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[REGRESSION][BISECTED] Long boot time with Xen HVM guests during PV spinlock initialization


  • To: "linux-kernel@xxxxxxxxxxxxxxx" <linux-kernel@xxxxxxxxxxxxxxx>, regressions@xxxxxxxxxxxxxxx
  • From: Teddy Astie <teddy.astie@xxxxxxxxxx>
  • Date: Mon, 8 Jun 2026 12:29:53 +0200
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  • Cc: Xen-devel <xen-devel@xxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxx>, Olivier Lambert <olivier.lambert@xxxxxxxxxx>
  • Delivery-date: Mon, 08 Jun 2026 10:30:18 +0000
  • Feedback-id: default:8631fc262581453bbf619ec5b2062170:Sweego
  • List-id: Xen developer discussion <xen-devel.lists.xenproject.org>

Hello,

In 6.12.5+ kernels on AMD CPUs, we observe abnormally long boot times where the guest is struggling on PV spinlock initialization.

This occurs starting with 6.12.5, and also on more recent kernels on Intel platforms, but that hasn't been fully investigated at this time (but I assume it's a variant of the same issue).

This occurs since a backport of 76031d9 ("clocksource: Make negative motion detection more robust").

Some (claude-based) analysis made appears to relate that to the lack of proper max_raw_delta in the jiffies clocksource which appears to make the clock fail to progress meaningfully.

Here is a raw summary of the analysis
> We tracked it down to a single stable backport in 6.12.5: commit 1a678f6829a8 ("clocksource: Make negative motion detection more robust", upstream 76031d9536a0). It introduces a max_raw_delta field on struct clocksource but never initializes it for the default boot timekeeper (the jiffies clocksource), so clocksource_delta() clamps every delta to 0 and CLOCK_MONOTONIC freezes while that clocksource is active. On this HVM guest, SMP bring-up runs while the jiffies clocksource is still the timekeeper, and the Xen single shot (high resolution) tick then advances jiffies far too slowly, so the secondary CPUs burn seconds in calibrate_delay().

Teddy

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