dm-pcache: add persistent cache target in device-mapper

This patch introduces dm-pcache, a new DM target that places a DAX-
capable persistent-memory device in front of any slower block device and
uses it as a high-throughput, low-latency  cache.

Design highlights
-----------------
- DAX data path – data is copied directly between DRAM and the pmem
  mapping, bypassing the block layer’s overhead.

- Segmented, crash-consistent layout
  - all layout metadata are dual-replicated CRC-protected.
  - atomic kset flushes; key replay on mount guarantees cache integrity
    even after power loss.

- Striped multi-tree index
  - Multi‑tree indexing for high parallelism.
  - overlap-resolution logic ensures non-intersecting cached extents.

- Background services
  - write-back worker flushes dirty keys in order, preserving backing-device
    crash consistency. This is important for checkpoint in cloud storage.
  - garbage collector reclaims clean segments when utilisation exceeds a
    tunable threshold.

- Data integrity – optional CRC32 on cached payload; metadata always protected.

Comparison with existing block-level caches
---------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
| Feature                          | pcache (this patch)             | bcache                       | dm-writecache             |
|----------------------------------|---------------------------------|------------------------------|---------------------------|
| pmem access method               | DAX                             | bio (block I/O)              | DAX                       |
| Write latency (4 K rand-write)   | ~5 µs                           | ~20 µs                       | ~5 µs                     |
| Concurrency                      | multi subtree index             | global index tree            | single tree + wc_lock     |
| IOPS (4K randwrite, 32 numjobs)  | 2.1 M                           | 352 K                        | 283 K                     |
| Read-cache support               | YES                             | YES                          | NO                        |
| Deployment                       | no re-format of backend         | backend devices must be      | no re-format of backend   |
|                                  |                                 | reformatted                  |                           |
| Write-back ordering              | log-structured;                 | no ordering guarantee        | no ordering guarantee     |
|                                  | preserves app-IO-order          |                              |                           |
| Data integrity checks            | metadata + data CRC(optional)   | metadata CRC only            | none                      |
---------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

Signed-off-by: Dongsheng Yang <dongsheng.yang@linux.dev>
Signed-off-by: Mikulas Patocka <mpatocka@redhat.com>

