Simple Optimization For Linux 7.4 Can Open Files For Reading ~39% Faster
Linux 7.4 is set to include a simple optimization that improves file opening speeds by approximately 39%. The patch eliminates redundant work in the kernel's VFS function by removing a duplicate directory entry reference. This significant performance gain is expected to be included in the stable kernel before the end of 2026.
- ▪Developer Mateusz Guzik led the effort to optimize the do_open() VFS function in the Linux kernel.
- ▪Benchmarking on a 20-core VM showed a 39% increase in operations per second for opening files in read-only mode.
- ▪The patch involves removing a duplicative dentry reference that was previously handled unnecessarily during the file opening process.
- ▪The optimization has been in development for over two years and is queued for the Linux 7.4 merge window.
- ▪The change consists of a three dozen lines of code patch that avoids unnecessary modifications to file references.
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| Original publisher | Phoronix |
| Canonical URL | https://www.phoronix.com/news/Linux-7.4-Faster-Do-Open |
| Publication time | Sat, 19 Sep 2026 12:28:05 -0400 |
| Retrieval time | 2026-09-19T16:33:45.947Z |
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Simple Optimization For Linux 7.4 Can Open Files For Reading ~39% Faster Written by Michael Larabel in Linux Storage on 19 September 2026 at 12:28 PM EDT. Add A Comment More than two years in the making, Linux 7.4 is poised to introduce a patch that amounts to a rather simple optimization to avoid unnecessary/duplicative work that can net some nice gains when opening files for reading. Open-source developer Mateusz Guzik has been leading the effort to optimize the Linux kernel's do_open() VFS function used as part of opening files from a pathname lookup. Currently there is a duplicate directory entry "dentry" for translating the path component to the disk inode as part of the file opening process, which Guzik is optimizing out that duplicative dentry.
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