Re: [PATCH 07/14] mm: handle VM_UFFD_RWP in khugepaged, rmap, and GUP

Kiryl Shutsemau
2026-04-30T16:31:21Z

On Thu, Apr 30, 2026 at 05:28:17PM +0100, Kiryl Shutsemau wrote:
> sashiko.dev -- https://sashiko.dev/#/patchset/20260427114607.4068647-1-kas@kernel.org -- wrote:
> > > @@ -1084,9 +1092,29 @@ static __always_inline void __copy_present_ptes(struct vm_area_struct *dst_vma,
> > > pte_t pte, unsigned long addr, int nr)
> > > {
> > > struct mm_struct *src_mm = src_vma->vm_mm;
> > > + bool writable;
> > > +
> > > + /*
> > > + * Snapshot writability before the RWP-disarm rewrite below: when the
> > > + * child is not RWP-armed, pte_modify(pte, dst_vma->vm_page_prot) can
> > > + * silently drop _PAGE_RW from a resolved (no-marker) writable PTE,
> > > + * so a later pte_write(pte) check would skip the COW wrprotect and
> > > + * leave the parent writable over a folio shared with the child.
> > > + */
> > > + writable = pte_write(pte);
> > > +
> > > + /*
> > > + * Child is not RWP-armed: restore accessible protection so the
> > > + * inherited PAGE_NONE does not cost a fault on first read.
> > > + */
> > > + if (!userfaultfd_protected(dst_vma)) {
> > > + if (userfaultfd_rwp(src_vma))
> > > + pte = pte_modify(pte, dst_vma->vm_page_prot);
> > > + pte = pte_clear_uffd(pte);
> > > + }
> > Does this unconditional pte_modify() create invalid clean and writable PTEs
> > for shared mappings?
> >
> > Without checking pte_uffd(pte) first, this blindly modifies every present PTE
> > if the source VMA had RWP enabled. For shared writable mappings, vm_page_prot
> > includes _PAGE_RW. If a PTE was clean and mapped read-only to intercept the
> > first write for filesystem dirty-tracking, pte_modify() forces the write bit
> > on while preserving the clean state.
>
> Two reasons this is safe in practice:
>
> 1. RWP cannot reach a backing that uses the clean-RO + page_mkwrite()
> dirty-tracking pattern. vma_can_userfault() admits RWP only on anon,
> shmem and hugetlbfs (the ones with vm_uffd_ops); regular file-backed
> shared mappings are rejected at register time.
>
> 2. For backings that *do* support shared writable + dirty tracking (i.e.
> the ones RWP isn't enabled on), the fs sets vma->vm_page_prot to RO
> precisely so the first write traps page_mkwrite(). pte_modify(pte,
> dst_vma->vm_page_prot) would not add _PAGE_RW in that configuration
> either.
>
> > Hardware writes could then bypass page_mkwrite(), leaving the filesystem
> > unaware that the page is dirty, and potentially causing silent data loss
> > upon reclaim.
> > Could this also overwrite other important PTE states like NUMA hinting
> > or soft-dirty tracking?
>
> pte_modify() on the supported architectures preserves _PAGE_CHG_MASK,
> which covers _PAGE_DIRTY, _PAGE_ACCESSED, _PAGE_SOFT_DIRTY, and the PFN.
> NUMA hinting is encoded in the protection bits, so a transient hint
> state on a resolved (no-marker) PTE would be lost across this rewrite,
> but that's just a re-prime on the next NUMA scan, not a correctness
> issue.
>
> > @@ -298,6 +298,16 @@ static __always_inline void change_present_ptes(struct mmu_gather *tlb,
> > else if (uffd_wp_resolve || uffd_rwp_resolve)
> > ptent = pte_clear_uffd(ptent);
> >
> > + /*
> > + * The uffd bit on a VM_UFFD_RWP VMA carries PROT_NONE
> > + * semantics. If mprotect() or NUMA hinting changed the
> > + * base protection, restore PAGE_NONE so the PTE still
> > + * traps on any access. pte_modify() preserves
> > + * _PAGE_UFFD.
> > + */
> > + if (userfaultfd_rwp(vma) && pte_uffd(ptent))
> > + ptent = pte_modify(ptent, PAGE_NONE);
> >
> > For VMAs registered with both UFFD WP and RWP, could this silently upgrade
> > Write-Protected pages to Read-Write-Protected?
>
> VM_UFFD_WP and VM_UFFD_RWP are mutually exclusive per VMA. The combination
> is rejected at registration time:
>
> fs/userfaultfd.c, userfaultfd_register():
> if ((vm_flags & VM_UFFD_WP) && (vm_flags & VM_UFFD_RWP))
> goto out; /* -EINVAL */
>
> and re-registration cannot drop either bit (also -EBUSY in the same
> function), so a PTE in a WP-armed VMA can never satisfy
> userfaultfd_rwp(vma); the new branch never fires there.
>
> [ ... ]
> > + /* Re-arm RWP on the moved PTE if dst_vma is RWP-registered. */
> > + if (userfaultfd_rwp(dst_vma)) {
> > + orig_dst_pte = pte_modify(orig_dst_pte, PAGE_NONE);
> > + orig_dst_pte = pte_mkuffd(orig_dst_pte);
> > + }
> > +
> > set_pte_at(mm, dst_addr, dst_pte, orig_dst_pte);
> >
> > Could applying PAGE_NONE unconditionally to newly moved pages trap
> > applications in an infinite fault loop?
>
> No -- the post-MOVE access is delivered as a normal RWP fault. In sync
> mode it goes to the registered handler, which resolves it with
> UFFDIO_RWPROTECT clearing MODE_RWP; in async mode the kernel resolves
> it in-kernel and the faulting thread continues. There is no loop.
>
> The semantics here are intentional: a VM_UFFD_RWP VMA has the contract
> that every present PTE is either an active marker or a tracked-and-
> resolved PTE whose next access will re-trap. UFFDIO_MOVE into such a
> VMA must keep that contract, otherwise the moved-in page would be a
> silent hole in the working-set view. UFFDIO_MOVE has no mode flag for
> "skip protection", by design -- the same way it has no flag to skip
> WP arming if dst_vma were WP-armed (and the equivalent could be added
> there if we ever decide UFFDIO_MOVE should preserve markers in WP
> VMAs too).
>

Oopsie.

I put it in reply to the wrong patch. It suppose to be for 06/14.

--
Kiryl Shutsemau / Kirill A. Shutemov