linux-kernel - Re: [PATCH] khugepaged: retract_page

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Date:   Mon, 3 Aug 2020 11:59:35 +0300
From:   "Kirill A. Shutemov" <kirill@...temov.name>
To:     Hugh Dickins <hughd@...gle.com>
Cc:     Andrew Morton <akpm@...ux-foundation.org>,
        "Kirill A. Shutemov" <kirill.shutemov@...ux.intel.com>,
        Andrea Arcangeli <aarcange@...hat.com>,
        Song Liu <songliubraving@...com>, linux-kernel@...r.kernel.org,
        linux-mm@...ck.org
Subject: Re: [PATCH] khugepaged: retract_page_tables() remember to test exit

On Sun, Aug 02, 2020 at 05:35:23PM -0700, Hugh Dickins wrote:
> On Mon, 3 Aug 2020, Kirill A. Shutemov wrote:
> > On Sun, Aug 02, 2020 at 12:16:53PM -0700, Hugh Dickins wrote:
> > > Only once have I seen this scenario (and forgot even to notice what
> > > forced the eventual crash): a sequence of "BUG: Bad page map" alerts
> > > from vm_normal_page(), from zap_pte_range() servicing exit_mmap();
> > > pmd:00000000, pte values corresponding to data in physical page 0.
> > > 
> > > The pte mappings being zapped in this case were supposed to be from a
> > > huge page of ext4 text (but could as well have been shmem): my belief
> > > is that it was racing with collapse_file()'s retract_page_tables(),
> > > found *pmd pointing to a page table, locked it, but *pmd had become
> > > 0 by the time start_pte was decided.
> > > 
> > > In most cases, that possibility is excluded by holding mmap lock;
> > > but exit_mmap() proceeds without mmap lock.  Most of what's run by
> > > khugepaged checks khugepaged_test_exit() after acquiring mmap lock:
> > > khugepaged_collapse_pte_mapped_thps() and hugepage_vma_revalidate()
> > > do so, for example.  But retract_page_tables() did not: fix that
> > > (using an mm variable instead of vma->vm_mm repeatedly).
> > 
> > Hm. I'm not sure I follow. vma->vm_mm has to be valid as long as we hold
> > i_mmap lock, no? Unlinking a VMA requires it.
> 
> Ah, my wording is misleading, yes.  That comment
> "(using an mm variable instead of vma->vm_mm repeatedly)"
> was nothing more than a note, that the patch is bigger than it could be,
> because I decided to use an mm variable, instead of vma->vm_mm repeatedly.
> But it looks as if I'm saying there used to be a need for READ_ONCE() or
> something, and by using the mm variable I was fixing the problem.
> 
> No, sorry: delete that line now the point is made: the mm variable is
> just a patch detail, it's not important.
> 
> The fix (as the subject suggested) is for retract_page_tables() to check
> khugepaged_test_exit(), after acquiring mmap lock, before doing anything
> to the page table.  Getting the mmap lock serializes with __mmput(),
> which briefly takes and drops it in __khugepaged_exit(); then the
> khugepaged_test_exit() check on mm_users makes sure we don't touch the
> page table once exit_mmap() might reach it, since exit_mmap() will be
> proceeding without mmap lock, not expecting anyone to be racing with it.

Okay, makes sense.

Acked-by: Kirill A. Shutemov <kirill.shutemov@...ux.intel.com>

-- 
 Kirill A. Shutemov