* [PATCH 0/1] ring-buffer: Fix sub-buffer order updates and free_page leaks
@ 2026-08-13 16:16 Masami Hiramatsu (Google)
2026-08-13 16:16 ` [PATCH] ring-buffer: Fix race between ring_buffer_subbuf_order_set() and readers Masami Hiramatsu (Google)
2026-08-13 17:25 ` [PATCH 0/1] ring-buffer: Fix sub-buffer order updates and free_page leaks Vincent Donnefort
0 siblings, 2 replies; 6+ messages in thread
From: Masami Hiramatsu (Google) @ 2026-08-13 16:16 UTC (permalink / raw)
To: Steven Rostedt, Masami Hiramatsu, Vincent Donnefort
Cc: Mathieu Desnoyers, linux-kernel, linux-trace-kernel, kernel-team
Hi Vincent,
Here is my patch to fix the race and free_page problem.
Let's see what Sashiko says for this.
Thank you,
---
base-commit: 3d6d817622b0a9721e3cc404df3469171582be13
Masami Hiramatsu (Google) (1):
ring-buffer: Fix race between ring_buffer_subbuf_order_set() and readers
kernel/trace/ring_buffer.c | 35 +++++++++++++++++++++++++++++------
1 file changed, 29 insertions(+), 6 deletions(-)
--
Masami Hiramatsu (Google) <mhiramat@kernel.org>
^ permalink raw reply [flat|nested] 6+ messages in thread
* [PATCH] ring-buffer: Fix race between ring_buffer_subbuf_order_set() and readers
2026-08-13 16:16 [PATCH 0/1] ring-buffer: Fix sub-buffer order updates and free_page leaks Masami Hiramatsu (Google)
@ 2026-08-13 16:16 ` Masami Hiramatsu (Google)
2026-08-13 16:30 ` sashiko-bot
2026-08-14 14:42 ` Steven Rostedt
2026-08-13 17:25 ` [PATCH 0/1] ring-buffer: Fix sub-buffer order updates and free_page leaks Vincent Donnefort
1 sibling, 2 replies; 6+ messages in thread
From: Masami Hiramatsu (Google) @ 2026-08-13 16:16 UTC (permalink / raw)
To: Steven Rostedt, Masami Hiramatsu, Vincent Donnefort
Cc: Mathieu Desnoyers, linux-kernel, linux-trace-kernel, kernel-team
From: Masami Hiramatsu (Google) <mhiramat@kernel.org>
When ring_buffer_subbuf_order_set() updates buffer->subbuf_order, it
previously modified buffer->subbuf_order before clearing the cached
per-CPU free_page entries. Furthermore, clearing cpu_buffer->free_page
was done under cpu_buffer->reader_lock, whereas
ring_buffer_alloc_read_page() protects cpu_buffer->free_page using
arch_spin_lock(&cpu_buffer->lock).
Because ring_buffer_alloc_read_page(), ring_buffer_free_read_page(),
and ring_buffer_read_page() checked buffer->subbuf_order locklessly
before accessing reader resources, a TOCTOU race allowed a concurrent
reader to obtain, cache, or swap a page allocated under an outdated order
while tagging bpage->order with the new order. This allowed undersized
pages to be swapped into the ring buffer, leading to heap buffer overflows,
or caused free_pages() to be called with an invalid order.
Fix this by:
1. Flushing and freeing all per-CPU cached free_page entries under
arch_spin_lock(&cpu_buffer->lock) using old_order before modifying
buffer->subbuf_order.
2. Protecting bpage->order assignment under
arch_spin_lock(&cpu_buffer->lock) in ring_buffer_alloc_read_page().
3. Moving the buffer->subbuf_order validation inside
arch_spin_lock(&cpu_buffer->lock) in ring_buffer_free_read_page().
4. Re-validating buffer->subbuf_order inside reader_lock in
ring_buffer_read_page().
5. Protecting cpu_buffer->free_page extraction with
arch_spin_lock(&cpu_buffer->lock) in ring_buffer_subbuf_order_set().
