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authorLinus Torvalds <torvalds@linux-foundation.org>2017-05-02 18:24:16 -0700
committerLinus Torvalds <torvalds@linux-foundation.org>2017-05-02 18:24:16 -0700
commit76f1948a79b26d5f57a5ee9941876b745c6baaea (patch)
treea2c42578e31acabc61db2115d91e467cea439cd7 /Documentation
parent7af4c727c7b6104f94f2ffc3d0899e75a9cc1e55 (diff)
parenta0841609f658c77f066af9c61a2e13143564fcb4 (diff)
Merge branch 'for-linus' of git://git.kernel.org/pub/scm/linux/kernel/git/jikos/livepatching
Pull livepatch updates from Jiri Kosina: - a per-task consistency model is being added for architectures that support reliable stack dumping (extending this, currently rather trivial set, is currently in the works). This extends the nature of the types of patches that can be applied by live patching infrastructure. The code stems from the design proposal made [1] back in November 2014. It's a hybrid of SUSE's kGraft and RH's kpatch, combining advantages of both: it uses kGraft's per-task consistency and syscall barrier switching combined with kpatch's stack trace switching. There are also a number of fallback options which make it quite flexible. Most of the heavy lifting done by Josh Poimboeuf with help from Miroslav Benes and Petr Mladek [1] https://lkml.kernel.org/r/20141107140458.GA21774@suse.cz - module load time patch optimization from Zhou Chengming - a few assorted small fixes * 'for-linus' of git://git.kernel.org/pub/scm/linux/kernel/git/jikos/livepatching: livepatch: add missing printk newlines livepatch: Cancel transition a safe way for immediate patches livepatch: Reduce the time of finding module symbols livepatch: make klp_mutex proper part of API livepatch: allow removal of a disabled patch livepatch: add /proc/<pid>/patch_state livepatch: change to a per-task consistency model livepatch: store function sizes livepatch: use kstrtobool() in enabled_store() livepatch: move patching functions into patch.c livepatch: remove unnecessary object loaded check livepatch: separate enabled and patched states livepatch/s390: add TIF_PATCH_PENDING thread flag livepatch/s390: reorganize TIF thread flag bits livepatch/powerpc: add TIF_PATCH_PENDING thread flag livepatch/x86: add TIF_PATCH_PENDING thread flag livepatch: create temporary klp_update_patch_state() stub x86/entry: define _TIF_ALLWORK_MASK flags explicitly stacktrace/x86: add function for detecting reliable stack traces
Diffstat (limited to 'Documentation')
-rw-r--r--Documentation/ABI/testing/sysfs-kernel-livepatch8
-rw-r--r--Documentation/filesystems/proc.txt18
-rw-r--r--Documentation/livepatch/livepatch.txt214
3 files changed, 198 insertions, 42 deletions
diff --git a/Documentation/ABI/testing/sysfs-kernel-livepatch b/Documentation/ABI/testing/sysfs-kernel-livepatch
index da87f43aec58..d5d39748382f 100644
--- a/Documentation/ABI/testing/sysfs-kernel-livepatch
+++ b/Documentation/ABI/testing/sysfs-kernel-livepatch
@@ -25,6 +25,14 @@ Description:
code is currently applied. Writing 0 will disable the patch
while writing 1 will re-enable the patch.
+What: /sys/kernel/livepatch/<patch>/transition
+Date: Feb 2017
+KernelVersion: 4.12.0
+Contact: live-patching@vger.kernel.org
+Description:
+ An attribute which indicates whether the patch is currently in
+ transition.
+
What: /sys/kernel/livepatch/<patch>/<object>
Date: Nov 2014
KernelVersion: 3.19.0
diff --git a/Documentation/filesystems/proc.txt b/Documentation/filesystems/proc.txt
index c94b4675d021..9036dbf16156 100644
--- a/Documentation/filesystems/proc.txt
+++ b/Documentation/filesystems/proc.txt
@@ -44,6 +44,7 @@ Table of Contents
3.8 /proc/<pid>/fdinfo/<fd> - Information about opened file
3.9 /proc/<pid>/map_files - Information about memory mapped files
3.10 /proc/<pid>/timerslack_ns - Task timerslack value
+ 3.11 /proc/<pid>/patch_state - Livepatch patch operation state
4 Configuring procfs
4.1 Mount options
@@ -1887,6 +1888,23 @@ Valid values are from 0 - ULLONG_MAX
An application setting the value must have PTRACE_MODE_ATTACH_FSCREDS level
permissions on the task specified to change its timerslack_ns value.
