linux-kernel - Re: [v2 PATCH] arm64: mm: Fix kexec failure after pte_mkwrite

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Message-ID: <87qztdh22u.fsf@DESKTOP-5N7EMDA>
Date: Tue, 02 Dec 2025 13:42:17 +0800
From: "Huang, Ying" <ying.huang@...ux.alibaba.com>
To: Jianpeng Chang <jianpeng.chang.cn@...driver.com>
Cc: <catalin.marinas@....com>,  <will@...nel.org>,  <ardb@...nel.org>,
  <anshuman.khandual@....com>,  <linux-arm-kernel@...ts.infradead.org>,
  <linux-kernel@...r.kernel.org>
Subject: Re: [v2 PATCH] arm64: mm: Fix kexec failure after
 pte_mkwrite_novma() change

Jianpeng Chang <jianpeng.chang.cn@...driver.com> writes:

> Commit 143937ca51cc ("arm64, mm: avoid always making PTE dirty in
> pte_mkwrite()") modified pte_mkwrite_novma() to only clear PTE_RDONLY
> when the page is already dirty (PTE_DIRTY is set). While this optimization
> prevents unnecessary dirty page marking in normal memory management paths,
> it breaks kexec on some platforms like NXP LS1043.
>
> The issue occurs in the kexec code path:
> 1. machine_kexec_post_load() calls trans_pgd_create_copy() to create a
>    writable copy of the linear mapping
> 2. _copy_pte() calls pte_mkwrite_novma() to ensure all pages in the copy
>    are writable for the new kernel image copying
> 3. With the new logic, clean pages (without PTE_DIRTY) remain read-only
> 4. When kexec tries to copy the new kernel image through the linear
>    mapping, it fails on read-only pages, causing the system to hang
>    after "Bye!"
>
> The same issue affects hibernation which uses the same trans_pgd code path.
>
> Fix this by explicitly clearing PTE_RDONLY in _copy_pte() for both
> kexec and hibernation, ensuring all pages in the temporary mapping are
> writable regardless of their dirty state. This preserves the original
> commit's optimization for normal memory management while fixing the
> kexec/hibernation regression.
>
> Fixes: 143937ca51cc ("arm64, mm: avoid always making PTE dirty in pte_mkwrite()")
> Signed-off-by: Jianpeng Chang <jianpeng.chang.cn@...driver.com>

LGTM, Thanks!  Feel free to add my

Reviewed-by: Huang Ying <ying.huang@...ux.alibaba.com>

in the future versions.

> ---
> v2:
>   - Use pte_mkwrite_novma(pte_mkdirty(pte)) instead of manual bit manipulation
>   - Updated comments to clarify pte_mkwrite_novma() alone cannot be used
> v1: https://lore.kernel.org/all/20251127034350.3600454-1-jianpeng.chang.cn@windriver.com/
>
>  arch/arm64/mm/trans_pgd.c | 9 +++++++--
>  1 file changed, 7 insertions(+), 2 deletions(-)
>
> diff --git a/arch/arm64/mm/trans_pgd.c b/arch/arm64/mm/trans_pgd.c
> index 18543b603c77..08f5ee6643e1 100644
> --- a/arch/arm64/mm/trans_pgd.c
> +++ b/arch/arm64/mm/trans_pgd.c
> @@ -40,8 +40,13 @@ static void _copy_pte(pte_t *dst_ptep, pte_t *src_ptep, unsigned long addr)
>  		 * Resume will overwrite areas that may be marked
>  		 * read only (code, rodata). Clear the RDONLY bit from
>  		 * the temporary mappings we use during restore.
> +		 *
> +		 * For kexec/hibernation, we need writable access to all
> +		 * pages in the linear mapping to copy the new kernel image.
> +		 * Mark pages dirty first to ensure pte_mkwrite_novma()
> +		 * clears PTE_RDONLY.
>  		 */
> -		__set_pte(dst_ptep, pte_mkwrite_novma(pte));
> +		__set_pte(dst_ptep, pte_mkwrite_novma(pte_mkdirty(pte)));
>  	} else if (!pte_none(pte)) {
>  		/*
>  		 * debug_pagealloc will removed the PTE_VALID bit if
> @@ -57,7 +62,7 @@ static void _copy_pte(pte_t *dst_ptep, pte_t *src_ptep, unsigned long addr)
>  		 */
>  		BUG_ON(!pfn_valid(pte_pfn(pte)));
>  
> -		__set_pte(dst_ptep, pte_mkvalid(pte_mkwrite_novma(pte)));
> +		__set_pte(dst_ptep, pte_mkvalid(pte_mkwrite_novma(pte_mkdirty(pte))));
>  	}
>  }

---
Best Regards,
Huang, Ying