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* [PATCHv2 0/3] powerpc: kprobes insn page fixes
@ 2026-11-13 12:31 Ritesh Harjani (IBM)
  2026-11-13 12:31 ` [PATCHv2 1/3] powerpc/execmem: Don't leave kprobes insn pages W+X when CONFIG_MODULES=n Ritesh Harjani (IBM)
                   ` (2 more replies)
  0 siblings, 3 replies; 4+ messages in thread
From: Ritesh Harjani (IBM) @ 2026-11-13 12:31 UTC (permalink / raw)
  To: linuxppc-dev
  Cc: Madhavan Srinivasan, Venkat Rao Bagalkote, linux-kernel, chleroy,
	Michael Ellerman, Nicholas Piggin, Shrikanth Hegde, Hari Bathini,
	Ritesh Harjani (IBM)

Hi All,

A few fixes that came out of looking at a W+X warning at boot with
KPROBES=y and MODULES=n.

- Patch-1 fixes that warning.
- Patch-2 (reported by Sashiko) fixes an oops on book3s/32 when a kprobe has to
  single step an instruction out of line, the insn page was in an NX segment.
- Patch-3 makes ptdump show "X" for kernel mappings on e500, which was noticed
  while testing the other two.

Ritesh Harjani (IBM) (3):
  powerpc/execmem: Don't leave kprobes insn pages W+X when CONFIG_MODULES=n
  powerpc/execmem: Allocate kprobes insn pages from the modules area on book3s/32
  powerpc/ptdump: Show the exec flag of kernel mappings on e500

 arch/powerpc/mm/mem.c           | 12 +++++++++---
 arch/powerpc/mm/ptdump/shared.c |  6 +++---
 2 files changed, 12 insertions(+), 6 deletions(-)

--
2.39.5


^ permalink raw reply	[flat|nested] 4+ messages in thread

* [PATCHv2 1/3] powerpc/execmem: Don't leave kprobes insn pages W+X when CONFIG_MODULES=n
  2026-11-13 12:31 [PATCHv2 0/3] powerpc: kprobes insn page fixes Ritesh Harjani (IBM)
@ 2026-11-13 12:31 ` Ritesh Harjani (IBM)
  2026-11-13 12:31 ` [PATCHv2 2/3] powerpc/execmem: Allocate kprobes insn pages from the modules area on book3s/32 Ritesh Harjani (IBM)
  2026-11-13 12:31 ` [PATCHv2 3/3] powerpc/ptdump: Show the exec flag of kernel mappings on e500 Ritesh Harjani (IBM)
  2 siblings, 0 replies; 4+ messages in thread
From: Ritesh Harjani (IBM) @ 2026-11-13 12:31 UTC (permalink / raw)
  To: linuxppc-dev
  Cc: Madhavan Srinivasan, Venkat Rao Bagalkote, linux-kernel, chleroy,
	Michael Ellerman, Nicholas Piggin, Shrikanth Hegde, Hari Bathini,
	Ritesh Harjani (IBM)

commit 2e83e2ce34ff ("arch, mm: promote DEBUG_WX to CHECK_WX"), made
CHECK_WX default STRICT_KERNEL_RWX.

Now on powerpc, when we boot with CONFIG_KPROBES=y and CONFIG_MODULES=n,
we can see the following warning splat at boot:

    powerpc/mm: Found insecure W+X mapping at address 000000002ea08992/0xc008000000000000
    WARNING: arch/powerpc/mm/ptdump/ptdump.c:194 at note_page+0x4dc/0x4fc, CPU#0: swapper/0/1
    NIP [c0000000000ac204] note_page+0x4dc/0x4fc
    LR [c0000000000ac200] note_page+0x4d8/0x4fc
    Call Trace:
     note_page+0x4d8/0x4fc (unreliable)
     ptdump_pte_entry+0x70/0x94
     walk_pte_range_inner+0x15c/0x260
     walk_pgd_range+0x6d8/0xd5c
     walk_page_range_debug+0xa4/0xf0
     ptdump_walk_pgd+0xec/0x304
     ptdump_check_wx+0xd8/0x154
     kernel_init+0x94/0x26c
     ret_from_kernel_user_thread+0x14/0x1c
    Checked W+X mappings: FAILED, 1 W+X pages found

This happens because CHECK_WX noted a writeable + executable mapping.

