linux-kernel - Re: [PATCH v1 1/7] random: use RDSEED instead of RDRAND in entropy extraction

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Date:   Tue, 8 Feb 2022 15:07:12 -0800
From:   Eric Biggers <ebiggers@...nel.org>
To:     "Jason A. Donenfeld" <Jason@...c4.com>
Cc:     linux-kernel@...r.kernel.org, linux-crypto@...r.kernel.org,
        Theodore Ts'o <tytso@....edu>,
        Dominik Brodowski <linux@...inikbrodowski.net>
Subject: Re: [PATCH v1 1/7] random: use RDSEED instead of RDRAND in entropy
 extraction

On Tue, Feb 08, 2022 at 04:53:29PM +0100, Jason A. Donenfeld wrote:
> When /dev/random was directly connected with entropy extraction, without
> any expansion stage, extract_buf() was called for every 10 bytes of data
> read from /dev/random. For that reason, RDRAND was used rather than
> RDSEED. At the same time, crng_reseed() was still only called every 5
> minutes, so there RDSEED made sense.
> 
> Those olden days were also a time when the entropy collector did not use
> a cryptographic hash function, which meant most bets were off in terms
> of real preimage resistance. For that reason too it didn't matter
> _that_ much whether RDSEED was mixed in before or after entropy
> extraction; both choices were sort of bad.
> 
> But now we have a cryptographic hash function at work, and with that we
> get real preimage resistance. We also now only call extract_entropy()
> every 5 minutes, rather than every 10 bytes. This allows us to do two
> important things.
> 
> First, we can switch to using RDSEED in extract_entropy(), as Dominik
> suggested. Second, we can ensure that RDSEED input always goes into the
> cryptographic hash function with other things before being used
> directly. This eliminates a category of attacks in which the CPU knows
> the current state of the crng and knows that we're going to xor RDSEED
> into it, and so it computes a malicious RDSEED. By going through our
> hash function, it would require the CPU to compute a preimage on the
> fly, which isn't going to happen.
> 
> Cc: Theodore Ts'o <tytso@....edu>
> Suggested-by: Dominik Brodowski <linux@...inikbrodowski.net>
> Signed-off-by: Jason A. Donenfeld <Jason@...c4.com>
> ---
>  drivers/char/random.c | 22 +++++++++-------------
>  1 file changed, 9 insertions(+), 13 deletions(-)

Looks good,

Reviewed-by: Eric Biggers <ebiggers@...gle.com>

- Eric