linux-kernel - Re: preempt bug in set_pmd

lists.openwall.net		lists / announce owl-users owl-dev john-users john-dev passwdqc-users yescrypt popa3d-users / oss-security kernel-hardening musl sabotage tlsify passwords / crypt-dev xvendor / Bugtraq Full-Disclosure linux-kernel linux-netdev linux-ext4 linux-hardening linux-cve-announce PHC
Open Source and information security mailing list archives

Hash Suite: Windows password security audit tool. GUI, reports in PDF.

[<prev] [next>] [<thread-prev] [thread-next>] [day] [month] [year] [list]

Message-ID: <47CEF20D.5070608@goop.org>
Date:	Wed, 05 Mar 2008 11:18:37 -0800
From:	Jeremy Fitzhardinge <jeremy@...p.org>
To:	Hugh Dickins <hugh@...itas.com>
CC:	Ingo Molnar <mingo@...e.hu>, "H. Peter Anvin" <hpa@...or.com>,
	Andi Kleen <ak@...e.de>,
	Linux Kernel Mailing List <linux-kernel@...r.kernel.org>
Subject: Re: preempt bug in set_pmd_pfn?

Hugh Dickins wrote:
> On Wed, 5 Mar 2008, Jeremy Fitzhardinge wrote:
>   
>> If a thread goes from processor A -> B -> A, where A is first preempted
>> between a pagetable update and a tlb flush, then the second time the thread
>> runs on A may run with a stale tlb (if in the meantime A has either been idle
>> or only running kernel threads).
>>     
>
> Right, thanks, because __flush_tlb_one opts out of the full active_mm
> checking which goes on for userspace mms (which covers, for example,
> the case of preemption before dup_mmap's flush_tlb_mm).
>
> But is there actually a case where there's a problem?  So far as I can see,
> set_pmd_pfn is there solely for discontig_32's __init remap_numa_kva; and
> set_pte_pfn is there solely for set_fixmap, which operates on a per-cpu
> area of pagetable, which would already be in bigger trouble if preemption
> to another cpu were possible.

Yes, I meant set_pte_pfn; set_pmd_pfn is a typo.

Fixmap slots are global, not percpu; you may be thinking of kmap_atomic, 
which reserves percpu fixmap slots for its use.  Most uses of set_fixmap 
are early in boot, where preemption (or other CPUs) isn't a factor.  The 
exception is mapping the compat vdso global mapping.   However, that is 
special-cased anyway, since the set_fixmap is followed by an explicit 
all-cpu tlb flush.

It seems to me that the correct fix is to just make __set_fixmap disable 
preemption for its duration; it probably doesn't make much difference 
for the native case, and it makes Xen happy.

    J
--
To unsubscribe from this list: send the line "unsubscribe linux-kernel" in
the body of a message to majordomo@...r.kernel.org
More majordomo info at  http://vger.kernel.org/majordomo-info.html
Please read the FAQ at  http://www.tux.org/lkml/