linux-kernel - Re: [PATCH] [RFC] Initialization of unused function parameters

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Message-ID: <CAG_fn=UPyoySbzbLQnJkgbfcSkyCD11M=e+W4-T_WoQCXEPFGA@mail.gmail.com>
Date:   Wed, 15 Jun 2022 10:30:17 +0200
From:   Alexander Potapenko <glider@...gle.com>
To:     Segher Boessenkool <segher@...nel.crashing.org>
Cc:     Linus Torvalds <torvalds@...ux-foundation.org>,
        Evgenii Stepanov <eugenis@...gle.com>,
        Kees Cook <keescook@...omium.org>,
        Marco Elver <elver@...gle.com>,
        Nathan Chancellor <nathan@...nel.org>,
        Nick Desaulniers <ndesaulniers@...gle.com>,
        Thomas Gleixner <tglx@...utronix.de>,
        Vitaly Buka <vitalybuka@...gle.com>,
        Linux Kernel Mailing List <linux-kernel@...r.kernel.org>,
        linux-toolchains <linux-toolchains@...r.kernel.org>
Subject: Re: [PATCH] [RFC] Initialization of unused function parameters

On Tue, Jun 14, 2022 at 11:45 PM Segher Boessenkool
<segher@...nel.crashing.org> wrote:
>
> Hi!
>
> On Tue, Jun 14, 2022 at 10:19:53PM +0200, Alexander Potapenko wrote:
> > ================
> > char *kmalloc(int size);
> >
> > char *kmalloc_or_not(int flag, int size, char *p) {
> >   if (flag)
> >     return kmalloc(size);
> >   else
> >     return p;
> > }
> >
> > char global[16];
> >
> > char *p(int flag) {
> >   char *c;
> >   int size;
> >   if (flag)
> >     return kmalloc_or_not(1, 4, c);
> >   else
> >     return kmalloc_or_not(0, size, global);
> > }
> > ================
>
> Since C11, lvalue conversion of an automatic variable that does not have
> its address taken is explicitly undefined behaviour (6.3.2.1/2).  So in
> function "p", both where "c" and where "size" are passed causes UB (so
> that executing "p" always causes UB btw).

Thanks for this reference to the standard. I've received another one
off-list, which lets the variables be address-taken:

6.2.4/6: "If an initialization is specified for the object, it is
performed each time the declaration or compound literal is reached in
the execution of the block; otherwise, the value becomes indeterminate
each time the declaration is reached."
3.19.2/1: "indeterminate value: either an unspecified value or a trap
representation"
6.2.6.1/5: "Certain object representations need not represent a value
of the object type. If the stored value of an object has such a
representation and is read by an lvalue expression that does not have
character type, the behavior is undefined. If such a representation is
produced by a side effect that modifies all or any part of the object
by an lvalue expression that does not have character type, the
behavior is undefined. [Footnote: Thus, an automatic variable can be
initialized to a trap representation without causing undefined
behavior, but the value of the variable cannot be used until a proper
value is stored in it.] Such a representation is called a trap
representation."

> > In this example `size` is passed into kmalloc_or_not() initialized,
> > however it is never used, so the code probably has defined behavior.
>
> No such luck: the passing itself already causes UB.

Looks like I've been missing this fact all the time.

> GCC does not warn, it has already optimised the code to what you expect
> by the time this warning is done.  If you use -fno-inline it does warn
> for both "c" and "size" (via -Wmaybe-uninitialized).
>
> But it is still UB!  All bets are off, no compiler can do any correct
> translation of your program, since there *is none*.

Then it makes sense for us to report non-trivial cases where
uninitialized values are actually passed to functions.
As Evgenii mentions, trivial inlinable cases are optimized away before
KMSAN instrumentation kicks in, so we won't be reporting them.

>
> Segher

-- 
Alexander Potapenko
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