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1=========================================
2How to get printk format specifiers right
3=========================================
4
5:Author: Randy Dunlap <rdunlap@infradead.org>
6:Author: Andrew Murray <amurray@mpc-data.co.uk>
7
8Integer types
9=============
10
11::
12
13	If variable is of Type,		use printk format specifier:
14	------------------------------------------------------------
15		int			%d or %x
16		unsigned int		%u or %x
17		long			%ld or %lx
18		unsigned long		%lu or %lx
19		long long		%lld or %llx
20		unsigned long long	%llu or %llx
21		size_t			%zu or %zx
22		ssize_t			%zd or %zx
23		s32			%d or %x
24		u32			%u or %x
25		s64			%lld or %llx
26		u64			%llu or %llx
27
28If <type> is dependent on a config option for its size (e.g., ``sector_t``,
29``blkcnt_t``) or is architecture-dependent for its size (e.g., ``tcflag_t``),
30use a format specifier of its largest possible type and explicitly cast to it.
31
32Example::
33
34	printk("test: sector number/total blocks: %llu/%llu\n",
35		(unsigned long long)sector, (unsigned long long)blockcount);
36
37Reminder: ``sizeof()`` result is of type ``size_t``.
38
39The kernel's printf does not support ``%n``. For obvious reasons, floating
40point formats (``%e, %f, %g, %a``) are also not recognized. Use of any
41unsupported specifier or length qualifier results in a WARN and early
42return from vsnprintf.
43
44Raw pointer value SHOULD be printed with %p. The kernel supports
45the following extended format specifiers for pointer types:
46
47Pointer Types
48=============
49
50Pointers printed without a specifier extension (i.e unadorned %p) are
51hashed to give a unique identifier without leaking kernel addresses to user
52space. On 64 bit machines the first 32 bits are zeroed. If you _really_
53want the address see %px below.
54
55::
56
57	%p	abcdef12 or 00000000abcdef12
58
59Symbols/Function Pointers
60=========================
61
62::
63
64	%pF	versatile_init+0x0/0x110
65	%pf	versatile_init
66	%pS	versatile_init+0x0/0x110
67	%pSR	versatile_init+0x9/0x110
68		(with __builtin_extract_return_addr() translation)
69	%ps	versatile_init
70	%pB	prev_fn_of_versatile_init+0x88/0x88
71
72The ``F`` and ``f`` specifiers are for printing function pointers,
73for example, f->func, &gettimeofday. They have the same result as
74``S`` and ``s`` specifiers. But they do an extra conversion on
75ia64, ppc64 and parisc64 architectures where the function pointers
76are actually function descriptors.
77
78The ``S`` and ``s`` specifiers can be used for printing symbols
79from direct addresses, for example, __builtin_return_address(0),
80(void *)regs->ip. They result in the symbol name with (``S``) or
81without (``s``) offsets. If KALLSYMS are disabled then the symbol
82address is printed instead.
83
84The ``B`` specifier results in the symbol name with offsets and should be
85used when printing stack backtraces. The specifier takes into
86consideration the effect of compiler optimisations which may occur
87when tail-call``s are used and marked with the noreturn GCC attribute.
88
89Examples::
90
91	printk("Going to call: %pF\n", gettimeofday);
92	printk("Going to call: %pF\n", p->func);
93	printk("%s: called from %pS\n", __func__, (void *)_RET_IP_);
94	printk("%s: called from %pS\n", __func__,
95				(void *)__builtin_return_address(0));
96	printk("Faulted at %pS\n", (void *)regs->ip);
97	printk(" %s%pB\n", (reliable ? "" : "? "), (void *)*stack);
98
99Kernel Pointers
100===============
101
102::
103
104	%pK	01234567 or 0123456789abcdef
105
106For printing kernel pointers which should be hidden from unprivileged
107users. The behaviour of ``%pK`` depends on the ``kptr_restrict sysctl`` - see
108Documentation/sysctl/kernel.txt for more details.