Fixes: 2808e31ec12e ("ring-buffer: Add interface for configuring trace sub buffer size")
Assisted-by: Antigravity:gemini-3.6-flash
Signed-off-by: Masami Hiramatsu (Google) <mhiramat@kernel.org>
---
kernel/trace/ring_buffer.c | 35 +++++++++++++++++++++++++++++------
1 file changed, 29 insertions(+), 6 deletions(-)
diff --git a/kernel/trace/ring_buffer.c b/kernel/trace/ring_buffer.c
index 2667992f0aa2..6d180689ad59 100644
--- a/kernel/trace/ring_buffer.c
+++ b/kernel/trace/ring_buffer.c
@@ -6957,11 +6957,11 @@ ring_buffer_alloc_read_page(struct trace_buffer *buffer, int cpu)
if (!bpage)
return ERR_PTR(-ENOMEM);
- bpage->order = buffer->subbuf_order;
cpu_buffer = buffer->buffers[cpu];
local_irq_save(flags);
arch_spin_lock(&cpu_buffer->lock);
+ bpage->order = buffer->subbuf_order;
if (cpu_buffer->free_page) {
bpage->data = cpu_buffer->free_page;
cpu_buffer->free_page = NULL;
@@ -7010,13 +7010,13 @@ void ring_buffer_free_read_page(struct trace_buffer *buffer, int cpu,
* is different from the subbuffer order of the buffer -
* we can't reuse it
*/
- if (page_ref_count(page) > 1 || data_page->order != buffer->subbuf_order)
+ if (page_ref_count(page) > 1)
goto out;
local_irq_save(flags);
arch_spin_lock(&cpu_buffer->lock);
- if (!cpu_buffer->free_page) {
+ if (data_page->order == buffer->subbuf_order && !cpu_buffer->free_page) {
cpu_buffer->free_page = dpage;
dpage = NULL;
}
@@ -7094,15 +7094,15 @@ int ring_buffer_read_page(struct trace_buffer *buffer,
if (!data_page || !data_page->data)
return -1;
- if (data_page->order != buffer->subbuf_order)
- return -1;
-
dpage = data_page->data;
if (!dpage)
return -1;
guard(raw_spinlock_irqsave)(&cpu_buffer->reader_lock);
+ if (data_page->order != buffer->subbuf_order)
+ return -1;
+
reader = rb_get_reader_page(cpu_buffer);
if (!reader)
return -1;
@@ -7350,6 +7350,27 @@ int ring_buffer_subbuf_order_set(struct trace_buffer *buffer, int order)
/* Make sure all commits have finished */
synchronize_rcu();
+ /* Flush any cached free_page allocated with old_order */
+ for_each_buffer_cpu(buffer, cpu) {
+ struct buffer_data_page *old_free;
+ unsigned long flags;
+
+ if (!cpumask_test_cpu(cpu, buffer->cpumask))
+ continue;
+
+ cpu_buffer = buffer->buffers[cpu];
+
+ local_irq_save(flags);
+ arch_spin_lock(&cpu_buffer->lock);
+ old_free = cpu_buffer->free_page;
+ cpu_buffer->free_page = NULL;
+ arch_spin_unlock(&cpu_buffer->lock);
+ local_irq_restore(flags);
+
+ if (old_free)
+ free_pages((unsigned long)old_free, old_order);
+ }
+
buffer->subbuf_order = order;
buffer->subbuf_size = psize - BUF_PAGE_HDR_SIZE;
@@ -7431,8 +7452,10 @@ int ring_buffer_subbuf_order_set(struct trace_buffer *buffer, int order)
cpu_buffer->nr_pages = cpu_buffer->nr_pages_to_update;
cpu_buffer->nr_pages_to_update = 0;
+ arch_spin_lock(&cpu_buffer->lock);
old_free_data_page = cpu_buffer->free_page;
cpu_buffer->free_page = NULL;
+ arch_spin_unlock(&cpu_buffer->lock);
rb_head_page_activate(cpu_buffer);
^ permalink raw reply related [flat|nested] 6+ messages in thread
* Re: [PATCH] ring-buffer: Fix race between ring_buffer_subbuf_order_set() and readers
2026-08-13 16:16 ` [PATCH] ring-buffer: Fix race between ring_buffer_subbuf_order_set() and readers Masami Hiramatsu (Google)
@ 2026-08-13 16:30 ` sashiko-bot
2026-08-14 14:42 ` Steven Rostedt
1 sibling, 0 replies; 6+ messages in thread
From: sashiko-bot @ 2026-08-13 16:30 UTC (permalink / raw)
To: Masami Hiramatsu (Google); +Cc: linux-trace-kernel
Thank you for your contribution! Sashiko AI review found 5 potential issue(s) to consider:
Pre-existing issues:
- [Critical] Structural TOCTOU race: global order and size are updated before replacing per-CPU buffer pages, leading to Heap Buffer Overflow.
