kernel condvars: how to use?

[Mouse <mouse%Rodents-Montreal.ORG@localhost>]

I'm trying to write some kernel code, interlocking between an interrupt
(in my case, a callout()-called function) and a driver read() function.
I'm using 5.2, so if this is because of bugs that have been fixed since
then, that's useful information.  (And anyone who isn't interested
because I'm on such an old version need read no further.)

I noted that the interfaces I have historically used for this - spl*(),
sleep(), and wakeup() - are documented as deprecated in favour of
condvar(9), mutex(9), and rwlock(9).  So I wrote some code using a
condvar and a mutex, and the system promptly deadlocked.  I got into
ddb, which told me it was inside intr_biglock_wrapper():

db{0}> tr
breakpoint() at netbsd:breakpoint+0x5
comintr() at netbsd:comintr+0x53a
Xintr_ioapic_edge7() at netbsd:Xintr_ioapic_edge7+0xeb
--- interrupt ---
x86_pause() at netbsd:x86_pause
intr_biglock_wrapper() at netbsd:intr_biglock_wrapper+0x16
Xintr_ioapic_level5() at netbsd:Xintr_ioapic_level5+0xf3
--- interrupt ---
x86_pause() at netbsd:x86_pause+0x2
cdev_poll() at netbsd:cdev_poll+0x6d
VOP_POLL() at netbsd:VOP_POLL+0x5e
pollcommon() at netbsd:pollcommon+0x265
sys_poll() at netbsd:sys_poll+0x5b
syscall() at netbsd:syscall+0xb9
db{0}> 

On reflection, I think I know why.  Userland's syscall handler took the
mutex in preparation for cv_wait_sig(), the interrupt happens, my code
is called (verified with a printf), and it tries to take the same mutex
so it can cv_broadcast().  Of course, the mutex is held and, because
it's held by code which can't run until the interrupt handler exits,
will never be released.  Then, when a hardware interrupt hit it found
the biglock held....

Clearly, I'm doing something wrong.  But I can't see what.  I can't see
how to use the condvar/mutex primitives without provoking the above
failure mode.  And they appear to still be the current recommended way,
based on what I could find, so I'm presumably just missing something.
Any hints what?

I can of course provide more information if it would help, but I'm not
sure what would be useful to mention here.

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