Re: [TCP]: TCP_DEFER_ACCEPT causes leak sockets

[David Miller <davem@davemloft.net>]

From: Alexey Kuznetsov <kuznet@ms2.inr.ac.ru>
Date: Wed, 11 Jun 2008 17:57:18 +0400

> Major issue is that tcp_defer_accept_check() manipulates with not locked
> listening socket. And from all that I know it is impossible to take
> the lock in this context.
> 
> Also I see no accounting for those sockets. With this patch any server, which
> set deferred accept, can be flooded with sockets until memory exhausts.
> I did not test and would be glad to be mistaken.
> 
> 
> Issue with locking can be solved by adding a separate spinlock for
> manipulations with accept_queue. Apparently, accounting and killing
> sockets, which become stale after closing listening socket and
> are going to be alive for up to 65535 seconds, also goes under this lock.
> 
> Frankly, cost looks too high for this feature.
> 
> Hiding from accept() sockets with only out-of-order data only
> is the only thing which is impossible with old approach. Is this really
> so valuable? My opinion: no, this is nothing but a new loophole
> to consume memory without control.

Yes, we discussed the locking issue over past few days.  See
the thread: "stuck localhost TCP connections, v2.6.26-rc3+"

More and more, the arguments are mounting to completely revert the
established code path changes, and frankly that is likely what I am
going to do by the end of today.