- [High] Incomplete TOCTOU fix: alloc_cpu_data() evaluates buffer->subbuf_order locklessly, causing bpage->order mismatch.
- [High] Race window between pre-flush loop and buffer->subbuf_order update allows caching undersized pages.
- [High] Post-update flush loop unconditionally frees newly cached pages using old_order.
- [High] Error path fails to flush cached pages when rolling back to old_order.
--
--- Patch [1]: [PATCH] ring-buffer: Fix race between ring_buffer_subbuf_order_set() and readers ---
commit d1c3f71c852aab912bda60e5894b681e43da7c7b
Author: Masami Hiramatsu (Google) <mhiramat@kernel.org>
ring-buffer: Fix race between ring_buffer_subbuf_order_set() and readers
This commit attempts to fix a TOCTOU race condition in the ring buffer code
by ensuring that the per-CPU free_page cache is flushed and protected by
the cpu_buffer lock during order changes. It also updates reader functions
to validate the page order under the same lock to prevent using mismatched
page sizes.
> diff --git a/kernel/trace/ring_buffer.c b/kernel/trace/ring_buffer.c
> index c2c57fbf6f448..9a11c663cff5b 100644
> --- a/kernel/trace/ring_buffer.c
> +++ b/kernel/trace/ring_buffer.c
> @@ -6957,11 +6957,11 @@ ring_buffer_alloc_read_page(struct trace_buffer *buffer, int cpu)
> if (!bpage)
> return ERR_PTR(-ENOMEM);
>
> - bpage->order = buffer->subbuf_order;
> cpu_buffer = buffer->buffers[cpu];
> local_irq_save(flags);
> arch_spin_lock(&cpu_buffer->lock);
>
> + bpage->order = buffer->subbuf_order;
> if (cpu_buffer->free_page) {
> bpage->data = cpu_buffer->free_page;
> cpu_buffer->free_page = NULL;
> }
[Severity: High]
This isn't a bug introduced by this patch, but does this locklessly evaluate
buffer->subbuf_order after dropping the lock?
Looking at the code just below this hunk in ring_buffer_alloc_read_page():
arch_spin_unlock(&cpu_buffer->lock);
local_irq_restore(flags);
if (bpage->data) {
rb_init_data_page(bpage->data);
} else {
bpage->data = alloc_cpu_data(cpu, cpu_buffer->buffer->subbuf_order);
...
If a concurrent writer changes the global order after the lock is dropped but
before alloc_cpu_data() evaluates the argument, the allocated page size will
mismatch the stored bpage->order.
When ring_buffer_free_read_page() later frees this page using bpage->order, it
could free a mismatched page size and corrupt the buddy allocator.
[ ... ]
> @@ -7350,6 +7350,27 @@ int ring_buffer_subbuf_order_set(struct trace_buffer *buffer, int order)
> /* Make sure all commits have finished */
> synchronize_rcu();
>
> + /* Flush any cached free_page allocated with old_order */
> + for_each_buffer_cpu(buffer, cpu) {
> + struct buffer_data_page *old_free;
> + unsigned long flags;
> +
> + if (!cpumask_test_cpu(cpu, buffer->cpumask))
> + continue;
> +
> + cpu_buffer = buffer->buffers[cpu];
> +
> + local_irq_save(flags);
> + arch_spin_lock(&cpu_buffer->lock);
> + old_free = cpu_buffer->free_page;
> + cpu_buffer->free_page = NULL;
> + arch_spin_unlock(&cpu_buffer->lock);
> + local_irq_restore(flags);
> +
> + if (old_free)
> + free_pages((unsigned long)old_free, old_order);
> + }
> +
> buffer->subbuf_order = order;
> buffer->subbuf_size = psize - BUF_PAGE_HDR_SIZE;
[Severity: High]
This isn't a bug introduced by this patch, but does updating the global order
after the flush loop leave a race window?
