Documentation/arm64/memory.txt

   1                      Memory Layout on AArch64 Linux
   2                      ==============================
   3
   4 Author: Catalin Marinas <catalin.marinas@arm.com>
   5
   6 This document describes the virtual memory layout used by the AArch64
   7 Linux kernel. The architecture allows up to 4 levels of translation
   8 tables with a 4KB page size and up to 3 levels with a 64KB page size.
   9
  10 AArch64 Linux uses either 3 levels or 4 levels of translation tables
  11 with the 4KB page configuration, allowing 39-bit (512GB) or 48-bit
  12 (256TB) virtual addresses, respectively, for both user and kernel. With
  13 64KB pages, only 2 levels of translation tables, allowing 42-bit (4TB)
  14 virtual address, are used but the memory layout is the same.
  15
  16 User addresses have bits 63:48 set to 0 while the kernel addresses have
  17 the same bits set to 1. TTBRx selection is given by bit 63 of the
  18 virtual address. The swapper_pg_dir contains only kernel (global)
  19 mappings while the user pgd contains only user (non-global) mappings.
  20 The swapper_pgd_dir address is written to TTBR1 and never written to
  21 TTBR0.
  22
  23
  24 AArch64 Linux memory layout with 4KB pages + 3 levels:
  25
  26 Start                   End                     Size            Use
  27 -----------------------------------------------------------------------
  28 0000000000000000        0000007fffffffff         512GB          user
  29 ffffff8000000000        ffffffffffffffff         512GB          kernel
  30
  31
  32 AArch64 Linux memory layout with 4KB pages + 4 levels:
  33
  34 Start                   End                     Size            Use
  35 -----------------------------------------------------------------------
  36 0000000000000000        0000ffffffffffff         256TB          user
  37 ffff000000000000        ffffffffffffffff         256TB          kernel
  38
  39
  40 AArch64 Linux memory layout with 64KB pages + 2 levels:
  41
  42 Start                   End                     Size            Use
  43 -----------------------------------------------------------------------
  44 0000000000000000        000003ffffffffff           4TB          user
  45 fffffc0000000000        ffffffffffffffff           4TB          kernel
  46
  47
  48 For details of the virtual kernel memory layout please see the kernel
  49 booting log.
  50
  51
  52 Translation table lookup with 4KB pages:
  53
  54 +--------+--------+--------+--------+--------+--------+--------+--------+
  55 |63    56|55    48|47    40|39    32|31    24|23    16|15     8|7      0|
  56 +--------+--------+--------+--------+--------+--------+--------+--------+
  57  |                 |         |         |         |         |
  58  |                 |         |         |         |         v
  59  |                 |         |         |         |   [11:0]  in-page offset
  60  |                 |         |         |         +-> [20:12] L3 index
  61  |                 |         |         +-----------> [29:21] L2 index
  62  |                 |         +---------------------> [38:30] L1 index
  63  |                 +-------------------------------> [47:39] L0 index
  64  +-------------------------------------------------> [63] TTBR0/1
  65
  66
  67 Translation table lookup with 64KB pages:
  68
  69 +--------+--------+--------+--------+--------+--------+--------+--------+
  70 |63    56|55    48|47    40|39    32|31    24|23    16|15     8|7      0|
  71 +--------+--------+--------+--------+--------+--------+--------+--------+
  72  |                 |    |               |              |
  73  |                 |    |               |              v
  74  |                 |    |               |            [15:0]  in-page offset
  75  |                 |    |               +----------> [28:16] L3 index
  76  |                 |    +--------------------------> [41:29] L2 index
  77  |                 +-------------------------------> [47:42] L1 index
  78  +-------------------------------------------------> [63] TTBR0/1
  79
  80
  81 When using KVM, the hypervisor maps kernel pages in EL2, at a fixed
  82 offset from the kernel VA (top 24bits of the kernel VA set to zero):
  83
  84 Start                   End                     Size            Use
  85 -----------------------------------------------------------------------
  86 0000004000000000        0000007fffffffff         256GB          kernel objects mapped in HYP