diff --git a/src/backend/access/transam/clog.c b/src/backend/access/transam/clog.c
index f29f460ade5f2d67d94f6695f82d472e3efd0a5c..44e1b9b7d3be3da561736a5221875f90959173c1 100644
--- a/src/backend/access/transam/clog.c
+++ b/src/backend/access/transam/clog.c
@@ -24,7 +24,7 @@
  * Portions Copyright (c) 1996-2005, PostgreSQL Global Development Group
  * Portions Copyright (c) 1994, Regents of the University of California
  *
- * $PostgreSQL: pgsql/src/backend/access/transam/clog.c,v 1.33 2005/10/15 02:49:09 momjian Exp $
+ * $PostgreSQL: pgsql/src/backend/access/transam/clog.c,v 1.34 2005/11/05 21:19:47 tgl Exp $
  *
  *-------------------------------------------------------------------------
  */
@@ -107,7 +107,7 @@ TransactionIdSetStatus(TransactionId xid, XidStatus status)
 	byteval |= (status << bshift);
 	*byteptr = byteval;
 
-	ClogCtl->shared->page_status[slotno] = SLRU_PAGE_DIRTY;
+	ClogCtl->shared->page_dirty[slotno] = true;
 
 	LWLockRelease(CLogControlLock);
 }
@@ -175,7 +175,7 @@ BootStrapCLOG(void)
 
 	/* Make sure it's written out */
 	SimpleLruWritePage(ClogCtl, slotno, NULL);
-	Assert(ClogCtl->shared->page_status[slotno] == SLRU_PAGE_CLEAN);
+	Assert(!ClogCtl->shared->page_dirty[slotno]);
 
 	LWLockRelease(CLogControlLock);
 }
@@ -246,7 +246,7 @@ StartupCLOG(void)
 		/* Zero the rest of the page */
 		MemSet(byteptr + 1, 0, BLCKSZ - byteno - 1);
 
-		ClogCtl->shared->page_status[slotno] = SLRU_PAGE_DIRTY;
+		ClogCtl->shared->page_dirty[slotno] = true;
 	}
 
 	LWLockRelease(CLogControlLock);
@@ -404,7 +404,7 @@ clog_redo(XLogRecPtr lsn, XLogRecord *record)
 
 		slotno = ZeroCLOGPage(pageno, false);
 		SimpleLruWritePage(ClogCtl, slotno, NULL);
-		Assert(ClogCtl->shared->page_status[slotno] == SLRU_PAGE_CLEAN);
+		Assert(!ClogCtl->shared->page_dirty[slotno]);
 
 		LWLockRelease(CLogControlLock);
 	}
diff --git a/src/backend/access/transam/multixact.c b/src/backend/access/transam/multixact.c
index af254da173d35c944243430c479363683738fe2a..bb532bfe6a68456755c193123e075dbb2a5eb0bf 100644
--- a/src/backend/access/transam/multixact.c
+++ b/src/backend/access/transam/multixact.c
@@ -42,7 +42,7 @@
  * Portions Copyright (c) 1996-2005, PostgreSQL Global Development Group
  * Portions Copyright (c) 1994, Regents of the University of California
  *
- * $PostgreSQL: pgsql/src/backend/access/transam/multixact.c,v 1.11 2005/10/28 19:00:19 tgl Exp $
+ * $PostgreSQL: pgsql/src/backend/access/transam/multixact.c,v 1.12 2005/11/05 21:19:47 tgl Exp $
  *
  *-------------------------------------------------------------------------
  */
@@ -714,7 +714,7 @@ RecordNewMultiXact(MultiXactId multi, MultiXactOffset offset,
 
 	*offptr = offset;
 
-	MultiXactOffsetCtl->shared->page_status[slotno] = SLRU_PAGE_DIRTY;
+	MultiXactOffsetCtl->shared->page_dirty[slotno] = true;
 
