Dynamic Execution Path Analysis of the Linux Kernel on ACRN

With the expansion of safety-critical system requirements and increasing system complexity, safety-critical systems built on the Linux kernel and hypervisors such as ACRN are becoming essential in the safety-critical field. The Linux dynamic execution path refers to the changes in the function execution path in the Linux system call, reflecting the inherent uncertainty of the Linux kernel. We collect data on the Linux dynamic execution path based on Ftrace and find that lock contention and process preemption are the primary sources of uncertainty in the Linux dynamic execution path. By comparing the data of the ACRN environment and the native Linux environment, we find that introducing the ACRN hypervisor can reduce the diversity of the Linux dynamic execution path to a certain extent and improve the determinism of the Linux kernel. This contribution can provide data and method support for designing and implementing complex real-time systems.