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Kumar Kartikeya Dwivedi bfc888f045
bpf: Bound ownership depth through local kptrs and graph roots
Program-allocated objects can own other local objects through referenced
kptrs. bpf_obj_free_fields() follows those pointers through
__bpf_obj_drop_impl() synchronously, before the object storage is freed
through RCU. A self-referential local kptr type therefore permits arbitrarily
deep object chains, and dropping the head can exhaust the kernel stack.
Long acyclic type chains have the same problem.

btf_check_and_fixup_fields() still assumes referenced kptrs only point to
kernel types and checks ownership through list and rbtree roots only. Its
existing rule is sufficient for graph-only cycles: the target of each graph
edge must contain a node, so every type in a cycle has both a root and a
node. The rule rejects such a type owning another root, breaking every
cycle. It also limits graph-only chains to three types, or two if the first
type contains a node, and conservatively rejects longer acyclic chains.
The missing local-kptr edges, rather than a missed graph-only cycle, are the
bug introduced by support for bpf_kptr_xchg() into local kptrs.

Replace that restriction with one bounded ownership walk covering graph
roots and local referenced kptrs. Run it after all BTF records have been
fixed up, reject cycles and paths deeper than eight record-bearing types,
and cache each type's suffix depth while checking it against the remaining
budget. This also permits the longer acyclic graph-only layouts rejected
by the old rule; update their existing BTF tests accordingly.

Keep the bound independent of MAX_CALL_FRAMES because recursive destruction
can run below a BPF call chain. A plain local pointee without special-field
metadata adds only a final non-recursing drop. Non-owning kptrs and
kernel-BTF kptrs do not recurse through local records and remain outside the
walk. Include local percpu-kptr edges too, although allocation of percpu
objects with special fields is currently forbidden, so that relaxing that
restriction cannot bypass the ownership bound.

btf_check_and_fixup_fields() continues to initialize graph_root.value_rec,
including for separately allocated map records. The ownership relationships
belong to immutable program BTF and only need validation at BTF load time.

Fixes: b0966c7245 ("bpf: Support bpf_kptr_xchg into local kptr")
Reported-by: Nicholas Carlini <npc@anthropic.com>
Suggested-by: Nicholas Carlini <npc@anthropic.com>
Signed-off-by: Kumar Kartikeya Dwivedi <memxor@gmail.com>
Signed-off-by: Alexei Starovoitov <ast@kernel.org>
Link: https://patch.msgid.link/20260914132444.2564218-2-memxor@gmail.com
2026-09-19 05:26:43 +00:00
arch bpf, arm64: set up the frame pointer for the exception callback 2026-09-13 21:59:21 -07:00
block block: save page offset gaps in cloned bio 2026-09-01 08:42:34 -06:00
certs treewide: fix indentation and whitespace in Kconfig files 2026-05-28 21:24:42 -07:00
crypto This push fixes a memory allocation overrun in crypto acomp. 2026-08-28 09:28:40 -07:00
Documentation bpf: Add KF_PERFMON kfunc flag 2026-09-10 16:55:47 -07:00
drivers Miscellaneous IRQ subsystem fixes: 2026-09-06 10:35:24 -07:00
fs kmalloc_obj conversions for v7.3-rc2 2026-09-05 20:45:18 -07:00
include bpf: Compare stack frames in regs_exact() 2026-09-19 05:25:14 +00:00
init treewide: refresh kmalloc_obj() conversions 2026-09-04 21:37:00 -07:00
io_uring treewide: refresh kmalloc_obj() conversions 2026-09-04 21:37:00 -07:00
ipc mm.git review status for master..mm-nonmm-stable 2026-08-23 08:07:11 -07:00
kernel bpf: Bound ownership depth through local kptrs and graph roots 2026-09-19 05:26:43 +00:00
lib treewide: refresh kmalloc_obj() conversions 2026-09-04 21:37:00 -07:00
LICENSES LICENSES: Add modern form of the LGPL-2.1 tags to the usage guide section 2025-10-22 07:58:19 +02:00
mm treewide: refresh kmalloc_obj() conversions 2026-09-04 21:37:00 -07:00
net xsk: Use a 32-bit compare in xsk_map_gen_lookup 2026-09-17 10:56:16 -07:00
rust rust: pci: reject IRQ vector indices that do not fit in u32 2026-09-01 18:21:01 +02:00
samples tracing fixes for v7.3: 2026-08-30 09:22:00 -07:00
scripts Coccinelle patches for Linux v7.3 2026-08-30 10:42:40 -07:00
security kmalloc_obj conversions for v7.3-rc2 2026-09-05 20:45:18 -07:00
sound treewide: refresh kmalloc_obj() conversions 2026-09-04 21:37:00 -07:00
tools bpf: Bound ownership depth through local kptrs and graph roots 2026-09-19 05:26:43 +00:00
usr usr: Correct a spelling by changing a letter 2026-08-05 14:51:58 +02:00
virt Arm: 2026-08-25 11:48:04 -07:00
.clang-format drm/bridge: rename drm_for_each_bridge_in_chain_scoped() to drm_for_each_bridge_in_chain() 2026-07-14 17:55:51 +02:00
.clippy.toml rust: bump Clippy's MSRV and clean incompatible_msrv allows 2026-04-07 09:51:39 +02:00
.cocciconfig
.editorconfig editorconfig: add rst extension 2026-01-26 19:07:09 -08:00
.get_maintainer.ignore .get_maintainer.ignore: add Nathan Chancellor 2026-08-03 21:10:12 -07:00
.gitattributes .gitattributes: set diff driver for Rust source code files 2023-05-31 17:48:25 +02:00
.gitignore SPDX patches for 7.2-rc1 2026-06-22 12:06:22 -07:00
.mailmap drm fixes for 7.3-rc2 2026-09-04 13:42:16 -07:00
.pylintrc docs: Move the python libraries to tools/lib/python 2025-11-18 09:22:40 -07:00
.rustfmt.toml
COPYING
CREDITS Driver core fixes for 7.3-rc2 2026-09-05 11:59:05 -07:00
Kbuild checksyscalls: move instance functionality into generic code 2026-04-05 09:21:32 +02:00
Kconfig io_uring: Rename KConfig to Kconfig 2025-02-19 14:53:27 -07:00
MAINTAINERS Driver core fixes for 7.3-rc2 2026-09-05 11:59:05 -07:00
Makefile Linux 7.3-rc2 2026-09-06 15:07:20 -07:00
README README: remove out of place emdashes 2026-07-15 10:51:29 -06:00