+3.11 /proc/<pid>/patch_state - Livepatch patch operation state
+-----------------------------------------------------------------
+When CONFIG_LIVEPATCH is enabled, this file displays the value of the
+patch state for the task.
+
+A value of '-1' indicates that no patch is in transition.
+
+A value of '0' indicates that a patch is in transition and the task is
+unpatched. If the patch is being enabled, then the task hasn't been
+patched yet. If the patch is being disabled, then the task has already
+been unpatched.
+
+A value of '1' indicates that a patch is in transition and the task is
+patched. If the patch is being enabled, then the task has already been
+patched. If the patch is being disabled, then the task hasn't been
+unpatched yet.
+
------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Configuring procfs
diff --git a/Documentation/livepatch/livepatch.txt b/Documentation/livepatch/livepatch.txt
index 9d2096c7160d..ecdb18104ab0 100644
--- a/Documentation/livepatch/livepatch.txt
+++ b/Documentation/livepatch/livepatch.txt
@@ -72,7 +72,8 @@ example, they add a NULL pointer or a boundary check, fix a race by adding
a missing memory barrier, or add some locking around a critical section.
Most of these changes are self contained and the function presents itself
the same way to the rest of the system. In this case, the functions might
-be updated independently one by one.
+be updated independently one by one. (This can be done by setting the
+'immediate' flag in the klp_patch struct.)
But there are more complex fixes. For example, a patch might change
ordering of locking in multiple functions at the same time. Or a patch
@@ -86,20 +87,141 @@ or no data are stored in the modified structures at the moment.
The theory about how to apply functions a safe way is rather complex.
The aim is to define a so-called consistency model. It attempts to define
conditions when the new implementation could be used so that the system
-stays consistent. The theory is not yet finished. See the discussion at
-https://lkml.kernel.org/r/20141107140458.GA21774@suse.cz
-
-The current consistency model is very simple. It guarantees that either
-the old or the new function is called. But various functions get redirected
-one by one without any synchronization.
-
-In other words, the current implementation _never_ modifies the behavior
-in the middle of the call. It is because it does _not_ rewrite the entire
-function in the memory. Instead, the function gets redirected at the
-very beginning. But this redirection is used immediately even when
-some other functions from the same patch have not been redirected yet.
-
-See also the section "Limitations" below.
+stays consistent.
+
+Livepatch has a consistency model which is a hybrid of kGraft and
+kpatch: it uses kGraft's per-task consistency and syscall barrier
+switching combined with kpatch's stack trace switching. There are also
+a number of fallback options which make it quite flexible.
+
+Patches are applied on a per-task basis, when the task is deemed safe to
+switch over. When a patch is enabled, livepatch enters into a
+transition state where tasks are converging to the patched state.
+Usually this transition state can complete in a few seconds. The same
+sequence occurs when a patch is disabled, except the tasks converge from
+the patched state to the unpatched state.
+
+An interrupt handler inherits the patched state of the task it
+interrupts. The same is true for forked tasks: the child inherits the
+patched state of the parent.
+
+Livepatch uses several complementary approaches to determine when it's
+safe to patch tasks:
+
+1. The first and most effective approach is stack checking of sleeping
+ tasks. If no affected functions are on the stack of a given task,
+ the task is patched. In most cases this will patch most or all of
+ the tasks on the first try. Otherwise it'll keep trying
+ periodically. This option is only available if the architecture has
+ reliable stacks (HAVE_RELIABLE_STACKTRACE).
+
+2. The second approach, if needed, is kernel exit switching. A
+ task is switched when it returns to user space from a system call, a
+ user space IRQ, or a signal. It's useful in the following cases:
+
+ a) Patching I/O-bound user tasks which are sleeping on an affected
+ function. In this case you have to send SIGSTOP and SIGCONT to
+ force it to exit the kernel and be patched.
+ b) Patching CPU-bound user tasks. If the task is highly CPU-bound
+ then it will get patched the next time it gets interrupted by an
+ IRQ.
