vmballoon_dequeue_page_list(9)

📦 version 7.3.1, in nixpkgs unstable

💖 vmballoon_dequeue_page_list(9) 💖

okay so this is a page straight out of the Kernel API Manual, and bestie, it's a little function with a big job. sit down, grab a strawberry 🍓, let's get into it.

✨ NAME ✨

vmballoon_dequeue_page_list — the one that de-queues page lists for deflation 🎈

🌸 SYNOPSIS 🌸

void vmballoon_dequeue_page_list (struct vmballoon *b , struct list_head
*pages , unsigned int *n_pages , enum vmballoon_page_size_type page_size
, unsigned int n_req_pages );

like, it returns void. it does the thing and it leaves. no notes. 💅

🦋 ARGUMENTS 🦋

  • b — pointer to the balloon. yep, the balloon itself. main character energy 🎈
  • pages — list of pages to enqueue. this is where the pages go.
  • n_pages — pointer to the number of pages in the list. heads up: the value gets zeroed, so don't come for her expecting the old number 🙈
  • page_size — tells you whether the pages are 2MB or 4KB pages. big girls and lil guys, both valid 💜
  • n_req_pages — the number of requested pages. i.e. how many you're asking for.

🧚 DESCRIPTION 🧚

so what it actually does: it dequeues the number of requested pages from the balloon for deflation. slay.

but ngl, there's a vibe check here — the number of dequeued pages may be lower if there aren't enough pages in the requested size available. so like, she'll give you what she can, but she's not gonna invent pages out of thin air, no cap. 😭

⭐ SEE ALSO ⭐

okay this list is long and honestly iconic for it. iykyk. all of these live in the kernel file ./drivers/misc/vmw_balloon.c:

🫶 friendly reminder that this whole page comes from the ./drivers/misc source, dated October 2026. that's the version, that's the date, and that's the tea. periodt. 💅✨🎀

bye bestie, go dequeue responsibly 🌈👑

📦 where this page comes from