109
110Unmodified Addresses
111====================
112
113::
114
115	%px	01234567 or 0123456789abcdef
116
117For printing pointers when you _really_ want to print the address. Please
118consider whether or not you are leaking sensitive information about the
119Kernel layout in memory before printing pointers with %px. %px is
120functionally equivalent to %lx. %px is preferred to %lx because it is more
121uniquely grep'able. If, in the future, we need to modify the way the Kernel
122handles printing pointers it will be nice to be able to find the call
123sites.
124
125Struct Resources
126================
127
128::
129
130	%pr	[mem 0x60000000-0x6fffffff flags 0x2200] or
131		[mem 0x0000000060000000-0x000000006fffffff flags 0x2200]
132	%pR	[mem 0x60000000-0x6fffffff pref] or
133		[mem 0x0000000060000000-0x000000006fffffff pref]
134
135For printing struct resources. The ``R`` and ``r`` specifiers result in a
136printed resource with (``R``) or without (``r``) a decoded flags member.
137Passed by reference.
138
139Physical addresses types ``phys_addr_t``
140========================================
141
142::
143
144	%pa[p]	0x01234567 or 0x0123456789abcdef
145
146For printing a ``phys_addr_t`` type (and its derivatives, such as
147``resource_size_t``) which can vary based on build options, regardless of
148the width of the CPU data path. Passed by reference.
149
150DMA addresses types ``dma_addr_t``
151==================================
152
153::
154
155	%pad	0x01234567 or 0x0123456789abcdef
156
157For printing a ``dma_addr_t`` type which can vary based on build options,
158regardless of the width of the CPU data path. Passed by reference.
159
160Raw buffer as an escaped string
161===============================
162
163::
164
165	%*pE[achnops]
166
167For printing raw buffer as an escaped string. For the following buffer::
168
169		1b 62 20 5c 43 07 22 90 0d 5d
170
171few examples show how the conversion would be done (the result string
172without surrounding quotes)::
173
174		%*pE		"\eb \C\a"\220\r]"
175		%*pEhp		"\x1bb \C\x07"\x90\x0d]"
176		%*pEa		"\e\142\040\\\103\a\042\220\r\135"
177
178The conversion rules are applied according to an optional combination
179of flags (see :c:func:`string_escape_mem` kernel documentation for the
180details):
181
182	- ``a`` - ESCAPE_ANY
183	- ``c`` - ESCAPE_SPECIAL
184	- ``h`` - ESCAPE_HEX
185	- ``n`` - ESCAPE_NULL
186	- ``o`` - ESCAPE_OCTAL
187	- ``p`` - ESCAPE_NP
188	- ``s`` - ESCAPE_SPACE
189
190By default ESCAPE_ANY_NP is used.
191
192ESCAPE_ANY_NP is the sane choice for many cases, in particularly for
193printing SSIDs.
194
195If field width is omitted the 1 byte only will be escaped.
196
197Raw buffer as a hex string
198==========================
199
200::
201
202	%*ph	00 01 02  ...  3f
203	%*phC	00:01:02: ... :3f
204	%*phD	00-01-02- ... -3f
205	%*phN	000102 ... 3f
206
207For printing a small buffers (up to 64 bytes long) as a hex string with
208certain separator. For the larger buffers consider to use
209:c:func:`print_hex_dump`.
210
211MAC/FDDI addresses
212==================
213
214::
215
216	%pM	00:01:02:03:04:05
217	%pMR	05:04:03:02:01:00
218	%pMF	00-01-02-03-04-05
219	%pm	000102030405
220	%pmR	050403020100
221
222For printing 6-byte MAC/FDDI addresses in hex notation. The ``M`` and ``m``
223specifiers result in a printed address with (``M``) or without (``m``) byte
224separators. The default byte separator is the colon (``:``).
225
226Where FDDI addresses are concerned the ``F`` specifier can be used after
227the ``M`` specifier to use dash (``-``) separators instead of the default
228separator.
229
230For Bluetooth addresses the ``R`` specifier shall be used after the ``M``
231specifier to use reversed byte order suitable for visual interpretation
232of Bluetooth addresses which are in the little endian order.
