linux-kernel - Re: [PATCH] rtc: isl1208: avoid unnecessary rc variable tests

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]

Date:   Wed, 5 Jan 2022 15:34:46 -0500
From:   Hugo Villeneuve <hugo@...ovil.com>
To:     Alexandre Belloni <alexandre.belloni@...tlin.com>
Cc:     Alessandro Zummo <a.zummo@...ertech.it>,
        Hugo Villeneuve <hvilleneuve@...onoff.com>,
        linux-rtc@...r.kernel.org, linux-kernel@...r.kernel.org
Subject: Re: [PATCH] rtc: isl1208: avoid unnecessary rc variable tests

On Wed, 5 Jan 2022 21:01:10 +0100
Alexandre Belloni <alexandre.belloni@...tlin.com> wrote:

> On 05/01/2022 14:34:39-0500, Hugo Villeneuve wrote:
> > From: Hugo Villeneuve <hvilleneuve@...onoff.com>
> > 
> > The rc variable doesn't need to be tested a second time when the <if> block
> > evaluates to false.
> > 
> 
> rc is not tested a second time, here is the relevant listing:
> 
> -	if (client->irq > 0)
> +	if (client->irq > 0) {
>  ffffffff81aef647:	41 8b b5 bc 01 00 00 	mov    0x1bc(%r13),%esi
>  ffffffff81aef64e:	85 f6                	test   %esi,%esi
>  ffffffff81aef650:	0f 8f 35 01 00 00    	jg     ffffffff81aef78b <isl1208_probe+0x314>
>  		rc = isl1208_setup_irq(client, client->irq);
>  	if (rc)
>  		return rc;
> +	}
>  
> -	if (evdet_irq > 0 && evdet_irq != client->irq)
> +	if (evdet_irq > 0 && evdet_irq != client->irq) {
>  ffffffff81aef656:	85 db                	test   %ebx,%ebx
>  ffffffff81aef658:	7e 0d                	jle    ffffffff81aef667 <isl1208_probe+0x1f0>
>  ffffffff81aef65a:	41 39 9d bc 01 00 00 	cmp    %ebx,0x1bc(%r13)
> @@ -1663,6 +1664,7 @@ ffffffff81aef661:	0f 85 0a 01 00 00
>  		rc = isl1208_setup_irq(client, evdet_irq);
>  	if (rc)
>  		return rc;
> +	}
> 
> As you can see, no change in assembly but it is worse to read. gcc on
> arm behaves the same way.

Hi Alexandre,
I am not sure that I fully understand your assembly code analysis. Maybe my patch comment was misleading, because I am not talking about a redundant test inside the if block, but ouside of it (after it).

Here is the original code with my annotations. Let's assume that the variable client->irq = 0:

---
/* If client->irq = 0, then function isl1208_setup_irq() will not be called, and rc will not be modified: */
if (client->irq > 0)
	rc = isl1208_setup_irq(client, client->irq);

/* If rc hasn't been modified, there is no need to re-test its value here: */
if (rc)
	return rc;
---

After the patch, this code section becomes:

---
if (client->irq > 0) {
	rc = isl1208_setup_irq(client, client->irq);
	if (rc)
		return rc;
}
---

For me it is more logical and clearer like this. Moreover, you can see that at line 873 of the original driver, the same kind of mechanism is used:

---
if (isl1208->config->has_timestamp) {
	rc = rtc_add_group(isl1208->rtc, &isl1219_rtc_sysfs_files);
	if (rc)
		return rc;
}
---

Regards,
Hugo.


> > Signed-off-by: Hugo Villeneuve <hvilleneuve@...onoff.com>
> > ---
> >  drivers/rtc/rtc-isl1208.c | 14 ++++++++------
> >  1 file changed, 8 insertions(+), 6 deletions(-)
> > 
> > diff --git a/drivers/rtc/rtc-isl1208.c b/drivers/rtc/rtc-isl1208.c
> > index 182dfa605515..c7f04df5a0b6 100644
> > --- a/drivers/rtc/rtc-isl1208.c
> > +++ b/drivers/rtc/rtc-isl1208.c
> > @@ -880,15 +880,17 @@ isl1208_probe(struct i2c_client *client, const struct i2c_device_id *id)
> >  	if (rc)
> >  		return rc;
> >  
> > -	if (client->irq > 0)
> > +	if (client->irq > 0) {
> >  		rc = isl1208_setup_irq(client, client->irq);
> > -	if (rc)
> > -		return rc;
> > +		if (rc)
> > +			return rc;
> > +	}
> >  
> > -	if (evdet_irq > 0 && evdet_irq != client->irq)
> > +	if (evdet_irq > 0 && evdet_irq != client->irq) {
> >  		rc = isl1208_setup_irq(client, evdet_irq);
> > -	if (rc)
> > -		return rc;
> > +		if (rc)
> > +			return rc;
> > +	}
> >  
> >  	rc = devm_rtc_nvmem_register(isl1208->rtc, &isl1208->nvmem_config);
> >  	if (rc)
> > -- 
> > 2.30.2
> > 
> 
> -- 
> Alexandre Belloni, co-owner and COO, Bootlin
> Embedded Linux and Kernel engineering
> https://bootlin.com
> 


-- 
Hugo Villeneuve <hugo@...ovil.com>