linux-kernel - Re: [PATCH v2 2/2] mm/mm_init: decouple page checking and init_on

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] [day] [month] [year] [list]

Message-ID: <20251125011808.74845-1-sj@kernel.org>
Date: Mon, 24 Nov 2025 17:18:07 -0800
From: SeongJae Park <sj@...nel.org>
To: Joshua Hahn <joshua.hahnjy@...il.com>
Cc: SeongJae Park <sj@...nel.org>,
	Andrew Morton <akpm@...ux-foundation.org>,
	Vlastimil Babka <vbabka@...e.cz>,
	Mike Rapoport <rppt@...nel.org>,
	linux-kernel@...r.kernel.org,
	linux-mm@...ck.org,
	kernel-team@...a.com
Subject: Re: [PATCH v2 2/2] mm/mm_init: decouple page checking and init_on_{alloc, free}

On Mon, 24 Nov 2025 14:54:07 -0800 Joshua Hahn <joshua.hahnjy@...il.com> wrote:

> init_on_alloc and init_on_free protect the kernel by initializing
> allocated and freed pages to 0 on allocation time / deletion.
> Commit 700d2e9a36b93601270c1e15550acde2521386c5 ("mm, page_alloc: reduce

I think 12 digits for commit hash id is enough.

> page alloc/free sanity checks") removed page checking from hot pcp
> drain and refill paths, and instead coupled it with CONFIG_DEBUG_VM,
> debug_pagealloc, page poisoning, and init_on_{alloc, free}.
> 
> As the commit suggests, the first three turn the kernel into a debug
> kernel, while the last hardens the kernel against leaking sensitive memory.
> While enabling page checking is relatively low-cost and tying it
> together with page initialization is not unreasonable, it does feel like
> a bit of a side-effect, rather than an obvious consequence.
> 
> With page checking now pulled out as a boot time parameter that can be
> set independently, let's decouple page checking and init_on_alloc and
> init_on_free.
> 
> As a direct side effect, systems that have init_on_alloc or init_on_free
> will no longer have page checking enabled by default; they will either
> have to pass the check_pages boot parameter, build the kernel with
> CONFIG_DEBUG_VM, or enable debug_pagealloc / page poisoning.
> 
> Suggested-by: Vlastimil Babka <vbabka@...e.cz>
> Signed-off-by: Joshua Hahn <joshua.hahnjy@...il.com>

Acked-by: SeongJae Park <sj@...nel.org>


Thanks,
SJ

[...]