 	/* Exchange our lock */
 	LWLockRelease(MultiXactOffsetControlLock);
@@ -742,7 +742,7 @@ RecordNewMultiXact(MultiXactId multi, MultiXactOffset offset,
 
 		*memberptr = xids[i];
 
-		MultiXactMemberCtl->shared->page_status[slotno] = SLRU_PAGE_DIRTY;
+		MultiXactMemberCtl->shared->page_dirty[slotno] = true;
 	}
 
 	LWLockRelease(MultiXactMemberControlLock);
@@ -1308,7 +1308,7 @@ BootStrapMultiXact(void)
 
 	/* Make sure it's written out */
 	SimpleLruWritePage(MultiXactOffsetCtl, slotno, NULL);
-	Assert(MultiXactOffsetCtl->shared->page_status[slotno] == SLRU_PAGE_CLEAN);
+	Assert(!MultiXactOffsetCtl->shared->page_dirty[slotno]);
 
 	LWLockRelease(MultiXactOffsetControlLock);
 
@@ -1319,7 +1319,7 @@ BootStrapMultiXact(void)
 
 	/* Make sure it's written out */
 	SimpleLruWritePage(MultiXactMemberCtl, slotno, NULL);
-	Assert(MultiXactMemberCtl->shared->page_status[slotno] == SLRU_PAGE_CLEAN);
+	Assert(!MultiXactMemberCtl->shared->page_dirty[slotno]);
 
 	LWLockRelease(MultiXactMemberControlLock);
 }
@@ -1405,7 +1405,7 @@ StartupMultiXact(void)
 
 		MemSet(offptr, 0, BLCKSZ - (entryno * sizeof(MultiXactOffset)));
 
-		MultiXactOffsetCtl->shared->page_status[slotno] = SLRU_PAGE_DIRTY;
+		MultiXactOffsetCtl->shared->page_dirty[slotno] = true;
 	}
 
 	LWLockRelease(MultiXactOffsetControlLock);
@@ -1435,7 +1435,7 @@ StartupMultiXact(void)
 
 		MemSet(xidptr, 0, BLCKSZ - (entryno * sizeof(TransactionId)));
 
-		MultiXactMemberCtl->shared->page_status[slotno] = SLRU_PAGE_DIRTY;
+		MultiXactMemberCtl->shared->page_dirty[slotno] = true;
 	}
 
 	LWLockRelease(MultiXactMemberControlLock);
@@ -1829,7 +1829,7 @@ multixact_redo(XLogRecPtr lsn, XLogRecord *record)
 
 		slotno = ZeroMultiXactOffsetPage(pageno, false);
 		SimpleLruWritePage(MultiXactOffsetCtl, slotno, NULL);
-		Assert(MultiXactOffsetCtl->shared->page_status[slotno] == SLRU_PAGE_CLEAN);
+		Assert(!MultiXactOffsetCtl->shared->page_dirty[slotno]);
 
 		LWLockRelease(MultiXactOffsetControlLock);
 	}
@@ -1844,7 +1844,7 @@ multixact_redo(XLogRecPtr lsn, XLogRecord *record)
 
 		slotno = ZeroMultiXactMemberPage(pageno, false);
 		SimpleLruWritePage(MultiXactMemberCtl, slotno, NULL);
-		Assert(MultiXactMemberCtl->shared->page_status[slotno] == SLRU_PAGE_CLEAN);
+		Assert(!MultiXactMemberCtl->shared->page_dirty[slotno]);
 