During the unprotected window between the flush loop completing and updating
buffer->subbuf_order, the global order is still old_order.
A concurrent reader could call ring_buffer_free_read_page(), see that
data_page->order matches buffer->subbuf_order (both old), and cache an
old_order page back into cpu_buffer->free_page.
Once the order is updated below, subsequent readers might extract this cached
old_order page, tag it with the new order, and eventually free it with the new
order, causing buddy allocator corruption.
[Severity: Critical]
This isn't a bug introduced by this patch, but does updating the global order
and size here, before replacing per-CPU buffer pages, create a structural
race?
If a concurrent reader calls ring_buffer_read_page(), it validates its
new-order data_page against the new global order and swaps it into the ring
buffer. It extracts the old, unreplaced reader->page into dpage.
If the buffer is expanding, dpage is an undersized old-order page.
However, the reader executes memset() using the prematurely updated global
buffer->subbuf_size:
ring_buffer_read_page():
if (size < buffer->subbuf_size)
memset(&dpage->data[size], 0, buffer->subbuf_size - size);
This would blindly write zeroes far beyond the bounds of the extracted
old-order dpage, resulting in a heap buffer overflow reachable via
unprivileged tracefs reads.
[ ... ]
> @@ -7431,8 +7452,10 @@ int ring_buffer_subbuf_order_set(struct trace_buffer *buffer, int order)
> cpu_buffer->nr_pages = cpu_buffer->nr_pages_to_update;
> cpu_buffer->nr_pages_to_update = 0;
>
> + arch_spin_lock(&cpu_buffer->lock);
> old_free_data_page = cpu_buffer->free_page;
> cpu_buffer->free_page = NULL;
> + arch_spin_unlock(&cpu_buffer->lock);
>
> rb_head_page_activate(cpu_buffer);
[Severity: High]
This isn't a bug introduced by this patch, but does this second flush loop
unconditionally free potentially new-order pages with old_order?
After the global order is set to new_order, this function performs a sleepable
allocation loop (__rb_allocate_pages). During this time, concurrent readers
can allocate and free new_order pages, successfully caching them into
cpu_buffer->free_page.
When this code extracts cpu_buffer->free_page and subsequently frees it down
below:
free_pages((unsigned long)old_free_data_page, old_order);
It blindly forces what could be a new_order page to be freed with old_order,
corrupting the buddy allocator.
[Severity: High]
This isn't a bug introduced by this patch, but does the error path fail to
flush cached pages when rolling back?
If __rb_allocate_pages() fails, the code jumps to the error label and restores
buffer->subbuf_order = old_order:
ring_buffer_subbuf_order_set():
error:
buffer->subbuf_order = old_order;
buffer->subbuf_size = old_size;
During the window where it was new_order, concurrent readers may have cached
new_order pages into cpu_buffer->free_page. The error path returns without
flushing cpu_buffer->free_page.
Subsequent readers would extract these new_order pages, tag them as old_order,
and free them with old_order, causing a memory leak (if expanding) or allocator
corruption (if shrinking).
--
Sashiko AI review · https://sashiko.dev/#/patchset/178663777320.475864.4716637934003507750.stgit@devnote2?part=1
^ permalink raw reply [flat|nested] 6+ messages in thread
* Re: [PATCH 0/1] ring-buffer: Fix sub-buffer order updates and free_page leaks
2026-08-13 16:16 [PATCH 0/1] ring-buffer: Fix sub-buffer order updates and free_page leaks Masami Hiramatsu (Google)
2026-08-13 16:16 ` [PATCH] ring-buffer: Fix race between ring_buffer_subbuf_order_set() and readers Masami Hiramatsu (Google)
@ 2026-08-13 17:25 ` Vincent Donnefort
1 sibling, 0 replies; 6+ messages in thread
From: Vincent Donnefort @ 2026-08-13 17:25 UTC (permalink / raw)
To: Masami Hiramatsu (Google)
Cc: Steven Rostedt, Mathieu Desnoyers, linux-kernel,
linux-trace-kernel, kernel-team
On Fri, Aug 14, 2026 at 01:16:03AM +0900, Masami Hiramatsu (Google) wrote:
> Hi Vincent,
>
> Here is my patch to fix the race and free_page problem.
