Linux 6.8 To Drop SLAB While Delivering A SLUB Optimization: 34% Micro-Benchmark Win

[phoronix]

Phoronix: Linux 6.8 To Drop SLAB While Delivering A SLUB Optimization: 34% Micro-Benchmark Win

Ahead of the Linux 6.7 stable kernel release expected on Sunday, some early pull requests have already begun trickling in for the Linux 6.8 merge window to follow. The SLAB updates were sent to Linus Torvalds on Friday in preparing for this next kernel cycle...

https://www.phoronix.com/news/Linux-6.8-SLAB-SLUB-Changes

[Kjell]

Micro optimizations are awesome.

It makes me wonder though, does Windows ever recieve such tweaks given its closed source?

From my experience, package- and kernel updates in the Linux ecosystem usually improve my system and it'a noticeable, unlike Windows where it gets slower or breaks.

[nadirx]

phoronix s/Linux 6.8 is dropping SLUB/Linux 6.8 is dropping SLAB/

[rabcor]

fun names, SLUB SLAB and SLOB. I have no idea what this is though. But fun names still.

[bug77]

fun names, SLUB SLAB and SLOB. I have no idea what this is though. But fun names still.

Makes you wonder whether SLEB and SLIB are already deprecated or just upcoming.

[jacob]

Makes you wonder whether SLEB and SLIB are already deprecated or just upcoming.

They're deprecated in favor of SLYB.

[CommunityMember]

They're deprecated in favor of SLYB.

Only sometimes. And don't forget the other sometime, SLWB.

[archkde]

fun names, SLUB SLAB and SLOB. I have no idea what this is though. But fun names still.

SLAB=slab (no idea why it started to be capitalized, original (?) allocator), SLOB=simple list of blocks (a bit like common userspace allocators, already removed), SLUB=unqueued slab (a simplification of slab).

[waxhead]

I am far from any expert on this and take this with a grain of salt but as far as I know the various allocators works something like this in case someone is interested.

SLOB (simple list of blocks):
A linked list of free memory locations.
scans the list for a suitable sized memory location and allocates that for the program requesting it.

SLAB (sequential linked allocation buffer):
Preallocate big slices (slabs) of memory. Returns part of a suitable sized slab to the program requesting it.

SLUB (unqueed SLAB):
maintains several linked lists of variously sized memory slabs. e.g. makes it easy to find a suitable sized slab

Its A shame that there is no SLUT allocator.... (Uuuuh... Huh.. huh... ) Because that would be a breath of fresh air and easier to remember than all these slab/slob/slub variants I think 😉

[thulle]

Its A shame that there is no SLUT allocator...

Yeah, bc that will give exactly the results you want when trying to search for info..