 		LWLockRelease(MultiXactMemberControlLock);
 	}
diff --git a/src/backend/access/transam/slru.c b/src/backend/access/transam/slru.c
index b8273d84f595edf2cd110470870e3ef3949745f6..23b022fa21830da0bc80d092dcc0925f57d07ce7 100644
--- a/src/backend/access/transam/slru.c
+++ b/src/backend/access/transam/slru.c
@@ -14,35 +14,30 @@
  * out the latest page (since we know it's going to be hit again eventually).
  *
  * We use a control LWLock to protect the shared data structures, plus
- * per-buffer LWLocks that synchronize I/O for each buffer.  A process
- * that is reading in or writing out a page buffer does not hold the control
- * lock, only the per-buffer lock for the buffer it is working on.
+ * per-buffer LWLocks that synchronize I/O for each buffer.  The control lock
+ * must be held to examine or modify any shared state.  A process that is
+ * reading in or writing out a page buffer does not hold the control lock,
+ * only the per-buffer lock for the buffer it is working on.
  *
- * To change the page number or state of a buffer, one must hold
- * the control lock.  If the buffer's state is neither EMPTY nor
- * CLEAN, then there may be processes doing (or waiting to do) I/O on the
- * buffer, so the page number may not be changed, and the only allowed state
- * transition is to change WRITE_IN_PROGRESS to DIRTY after dirtying the page.
- * To do any other state transition involving a buffer with potential I/O
- * processes, one must hold both the per-buffer lock and the control lock.
- * (Note the control lock must be acquired second; do not wait on a buffer
- * lock while holding the control lock.)  A process wishing to read a page
- * marks the buffer state as READ_IN_PROGRESS, then drops the control lock,
- * acquires the per-buffer lock, and rechecks the state before proceeding.
- * This recheck takes care of the possibility that someone else already did
- * the read, while the early marking prevents someone else from trying to
- * read the same page into a different buffer.
+ * When initiating I/O on a buffer, we acquire the per-buffer lock exclusively
+ * before releasing the control lock.  The per-buffer lock is released after
+ * completing the I/O, re-acquiring the control lock, and updating the shared
+ * state.  (Deadlock is not possible here, because we never try to initiate
+ * I/O when someone else is already doing I/O on the same buffer.)
+ * To wait for I/O to complete, release the control lock, acquire the
+ * per-buffer lock in shared mode, immediately release the per-buffer lock,
+ * reacquire the control lock, and then recheck state (since arbitrary things
+ * could have happened while we didn't have the lock).
  *
  * As with the regular buffer manager, it is possible for another process
  * to re-dirty a page that is currently being written out.	This is handled
- * by setting the page's state from WRITE_IN_PROGRESS to DIRTY.  The writing
- * process must notice this and not mark the page CLEAN when it's done.
+ * by re-setting the page's page_dirty flag.
  *
  *
  * Portions Copyright (c) 1996-2005, PostgreSQL Global Development Group
  * Portions Copyright (c) 1994, Regents of the University of California
  *
- * $PostgreSQL: pgsql/src/backend/access/transam/slru.c,v 1.29 2005/11/03 00:23:36 tgl Exp $
+ * $PostgreSQL: pgsql/src/backend/access/transam/slru.c,v 1.30 2005/11/05 21:19:47 tgl Exp $
  *
  *-------------------------------------------------------------------------
  */
@@ -169,6 +164,7 @@ SimpleLruInit(SlruCtl ctl, const char *name,
 		{
 			shared->page_buffer[slotno] = bufptr;
 			shared->page_status[slotno] = SLRU_PAGE_EMPTY;
+			shared->page_dirty[slotno] = false;
 			shared->page_lru_count[slotno] = 1;
 			shared->buffer_locks[slotno] = LWLockAssign();
 			bufptr += BLCKSZ;
@@ -205,12 +201,14 @@ SimpleLruZeroPage(SlruCtl ctl, int pageno)
 	/* Find a suitable buffer slot for the page */
 	slotno = SlruSelectLRUPage(ctl, pageno);
 	Assert(shared->page_status[slotno] == SLRU_PAGE_EMPTY ||
-		   shared->page_status[slotno] == SLRU_PAGE_CLEAN ||
+		   (shared->page_status[slotno] == SLRU_PAGE_VALID &&
+			!shared->page_dirty[slotno]) ||
 		   shared->page_number[slotno] == pageno);
 