> Let's see what Sashiko says for this.
>
> Thank you,
>
> ---
> base-commit: 3d6d817622b0a9721e3cc404df3469171582be13
>
> Masami Hiramatsu (Google) (1):
> ring-buffer: Fix race between ring_buffer_subbuf_order_set() and readers
>
>
> kernel/trace/ring_buffer.c | 35 +++++++++++++++++++++++++++++------
> 1 file changed, 29 insertions(+), 6 deletions(-)
>
> --
> Masami Hiramatsu (Google) <mhiramat@kernel.org>
Sorry I am not sure to understand what is wrong with that series I made here?
https://lore.kernel.org/all/20260813131152.3589632-1-vdonnefort@google.com/
--
Vincent
^ permalink raw reply [flat|nested] 6+ messages in thread
* Re: [PATCH] ring-buffer: Fix race between ring_buffer_subbuf_order_set() and readers
2026-08-13 16:16 ` [PATCH] ring-buffer: Fix race between ring_buffer_subbuf_order_set() and readers Masami Hiramatsu (Google)
2026-08-13 16:30 ` sashiko-bot
@ 2026-08-14 14:42 ` Steven Rostedt
2026-08-14 14:53 ` Vincent Donnefort
1 sibling, 1 reply; 6+ messages in thread
From: Steven Rostedt @ 2026-08-14 14:42 UTC (permalink / raw)
To: Masami Hiramatsu (Google)
Cc: Vincent Donnefort, Mathieu Desnoyers, linux-kernel,
linux-trace-kernel, kernel-team
On Fri, 14 Aug 2026 01:16:13 +0900
"Masami Hiramatsu (Google)" <mhiramat@kernel.org> wrote:
> From: Masami Hiramatsu (Google) <mhiramat@kernel.org>
>
> When ring_buffer_subbuf_order_set() updates buffer->subbuf_order, it
> previously modified buffer->subbuf_order before clearing the cached
> per-CPU free_page entries. Furthermore, clearing cpu_buffer->free_page
> was done under cpu_buffer->reader_lock, whereas
> ring_buffer_alloc_read_page() protects cpu_buffer->free_page using
> arch_spin_lock(&cpu_buffer->lock).
>
> Because ring_buffer_alloc_read_page(), ring_buffer_free_read_page(),
> and ring_buffer_read_page() checked buffer->subbuf_order locklessly
> before accessing reader resources, a TOCTOU race allowed a concurrent
> reader to obtain, cache, or swap a page allocated under an outdated order
> while tagging bpage->order with the new order. This allowed undersized
> pages to be swapped into the ring buffer, leading to heap buffer overflows,
> or caused free_pages() to be called with an invalid order.
>
> Fix this by:
> 1. Flushing and freeing all per-CPU cached free_page entries under
> arch_spin_lock(&cpu_buffer->lock) using old_order before modifying
> buffer->subbuf_order.
> 2. Protecting bpage->order assignment under
> arch_spin_lock(&cpu_buffer->lock) in ring_buffer_alloc_read_page().
> 3. Moving the buffer->subbuf_order validation inside
> arch_spin_lock(&cpu_buffer->lock) in ring_buffer_free_read_page().
> 4. Re-validating buffer->subbuf_order inside reader_lock in
> ring_buffer_read_page().
> 5. Protecting cpu_buffer->free_page extraction with
> arch_spin_lock(&cpu_buffer->lock) in ring_buffer_subbuf_order_set().
>
> Fixes: 2808e31ec12e ("ring-buffer: Add interface for configuring trace sub buffer size")
> Assisted-by: Antigravity:gemini-3.6-flash
> Signed-off-by: Masami Hiramatsu (Google) <mhiramat@kernel.org>
> ---
Please rebase on top of ring-buffer/for-next, as I added Vincent's patches to that.