This happens because execmem_arch_setup(), checks for
struct_modules_rwx_enabled(), while kprobes depenency on modules was
earlier removed via commit:
    7582b7be16d0 ("kprobes: remove dependency on CONFIG_MODULES")
Since the insn slots are only written with patch_instruction(), which
does not need this mapping to be writable. This patch fixes it by
checking for strict_kernel_rwx_enabled() instead.

Fixes: 7582b7be16d0 ("kprobes: remove dependency on CONFIG_MODULES")
Signed-off-by: Ritesh Harjani (IBM) <ritesh.list@gmail.com>
---
 arch/powerpc/mm/mem.c | 2 +-
 1 file changed, 1 insertion(+), 1 deletion(-)

diff --git a/arch/powerpc/mm/mem.c b/arch/powerpc/mm/mem.c
index b617b69452cd..77b63b52d8f2 100644
--- a/arch/powerpc/mm/mem.c
+++ b/arch/powerpc/mm/mem.c
@@ -388,7 +388,7 @@ static void prealloc_execmem_pgtable(void) { }
 
 struct execmem_info __init *execmem_arch_setup(void)
 {
-	pgprot_t kprobes_prot = strict_module_rwx_enabled() ? PAGE_KERNEL_ROX : PAGE_KERNEL_EXEC;
+	pgprot_t kprobes_prot = strict_kernel_rwx_enabled() ? PAGE_KERNEL_ROX : PAGE_KERNEL_EXEC;
 	pgprot_t prot = strict_module_rwx_enabled() ? PAGE_KERNEL : PAGE_KERNEL_EXEC;
 	unsigned long fallback_start = 0, fallback_end = 0;
 	unsigned long start, end;
-- 
2.39.5


^ permalink raw reply related	[flat|nested] 4+ messages in thread

* [PATCHv2 2/3] powerpc/execmem: Allocate kprobes insn pages from the modules area on book3s/32
  2026-11-13 12:31 [PATCHv2 0/3] powerpc: kprobes insn page fixes Ritesh Harjani (IBM)
  2026-11-13 12:31 ` [PATCHv2 1/3] powerpc/execmem: Don't leave kprobes insn pages W+X when CONFIG_MODULES=n Ritesh Harjani (IBM)
@ 2026-11-13 12:31 ` Ritesh Harjani (IBM)
  2026-11-13 12:31 ` [PATCHv2 3/3] powerpc/ptdump: Show the exec flag of kernel mappings on e500 Ritesh Harjani (IBM)
  2 siblings, 0 replies; 4+ messages in thread
From: Ritesh Harjani (IBM) @ 2026-11-13 12:31 UTC (permalink / raw)
  To: linuxppc-dev
  Cc: Madhavan Srinivasan, Venkat Rao Bagalkote, linux-kernel, chleroy,
	Michael Ellerman, Nicholas Piggin, Shrikanth Hegde, Hari Bathini,
	Ritesh Harjani (IBM)

On book3s/32, a kprobe on an instruction that can't be emulated and has
to be single stepped out of line, crashes the kernel. For e.g. with the
following cmds...
    ~> echo 9 > /proc/sys/kernel/printk
    ~> mount -t debugfs debugfs /sys/kernel/debug
    ~> echo 'p:wx filldir64+0xb8' > /sys/kernel/debug/tracing/kprobe_events
    ~> echo 1 > /sys/kernel/debug/tracing/events/kprobes/wx/enable
    ~> echo 1 > /sys/kernel/debug/tracing/events/kprobes/enable