 	/* Mark the slot as containing this page */
 	shared->page_number[slotno] = pageno;
-	shared->page_status[slotno] = SLRU_PAGE_DIRTY;
+	shared->page_status[slotno] = SLRU_PAGE_VALID;
+	shared->page_dirty[slotno] = true;
 	SlruRecentlyUsed(shared, slotno);
 
 	/* Set the buffer to zeroes */
@@ -222,6 +220,48 @@ SimpleLruZeroPage(SlruCtl ctl, int pageno)
 	return slotno;
 }
 
+/*
+ * Wait for any active I/O on a page slot to finish.  (This does not
+ * guarantee that new I/O hasn't been started before we return, though.)
+ *
+ * Control lock must be held at entry, and will be held at exit.
+ */
+static void
+SimpleLruWaitIO(SlruCtl ctl, int slotno)
+{
+	SlruShared	shared = ctl->shared;
+
+	/* See notes at top of file */
+	LWLockRelease(shared->ControlLock);
+	LWLockAcquire(shared->buffer_locks[slotno], LW_SHARED);
+	LWLockRelease(shared->buffer_locks[slotno]);
+	LWLockAcquire(shared->ControlLock, LW_EXCLUSIVE);
+	/*
+	 * If the slot is still in an io-in-progress state, then either someone
+	 * already started a new I/O on the slot, or a previous I/O failed and
+	 * neglected to reset the page state.  That shouldn't happen, really,
+	 * but it seems worth a few extra cycles to check and recover from it.
+	 * We can cheaply test for failure by seeing if the buffer lock is still
+	 * held (we assume that transaction abort would release the lock).
+	 */
+	if (shared->page_status[slotno] == SLRU_PAGE_READ_IN_PROGRESS ||
+		shared->page_status[slotno] == SLRU_PAGE_WRITE_IN_PROGRESS)
+	{
+		if (LWLockConditionalAcquire(shared->buffer_locks[slotno], LW_SHARED))
+		{
+			/* indeed, the I/O must have failed */
+			if (shared->page_status[slotno] == SLRU_PAGE_READ_IN_PROGRESS)
+				shared->page_status[slotno] = SLRU_PAGE_EMPTY;
+			else				/* write_in_progress */
+			{
+				shared->page_status[slotno] = SLRU_PAGE_VALID;
+				shared->page_dirty[slotno] = true;
+			}
+			LWLockRelease(shared->buffer_locks[slotno]);
+		}
+	}
+}
+
 /*
  * Find a page in a shared buffer, reading it in if necessary.
  * The page number must correspond to an already-initialized page.
@@ -239,7 +279,7 @@ SimpleLruReadPage(SlruCtl ctl, int pageno, TransactionId xid)
 {
 	SlruShared	shared = ctl->shared;
 
-	/* Outer loop handles restart if we lose the buffer to someone else */
+	/* Outer loop handles restart if we must wait for someone else's I/O */
 	for (;;)
 	{
 		int			slotno;
@@ -252,24 +292,30 @@ SimpleLruReadPage(SlruCtl ctl, int pageno, TransactionId xid)
 		if (shared->page_number[slotno] == pageno &&
 			shared->page_status[slotno] != SLRU_PAGE_EMPTY)
 		{
-			/* If page is still being read in, we cannot use it yet */
-			if (shared->page_status[slotno] != SLRU_PAGE_READ_IN_PROGRESS)
+			/* If page is still being read in, we must wait for I/O */
+			if (shared->page_status[slotno] == SLRU_PAGE_READ_IN_PROGRESS)
 			{
-				/* otherwise, it's ready to use */
-				SlruRecentlyUsed(shared, slotno);
-				return slotno;
+				SimpleLruWaitIO(ctl, slotno);
+				/* Now we must recheck state from the top */
+				continue;
 			}
-		}
-		else
-		{
-			/* We found no match; assert we selected a freeable slot */
-			Assert(shared->page_status[slotno] == SLRU_PAGE_EMPTY ||
-				   shared->page_status[slotno] == SLRU_PAGE_CLEAN);
+			/* Otherwise, it's ready to use */
+			SlruRecentlyUsed(shared, slotno);
+			return slotno;
 		}
 