> kernel/trace/ring_buffer.c | 35 +++++++++++++++++++++++++++++------
> 1 file changed, 29 insertions(+), 6 deletions(-)
>
> diff --git a/kernel/trace/ring_buffer.c b/kernel/trace/ring_buffer.c
> index 2667992f0aa2..6d180689ad59 100644
> --- a/kernel/trace/ring_buffer.c
> +++ b/kernel/trace/ring_buffer.c
> @@ -6957,11 +6957,11 @@ ring_buffer_alloc_read_page(struct trace_buffer *buffer, int cpu)
> if (!bpage)
> return ERR_PTR(-ENOMEM);
>
> - bpage->order = buffer->subbuf_order;
> cpu_buffer = buffer->buffers[cpu];
> local_irq_save(flags);
> arch_spin_lock(&cpu_buffer->lock);
>
> + bpage->order = buffer->subbuf_order;
This is still needed.
> if (cpu_buffer->free_page) {
> bpage->data = cpu_buffer->free_page;
> cpu_buffer->free_page = NULL;
> @@ -7010,13 +7010,13 @@ void ring_buffer_free_read_page(struct trace_buffer *buffer, int cpu,
> * is different from the subbuffer order of the buffer -
> * we can't reuse it
> */
> - if (page_ref_count(page) > 1 || data_page->order != buffer->subbuf_order)
> + if (page_ref_count(page) > 1)
> goto out;
>
> local_irq_save(flags);
> arch_spin_lock(&cpu_buffer->lock);
>
> - if (!cpu_buffer->free_page) {
> + if (data_page->order == buffer->subbuf_order && !cpu_buffer->free_page) {
Swap the order please. It has to check both to continue and if one fails it
will not continue. Checking for cpu_buffer->free_page to be NULL first is
the quicker check. And also the more likely one to fail.
> cpu_buffer->free_page = dpage;
> dpage = NULL;
> }
> @@ -7094,15 +7094,15 @@ int ring_buffer_read_page(struct trace_buffer *buffer,
> if (!data_page || !data_page->data)
> return -1;
>
> - if (data_page->order != buffer->subbuf_order)
> - return -1;
> -
> dpage = data_page->data;
> if (!dpage)
> return -1;
>
> guard(raw_spinlock_irqsave)(&cpu_buffer->reader_lock);
>
> + if (data_page->order != buffer->subbuf_order)
> + return -1;
> +
> reader = rb_get_reader_page(cpu_buffer);
> if (!reader)
> return -1;
> @@ -7350,6 +7350,27 @@ int ring_buffer_subbuf_order_set(struct trace_buffer *buffer, int order)
> /* Make sure all commits have finished */
> synchronize_rcu();
>
> + /* Flush any cached free_page allocated with old_order */
> + for_each_buffer_cpu(buffer, cpu) {
> + struct buffer_data_page *old_free;
> + unsigned long flags;
> +
> + if (!cpumask_test_cpu(cpu, buffer->cpumask))
> + continue;
> +
> + cpu_buffer = buffer->buffers[cpu];
> +
> + local_irq_save(flags);
> + arch_spin_lock(&cpu_buffer->lock);
> + old_free = cpu_buffer->free_page;
> + cpu_buffer->free_page = NULL;
> + arch_spin_unlock(&cpu_buffer->lock);
> + local_irq_restore(flags);
> +
> + if (old_free)
> + free_pages((unsigned long)old_free, old_order);
> + }
Honestly, this should be a separate patch. The first part of this patch is
data races with adding and freeing, but this is about changes to the size.
> +
> buffer->subbuf_order = order;
> buffer->subbuf_size = psize - BUF_PAGE_HDR_SIZE;
>
> @@ -7431,8 +7452,10 @@ int ring_buffer_subbuf_order_set(struct trace_buffer *buffer, int order)
> cpu_buffer->nr_pages = cpu_buffer->nr_pages_to_update;
> cpu_buffer->nr_pages_to_update = 0;
>
> + arch_spin_lock(&cpu_buffer->lock);
> old_free_data_page = cpu_buffer->free_page;
> cpu_buffer->free_page = NULL;
> + arch_spin_unlock(&cpu_buffer->lock);
This is already fixed by Vincent (and I would have asked this to be a
separate patch too if it hadn't).