+ c) In the future it could be useful for applying patches for
+ architectures which don't yet have HAVE_RELIABLE_STACKTRACE. In
+ this case you would have to signal most of the tasks on the
+ system. However this isn't supported yet because there's
+ currently no way to patch kthreads without
+ HAVE_RELIABLE_STACKTRACE.
+
+3. For idle "swapper" tasks, since they don't ever exit the kernel, they
+ instead have a klp_update_patch_state() call in the idle loop which
+ allows them to be patched before the CPU enters the idle state.
+
+ (Note there's not yet such an approach for kthreads.)
+
+All the above approaches may be skipped by setting the 'immediate' flag
+in the 'klp_patch' struct, which will disable per-task consistency and
+patch all tasks immediately. This can be useful if the patch doesn't
+change any function or data semantics. Note that, even with this flag
+set, it's possible that some tasks may still be running with an old
+version of the function, until that function returns.
+
+There's also an 'immediate' flag in the 'klp_func' struct which allows
+you to specify that certain functions in the patch can be applied
+without per-task consistency. This might be useful if you want to patch
+a common function like schedule(), and the function change doesn't need
+consistency but the rest of the patch does.
+
+For architectures which don't have HAVE_RELIABLE_STACKTRACE, the user
+must set patch->immediate which causes all tasks to be patched
+immediately. This option should be used with care, only when the patch
+doesn't change any function or data semantics.
+
+In the future, architectures which don't have HAVE_RELIABLE_STACKTRACE
+may be allowed to use per-task consistency if we can come up with
+another way to patch kthreads.
+
+The /sys/kernel/livepatch/<patch>/transition file shows whether a patch
+is in transition. Only a single patch (the topmost patch on the stack)
+can be in transition at a given time. A patch can remain in transition
+indefinitely, if any of the tasks are stuck in the initial patch state.
+
+A transition can be reversed and effectively canceled by writing the
+opposite value to the /sys/kernel/livepatch/<patch>/enabled file while
+the transition is in progress. Then all the tasks will attempt to
+converge back to the original patch state.
+
+There's also a /proc/<pid>/patch_state file which can be used to
+determine which tasks are blocking completion of a patching operation.
+If a patch is in transition, this file shows 0 to indicate the task is
+unpatched and 1 to indicate it's patched. Otherwise, if no patch is in
+transition, it shows -1. Any tasks which are blocking the transition
+can be signaled with SIGSTOP and SIGCONT to force them to change their
+patched state.
+
+
+3.1 Adding consistency model support to new architectures
+---------------------------------------------------------
+
+For adding consistency model support to new architectures, there are a
+few options:
+
+1) Add CONFIG_HAVE_RELIABLE_STACKTRACE. This means porting objtool, and
+ for non-DWARF unwinders, also making sure there's a way for the stack
+ tracing code to detect interrupts on the stack.
+
+2) Alternatively, ensure that every kthread has a call to
+ klp_update_patch_state() in a safe location. Kthreads are typically
+ in an infinite loop which does some action repeatedly. The safe
+ location to switch the kthread's patch state would be at a designated
+ point in the loop where there are no locks taken and all data
+ structures are in a well-defined state.
+
+ The location is clear when using workqueues or the kthread worker
+ API. These kthreads process independent actions in a generic loop.
+
+ It's much more complicated with kthreads which have a custom loop.
+ There the safe location must be carefully selected on a case-by-case
+ basis.
+
+ In that case, arches without HAVE_RELIABLE_STACKTRACE would still be
+ able to use the non-stack-checking parts of the consistency model:
+
+ a) patching user tasks when they cross the kernel/user space
+ boundary; and
+
+ b) patching kthreads and idle tasks at their designated patch points.
+
+ This option isn't as good as option 1 because it requires signaling
+ user tasks and waking kthreads to patch them. But it could still be
+ a good backup option for those architectures which don't have
+ reliable stack traces yet.
+
+In the meantime, patches for such architectures can bypass the
+consistency model by setting klp_patch.immediate to true. This option
+is perfectly fine for patches which don't change the semantics of the
+patched functions. In practice, this is usable for ~90% of security
+fixes. Use of this option also means the patch can't be unloaded after
+it has been disabled.
4. Livepatch module
@@ -134,7 +256,7 @@ Documentation/livepatch/module-elf-format.txt for more details.