-		/* Mark the slot read-busy (no-op if it already was) */
+		/* We found no match; assert we selected a freeable slot */
+		Assert(shared->page_status[slotno] == SLRU_PAGE_EMPTY ||
+			   (shared->page_status[slotno] == SLRU_PAGE_VALID &&
+				!shared->page_dirty[slotno]));
+
+		/* Mark the slot read-busy */
 		shared->page_number[slotno] = pageno;
 		shared->page_status[slotno] = SLRU_PAGE_READ_IN_PROGRESS;
+		shared->page_dirty[slotno] = false;
+
+		/* Acquire per-buffer lock (cannot deadlock, see notes at top) */
+		LWLockAcquire(shared->buffer_locks[slotno], LW_EXCLUSIVE);
 
 		/*
 		 * Temporarily mark page as recently-used to discourage
@@ -277,43 +323,20 @@ SimpleLruReadPage(SlruCtl ctl, int pageno, TransactionId xid)
 		 */
 		SlruRecentlyUsed(shared, slotno);
 
-		/*
-		 * We must grab the per-buffer lock to do I/O.  To avoid deadlock,
-		 * must release ControlLock while waiting for per-buffer lock.
-		 * Fortunately, most of the time the per-buffer lock shouldn't be
-		 * already held, so we can do this:
-		 */
-		if (!LWLockConditionalAcquire(shared->buffer_locks[slotno],
-									  LW_EXCLUSIVE))
-		{
-			LWLockRelease(shared->ControlLock);
-			LWLockAcquire(shared->buffer_locks[slotno], LW_EXCLUSIVE);
-			LWLockAcquire(shared->ControlLock, LW_EXCLUSIVE);
-		}
-
-		/*
-		 * Check to see if someone else already did the read, or took the
-		 * buffer away from us.  If so, restart from the top.
-		 */
-		if (shared->page_number[slotno] != pageno ||
-			shared->page_status[slotno] != SLRU_PAGE_READ_IN_PROGRESS)
-		{
-			LWLockRelease(shared->buffer_locks[slotno]);
-			continue;
-		}
-
-		/* Okay, release control lock and do the read */
+		/* Release control lock while doing I/O */
 		LWLockRelease(shared->ControlLock);
 
+		/* Do the read */
 		ok = SlruPhysicalReadPage(ctl, pageno, slotno);
 
-		/* Re-acquire shared control lock and update page state */
+		/* Re-acquire control lock and update page state */
 		LWLockAcquire(shared->ControlLock, LW_EXCLUSIVE);
 
 		Assert(shared->page_number[slotno] == pageno &&
-			   shared->page_status[slotno] == SLRU_PAGE_READ_IN_PROGRESS);
+			   shared->page_status[slotno] == SLRU_PAGE_READ_IN_PROGRESS &&
+			   !shared->page_dirty[slotno]);
 
-		shared->page_status[slotno] = ok ? SLRU_PAGE_CLEAN : SLRU_PAGE_EMPTY;
+		shared->page_status[slotno] = ok ? SLRU_PAGE_VALID : SLRU_PAGE_EMPTY;
 
 		LWLockRelease(shared->buffer_locks[slotno]);
 
@@ -341,54 +364,39 @@ void
 SimpleLruWritePage(SlruCtl ctl, int slotno, SlruFlush fdata)
 {
 	SlruShared	shared = ctl->shared;
-	int			pageno;
+	int			pageno = shared->page_number[slotno];
 	bool		ok;
 