-- Steve
>
> rb_head_page_activate(cpu_buffer);
>
^ permalink raw reply [flat|nested] 6+ messages in thread
* Re: [PATCH] ring-buffer: Fix race between ring_buffer_subbuf_order_set() and readers
2026-08-14 14:42 ` Steven Rostedt
@ 2026-08-14 14:53 ` Vincent Donnefort
0 siblings, 0 replies; 6+ messages in thread
From: Vincent Donnefort @ 2026-08-14 14:53 UTC (permalink / raw)
To: Steven Rostedt
Cc: Masami Hiramatsu (Google), Mathieu Desnoyers, linux-kernel,
linux-trace-kernel, kernel-team
On Fri, Aug 14, 2026 at 10:42:08AM -0400, Steven Rostedt wrote:
> On Fri, 14 Aug 2026 01:16:13 +0900
> "Masami Hiramatsu (Google)" <mhiramat@kernel.org> wrote:
>
> > From: Masami Hiramatsu (Google) <mhiramat@kernel.org>
> >
> > When ring_buffer_subbuf_order_set() updates buffer->subbuf_order, it
> > previously modified buffer->subbuf_order before clearing the cached
> > per-CPU free_page entries. Furthermore, clearing cpu_buffer->free_page
> > was done under cpu_buffer->reader_lock, whereas
> > ring_buffer_alloc_read_page() protects cpu_buffer->free_page using
> > arch_spin_lock(&cpu_buffer->lock).
> >
> > Because ring_buffer_alloc_read_page(), ring_buffer_free_read_page(),
> > and ring_buffer_read_page() checked buffer->subbuf_order locklessly
> > before accessing reader resources, a TOCTOU race allowed a concurrent
> > reader to obtain, cache, or swap a page allocated under an outdated order
> > while tagging bpage->order with the new order. This allowed undersized
> > pages to be swapped into the ring buffer, leading to heap buffer overflows,
> > or caused free_pages() to be called with an invalid order.
> >
> > Fix this by:
> > 1. Flushing and freeing all per-CPU cached free_page entries under
> > arch_spin_lock(&cpu_buffer->lock) using old_order before modifying
> > buffer->subbuf_order.
> > 2. Protecting bpage->order assignment under
> > arch_spin_lock(&cpu_buffer->lock) in ring_buffer_alloc_read_page().
> > 3. Moving the buffer->subbuf_order validation inside
> > arch_spin_lock(&cpu_buffer->lock) in ring_buffer_free_read_page().
> > 4. Re-validating buffer->subbuf_order inside reader_lock in
> > ring_buffer_read_page().
> > 5. Protecting cpu_buffer->free_page extraction with
> > arch_spin_lock(&cpu_buffer->lock) in ring_buffer_subbuf_order_set().
> >
> > Fixes: 2808e31ec12e ("ring-buffer: Add interface for configuring trace sub buffer size")
> > Assisted-by: Antigravity:gemini-3.6-flash
> > Signed-off-by: Masami Hiramatsu (Google) <mhiramat@kernel.org>
> > ---
>
>
> Please rebase on top of ring-buffer/for-next, as I added Vincent's patches to that.
>
> > kernel/trace/ring_buffer.c | 35 +++++++++++++++++++++++++++++------
> > 1 file changed, 29 insertions(+), 6 deletions(-)
> >
> > diff --git a/kernel/trace/ring_buffer.c b/kernel/trace/ring_buffer.c
> > index 2667992f0aa2..6d180689ad59 100644
> > --- a/kernel/trace/ring_buffer.c
> > +++ b/kernel/trace/ring_buffer.c
> > @@ -6957,11 +6957,11 @@ ring_buffer_alloc_read_page(struct trace_buffer *buffer, int cpu)
> > if (!bpage)
> > return ERR_PTR(-ENOMEM);
> >
> > - bpage->order = buffer->subbuf_order;
> > cpu_buffer = buffer->buffers[cpu];
> > local_irq_save(flags);
> > arch_spin_lock(&cpu_buffer->lock);
> >
> > + bpage->order = buffer->subbuf_order;
>
> This is still needed.
I am not sure, the lock is per-cpu_buffer but subbuf_order. is global to
trace_buffer?
