linux-kernel - Re: [PATCH 2/9] KVM: nVMX: Initialize #VE info page for vmcs02 when proving #VE support

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Date: Mon, 20 May 2024 17:21:34 -0700
From: Sean Christopherson <seanjc@...gle.com>
To: Kai Huang <kai.huang@...el.com>
Cc: Paolo Bonzini <pbonzini@...hat.com>, kvm@...r.kernel.org, linux-kernel@...r.kernel.org
Subject: Re: [PATCH 2/9] KVM: nVMX: Initialize #VE info page for vmcs02 when
 proving #VE support

On Tue, May 21, 2024, Kai Huang wrote:
> On 21/05/2024 11:22 am, Sean Christopherson wrote:
> > On Tue, May 21, 2024, Kai Huang wrote:
> > > On 18/05/2024 12:04 pm, Sean Christopherson wrote:
> > > > Point vmcs02.VE_INFORMATION_ADDRESS at the vCPU's #VE info page when
> > > > initializing vmcs02, otherwise KVM will run L2 with EPT Violation #VE
> > > > enabled and a VE info address pointing at pfn 0.
> > > 
> > > How about we just clear EPT_VIOLATION_VE bit in 2nd_exec_control
> > > unconditionally for vmcs02?
> > 
> > Because then KVM wouldn't get any EPT Violation #VE coverage for L2, and as
> > evidence by the KVM-Unit-Test failure, running L2 with EPT Violation #VEs enabled
> > provides unique coverage.  Doing so definitely provides coverage beyond what is
> > strictly needed for TDX, but it's just as easy to set the VE info page in vmcs02
> > as it is so clear EPT_VIOLATION_VE, so why not.
> > 
> > > Your next patch says:
> > > 
> > > "
> > > Always handle #VEs, e.g. due to prove EPT Violation #VE failures, in L0,
> > > as KVM does not expose any #VE capabilities to L1, i.e. any and all #VEs
> > > are KVM's responsibility.
> > > "
> > 
> > I don't see how that's relevant to whether or not KVM enables EPT Violation #VEs
> > while L2 is running.  That patch simply routes all #VEs to L0, it doesn't affect
> > whether or not it's safe to enable EPT Violation #VEs for L2.
> 
> My logic is, if #VE exit cannot possibly happen for L2, then we don't need
> to deal whether to route #VE exits to L1. :-)
> 
> Well, actually I think conceptually, it kinda makes sense to route #VE exits
> to L1:
> 
> L1 should never enable #VE related bits so L1 is certainly not expecting to

Not "should never", "can never".  If L1 attempts to enable EPT_VIOLATION_VE, then
VM-Enter will VM-Fail.

> see #VE from L2.  But how to act should be depending on L1's logic? E.g., it
> can choose to ignore, or just kill the L2 etc?

No.  Architecturally, from L1's perspective, a #VE VM-Exit _cannot_ occur in L2.
L1 can inject a #VE into L2, but a #VE cannot be generated by the CPU and thus
cannot cause a VM-Exit.

> Unconditionally disable #VE in vmcs02 can avoid such issue because it's just
> not possible for L2 to have the #VE exit.

Sure, but by that argument we could just avoid all nested VMX issues by never
enabling anything for L2.

If there's an argument to be made for disabling EPT_VIOLATION_VE in vmcs02, it's
that the potential maintenance cost of keeping nEPT, nVMX, and the shadow MMU
healthy outweighs the benefits.  I.e. we don't have a use case for enabling
EPT_VIOLATION_VE while L2 is running, so why validate it?

If whatever bug the KUT EPT found ends up being a KVM bug that specifically only
affects nVMX, then it'd be worth revisiting whether or not it's worth enabling
EPT_VIOLATION_VE in vmcs02.  But that's a rather big "if" at this point.