...we can see the following crash:
    kernel tried to execute exec-protected page (f101a008) - exploit attempt? (uid: 0)
    BUG: Unable to handle kernel instruction fetch
    Faulting instruction address: 0xc02b919c
    Vector: 400 (Instruction Access) at [f19a9d60]
        pc: c02b919c: filldir64+0xb8/0x2dc
        lr: c02b9148: filldir64+0x64/0x2dc
        sp: f19a9e20
       msr: 10029032
      current = 0xc112e900
        pid   = 102, comm = ls
    enter ? for help
    [f19a9e20] c1a8d420 (unreliable)
    [f19a9e50] c02e4074 dcache_readdir+0x208/0x2a8
    [f19a9e90] c02b8c5c iterate_dir+0x88/0x1fc
    [f19a9ec0] c02b96e0 sys_getdents64+0x88/0x198
    [f19a9f10] c0014400 system_call_exception+0xf8/0x20c
    [f19a9f30] c00191ac ret_from_syscall+0x0/0x2c
    ---- Exception: c00 (System Call) at a7596164
    SP (af802310) is in userspace

This happens because on book3s/32 the exec permission is per segment
(256MB), not per page. The page tables have no hardware exec bit, only
the segment registers have a no-execute (N) bit. mmu_mark_initmem_nx()
sets N on all the kernel segments except the ones of the modules area.
So nothing in the vmalloc area can be executed, even when the page is
mapped with PAGE_KERNEL_ROX or PAGE_KERNEL_EXEC, because _PAGE_EXEC is
a software only bit there and the segment's N bit is what the MMU
enforces.

Before commit 1b750c2fbf82 ("powerpc: extend execmem_params for kprobes
allocations"), the kprobes insn pages came from module_alloc(). That
commit moved them to the whole of the vmalloc space, on the grounds
that kprobes use a breakpoint and don't need to be near the kernel
text. That is fine on platforms where the exec permission is per page,
as PAGE_KERNEL_ROX is then enough to make a vmalloc page executable.
It is not on book3s/32, where the modules area is not only close to
the kernel text but is also the only page-mapped area whose segment is
left executable. So the insn pages must keep coming from there.

Hence, use the modules area for EXECMEM_KPROBES on book3s/32.

Fixes: 1b750c2fbf82 ("powerpc: extend execmem_params for kprobes allocations")
Signed-off-by: Ritesh Harjani (IBM) <ritesh.list@gmail.com>
---
 arch/powerpc/mm/mem.c | 10 ++++++++--
 1 file changed, 8 insertions(+), 2 deletions(-)

diff --git a/arch/powerpc/mm/mem.c b/arch/powerpc/mm/mem.c
index 77b63b52d8f2..ae1bc7359353 100644
--- a/arch/powerpc/mm/mem.c
+++ b/arch/powerpc/mm/mem.c
@@ -391,6 +391,7 @@ struct execmem_info __init *execmem_arch_setup(void)
 	pgprot_t kprobes_prot = strict_kernel_rwx_enabled() ? PAGE_KERNEL_ROX : PAGE_KERNEL_EXEC;
 	pgprot_t prot = strict_module_rwx_enabled() ? PAGE_KERNEL : PAGE_KERNEL_EXEC;
 	unsigned long fallback_start = 0, fallback_end = 0;
+	unsigned long kprobes_start = VMALLOC_START, kprobes_end = VMALLOC_END;
 	unsigned long start, end;

 	/*
@@ -410,6 +411,11 @@ struct execmem_info __init *execmem_arch_setup(void)
 	}

 	end = MODULES_END;
+
+	if (IS_ENABLED(CONFIG_PPC_BOOK3S_32)) {
+		kprobes_start = MODULES_VADDR;
+		kprobes_end = MODULES_END;
+	}
 #else
 	start = VMALLOC_START;
 	end = VMALLOC_END;
@@ -428,8 +434,8 @@ struct execmem_info __init *execmem_arch_setup(void)
 				.fallback_end	= fallback_end,
 			},
 			[EXECMEM_KPROBES] = {
-				.start	= VMALLOC_START,
-				.end	= VMALLOC_END,
+				.start	= kprobes_start,
+				.end	= kprobes_end,
 				.pgprot	= kprobes_prot,
 				.alignment = 1,
 			},
--
2.39.5


