Support for VM_BIND and Sparse Textures in Freedreno

Learn how the freedreno kernel driver for Qualcomm Adreno GPUs was modernized through a comprehensive rewrite of its memory management system in this 38-minute conference talk from XDC 2025. Discover the limitations of the legacy memory management paradigm that worked well for gallium/GL drivers but created unnecessary complexity and CPU overhead for Vulkan applications, particularly when handling sophisticated sparse texture use-cases required by modern games. Explore the technical challenges involved in retrofitting VM_BIND into a mature production driver, including the integration of the recently-upstreamed gpuvm subsystem and the development of a completely new VM_BIND uAPI for memory management. Understand how these improvements enabled the implementation of sparse textures in turnip, the upstream Vulkan driver, and gain insights into dealing with the specific quirks of sparse textures on Adreno hardware architecture.