The Linux-Lima DRM Driver For ARM Mali Hooks Up To The AMDGPU Scheduler

After writing yesterday about the Broadcom VC5 DRM driver potentially re-using the AMDGPU scheduler code, a Phoronix reader pointed out that the out-of-tree Linux-Lima driver has begun using this scheduler too.

Now that the AMDGPU scheduler has been punted to the DRM subsystem's common area as DRM_SCHED, we're seeing the smaller Direct Rendering Manager drivers look at using it or already making use of it as is the case for Etnaviv and now we find out Linux-Lima too.

Linux-Lima is the ARM Mali driver that's being worked on by Qiang Yu and not to be confused with Luc Verhaegen's retired effort on the original Lima driver project. Linux-Lima continues to be developed out-of-tree and is focused on ARM Mali 400/500 series support, one of several open-source, reverse-engineering efforts now around the various generations of Mali hardware.

Back in February Qiang Yu hooked up the driver to use the AMDGPU scheduler. The Linux-Lima driver continues seeing new code commits every few days and is currently tracking the Linux 4.16 kernel. This driver should work with SoCs like the Exynos4, Sun7i, and Sun8i.

There also continues to be the mesa-lima code maintained as well by the same owner for providing OpenGL support for Mali 400/500 and is a Gallium3D-based implementation. That code continues to be worked on quite frequently too but for neither driver we have yet heard any intentions to mainline the code in the near future. That Mesa-Lima code is currently based on last year's Mesa 17.3 branch.