trace_irq_handler_exit(9)

💅 trace_irq_handler_exit — the kernel API manual, bestie edition ✨

okay so you're looking at trace_irq_handler_exit(9) and you opened the manual page and honestly? iconic choice. this is the little tracepoint that fires right after an irq action handler comes back home. let's get into it 🫶

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🌸 NAME 🌸

trace_irq_handler_exit — called immediately after the irq action handler returns, no cap 💖

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✨ SYNOPSIS ✨

void trace_irq_handler_exit (int irq , struct irqaction *action , int ret );

that's the whole signature, copy it exactly, do not get creative with the spacing, the kernel does not think that's funny 🎀

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🦋 ARGUMENTS 🦋

• irq — the irq number. just the number. that's her whole job 💅
• action — pointer to struct irqaction. a pointer, bestie, so handle with care 🌸
• ret — the return value. this one is the main character, keep reading 👑

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🔥 DESCRIPTION 🔥

so here's the tea ☕ if the ret value is set to IRQ_HANDLED, then we know the corresponding action->handler successfully handled this irq. slay. ate. no notes. ✨

but if it's not? then it could mean the irq is a shared irq line, or the irq just was not handled successfully. either way, that's the vibe check and it did not pass 😭

this is also lowkey the bestie of irq_handler_entry — pair the two together and you can understand irq handler latencies. two tracepoints, one story, fr fr 🫶

ngl this is a tracepoint page so there aren't any options or exit statuses to worry about here — it's all about the args and the ret value, periodt 💜

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🌈 SEE ALSO 🌈

go read the kernel file ./include/trace/events/irq.h and then go be obsessed with the whole tracepoint friend group:

• trace_irq_handler_entry(9)
• trace_softirq_entry(9)
• trace_softirq_exit(9)
• trace_softirq_raise(9)
• trace_tasklet_entry(9)
• trace_tasklet_exit(9)

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and that's the page, bestie 🎀 it lives in the ./include/trace/events directory, it's dated October 2026, and it's filed under trace_irq_handler_exit(9) — go forth and trace those irqs, mwah 💋💖