			goto free_session;
+	}
+
 	/* CTF writer */
 	if (ctf_writer__init(cw, path, session, opts->tod))
 		goto free_session;
···
 	else
 		fprintf(stderr, ", %" PRIu64 " non-samples) ]\n", c.non_sample_count);
 
+	if (c.skipped) {
+		fprintf(stderr,	"[ perf data convert: Skipped %" PRIu64 " samples ]\n",
+			c.skipped);
+	}
+
+	if (c.ptime_range)
+		zfree(&c.ptime_range);
+
 	cleanup_events(session);
 	perf_session__delete(session);
 	ctf_writer__cleanup(cw);
···
 free_writer:
 	ctf_writer__cleanup(cw);
 free_session:
+	if (c.ptime_range)
+		zfree(&c.ptime_range);
+
 	perf_session__delete(session);
 	pr_err("Error during conversion setup.\n");
 	return err;

tools/perf/util/data-convert-json.c

···
 #include "util/session.h"
 #include "util/symbol.h"
 #include "util/thread.h"
+#include "util/time-utils.h"
 #include "util/tool.h"
 
 #ifdef HAVE_LIBTRACEEVENT
···
 	struct perf_tool tool;
 	FILE *out;
 	bool first;
+	struct perf_time_interval *ptime_range;
+	int range_size;
+	int range_num;
+
 	u64 events_count;
+	u64 skipped;
 };
 
 // Outputs a JSON-encoded string surrounded by quotes with characters escaped.
···
 		pr_err("Sample resolution failed!\n");
 		addr_location__exit(&al);
 		return -1;
+	}
+
+	if (perf_time__ranges_skip_sample(c->ptime_range, c->range_num, sample->time)) {
+		++c->skipped;
+		return 0;
 	}
 
 	++c->events_count;
···
 	struct convert_json c = {
 		.first = true,
 		.events_count = 0,
+		.ptime_range = NULL,
+		.range_size = 0,
+		.range_num = 0,
+		.skipped = 0,
 	};
 	struct perf_data data = {
 		.mode = PERF_DATA_MODE_READ,
···
 		goto err_session_delete;
 	}
 
+	if (opts->time_str) {
+		ret = perf_time__parse_for_ranges(opts->time_str, session,
+						  &c.ptime_range,
+						  &c.range_size,
+						  &c.range_num);
+		if (ret < 0)
+			goto err_session_delete;
+	}
+
 	// The opening brace is printed manually because it isn't delimited from a
 	// previous value (i.e. we don't want a leading newline)
 	fputc('{', c.out);
···
 			"[ perf data convert: Converted and wrote %.3f MB (%" PRIu64 " samples) ]\n",
 			(ftell(c.out)) / 1024.0 / 1024.0, c.events_count);
 
+	if (c.skipped) {
+		fprintf(stderr,	"[ perf data convert: Skipped %" PRIu64 " samples ]\n",
+			c.skipped);
+	}
+
 	ret = 0;
+
+	if (c.ptime_range)
+		zfree(&c.ptime_range);
+
 err_session_delete:
 	perf_session__delete(session);
 err_fclose:

tools/perf/util/data-convert.h

···
 	bool force;
 	bool all;
 	bool tod;
+	const char *time_str;
 };
 
 #ifdef HAVE_LIBBABELTRACE_SUPPORT