destroy_workqueue(9)

💅 destroy_workqueue(9)

okay bestie, welcome to the destroy_workqueue(9) page from the Kernel API Manual — this is your group-chat explainer for safely terminating a workqueue. ✨

🌸 NAME

destroy_workqueue — safely terminate a workqueue. periodt. 💖

✨ SYNOPSIS

void destroy_workqueue (struct workqueue_struct *wq );

🎀 ARGUMENTS

• wq — target workqueue. 🎯

🦋 DESCRIPTION

okay so when you call this, you are asking the kernel to safely destroy a workqueue, and the vibe is: all work currently pending will be done first. like, it lets the currently pending stuff finish before the workqueue dips. 💅

⚠️ big important catch, no cap: this function does NOT guarantee that non-pending work that has been submitted with queue_delayed_work and similar functions will be done before destroying the workqueue. 😭

here’s the fundamental problem: currently, the workqueue has no way of accessing non-pending delayed_work. delayed_work is only linked on the timer-side. so all delayed_work must, therefore, be canceled before calling this function. fr fr, do not skip that part. 🫶

TODO: it would be better if the problem described above wouldn’t exist and destroy_workqueue would cleanly cancel all pending and non-pending delayed_work. we love a future-improvement note. ✨

💖 SEE ALSO

Kernel file ./kernel/workqueue.c is the source-file main character, and here’s the full SEE ALSO roll call — every single one, in order, no skips:

• for_each_pool(9), for_each_pool_worker(9), for_each_pwq(9), worker_pool_assign_id(9), unbound_effective_cpumask(9)
• get_work_pool(9), worker_set_flags(9), worker_clr_flags(9), worker_enter_idle(9), worker_leave_idle(9)
• find_worker_executing_work(9), move_linked_works(9), assign_work(9), kick_pool_pick(9), kick_pool(9)
• wq_worker_running(9), wq_worker_sleeping(9), wq_worker_tick(9), wq_worker_last_func(9), wq_node_nr_active(9)
• wq_update_node_max_active(9), get_pwq(9), put_pwq(9), put_pwq_unlocked(9), pwq_tryinc_nr_active(9)
• pwq_activate_first_inactive(9), unplug_oldest_pwq(9), node_activate_pending_pwq(9), pwq_dec_nr_active(9), pwq_dec_nr_in_flight(9)
• try_to_grab_pending(9), work_grab_pending(9), insert_work(9), queue_work_on(9), select_numa_node_cpu(9)
• queue_work_node(9), queue_delayed_work_on(9), mod_delayed_work_on(9), queue_rcu_work(9), worker_attach_to_pool(9)
• worker_detach_from_pool(9), create_worker(9), set_worker_dying(9), idle_worker_timeout(9), idle_cull_fn(9)
• maybe_create_worker(9), manage_workers(9), process_one_work(9), process_scheduled_works(9), worker_thread(9)
• rescuer_thread(9), check_flush_dependency(9), insert_wq_barrier(9), flush_workqueue_prep_pwqs(9), __flush_workqueue(9)
• drain_workqueue(9), flush_work(9), flush_delayed_work(9), flush_rcu_work(9), cancel_work_sync(9)
• cancel_delayed_work(9), cancel_delayed_work_sync(9), disable_work(9), disable_work_sync(9), enable_work(9)
• disable_delayed_work(9), disable_delayed_work_sync(9), enable_delayed_work(9), schedule_on_each_cpu(9), execute_in_process_context(9)
• free_workqueue_attrs(9), alloc_workqueue_attrs(9), init_worker_pool(9), put_unbound_pool(9), get_unbound_pool(9)
• wq_calc_pod_cpumask(9), apply_workqueue_attrs(9), unbound_wq_update_pwq(9), wq_adjust_max_active(9), workqueue_set_max_active(9)
• workqueue_set_min_active(9), current_work(9), current_is_workqueue_rescuer(9), current_is_workqueue_mem_reclaim(9), workqueue_congested(9)
• work_busy(9), set_worker_desc(9), print_worker_info(9), show_one_workqueue(9), show_one_worker_pool(9)
• show_all_workqueues(9), show_freezable_workqueues(9), rebind_workers(9), restore_unbound_workers_cpumask(9), work_on_cpu_key(9)
• freeze_workqueues_begin(9), freeze_workqueues_busy(9), thaw_workqueues(9), workqueue_unbound_housekeeping_update(9), workqueue_set_unbound_cpumask(9)
• workqueue_sysfs_register(9), workqueue_sysfs_unregister(9), workqueue_init_early(9), workqueue_init(9), llc_count_cores(9)
• llc_populate_cpu_shard_id(9), precompute_cache_shard_ids(9), workqueue_init_topology(9)

signed off by source/version ./kernel, dated October 2026 — destroy_workqueue(9) 💖