[ovs-dev] [PATCH net-next] openvswitch: add NSH support

[Yang, Yi Y]

struct ovs_action_encap_nsh is the only one way we transfer all the data for encap_nsh, netlink allows variable attribute, so I don't think we break netlink convention or abuse this variable feature.

Even if we bring nested attributes to handle this, OVS_ACTION_ATTR_ENCAP_NSH is still length-variable, OVS_NSH_ATTR_MD2 is also length-variable (it can be from 0 to 248), so I don't think such way can avoid the issue you're addressing.

The result will be worse, it will make many difficulties when we transfer all the data for encap_nsh between OVS' components.

-----Original Message-----
From: Ben Pfaff [mailto:blp at ovn.org] 
Sent: Thursday, August 10, 2017 4:54 AM
To: Yang, Yi Y <yi.y.yang at intel.com>
Cc: Jan Scheurich <jan.scheurich at ericsson.com>; dev at openvswitch.org; netdev at vger.kernel.org; Jiri Benc <jbenc at redhat.com>; davem at davemloft.net; Zoltán Balogh <zoltan.balogh at ericsson.com>
Subject: Re: [ovs-dev] [PATCH net-next] openvswitch: add NSH support

On Wed, Aug 09, 2017 at 08:12:36PM +0000, Yang, Yi Y wrote:
> Ben, do you mean we bring two new attributes (OVS_NSH_ATTR_MD1 and
> OVS_NSH_ATTR_MD2) and embed one of them in OVS_ACTION_ATTR_ENCAP_NSH?

Yes.

> Anyway we need to use a struct or something else to transfer those 
> metadata between functions, how do you think we can handle this 
> without metadata in struct ovs_action_encap_nsh? I mean how we handle 
> the arguments for function encap_nsh.

I guess that a pointer to the embedded nlattr with type OVS_NSH_ATTR_MD1 or OVS_NSH_ATTR2 should work OK.

Keep in mind that I'm not a kernel-side maintainer of any kind.  I am only passing along what I've perceived to be common Netlink protocol design patterns.

> -----Original Message-----
> From: netdev-owner at vger.kernel.org 
> [mailto:netdev-owner at vger.kernel.org] On Behalf Of Ben Pfaff
> Sent: Thursday, August 10, 2017 2:09 AM
> To: Yang, Yi Y <yi.y.yang at intel.com>
> Cc: Jan Scheurich <jan.scheurich at ericsson.com>; dev at openvswitch.org; 
> netdev at vger.kernel.org; Jiri Benc <jbenc at redhat.com>; 
> davem at davemloft.net; Zoltán Balogh <zoltan.balogh at ericsson.com>
> Subject: Re: [ovs-dev] [PATCH net-next] openvswitch: add NSH support
> 
> On Wed, Aug 09, 2017 at 09:41:51AM +0000, Yang, Yi Y wrote:
> > Hi,  Jan
> > 
> > I have worked out a patch, will send it quickly for Ben. In 
> > addition, I also will send out a patch to change encap_nsh 
> > &decap_nsh to push_nsh and pop_nsh. Per comments from all the 
> > people, we all agreed to do so :-)
> > 
> > diff --git a/datapath/linux/compat/include/linux/openvswitch.h
> > b/datapath/linux/compat/include/linux/openvswitch.h
> > index bc6c94b..4936c12 100644
> > --- a/datapath/linux/compat/include/linux/openvswitch.h
> > +++ b/datapath/linux/compat/include/linux/openvswitch.h
> > @@ -793,7 +793,7 @@ struct ovs_action_push_eth {
> >         struct ovs_key_ethernet addresses;  };
> > 
> > -#define OVS_ENCAP_NSH_MAX_MD_LEN 16
> > +#define OVS_ENCAP_NSH_MAX_MD_LEN 248
> >  /*
> >   * struct ovs_action_encap_nsh - %OVS_ACTION_ATTR_ENCAP_NSH
> >   * @flags: NSH header flags.
> > @@ -809,7 +809,7 @@ struct ovs_action_encap_nsh {
> >      uint8_t mdlen;
> >      uint8_t np;
> >      __be32 path_hdr;
> > -    uint8_t metadata[OVS_ENCAP_NSH_MAX_MD_LEN];
> > +    uint8_t metadata[];
> >  };
> 
> This brings the overall format of ovs_action_encap_nsh to:
> 
> struct ovs_action_encap_nsh {
>     uint8_t flags;
>     uint8_t mdtype;
>     uint8_t mdlen;
>     uint8_t np;
>     __be32 path_hdr;
>     uint8_t metadata[];
> };
> 
> This is an unusual format for a Netlink attribute.  More commonly, one would put variable-length data into an attribute of its own, which allows that data to be handled using the regular Netlink means.  Then the mdlen and metadata members could be removed, since they would be part of the additional attribute, and one might expect the mdtype member to be removed as well since each type of metadata would be in a different attribute type.
> 
> So, a format closer to what I expect to see in Netlink is something 
> like
> this:
> 
> /**
>  * enum ovs_nsh_attr - Metadata attributes for %OVS_ACTION_ENCAP_NSH action.
>  *
>  * @OVS_NSH_ATTR_MD1: Contains 16-byte NSH type-1 metadata.
>  * @OVS_NSH_ATTR_MD2: Contains 0- to 255-byte variable-length NSH 
> type-2
>  * metadata. */
> enum ovs_nsh_attr {
>     OVS_NSH_ATTR_MD1,
>     OVS_NSH_ATTR_MD2
> };
> 
> /*
>  * struct ovs_action_encap_nsh - %OVS_ACTION_ATTR_ENCAP_NSH
>  *
>  * @path_hdr: NSH service path id and service index.
>  * @flags: NSH header flags.
>  * @np: NSH next_protocol: Inner packet type.
>  *
>  * Followed by either %OVS_NSH_ATTR_MD1 or %OVS_NSH_ATTR_MD2 attribute.
>  */
> struct ovs_action_encap_nsh {
>     __be32 path_hdr;
>     uint8_t flags;
>     uint8_t np;
> };