^ permalink raw reply related	[flat|nested] 4+ messages in thread

* [PATCHv2 3/3] powerpc/ptdump: Show the exec flag of kernel mappings on e500
  2026-11-13 12:31 [PATCHv2 0/3] powerpc: kprobes insn page fixes Ritesh Harjani (IBM)
  2026-11-13 12:31 ` [PATCHv2 1/3] powerpc/execmem: Don't leave kprobes insn pages W+X when CONFIG_MODULES=n Ritesh Harjani (IBM)
  2026-11-13 12:31 ` [PATCHv2 2/3] powerpc/execmem: Allocate kprobes insn pages from the modules area on book3s/32 Ritesh Harjani (IBM)
@ 2026-11-13 12:31 ` Ritesh Harjani (IBM)
  2 siblings, 0 replies; 4+ messages in thread
From: Ritesh Harjani (IBM) @ 2026-11-13 12:31 UTC (permalink / raw)
  To: linuxppc-dev
  Cc: Madhavan Srinivasan, Venkat Rao Bagalkote, linux-kernel, chleroy,
	Michael Ellerman, Nicholas Piggin, Shrikanth Hegde, Hari Bathini,
	Ritesh Harjani (IBM)

On e500, _PAGE_EXEC is made of two bits, _PAGE_BAP_SX and _PAGE_BAP_UX,
and a kernel mapping only has _PAGE_BAP_SX (supervisor bit). The flag
table requires all the bits of the mask to be set to print "X", so
kernel_page_tables never shows a kernel mapping as executable:

w/o this patch:
  0xf1015000-0xf1015fff  0x00000000         4K PTE   r          present  coherent                  accessed

Print "X" when any of the bits is set the same way it is done for
_PAGE_READ and _PAGE_WRITE:

with this patch:
  0xf1015000-0xf1015fff  0x00000000         4K PTE   r      X   present  coherent                  accessed

This only changes what is displayed. ptdump_check_wx() uses pte_exec()
which already tests for either of the bits.

Signed-off-by: Ritesh Harjani (IBM) <ritesh.list@gmail.com>
---
 arch/powerpc/mm/ptdump/shared.c | 6 +++---
 1 file changed, 3 insertions(+), 3 deletions(-)

diff --git a/arch/powerpc/mm/ptdump/shared.c b/arch/powerpc/mm/ptdump/shared.c
index edc69da19b85..e28a41a8b1ac 100644
--- a/arch/powerpc/mm/ptdump/shared.c
+++ b/arch/powerpc/mm/ptdump/shared.c
@@ -22,9 +22,9 @@ static const struct flag_info flag_array[] = {
 		.clear	= "w",
 	}, {
 		.mask	= _PAGE_EXEC,
-		.val	= _PAGE_EXEC,
-		.set	= " X ",
-		.clear	= "   ",
+		.val	= 0,
+		.set	= "   ",
+		.clear	= " X ",
 	}, {
 		.mask	= _PAGE_PRESENT,
 		.val	= _PAGE_PRESENT,
--
2.39.5


^ permalink raw reply related	[flat|nested] 4+ messages in thread

end of thread, other threads:[~2026-11-13 12:32 UTC | newest]

Thread overview: 4+ messages (download: mbox.gz follow: Atom feed
-- links below jump to the message on this page --
2026-11-13 12:31 [PATCHv2 0/3] powerpc: kprobes insn page fixes Ritesh Harjani (IBM)
2026-11-13 12:31 ` [PATCHv2 1/3] powerpc/execmem: Don't leave kprobes insn pages W+X when CONFIG_MODULES=n Ritesh Harjani (IBM)
2026-11-13 12:31 ` [PATCHv2 2/3] powerpc/execmem: Allocate kprobes insn pages from the modules area on book3s/32 Ritesh Harjani (IBM)
2026-11-13 12:31 ` [PATCHv2 3/3] powerpc/ptdump: Show the exec flag of kernel mappings on e500 Ritesh Harjani (IBM)

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