[PATCH v1 18/49] perf python: Port stackcollapse to perf module
From: Ian Rogers
Date: Sun Sep 20 2026 - 01:25:41 EST
Port stackcollapse.py from tools/perf/scripts/python/ to a standalone
script in tools/perf/python/ refactored into a StackCollapseAnalyzer
class.
Improvements compared to the legacy script:
- Traverse sample.callchain directly from perf.session without
allocating per-event dictionaries, and fall back to sample.symbol when
a sample has no callchain.
- Replace deprecated optparse with argparse, adding -i/--input alongside
--include-tid, --include-pid, --no-comm, --tidy-java, and --kernel.
- Handle BrokenPipeError cleanly when output is piped into downstream
tools (such as head or flamegraph.pl).
Add a shell test (test_stackcollapse_python.sh) using a CPU workload
(perf test -w noploop) to verify the standalone script.
Assisted-by: Antigravity:gemini-3.1-pro
Signed-off-by: Ian Rogers <irogers@xxxxxxxxxx>
---
tools/perf/python/stackcollapse.py | 145 ++++++++++++++++++
.../tests/shell/test_stackcollapse_python.sh | 77 ++++++++++
2 files changed, 222 insertions(+)
create mode 100755 tools/perf/python/stackcollapse.py
create mode 100755 tools/perf/tests/shell/test_stackcollapse_python.sh
diff --git a/tools/perf/python/stackcollapse.py b/tools/perf/python/stackcollapse.py
new file mode 100755
index 000000000000..0e8a65969db3
--- /dev/null
+++ b/tools/perf/python/stackcollapse.py
@@ -0,0 +1,145 @@
+#!/usr/bin/env python3
+# SPDX-License-Identifier: GPL-2.0
+"""
+stackcollapse.py - format perf samples with one line per distinct call stack
+
+This script's output has two space-separated fields. The first is a semicolon
+separated stack including the program name (from the "comm" field) and the
+function names from the call stack. The second is a count:
+
+ swapper;start_kernel;rest_init;cpu_idle;default_idle;native_safe_halt 2
+
+The file is sorted according to the first field.
+
+Ported from tools/perf/scripts/python/stackcollapse.py
+"""
+from __future__ import annotations
+
+import argparse
+from collections import defaultdict
+import os
+import sys
+import perf
+
+
+class StackCollapseAnalyzer:
+ """Accumulates call stacks and prints them collapsed."""
+
+ def __init__(self, args: argparse.Namespace) -> None:
+ self.args = args
+ self.lines: dict[str, int] = defaultdict(int)
+ self.session: perf.session | None = None
+
+ def tidy_function_name(self, sym: str, dso: str) -> str:
+ """Beautify function names based on options."""
+ if sym is None:
+ sym = "[unknown]"
+
+ sym = sym.replace(";", ":")
+ if self.args.tidy_java:
+ # Beautify Java signatures
+ sym = sym.replace("<", "")
+ sym = sym.replace(">", "")
+ if sym.startswith("L") and "/" in sym:
+ sym = sym[1:]
+ try:
+ sym = sym[:sym.index("(")]
+ except ValueError:
+ pass
+
+ if self.args.annotate_kernel and dso == "[kernel.kallsyms]":
+ return sym + "_[k]"
+ return sym
+
+ def process_event(self, sample: perf.sample_event) -> None:
+ """Collect call stack for each sample."""
+ stack = []
+ callchain = sample.callchain
+ if callchain is not None:
+ for node in callchain:
+ stack.append(self.tidy_function_name(node.symbol, node.dso))
+ else:
+ # Fallback if no callchain
+ sym = (sample.symbol or '[unknown]')
+ dso = (sample.dso or '[unknown]')
+ stack.append(self.tidy_function_name(sym, dso))
+
+ if self.args.include_comm:
+ comm = "Unknown"
+ if self.session is not None:
+ try:
+ proc = self.session.find_thread(
+ sample.sample_pid, sample.sample_tid
+ )
+ if proc:
+ proc_comm = proc.comm()
+ if proc_comm is not None:
+ comm = proc_comm
+ except TypeError:
+ pass
+ comm = str(comm).replace(" ", "_")
+ sep = "-"
+ if self.args.include_pid:
+ comm = f"{comm}{sep}{(sample.sample_pid or 0)}"
+ sep = "/"
+ if self.args.include_tid:
+ comm = f"{comm}{sep}{(sample.sample_tid or 0)}"
+ stack.append(comm)
+
+ stack_string = ";".join(reversed(stack))
+ self.lines[stack_string] += 1
+
+ def print_totals(self) -> None:
+ """Print sorted collapsed stacks."""
+ try:
+ for stack in sorted(self.lines):
+ print(f"{stack} {self.lines[stack]}")
+ sys.stdout.flush()
+ except BrokenPipeError:
+ devnull = os.open(os.devnull, os.O_WRONLY)
+ os.dup2(devnull, sys.stdout.fileno())
+ os.close(devnull)
+
+
+def main():
+ """Main function."""
