several reasons for this change:
pmap_change_wiring() has never (in my memory) been used to set the wired
attribute on a virtual page. We have always used pmap_enter() to do that.
Moreover, it is not really safe to use pmap_change_wiring() to set the wired
attribute on a virtual page. The description of pmap_change_wiring() says
that it assumes the existence of a mapping in the pmap. However, non-wired
mappings may be reclaimed by the pmap at any time. (See pmap_collect().)
Many implementations of pmap_change_wiring() will crash if the mapping does
not exist.
pmap_unwire() accepts a range of virtual addresses, whereas
pmap_change_wiring() acts upon a single virtual page. Since we are
typically unwiring a range of virtual addresses, pmap_unwire() will be more
efficient. Moreover, pmap_unwire() allows us to unwire superpage mappings.
Previously, we were forced to demote the superpage mapping, because
pmap_change_wiring() only allowed us to express the unwiring of a single
base page mapping at a time. This added to the overhead of unwiring for
large ranges of addresses, including the implicit unwiring that occurs at
process termination.
Implementations for arm and powerpc will follow.
Discussed with: jeff, marcel
Reviewed by: kib
Sponsored by: EMC / Isilon Storage Division
09132ba6ac