-	/* Do nothing if page does not need writing */
-	if (shared->page_status[slotno] != SLRU_PAGE_DIRTY &&
-		shared->page_status[slotno] != SLRU_PAGE_WRITE_IN_PROGRESS)
-		return;
-
-	pageno = shared->page_number[slotno];
-
-	/*
-	 * We must grab the per-buffer lock to do I/O.  To avoid deadlock,
-	 * must release ControlLock while waiting for per-buffer lock.
-	 * Fortunately, most of the time the per-buffer lock shouldn't be
-	 * already held, so we can do this:
-	 */
-	if (!LWLockConditionalAcquire(shared->buffer_locks[slotno],
-								  LW_EXCLUSIVE))
+	/* If a write is in progress, wait for it to finish */
+	while (shared->page_status[slotno] == SLRU_PAGE_WRITE_IN_PROGRESS &&
+		   shared->page_number[slotno] == pageno)
 	{
-		LWLockRelease(shared->ControlLock);
-		LWLockAcquire(shared->buffer_locks[slotno], LW_EXCLUSIVE);
-		LWLockAcquire(shared->ControlLock, LW_EXCLUSIVE);
+		SimpleLruWaitIO(ctl, slotno);
 	}
 
 	/*
-	 * Check to see if someone else already did the write, or took the buffer
-	 * away from us.  If so, do nothing.  NOTE: we really should never see
-	 * WRITE_IN_PROGRESS here, since that state should only occur while the
-	 * writer is holding the buffer lock.  But accept it so that we have a
-	 * recovery path if a writer aborts.
+	 * Do nothing if page is not dirty, or if buffer no longer contains
+	 * the same page we were called for.
 	 */
-	if (shared->page_number[slotno] != pageno ||
-		(shared->page_status[slotno] != SLRU_PAGE_DIRTY &&
-		 shared->page_status[slotno] != SLRU_PAGE_WRITE_IN_PROGRESS))
-	{
-		LWLockRelease(shared->buffer_locks[slotno]);
+	if (!shared->page_dirty[slotno] ||
+		shared->page_status[slotno] != SLRU_PAGE_VALID ||
+		shared->page_number[slotno] != pageno)
 		return;
-	}
 
 	/*
-	 * Mark the slot write-busy.  After this point, a transaction status
-	 * update on this page will mark it dirty again.
+	 * Mark the slot write-busy, and clear the dirtybit.  After this point,
+	 * a transaction status update on this page will mark it dirty again.
 	 */
 	shared->page_status[slotno] = SLRU_PAGE_WRITE_IN_PROGRESS;
+	shared->page_dirty[slotno] = false;
 
-	/* Okay, release the control lock and do the write */
+	/* Acquire per-buffer lock (cannot deadlock, see notes at top) */
+	LWLockAcquire(shared->buffer_locks[slotno], LW_EXCLUSIVE);
+
+	/* Release control lock while doing I/O */
 	LWLockRelease(shared->ControlLock);
 
+	/* Do the write */
 	ok = SlruPhysicalWritePage(ctl, pageno, slotno, fdata);
 
 	/* If we failed, and we're in a flush, better close the files */
@@ -400,16 +408,17 @@ SimpleLruWritePage(SlruCtl ctl, int slotno, SlruFlush fdata)
 			close(fdata->fd[i]);
 	}
 
-	/* Re-acquire shared control lock and update page state */
+	/* Re-acquire control lock and update page state */
 	LWLockAcquire(shared->ControlLock, LW_EXCLUSIVE);
 
 	Assert(shared->page_number[slotno] == pageno &&
-		   (shared->page_status[slotno] == SLRU_PAGE_WRITE_IN_PROGRESS ||
-			shared->page_status[slotno] == SLRU_PAGE_DIRTY));
+		   shared->page_status[slotno] == SLRU_PAGE_WRITE_IN_PROGRESS);
+
+	/* If we failed to write, mark the page dirty again */
+	if (!ok)
+		shared->page_dirty[slotno] = true;
 
-	/* Cannot set CLEAN if someone re-dirtied page since write started */
-	if (shared->page_status[slotno] == SLRU_PAGE_WRITE_IN_PROGRESS)
-		shared->page_status[slotno] = ok ? SLRU_PAGE_CLEAN : SLRU_PAGE_DIRTY;
+	shared->page_status[slotno] = SLRU_PAGE_VALID;
 