4.2. Metadata
-------------
+-------------
The patch is described by several structures that split the information
into three levels:
@@ -156,6 +278,9 @@ into three levels:
only for a particular object ( vmlinux or a kernel module ). Note that
kallsyms allows for searching symbols according to the object name.
+ There's also an 'immediate' flag which, when set, patches the
+ function immediately, bypassing the consistency model safety checks.
+
+ struct klp_object defines an array of patched functions (struct
klp_func) in the same object. Where the object is either vmlinux
(NULL) or a module name.
@@ -172,10 +297,13 @@ into three levels:
This structure handles all patched functions consistently and eventually,
synchronously. The whole patch is applied only when all patched
symbols are found. The only exception are symbols from objects
- (kernel modules) that have not been loaded yet. Also if a more complex
- consistency model is supported then a selected unit (thread,
- kernel as a whole) will see the new code from the entire patch
- only when it is in a safe state.
+ (kernel modules) that have not been loaded yet.
+
+ Setting the 'immediate' flag applies the patch to all tasks
+ immediately, bypassing the consistency model safety checks.
+
+ For more details on how the patch is applied on a per-task basis,
+ see the "Consistency model" section.
4.3. Livepatch module handling
@@ -188,8 +316,15 @@ section "Livepatch life-cycle" below for more details about these
two operations.
Module removal is only safe when there are no users of the underlying
-functions. The immediate consistency model is not able to detect this;
-therefore livepatch modules cannot be removed. See "Limitations" below.
+functions. The immediate consistency model is not able to detect this. The
+code just redirects the functions at the very beginning and it does not
+check if the functions are in use. In other words, it knows when the
+functions get called but it does not know when the functions return.
+Therefore it cannot be decided when the livepatch module can be safely
+removed. This is solved by a hybrid consistency model. When the system is
+transitioned to a new patch state (patched/unpatched) it is guaranteed that
+no task sleeps or runs in the old code.
+
5. Livepatch life-cycle
=======================
@@ -239,9 +374,15 @@ Registered patches might be enabled either by calling klp_enable_patch() or
by writing '1' to /sys/kernel/livepatch/<name>/enabled. The system will
start using the new implementation of the patched functions at this stage.
-In particular, if an original function is patched for the first time, a
-function specific struct klp_ops is created and an universal ftrace handler
-is registered.
+When a patch is enabled, livepatch enters into a transition state where
+tasks are converging to the patched state. This is indicated by a value
+of '1' in /sys/kernel/livepatch/<name>/transition. Once all tasks have
+been patched, the 'transition' value changes to '0'. For more
+information about this process, see the "Consistency model" section.
+
+If an original function is patched for the first time, a function
+specific struct klp_ops is created and an universal ftrace handler is
+registered.
Functions might be patched multiple times. The ftrace handler is registered
only once for the given function. Further patches just add an entry to the
@@ -261,6 +402,12 @@ by writing '0' to /sys/kernel/livepatch/<name>/enabled. At this stage
either the code from the previously enabled patch or even the original
code gets used.
+When a patch is disabled, livepatch enters into a transition state where
+tasks are converging to the unpatched state. This is indicated by a
+value of '1' in /sys/kernel/livepatch/<name>/transition. Once all tasks
+have been unpatched, the 'transition' value changes to '0'. For more
+information about this process, see the "Consistency model" section.
+
Here all the functions (struct klp_func) associated with the to-be-disabled
patch are removed from the corresponding struct klp_ops. The ftrace handler
is unregistered and the struct klp_ops is freed when the func_stack list
@@ -329,23 +476,6 @@ The current Livepatch implementation has several limitations:
by "notrace".
- + Livepatch modules can not be removed.
-
- The current implementation just redirects the functions at the very
- beginning. It does not check if the functions are in use. In other
- words, it knows when the functions get called but it does not
- know when the functions return. Therefore it can not decide when
- the livepatch module can be safely removed.
-
- This will get most likely solved once a more complex consistency model
- is supported. The idea is that a safe state for patching should also
- mean a safe state for removing the patch.
-
- Note that the patch itself might get disabled by writing zero
- to /sys/kernel/livepatch/<patch>/enabled. It causes that the new
- code will not longer get called. But it does not guarantee
- that anyone is not sleeping anywhere in the new code.
-
+ Livepatch works reliably only when the dynamic ftrace is located at
the very beginning of the function.