queued_spin_is_contended(9)

📦 version 7.3.1, in nixpkgs unstable

💅 queued_spin_is_contended(9) — from the Kernel API Manual, section 9, bestie

okay so real talk: this one's a tiny little function from the kernel's section 9 manual, and honestly? she's small but she serves. like, she doesn't do anything, she just tells you a vibe. vibe check for locks. periodt.

✨ NAME ✨

queued_spin_is_contended — check if the lock is contended 🫶

like that's literally it, that's the whole job. she looks at the lock and goes "hmm, is there drama?" and answers you. icon behavior.

🌸 SYNOPSIS 🌸

int queued_spin_is_contended (struct qspinlock *lock );

one function, one argument, returns an int. no cap, that's the whole signature. keep it exactly like that bestie, don't touch it 🙈

🎀 ARGUMENTS 🎀

  • lock — Pointer to queued spinlock structure ✨

that's the one and only thing you hand her: a pointer to a struct qspinlock. that's who she's checking on. that's the main character of this whole situation 👑

💖 RETURN 💖

  • 1 if lock contended
  • 0 otherwise

so like… one means "yes there's contention, people are waiting, it's giving queue at the boba shop 😭" and zero means "nah, she's free, nobody's fighting over her 💀". binary answer, no in-between, no essay. iykyk.

okay but fr fr — this is a check, not a lock. she just reports the vibe. don't go thinking this shiz grabbed the lock for you. it did not. read the return value and move on bestie 💅

🦋 SEE ALSO 🦋

Kernel file ./include/asm-generic/qspinlock.h — that's the source file, go look at her if you want the lore 🌈

and her whole friend group, all in section 9:

like, the entire spinlock friend group is there. is_locked is the "are you taken" bestie, trylock is the "lemme just shoot my shot" bestie, unlock is the "okay she's free now, go" bestie. they all ate. go read all of them 🧚💜

okay bye bestie, that's the whole page! this lil legend lives in the ./include/asm-generic corner of the tree, and this snapshot is dated October 2026 — sending you so much love from the kernel ✨🎀💖

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