>
> > if (cpu_buffer->free_page) {
> > bpage->data = cpu_buffer->free_page;
> > cpu_buffer->free_page = NULL;
> > @@ -7010,13 +7010,13 @@ void ring_buffer_free_read_page(struct trace_buffer *buffer, int cpu,
> > * is different from the subbuffer order of the buffer -
> > * we can't reuse it
> > */
> > - if (page_ref_count(page) > 1 || data_page->order != buffer->subbuf_order)
> > + if (page_ref_count(page) > 1)
> > goto out;
> >
> > local_irq_save(flags);
> > arch_spin_lock(&cpu_buffer->lock);
> >
> > - if (!cpu_buffer->free_page) {
> > + if (data_page->order == buffer->subbuf_order && !cpu_buffer->free_page) {
>
> Swap the order please. It has to check both to continue and if one fails it
> will not continue. Checking for cpu_buffer->free_page to be NULL first is
> the quicker check. And also the more likely one to fail.
>
> > cpu_buffer->free_page = dpage;
> > dpage = NULL;
> > }
> > @@ -7094,15 +7094,15 @@ int ring_buffer_read_page(struct trace_buffer *buffer,
> > if (!data_page || !data_page->data)
> > return -1;
> >
> > - if (data_page->order != buffer->subbuf_order)
> > - return -1;
> > -
> > dpage = data_page->data;
> > if (!dpage)
> > return -1;
> >
> > guard(raw_spinlock_irqsave)(&cpu_buffer->reader_lock);
> >
> > + if (data_page->order != buffer->subbuf_order)
> > + return -1;
> > +
I have modified this as part of
tracing: Fix subbuf resize races with trace_pipe_raw readers
> > reader = rb_get_reader_page(cpu_buffer);
> > if (!reader)
> > return -1;
> > @@ -7350,6 +7350,27 @@ int ring_buffer_subbuf_order_set(struct trace_buffer *buffer, int order)
> > /* Make sure all commits have finished */
> > synchronize_rcu();
> >
> > + /* Flush any cached free_page allocated with old_order */
> > + for_each_buffer_cpu(buffer, cpu) {
> > + struct buffer_data_page *old_free;
> > + unsigned long flags;
> > +
> > + if (!cpumask_test_cpu(cpu, buffer->cpumask))
> > + continue;
> > +
> > + cpu_buffer = buffer->buffers[cpu];
> > +
> > + local_irq_save(flags);
> > + arch_spin_lock(&cpu_buffer->lock);
> > + old_free = cpu_buffer->free_page;
> > + cpu_buffer->free_page = NULL;
> > + arch_spin_unlock(&cpu_buffer->lock);
> > + local_irq_restore(flags);
> > +
> > + if (old_free)
> > + free_pages((unsigned long)old_free, old_order);
> > + }
>
> Honestly, this should be a separate patch. The first part of this patch is
> data races with adding and freeing, but this is about changes to the size.
>
> > +
> > buffer->subbuf_order = order;
> > buffer->subbuf_size = psize - BUF_PAGE_HDR_SIZE;
> >
> > @@ -7431,8 +7452,10 @@ int ring_buffer_subbuf_order_set(struct trace_buffer *buffer, int order)
> > cpu_buffer->nr_pages = cpu_buffer->nr_pages_to_update;
> > cpu_buffer->nr_pages_to_update = 0;
> >
> > + arch_spin_lock(&cpu_buffer->lock);
> > old_free_data_page = cpu_buffer->free_page;
> > cpu_buffer->free_page = NULL;
> > + arch_spin_unlock(&cpu_buffer->lock);
>
> This is already fixed by Vincent (and I would have asked this to be a
> separate patch too if it hadn't).
>
> -- Steve
>
> >
> > rb_head_page_activate(cpu_buffer);
> >
>
--
Vincent
^ permalink raw reply [flat|nested] 6+ messages in thread
end of thread, other threads:[~2026-08-14 14:53 UTC | newest]
Thread overview: 6+ messages (download: mbox.gz follow: Atom feed
-- links below jump to the message on this page --
2026-08-13 16:16 [PATCH 0/1] ring-buffer: Fix sub-buffer order updates and free_page leaks Masami Hiramatsu (Google)
2026-08-13 16:16 ` [PATCH] ring-buffer: Fix race between ring_buffer_subbuf_order_set() and readers Masami Hiramatsu (Google)
2026-08-13 16:30 ` sashiko-bot
2026-08-14 14:42 ` Steven Rostedt
2026-08-14 14:53 ` Vincent Donnefort
2026-08-13 17:25 ` [PATCH 0/1] ring-buffer: Fix sub-buffer order updates and free_page leaks Vincent Donnefort
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