 	LWLockRelease(shared->buffer_locks[slotno]);
 
@@ -748,24 +757,20 @@ SlruSelectLRUPage(SlruCtl ctl, int pageno)
 		/*
 		 * If the selected page is clean, we're set.
 		 */
-		if (shared->page_status[bestslot] == SLRU_PAGE_CLEAN)
+		if (shared->page_status[bestslot] == SLRU_PAGE_VALID &&
+			!shared->page_dirty[bestslot])
 			return bestslot;
 
 		/*
-		 * We need to do I/O.  Normal case is that we have to write it out,
-		 * but it's possible in the worst case to have selected a read-busy
-		 * page.  In that case we just wait for someone else to complete
-		 * the I/O, which we can do by waiting for the per-buffer lock.
+		 * We need to wait for I/O.  Normal case is that it's dirty and we
+		 * must initiate a write, but it's possible that the page is already
+		 * write-busy, or in the worst case still read-busy.  In those cases
+		 * we wait for the existing I/O to complete.
 		 */
-		if (shared->page_status[bestslot] == SLRU_PAGE_READ_IN_PROGRESS)
-		{
-			LWLockRelease(shared->ControlLock);
-			LWLockAcquire(shared->buffer_locks[bestslot], LW_SHARED);
-			LWLockRelease(shared->buffer_locks[bestslot]);
-			LWLockAcquire(shared->ControlLock, LW_EXCLUSIVE);
-		}
-		else
+		if (shared->page_status[bestslot] == SLRU_PAGE_VALID)
 			SimpleLruWritePage(ctl, bestslot, NULL);
+		else
+			SimpleLruWaitIO(ctl, bestslot);
 
 		/*
 		 * Now loop back and try again.  This is the easiest way of dealing
@@ -806,7 +811,8 @@ SimpleLruFlush(SlruCtl ctl, bool checkpoint)
 		 */
 		Assert(checkpoint ||
 			   shared->page_status[slotno] == SLRU_PAGE_EMPTY ||
-			   shared->page_status[slotno] == SLRU_PAGE_CLEAN);
+			   (shared->page_status[slotno] == SLRU_PAGE_VALID &&
+				!shared->page_dirty[slotno]));
 	}
 
 	LWLockRelease(shared->ControlLock);
@@ -884,9 +890,10 @@ restart:;
 			continue;
 
 		/*
-		 * If page is CLEAN, just change state to EMPTY (expected case).
+		 * If page is clean, just change state to EMPTY (expected case).
 		 */
-		if (shared->page_status[slotno] == SLRU_PAGE_CLEAN)
+		if (shared->page_status[slotno] == SLRU_PAGE_VALID &&
+			!shared->page_dirty[slotno])
 		{
 			shared->page_status[slotno] = SLRU_PAGE_EMPTY;
 			continue;
@@ -895,17 +902,14 @@ restart:;
 		/*
 		 * Hmm, we have (or may have) I/O operations acting on the page, so
 		 * we've got to wait for them to finish and then start again. This is
-		 * the same logic as in SlruSelectLRUPage.
+		 * the same logic as in SlruSelectLRUPage.  (XXX if page is dirty,
+		 * wouldn't it be OK to just discard it without writing it?  For now,
+		 * keep the logic the same as it was.)
 		 */
-		if (shared->page_status[slotno] == SLRU_PAGE_READ_IN_PROGRESS)
-		{
-			LWLockRelease(shared->ControlLock);
-			LWLockAcquire(shared->buffer_locks[slotno], LW_SHARED);
-			LWLockRelease(shared->buffer_locks[slotno]);
-			LWLockAcquire(shared->ControlLock, LW_EXCLUSIVE);
-		}
-		else
+		if (shared->page_status[slotno] == SLRU_PAGE_VALID)
 			SimpleLruWritePage(ctl, slotno, NULL);
+		else
+			SimpleLruWaitIO(ctl, slotno);
 		goto restart;
 	}
 