2 files changed, 203 insertions, 0 deletions

diff --git a/Documentation/admin-guide/device-mapper/dm-pcache.rst b/Documentation/admin-guide/device-mapper/dm-pcache.rst
new file mode 100644
index 000000000000..09d327ef4b14
--- /dev/null
+++ b/Documentation/admin-guide/device-mapper/dm-pcache.rst
@@ -0,0 +1,202 @@
+.. SPDX-License-Identifier: GPL-2.0
+
+=================================
+dm-pcache — Persistent Cache
+=================================
+
+*Author: Dongsheng Yang <dongsheng.yang@linux.dev>*
+
+This document describes *dm-pcache*, a Device-Mapper target that lets a
+byte-addressable *DAX* (persistent-memory, “pmem”) region act as a
+high-performance, crash-persistent cache in front of a slower block
+device.  The code lives in `drivers/md/dm-pcache/`.
+
+Quick feature summary
+=====================
+
+* *Write-back* caching (only mode currently supported).
+* *16 MiB segments* allocated on the pmem device.
+* *Data CRC32* verification (optional, per cache).
+* Crash-safe: every metadata structure is duplicated (`PCACHE_META_INDEX_MAX
+  == 2`) and protected with CRC+sequence numbers.
+* *Multi-tree indexing* (indexing trees sharded by logical address) for high PMem parallelism
+* Pure *DAX path* I/O – no extra BIO round-trips
+* *Log-structured write-back* that preserves backend crash-consistency
+
+
+Constructor
+===========
+
+::
+
+    pcache <cache_dev> <backing_dev> [<number_of_optional_arguments> <cache_mode writeback> <data_crc true|false>]
+
+=========================  ====================================================
+``cache_dev``               Any DAX-capable block device (``/dev/pmem0``…).
+                            All metadata *and* cached blocks are stored here.
+
+``backing_dev``             The slow block device to be cached.
+
+``cache_mode``              Optional, Only ``writeback`` is accepted at the
+                            moment.
+
+``data_crc``                Optional, default to ``false``
+
+                            * ``true``  – store CRC32 for every cached entry
+			      and verify on reads
+                            * ``false`` – skip CRC (faster)
+=========================  ====================================================
+
+Example
+-------
+
+.. code-block:: shell
+
+   dmsetup create pcache_sdb --table \
+     "0 $(blockdev --getsz /dev/sdb) pcache /dev/pmem0 /dev/sdb 4 cache_mode writeback data_crc true"
+
+The first time a pmem device is used, dm-pcache formats it automatically
+(super-block, cache_info, etc.).
+
+
+Status line
+===========
+
+``dmsetup status <device>`` (``STATUSTYPE_INFO``) prints:
+
+::
+
+   <sb_flags> <seg_total> <cache_segs> <segs_used> \
+   <gc_percent> <cache_flags> \
+   <key_head_seg>:<key_head_off> \
+   <dirty_tail_seg>:<dirty_tail_off> \
+   <key_tail_seg>:<key_tail_off>
+
+Field meanings
+--------------
+
+===============================  =============================================
+``sb_flags``                     Super-block flags (e.g. endian marker).
+
+``seg_total``                    Number of physical *pmem* segments.
+
+``cache_segs``                   Number of segments used for cache.
+
+``segs_used``                    Segments currently allocated (bitmap weight).
+
+``gc_percent``                   Current GC high-water mark (0-90).
+
+``cache_flags``                  Bit 0 – DATA_CRC enabled
+                                 Bit 1 – INIT_DONE (cache initialised)
+                                 Bits 2-5 – cache mode (0 == WB).
+
+``key_head``                     Where new key-sets are being written.
+
+``dirty_tail``                   First dirty key-set that still needs
+                                 write-back to the backing device.
+
+``key_tail``                     First key-set that may be reclaimed by GC.
+===============================  =============================================
+
+
+Messages
+========
+
+*Change GC trigger*
+
+::
+
+   dmsetup message <dev> 0 gc_percent <0-90>
+
+
+Theory of operation
+===================
+
+Sub-devices
+-----------
+
+====================  =========================================================
+backing_dev             Any block device (SSD/HDD/loop/LVM, etc.).
+cache_dev               DAX device; must expose direct-access memory.
+====================  =========================================================
+
+Segments and key-sets
+---------------------
+
+* The pmem space is divided into *16 MiB segments*.
+* Each write allocates space from a per-CPU *data_head* inside a segment.
+* A *cache-key* records a logical range on the origin and where it lives
+  inside pmem (segment + offset + generation).
+* 128 keys form a *key-set* (kset); ksets are written sequentially in pmem
+  and are themselves crash-safe (CRC).
+* The pair *(key_tail, dirty_tail)* delimit clean/dirty and live/dead ksets.
+
+Write-back
+----------
+
+Dirty keys are queued into a tree; a background worker copies data
+back to the backing_dev and advances *dirty_tail*.  A FLUSH/FUA bio from the
+upper layers forces an immediate metadata commit.
+
+Garbage collection
+------------------
+
+GC starts when ``segs_used >= seg_total * gc_percent / 100``.  It walks
+from *key_tail*, frees segments whose every key has been invalidated, and
+advances *key_tail*.
+
+CRC verification
+----------------
+
+If ``data_crc is enabled`` dm-pcache computes a CRC32 over every cached data
+range when it is inserted and stores it in the on-media key.  Reads
+validate the CRC before copying to the caller.
+
+
+Failure handling
+================
+
+* *pmem media errors* – all metadata copies are read with
+  ``copy_mc_to_kernel``; an uncorrectable error logs and aborts initialisation.
+* *Cache full* – if no free segment can be found, writes return ``-EBUSY``;
+  dm-pcache retries internally (request deferral).
+* *System crash* – on attach, the driver replays ksets from *key_tail* to
+  rebuild the in-core trees; every segment’s generation guards against
+  use-after-free keys.
+
+
+Limitations & TODO
+==================
+
+* Only *write-back* mode; other modes planned.
+* Only FIFO cache invalidate; other (LRU, ARC...) planned.
+* Table reload is not supported currently.
+* Discard planned.
+
+
+Example workflow
+================
+
+.. code-block:: shell
+
+   # 1.  Create devices
+   dmsetup create pcache_sdb --table \
+     "0 $(blockdev --getsz /dev/sdb) pcache /dev/pmem0 /dev/sdb 4 cache_mode writeback data_crc true"
+
+   # 2.  Put a filesystem on top
+   mkfs.ext4 /dev/mapper/pcache_sdb
+   mount /dev/mapper/pcache_sdb /mnt
+
+   # 3.  Tune GC threshold to 80 %
+   dmsetup message pcache_sdb 0 gc_percent 80
+
+   # 4.  Observe status
+   watch -n1 'dmsetup status pcache_sdb'
+
+   # 5.  Shutdown
+   umount /mnt
+   dmsetup remove pcache_sdb
+
+
+``dm-pcache`` is under active development; feedback, bug reports and patches
+are very welcome!
diff --git a/Documentation/admin-guide/device-mapper/index.rst b/Documentation/admin-guide/device-mapper/index.rst
index cc5aec861576..f1c1f4b824ba 100644
--- a/Documentation/admin-guide/device-mapper/index.rst
+++ b/Documentation/admin-guide/device-mapper/index.rst
@@ -18,6 +18,7 @@ Device Mapper
     dm-integrity
     dm-io
     dm-log
+    dm-pcache
     dm-queue-length
     dm-raid
     dm-service-time