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| -rw-r--r-- | Documentation/core-api/packing.rst | 71 |
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diff --git a/Documentation/core-api/packing.rst b/Documentation/core-api/packing.rst index 3ed13bc9a195..821691f23c54 100644 --- a/Documentation/core-api/packing.rst +++ b/Documentation/core-api/packing.rst @@ -151,6 +151,77 @@ the more significant 4-byte word. We always think of our offsets as if there were no quirk, and we translate them afterwards, before accessing the memory region. +Note on buffer lengths not multiple of 4 +---------------------------------------- + +To deal with memory layout quirks where groups of 4 bytes are laid out "little +endian" relative to each other, but "big endian" within the group itself, the +concept of groups of 4 bytes is intrinsic to the packing API (not to be +confused with the memory access, which is performed byte by byte, though). + +With buffer lengths not multiple of 4, this means one group will be incomplete. +Depending on the quirks, this may lead to discontinuities in the bit fields +accessible through the buffer. The packing API assumes discontinuities were not +the intention of the memory layout, so it avoids them by effectively logically +shortening the most significant group of 4 octets to the number of octets +actually available. + +Example with a 31 byte sized buffer given below. Physical buffer offsets are +implicit, and increase from left to right within a group, and from top to +bottom within a column. + +No quirks: + +:: + + 31 29 28 | Group 7 (most significant) + 27 26 25 24 | Group 6 + 23 22 21 20 | Group 5 + 19 18 17 16 | Group 4 + 15 14 13 12 | Group 3 + 11 10 9 8 | Group 2 + 7 6 5 4 | Group 1 + 3 2 1 0 | Group 0 (least significant) + +QUIRK_LSW32_IS_FIRST: + +:: + + 3 2 1 0 | Group 0 (least significant) + 7 6 5 4 | Group 1 + 11 10 9 8 | Group 2 + 15 14 13 12 | Group 3 + 19 18 17 16 | Group 4 + 23 22 21 20 | Group 5 + 27 26 25 24 | Group 6 + 30 29 28 | Group 7 (most significant) + +QUIRK_LITTLE_ENDIAN: + +:: + + 30 28 29 | Group 7 (most significant) + 24 25 26 27 | Group 6 + 20 21 22 23 | Group 5 + 16 17 18 19 | Group 4 + 12 13 14 15 | Group 3 + 8 9 10 11 | Group 2 + 4 5 6 7 | Group 1 + 0 1 2 3 | Group 0 (least significant) + +QUIRK_LITTLE_ENDIAN | QUIRK_LSW32_IS_FIRST: + +:: + + 0 1 2 3 | Group 0 (least significant) + 4 5 6 7 | Group 1 + 8 9 10 11 | Group 2 + 12 13 14 15 | Group 3 + 16 17 18 19 | Group 4 + 20 21 22 23 | Group 5 + 24 25 26 27 | Group 6 + 28 29 30 | Group 7 (most significant) + Intended use ------------ |