linux-kernel - Re: [PATCH] mmap.2: MAP_FIXED is okay if the address range has been reserved

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Date:   Fri, 13 Apr 2018 18:17:36 +0200
From:   Jann Horn <jannh@...gle.com>
To:     Michal Hocko <mhocko@...nel.org>
Cc:     "Michael Kerrisk (man-pages)" <mtk.manpages@...il.com>,
        John Hubbard <jhubbard@...dia.com>,
        linux-man <linux-man@...r.kernel.org>,
        Andrew Morton <akpm@...ux-foundation.org>,
        Linux-MM <linux-mm@...ck.org>,
        lkml <linux-kernel@...r.kernel.org>,
        Linux API <linux-api@...r.kernel.org>
Subject: Re: [PATCH] mmap.2: MAP_FIXED is okay if the address range has been reserved

On Fri, Apr 13, 2018 at 6:05 PM, Jann Horn <jannh@...gle.com> wrote:
> On Fri, Apr 13, 2018 at 6:04 PM, Michal Hocko <mhocko@...nel.org> wrote:
>> On Fri 13-04-18 17:04:09, Jann Horn wrote:
>>> On Fri, Apr 13, 2018 at 8:49 AM, Michal Hocko <mhocko@...nel.org> wrote:
>>> > On Fri 13-04-18 08:43:27, Michael Kerrisk wrote:
>>> > [...]
>>> >> So, you mean remove this entire paragraph:
>>> >>
>>> >>               For cases in which the specified memory region has not been
>>> >>               reserved using an existing mapping,  newer  kernels  (Linux
>>> >>               4.17  and later) provide an option MAP_FIXED_NOREPLACE that
>>> >>               should be used instead; older kernels require the caller to
>>> >>               use addr as a hint (without MAP_FIXED) and take appropriate
>>> >>               action if the kernel places the new mapping at a  different
>>> >>               address.
>>> >>
>>> >> It seems like some version of the first half of the paragraph is worth
>>> >> keeping, though, so as to point the reader in the direction of a remedy.
>>> >> How about replacing that text with the following:
>>> >>
>>> >>               Since  Linux 4.17, the MAP_FIXED_NOREPLACE flag can be used
>>> >>               in a multithreaded program to avoid  the  hazard  described
>>> >>               above.
>>> >
>>> > Yes, that sounds reasonable to me.
>>>
>>> But that kind of sounds as if you can't avoid it before Linux 4.17,
>>> when actually, you just have to call mmap() with the address as hint,
>>> and if mmap() returns a different address, munmap() it and go on your
>>> normal error path.
>>
>> This is still racy in multithreaded application which is the main point
>> of the whole section, no?
>
> No, it isn't.

mmap() with a hint (without MAP_FIXED) will always non-racily allocate
a memory region for you or return an error code. If it does allocate a
memory region, it belongs to you until you deallocate it. It might be
at a different address than you requested - in that case you can
emulate MAP_FIXED_NOREPLACE by calling munmap() and treating it as an
error; or you can do something else with it.

MAP_FIXED_NOREPLACE is just a performance optimization.