Company
Date Published
Author
Tommy Reilly
Word count
2970
Language
-
Hacker News points
None

Summary

User-level statically defined tracepoints (USDTs) offer a robust solution to the challenges posed by uprobes in tracing software, providing a stable, discoverable, and efficient method for extracting program information without the fragility of traditional hacks or the overhead of uprobes. At Polar Signals, USDTs are utilized for GPU profiling in CUDA, exemplifying their potential for deep visibility into operations with minimal system impact. These tracepoints allow binaries to declare where key data can be found, effectively bypassing the complexity of uprobes by providing a transparent interface for tracing applications. By integrating USDTs, developers can ensure their software is natively observable, reducing the need for unreliable offset extraction or disassembly and benefiting from modern Linux kernel supports like multiprobes and attach cookies. As USDTs are underutilized despite their capabilities, the call to action is for developers to embed them into their applications, frameworks, and libraries to enhance observability and debugging efficiency. Polar Signals invites further exploration and adoption of USDTs to facilitate seamless system profiling and observability.