233
234Passed by reference.
235
236IPv4 addresses
237==============
238
239::
240
241	%pI4	1.2.3.4
242	%pi4	001.002.003.004
243	%p[Ii]4[hnbl]
244
245For printing IPv4 dot-separated decimal addresses. The ``I4`` and ``i4``
246specifiers result in a printed address with (``i4``) or without (``I4``)
247leading zeros.
248
249The additional ``h``, ``n``, ``b``, and ``l`` specifiers are used to specify
250host, network, big or little endian order addresses respectively. Where
251no specifier is provided the default network/big endian order is used.
252
253Passed by reference.
254
255IPv6 addresses
256==============
257
258::
259
260	%pI6	0001:0002:0003:0004:0005:0006:0007:0008
261	%pi6	00010002000300040005000600070008
262	%pI6c	1:2:3:4:5:6:7:8
263
264For printing IPv6 network-order 16-bit hex addresses. The ``I6`` and ``i6``
265specifiers result in a printed address with (``I6``) or without (``i6``)
266colon-separators. Leading zeros are always used.
267
268The additional ``c`` specifier can be used with the ``I`` specifier to
269print a compressed IPv6 address as described by
270http://tools.ietf.org/html/rfc5952
271
272Passed by reference.
273
274IPv4/IPv6 addresses (generic, with port, flowinfo, scope)
275=========================================================
276
277::
278
279	%pIS	1.2.3.4		or 0001:0002:0003:0004:0005:0006:0007:0008
280	%piS	001.002.003.004	or 00010002000300040005000600070008
281	%pISc	1.2.3.4		or 1:2:3:4:5:6:7:8
282	%pISpc	1.2.3.4:12345	or [1:2:3:4:5:6:7:8]:12345
283	%p[Ii]S[pfschnbl]
284
285For printing an IP address without the need to distinguish whether it``s
286of type AF_INET or AF_INET6, a pointer to a valid ``struct sockaddr``,
287specified through ``IS`` or ``iS``, can be passed to this format specifier.
288
289The additional ``p``, ``f``, and ``s`` specifiers are used to specify port
290(IPv4, IPv6), flowinfo (IPv6) and scope (IPv6). Ports have a ``:`` prefix,
291flowinfo a ``/`` and scope a ``%``, each followed by the actual value.
292
293In case of an IPv6 address the compressed IPv6 address as described by
294http://tools.ietf.org/html/rfc5952 is being used if the additional
295specifier ``c`` is given. The IPv6 address is surrounded by ``[``, ``]`` in
296case of additional specifiers ``p``, ``f`` or ``s`` as suggested by
297https://tools.ietf.org/html/draft-ietf-6man-text-addr-representation-07
298
299In case of IPv4 addresses, the additional ``h``, ``n``, ``b``, and ``l``
300specifiers can be used as well and are ignored in case of an IPv6
301address.
302
303Passed by reference.
304
305Further examples::
306
307	%pISfc		1.2.3.4		or [1:2:3:4:5:6:7:8]/123456789
308	%pISsc		1.2.3.4		or [1:2:3:4:5:6:7:8]%1234567890
309	%pISpfc		1.2.3.4:12345	or [1:2:3:4:5:6:7:8]:12345/123456789
310
311UUID/GUID addresses
312===================
313
314::
315
316	%pUb	00010203-0405-0607-0809-0a0b0c0d0e0f
317	%pUB	00010203-0405-0607-0809-0A0B0C0D0E0F
318	%pUl	03020100-0504-0706-0809-0a0b0c0e0e0f
319	%pUL	03020100-0504-0706-0809-0A0B0C0E0E0F
320
321For printing 16-byte UUID/GUIDs addresses. The additional 'l', 'L',
322'b' and 'B' specifiers are used to specify a little endian order in
323lower ('l') or upper case ('L') hex characters - and big endian order
324in lower ('b') or upper case ('B') hex characters.
325
326Where no additional specifiers are used the default big endian
327order with lower case hex characters will be printed.
