News: 0001502109

  ARM Give a man a fire and he's warm for a day, but set fire to him and he's warm for the rest of his life (Terry Pratchett, Jingo)

AMD STB Support Extended To Latest Ryzen 9000 Series Desktop CPUs

([AMD] 21 Minutes Ago Smart Trace Buffer)


It turns out the latest AMD Ryzen desktop processors offer support for AMD Smart Trace Buffer (STB) that previously was only limited to mobile platforms.

Sent out today were a set of eight Linux kernel patches around the AMD Platform Management Controller (PMC) driver. Notable there is confirmation that AMD STB support is extended to the latest Ryzen desktop processors. [1]One of the patches confirm the newly-added desktop support:

"Previously, AMD's Ryzen Desktop SoCs did not include support for STB. However, to accommodate this recent change, PMFW has implemented a new message port pair mechanism for handling messages, arguments, and responses, specifically designed for distinguishing from Mobile SoCs. Therefore, it is necessary to update the driver to properly handle this incoming change."

The patch adds AMD STB support on the desktop side for Family 1Ah Model 44h processors, a.k.a. Ryzen 9000 "Granite Ridge" desktop CPUs.

As previously [2]explained of AMD Smart Trace Buffer , it's a debugging facility to help analyze the last feature that was running on the system before hitting a failure. It's a non-intrusive way for helping to analyze CPU issues with this always-running trace buffer in the background. Now it turns out AMD STB is supported on the latest Ryzen desktop class processors.

The [3]8 patch series also prepares STB support for Family 1Ah Model 70h processors as well as updating the IP information for newer SoCs.



[1] https://lore.kernel.org/platform-driver-x86/20241028070438.1548737-8-Shyam-sundar.S-k@amd.com/

[2] https://www.phoronix.com/news/AMD-Smart-Trace-Buffer-Linux

[3] https://lore.kernel.org/platform-driver-x86/20241028070438.1548737-1-Shyam-sundar.S-k@amd.com/


phoronix

"I have examined Bogota," he said, "and the case is clearer to me.
I think very probably he might be cured."
"That is what I have always hoped," said old Yacob.
"His brain is affected," said the blind doctor.
The elders murmured assent.
"Now, what affects it?"
"Ah!" said old Yacob.
"This," said the doctor, answering his own question. "Those queer
things that are called the eyes, and which exist to make an agreeable soft
depression in the face, are diseased, in the case of Bogota, in such a way
as to affect his brain. They are greatly distended, he has eyelashes, and
his eyelids move, and consequently his brain is in a state of constant
irritation and distraction."
"Yes?" said old Yacob. "Yes?"
"And I think I may say with reasonable certainty that, in order
to cure him completely, all that we need do is a simple and easy surgical
operation -- namely, to remove those irritant bodies."
"And then he will be sane?"
"Then he will be perfectly sane, and a quite admirable citizen."
"Thank heaven for science!" said old Yacob.
-- H. G. Wells, "The Country of the Blind"