| # Fork Notes: ds4-strix-halo |
|
|
| A focused Strix Halo (`gfx1151`) fork of [antirez/ds4](https://github.com/antirez/ds4). |
| This document records the base, the audit, what was retained, what was rejected, |
| and the policy for future upstream merges. |
|
|
| ## Upstream base commit |
|
|
| The fork starts from current upstream `main` (the clone at |
| `/home/user/source/ds4-strix-halo`). The original ROCm work lived on the deleted |
| upstream `new-rocm` branch and is already merged into `main`, so `main` is the |
| correct Strix Halo base. |
|
|
| ## ds4fa audit |
|
|
| `julianmb/ds4fa` was compared against upstream. The common ancestor is: |
|
|
| ``` |
| baa084482020263a17a3b33a238f6f0809b425fd |
| ``` |
|
|
| Since that point: |
|
|
| - Upstream has **323** commits not present in `ds4fa`. |
| - `ds4fa` has **15** commits not present in upstream. |
|
|
| A wholesale rebase or merge of `ds4fa` is therefore the wrong approach: it would |
| remove or replace a large amount of newer upstream code, including the upstream |
| Metal backend and the current ROCm architecture. |
|
|
| ## What was retained (adapted to upstream) |
|
|
| - **ROCm/HIP startup diagnostics**: build/runtime/driver HIP versions, device |
| name and `gcnArchName`, managed/concurrent-managed/pageable memory support, |
| HIP-visible memory, total system RAM, and the TTM/GTT `pages_limit`. |
| - **Strix Halo memory diagnostics**: warning when the TTM/GTT limit is below 75% |
| of system RAM, and warning when a model is sized too close to the limit. |
| - **A current ROCm smoke test** (`tests/rocm_smoke.c`) against the `ds4_gpu` |
| API, exposed as `make rocm-smoke`. |
| - **A Strix Halo-focused README** plus updated `STRIXHALO.md` (ROCm 7.2.3, |
| preferring `amd-ttm` over hard-coded boot parameters). |
|
|
| ## What was rejected and why |
|
|
| - **`ds4_hip.cpp` backend and `hip/` kernel tree**: upstream's ROCm backend is |
| substantially newer and more complete. |
| - **Removal of the Metal backend**: this fork keeps upstream backends intact. |
| - **`q4_guard.py`**: its useful checks belong in the runtime (now the startup |
| diagnostics), not as a separate script. |
| - **The old `ds4fa` README**: describes incomplete or superseded behavior. |
|
|
| ## Policy for future upstream merges |
|
|
| - Track `antirez/ds4` `main`; merge or rebase regularly. |
| - Keep Strix Halo additions confined to: |
| - `rocm/ds4_rocm_runtime.cuh` (diagnostics only), |
| - `ds4_rocm.h` (version include), |
| - `tests/rocm_smoke.c` and the `Makefile` ROCm targets, |
| - this repository's docs (`README.md`, `STRIXHALO.md`, `FORK_NOTES.md`). |
| - Do **not** reintroduce rejected `ds4fa` components. |
| - Do **not** replace upstream allocation/cache lifetimes (e.g. with |
| `hipMallocAsync`) without profiling and broad regression testing. |
|
|
| ### Tooling |
|
|
| - `make rocm-smoke` — allocation/copy/cleanup + optional real-model smoke. |
| - `make rocm-diag` — print only the runtime profile. |
| - `make rocm-bench-quick` — confirm gfx1151 kernels execute and report bandwidth. |
| - `make ci` — strict smoke test + quick bench + `misc/sync-check.sh`. |
| - `misc/sync-check.sh` — enforces the divergence policy (fails if too far behind |
| upstream, or too far ahead without a `FORK_NOTES.md` update). |
| - `misc/sync.sh` — fetches upstream, runs the policy check, and rebases the |
| current branch onto `upstream/main`. |
|
|
|
|