328
329Passed by reference.
330
331dentry names
332============
333
334::
335
336	%pd{,2,3,4}
337	%pD{,2,3,4}
338
339For printing dentry name; if we race with :c:func:`d_move`, the name might be
340a mix of old and new ones, but it won't oops.  ``%pd`` dentry is a safer
341equivalent of ``%s`` ``dentry->d_name.name`` we used to use, ``%pd<n>`` prints
342``n`` last components.  ``%pD`` does the same thing for struct file.
343
344Passed by reference.
345
346block_device names
347==================
348
349::
350
351	%pg	sda, sda1 or loop0p1
352
353For printing name of block_device pointers.
354
355struct va_format
356================
357
358::
359
360	%pV
361
362For printing struct va_format structures. These contain a format string
363and va_list as follows::
364
365	struct va_format {
366		const char *fmt;
367		va_list *va;
368	};
369
370Implements a "recursive vsnprintf".
371
372Do not use this feature without some mechanism to verify the
373correctness of the format string and va_list arguments.
374
375Passed by reference.
376
377kobjects
378========
379
380::
381
382	%pO
383
384	Base specifier for kobject based structs. Must be followed with
385	character for specific type of kobject as listed below:
386
387	Device tree nodes:
388
389	%pOF[fnpPcCF]
390
391	For printing device tree nodes. The optional arguments are:
392	    f device node full_name
393	    n device node name
394	    p device node phandle
395	    P device node path spec (name + @unit)
396	    F device node flags
397	    c major compatible string
398	    C full compatible string
399	Without any arguments prints full_name (same as %pOFf)
400	The separator when using multiple arguments is ':'
401
402	Examples:
403
404	%pOF	/foo/bar@0			- Node full name
405	%pOFf	/foo/bar@0			- Same as above
406	%pOFfp	/foo/bar@0:10			- Node full name + phandle
407	%pOFfcF	/foo/bar@0:foo,device:--P-	- Node full name +
408	                                          major compatible string +
409						  node flags
410							D - dynamic
411							d - detached
412							P - Populated
413							B - Populated bus
414
415	Passed by reference.
416
417
418struct clk
419==========
420
421::
422
423	%pC	pll1
424	%pCn	pll1
425
426For printing struct clk structures. ``%pC`` and ``%pCn`` print the name
427(Common Clock Framework) or address (legacy clock framework) of the
428structure.
429
430Passed by reference.
431
432bitmap and its derivatives such as cpumask and nodemask
433=======================================================
434
435::
436
437	%*pb	0779
438	%*pbl	0,3-6,8-10
439
440For printing bitmap and its derivatives such as cpumask and nodemask,
441``%*pb`` output the bitmap with field width as the number of bits and ``%*pbl``
442output the bitmap as range list with field width as the number of bits.
443
444Passed by reference.
445
446Flags bitfields such as page flags, gfp_flags
447=============================================
448
449::
450
451	%pGp	referenced|uptodate|lru|active|private
452	%pGg	GFP_USER|GFP_DMA32|GFP_NOWARN
453	%pGv	read|exec|mayread|maywrite|mayexec|denywrite
454
455For printing flags bitfields as a collection of symbolic constants that
456would construct the value. The type of flags is given by the third
457character. Currently supported are [p]age flags, [v]ma_flags (both
458expect ``unsigned long *``) and [g]fp_flags (expects ``gfp_t *``). The flag
459names and print order depends on the particular	type.
460
461Note that this format should not be used directly in :c:func:`TP_printk()` part
462of a tracepoint. Instead, use the ``show_*_flags()`` functions from
463<trace/events/mmflags.h>.
464
465Passed by reference.
466
467Network device features
468=======================
469
470::
471
472	%pNF	0x000000000000c000
473
474For printing netdev_features_t.
475
476Passed by reference.
477
478If you add other ``%p`` extensions, please extend lib/test_printf.c with
479one or more test cases, if at all feasible.
480
481
482Thank you for your cooperation and attention.
483