+ ap = argparse.ArgumentParser(
+ description="Format perf samples with one line per distinct call stack"
+ )
+ ap.add_argument("-i", "--input", default="perf.data", help="Input file name")
+ ap.add_argument("--include-tid", action="store_true", help="include thread id in stack")
+ ap.add_argument("--include-pid", action="store_true", help="include process id in stack")
+ ap.add_argument("--no-comm", dest="include_comm", action="store_false", default=True,
+ help="do not separate stacks according to comm")
+ ap.add_argument("--tidy-java", action="store_true", help="beautify Java signatures")
+ ap.add_argument("--kernel", dest="annotate_kernel", action="store_true",
+ help="annotate kernel functions with _[k]")
+
+ args = ap.parse_args()
+
+ if args.include_tid and not args.include_comm:
+ print("requesting tid but not comm is invalid", file=sys.stderr)
+ sys.exit(1)
+ if args.include_pid and not args.include_comm:
+ print("requesting pid but not comm is invalid", file=sys.stderr)
+ sys.exit(1)
+
+ analyzer = StackCollapseAnalyzer(args)
+
+ try:
+ session = perf.session(perf.data(args.input), sample=analyzer.process_event)
+ analyzer.session = session
+ session.process_events()
+ except IOError as e:
+ print(f"Error: {e}", file=sys.stderr)
+ sys.exit(1)
+ except KeyboardInterrupt:
+ pass
+ finally:
+ analyzer.session = None
+
+ analyzer.print_totals()
+
+
+if __name__ == "__main__":
+ main()
diff --git a/tools/perf/tests/shell/test_stackcollapse_python.sh b/tools/perf/tests/shell/test_stackcollapse_python.sh
new file mode 100755
index 000000000000..e5675332e3cd
--- /dev/null
+++ b/tools/perf/tests/shell/test_stackcollapse_python.sh
@@ -0,0 +1,77 @@
+#!/bin/bash
+# SPDX-License-Identifier: GPL-2.0
+# stackcollapse python test
+
+set -e -o pipefail
+
+shelldir=$(dirname "$0")
+# shellcheck source=lib/setup_python.sh
+. "${shelldir}"/lib/setup_python.sh
+
+if ! "$PYTHON" -c 'import perf' > /dev/null 2>&1; then
+ echo "Skipping test, perf python module not found"
+ exit 2
+fi
+
+script_dir="$(dirname "$0")/../../python"
+script_path="${script_dir}/stackcollapse.py"
+
+if [ ! -f "$script_path" ]; then
+ echo "Skipping test, stackcollapse.py not found at $script_path"
+ exit 2
+fi
+
+err=0
+temp_data=""
+temp_out=""
+
+cleanup() {
+ rm -f "${temp_data}" "${temp_out}"
+}
+trap 'cleanup' EXIT TERM INT
+
+temp_data=$(mktemp /tmp/perf.data.XXXXXX)
+temp_out=$(mktemp /tmp/perf.out.XXXXXX)
+
+echo "Testing stackcollapse.py..."
+
+# Create a perf.data file with callchains. Use a busy workload rather than
+# sleep, as an idle system may not generate any samples at all.
+perf record -g -o "${temp_data}" \
+ -- perf test -w noploop >/dev/null 2>&1 || \
+ { echo "Skipping test, perf record failed"; exit 2; }
+
+if [ ! -s "${temp_data}" ]; then
+ echo "Skipping test, perf record failed to create data"
+ exit 2
+fi
+
+# Check that the script executes with default options
+if ! "$PYTHON" "$script_path" -i "${temp_data}" > "${temp_out}"; then
+ echo "stackcollapse.py test failed"
+ err=1
+else
+ # It outputs stacks like: swapper;...;... 2
+ if [ ! -s "${temp_out}" ]; then
+ echo "Expected stack traces in output, but output is empty."
+ err=1
+ else
+ echo "stackcollapse default test passed."
+ fi
+fi
+
+# Test CLI flags (--include-pid, --include-tid, --tidy-java, --kernel) and BrokenPipeError
+if ! "$PYTHON" "$script_path" -i "${temp_data}" \
+ --include-pid --include-tid --tidy-java --kernel | head -n 1 > "${temp_out}" || \
+ [ ! -s "${temp_out}" ]; then
+ echo "stackcollapse.py options/pipe test failed"
+ err=1
+elif ! "$PYTHON" "$script_path" -i "${temp_data}" --no-comm > /dev/null; then
+ echo "stackcollapse.py --no-comm test failed"
+ err=1
+else
+ echo "stackcollapse options test passed."
+fi
+rm -f "${temp_out}"
+
+exit $err
--
2.55.0.1082.g2b9226bbc0-goog