linux-kernel - Re: [PATCH net-next] modules: allow modprobe load regular elf binaries

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Message-ID: <CA+55aFwfcXzD+pzjN=vTcvscpK97pSztUZ2JK7pABs+rMtM7BQ@mail.gmail.com>
Date:   Fri, 9 Mar 2018 10:17:42 -0800
From:   Linus Torvalds <torvalds@...ux-foundation.org>
To:     Alexei Starovoitov <ast@...com>
Cc:     Andy Lutomirski <luto@...capital.net>,
        Kees Cook <keescook@...omium.org>,
        Alexei Starovoitov <ast@...nel.org>,
        Djalal Harouni <tixxdz@...il.com>,
        Al Viro <viro@...iv.linux.org.uk>,
        "David S. Miller" <davem@...emloft.net>,
        Daniel Borkmann <daniel@...earbox.net>,
        Greg KH <gregkh@...uxfoundation.org>,
        "Luis R. Rodriguez" <mcgrof@...nel.org>,
        Network Development <netdev@...r.kernel.org>,
        LKML <linux-kernel@...r.kernel.org>,
        kernel-team <kernel-team@...com>,
        Linux API <linux-api@...r.kernel.org>
Subject: Re: [PATCH net-next] modules: allow modprobe load regular elf binaries

On Thu, Mar 8, 2018 at 9:08 PM, Alexei Starovoitov <ast@...com> wrote:
>
> there is not abi breakage and file cannot disappear from running task.
> One cannot umount fs while file is still being used.

I think that "cannot umount" part _is_ the ABI breakage that Andy is
talking about.

> Not only "read twice", but "read many".
> If .text sections of elf that are not yet in memory can be modified
> by malicious user, later they will be brought in with different code.
> I think the easiest fix to tighten this "umh modules" to CAP_SYS_ADMIN.

I don't think it actually fixes anything.  It might just break things.
For all we know, people run modprobe with CAP_SYS_MODULE only, since
that is obviously the only capability it needs.

Hmm. I wish we had an "execute blob" model, but we really don't, and
it would be hard/impossible to do without pinning the pages in memory.

My gut feel is that the right direction to explore is:

 - consider the module loaded for the whole duration of the execve. So
the execution is a *blocking* operation (and we get the correct
exclusion semantics)

 - use deny_write_access() to make sure that we don't have active
writers and cannot get them during the execve.

The above mean that something that executes to load a new ebpf rule
will work very well.  But a "start and forget" will not work (although
you can obviously do so with a internal fork/exec).

Hmm?

                       Linus