linux-kernel - Re: [PATCH] ARM: decompressor: Avoid UNPREDICTABLE NOP encoding

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Date:   Tue, 14 Sep 2021 00:43:46 +0200
From:   Linus Walleij <linus.walleij@...aro.org>
To:     Andre Przywara <andre.przywara@....com>
Cc:     Russell King <linux@...linux.org.uk>,
        Ard Biesheuvel <ardb@...nel.org>,
        linux-efi <linux-efi@...r.kernel.org>,
        Linux ARM <linux-arm-kernel@...ts.infradead.org>,
        linux-kernel <linux-kernel@...r.kernel.org>,
        Catalin Marinas <catalin.marinas@....com>,
        Adam Lackorzynski <adam@...e.org>,
        Peter Maydell <peter.maydell@...aro.org>
Subject: Re: [PATCH] ARM: decompressor: Avoid UNPREDICTABLE NOP encoding

On Wed, Sep 8, 2021 at 6:26 PM Andre Przywara <andre.przywara@....com> wrote:

> In the decompressor's head.S we need to start with an instruction that
> is some kind of NOP, but also mimics as the PE/COFF header, when the
> kernel is linked as an UEFI application. The clever solution here is
> "tstne r0, #0x4d000", which in the worst case just clobbers the
> condition flags, and bears the magic "MZ" signature in the lowest 16 bits.
>
> However the encoding used (0x13105a4d) is actually not valid, since bits
> [15:12] are supposed to be 0 (written as "(0)" in the ARM ARM).
> Violating this is UNPREDICTABLE, and *can* trigger an UNDEFINED
> exception. Common Cortex cores seem to ignore those bits, but QEMU
> chooses to trap, so the code goes fishing because of a missing exception
> handler at this point. We are just saved by the fact that commonly (with
> -kernel or when running from U-Boot) the "Z" bit is set, so the
> instruction is never executed. See [0] for more details.
>
> To make things more robust and avoid UNPREDICTABLE behaviour in the
> kernel code, lets replace this with a "two-instruction NOP":
> The first instruction is an exclusive OR, the effect of which the second
> instruction reverts. This does not leave any trace, neither in a
> register nor in the condition flags. Also it's a perfectly valid
> encoding. Kudos to Peter Maydell for coming up with this gem.
>
> [0] https://lore.kernel.org/qemu-devel/YTPIdbUCmwagL5%2FD@os.inf.tu-dresden.de/T/
>
> Signed-off-by: Andre Przywara <andre.przywara@....com>
> Reported-by: Adam Lackorzynski <adam@...e.org>
> Suggested-by: Peter Maydell <peter.maydell@...aro.org>

Looks like a correct and clever solution to me!
Reviewed-by: Linus Walleij <linus.walleij@...aro.org>

Yours,
Linus Walleij