diff --git a/src/backend/access/transam/subtrans.c b/src/backend/access/transam/subtrans.c
index 7671eb6a45efb6e535f0b4ebce3c03a1d330fba0..319b17d9458b8e0909a1ff56b3315aa89ecabb53 100644
--- a/src/backend/access/transam/subtrans.c
+++ b/src/backend/access/transam/subtrans.c
@@ -22,7 +22,7 @@
  * Portions Copyright (c) 1996-2005, PostgreSQL Global Development Group
  * Portions Copyright (c) 1994, Regents of the University of California
  *
- * $PostgreSQL: pgsql/src/backend/access/transam/subtrans.c,v 1.11 2005/10/15 02:49:09 momjian Exp $
+ * $PostgreSQL: pgsql/src/backend/access/transam/subtrans.c,v 1.12 2005/11/05 21:19:47 tgl Exp $
  *
  *-------------------------------------------------------------------------
  */
@@ -86,7 +86,7 @@ SubTransSetParent(TransactionId xid, TransactionId parent)
 
 	*ptr = parent;
 
-	SubTransCtl->shared->page_status[slotno] = SLRU_PAGE_DIRTY;
+	SubTransCtl->shared->page_dirty[slotno] = true;
 
 	LWLockRelease(SubtransControlLock);
 }
@@ -199,7 +199,7 @@ BootStrapSUBTRANS(void)
 
 	/* Make sure it's written out */
 	SimpleLruWritePage(SubTransCtl, slotno, NULL);
-	Assert(SubTransCtl->shared->page_status[slotno] == SLRU_PAGE_CLEAN);
+	Assert(!SubTransCtl->shared->page_dirty[slotno]);
 
 	LWLockRelease(SubtransControlLock);
 }
diff --git a/src/include/access/slru.h b/src/include/access/slru.h
index 972a8227958842bebf8679b10e04375598816af9..def801e34a587a7dcb512dcc5774bc02d5d9f3db 100644
--- a/src/include/access/slru.h
+++ b/src/include/access/slru.h
@@ -6,7 +6,7 @@
  * Portions Copyright (c) 1996-2005, PostgreSQL Global Development Group
  * Portions Copyright (c) 1994, Regents of the University of California
  *
- * $PostgreSQL: pgsql/src/include/access/slru.h,v 1.14 2005/10/15 02:49:42 momjian Exp $
+ * $PostgreSQL: pgsql/src/include/access/slru.h,v 1.15 2005/11/05 21:19:47 tgl Exp $
  *
  *-------------------------------------------------------------------------
  */
@@ -23,13 +23,17 @@
  */
 #define NUM_SLRU_BUFFERS	8
 
-/* Page status codes */
+/*
+ * Page status codes.  Note that these do not include the "dirty" bit.
+ * page_dirty can be TRUE only in the VALID or WRITE_IN_PROGRESS states;
+ * in the latter case it implies that the page has been re-dirtied since
+ * the write started.
+ */
 typedef enum
 {
 	SLRU_PAGE_EMPTY,			/* buffer is not in use */
 	SLRU_PAGE_READ_IN_PROGRESS, /* page is being read in */
-	SLRU_PAGE_CLEAN,			/* page is valid and not dirty */
-	SLRU_PAGE_DIRTY,			/* page is valid but needs write */
+	SLRU_PAGE_VALID,			/* page is valid and not being written */
 	SLRU_PAGE_WRITE_IN_PROGRESS /* page is being written out */
 } SlruPageStatus;
 
@@ -48,6 +52,7 @@ typedef struct SlruSharedData
 	 */
 	char	   *page_buffer[NUM_SLRU_BUFFERS];
 	SlruPageStatus page_status[NUM_SLRU_BUFFERS];
+	bool		page_dirty[NUM_SLRU_BUFFERS];
 	int			page_number[NUM_SLRU_BUFFERS];
 	unsigned int page_lru_count[NUM_SLRU_BUFFERS];
 	LWLockId	buffer_locks[NUM_SLRU_BUFFERS];