[PATCH v4 1/4] KVM: TDX: Synchronize user-return MSRs immediately after VP.ENTER

Sean Christopherson
2025-10-16T22:28:21Z

Immediately synchronize the user-return MSR values after a successful
VP.ENTER to minimize the window where KVM is tracking stale values in the
"curr" field, and so that the tracked value is synchronized before IRQs
are enabled.

This is *very* technically a bug fix, as a forced shutdown/reboot will
invoke kvm_shutdown() without waiting for tasks to be frozen, and so the
on_each_cpu() calls to kvm_disable_virtualization_cpu() will call
kvm_on_user_return() from IRQ context and thus could consume a stale
values->curr if the IRQ hits while KVM is active. That said, the real
motivation is to minimize the window where "curr" is stale, as the same
forced shutdown/reboot flaw has effectively existed for all of non-TDX
for years, as kvm_set_user_return_msr() runs with IRQs enabled. Not to
mention that a stale MSR is the least of the kernel's concerns if a reboot
is forced while KVM is active.

Fixes: e0b4f31a3c65 ("KVM: TDX: restore user ret MSRs")
Cc: Yan Zhao <yan.y.zhao@intel.com>
Cc: Xiaoyao Li <xiaoyao.li@intel.com>
Cc: Rick Edgecombe <rick.p.edgecombe@intel.com>
Signed-off-by: Sean Christopherson <seanjc@google.com>
---
arch/x86/kvm/vmx/tdx.c | 20 +++++++++++++-------
arch/x86/kvm/vmx/tdx.h | 2 +-
2 files changed, 14 insertions(+), 8 deletions(-)

diff --git a/arch/x86/kvm/vmx/tdx.c b/arch/x86/kvm/vmx/tdx.c
index 326db9b9c567..2f3dfe9804b5 100644
--- a/arch/x86/kvm/vmx/tdx.c
+++ b/arch/x86/kvm/vmx/tdx.c
@@ -780,6 +780,14 @@ void tdx_prepare_switch_to_guest(struct kvm_vcpu *vcpu)
vt->msr_host_kernel_gs_base = read_msr(MSR_KERNEL_GS_BASE);

vt->guest_state_loaded = true;
+
+ /*
+ * Several of KVM's user-return MSRs are clobbered by the TDX-Module if
+ * VP.ENTER succeeds, i.e. on TD-Exit. Mark those MSRs as needing an
+ * update to synchronize the "current" value in KVM's cache with the
+ * value in hardware (loaded by the TDX-Module).
+ */
+ to_tdx(vcpu)->need_user_return_msr_sync = true;
}

struct tdx_uret_msr {
@@ -807,7 +815,6 @@ static void tdx_user_return_msr_update_cache(void)
static void tdx_prepare_switch_to_host(struct kvm_vcpu *vcpu)
{
struct vcpu_vt *vt = to_vt(vcpu);
- struct vcpu_tdx *tdx = to_tdx(vcpu);

if (!vt->guest_state_loaded)
return;
@@ -815,11 +822,6 @@ static void tdx_prepare_switch_to_host(struct kvm_vcpu *vcpu)
++vcpu->stat.host_state_reload;
wrmsrl(MSR_KERNEL_GS_BASE, vt->msr_host_kernel_gs_base);

- if (tdx->guest_entered) {
- tdx_user_return_msr_update_cache();
- tdx->guest_entered = false;
- }
-
vt->guest_state_loaded = false;
}

@@ -1059,7 +1061,11 @@ fastpath_t tdx_vcpu_run(struct kvm_vcpu *vcpu, u64 run_flags)
update_debugctlmsr(vcpu->arch.host_debugctl);

tdx_load_host_xsave_state(vcpu);
- tdx->guest_entered = true;
+
+ if (tdx->need_user_return_msr_sync) {
+ tdx_user_return_msr_update_cache();
+ tdx->need_user_return_msr_sync = false;
+ }

vcpu->arch.regs_avail &= TDX_REGS_AVAIL_SET;

diff --git a/arch/x86/kvm/vmx/tdx.h b/arch/x86/kvm/vmx/tdx.h
index ca39a9391db1..9434a6371d67 100644
--- a/arch/x86/kvm/vmx/tdx.h
+++ b/arch/x86/kvm/vmx/tdx.h
@@ -67,7 +67,7 @@ struct vcpu_tdx {
u64 vp_enter_ret;

enum vcpu_tdx_state state;
- bool guest_entered;
+ bool need_user_return_msr_sync;

u64 map_gpa_next;
u64 map_gpa_end;
--
2.51.0.858.gf9c4a03a3a-goog