Linux kernel
============

The Linux kernel is the core of any Linux operating system. It manages hardware,
system resources, and provides the fundamental services for all other software.

Quick Start
-----------

* Report a bug: See Documentation/admin-guide/reporting-issues.rst
* Get the latest kernel: https://kernel.org
* Build the kernel: See Documentation/admin-guide/quickly-build-trimmed-linux.rst
* Join the community: https://lore.kernel.org/

Essential Documentation
-----------------------

All users should be familiar with:

* Building requirements: Documentation/process/changes.rst
* Code of Conduct: Documentation/process/code-of-conduct.rst
* License: See COPYING

Documentation can be built with make htmldocs or viewed online at:
https://www.kernel.org/doc/html/latest/


Who Are You?
============

Find your role below:

* New Kernel Developer: Getting started with kernel development
* Academic Researcher: Studying kernel internals and architecture
* Security Expert: Hardening and vulnerability analysis
* Backport/Maintenance Engineer: Maintaining stable kernels
* System Administrator: Configuring and troubleshooting
* Maintainer: Leading subsystems and reviewing patches
* Hardware Vendor: Writing drivers for new hardware
* Distribution Maintainer: Packaging kernels for distros
* AI Coding Assistant: LLMs and AI-powered development tools


For Specific Users
==================

New Kernel Developer
--------------------

Welcome! Start your kernel development journey here:

* Getting Started: Documentation/process/development-process.rst
* Your First Patch: Documentation/process/submitting-patches.rst
* Coding Style: Documentation/process/coding-style.rst
* Build System: Documentation/kbuild/index.rst
* Development Tools: Documentation/dev-tools/index.rst
* Kernel Hacking Guide: Documentation/kernel-hacking/hacking.rst
* Core APIs: Documentation/core-api/index.rst

Academic Researcher
-------------------

Explore the kernel's architecture and internals:

* Researcher Guidelines: Documentation/process/researcher-guidelines.rst
* Memory Management: Documentation/mm/index.rst
* Scheduler: Documentation/scheduler/index.rst
* Networking Stack: Documentation/networking/index.rst
* Filesystems: Documentation/filesystems/index.rst
* RCU (Read-Copy Update): Documentation/RCU/index.rst
* Locking Primitives: Documentation/locking/index.rst
* Power Management: Documentation/power/index.rst

Security Expert
---------------

Security documentation and hardening guides:

* Security Documentation: Documentation/security/index.rst
* LSM Development: Documentation/security/lsm-development.rst
* Self Protection: Documentation/security/self-protection.rst
* Reporting Vulnerabilities: Documentation/process/security-bugs.rst
* CVE Procedures: Documentation/process/cve.rst
* Embargoed Hardware Issues: Documentation/process/embargoed-hardware-issues.rst
* Security Features: Documentation/userspace-api/seccomp_filter.rst

Backport/Maintenance Engineer
-----------------------------

Maintain and stabilize kernel versions:

* Stable Kernel Rules: Documentation/process/stable-kernel-rules.rst
* Backporting Guide: Documentation/process/backporting.rst
* Applying Patches: Documentation/process/applying-patches.rst
* Subsystem Profile: Documentation/maintainer/maintainer-entry-profile.rst
* Git for Maintainers: Documentation/maintainer/configure-git.rst

System Administrator
--------------------

Configure, tune, and troubleshoot Linux systems:

* Admin Guide: Documentation/admin-guide/index.rst
* Kernel Parameters: Documentation/admin-guide/kernel-parameters.rst
* Sysctl Tuning: Documentation/admin-guide/sysctl/index.rst
* Tracing/Debugging: Documentation/trace/index.rst
* Performance Security: Documentation/admin-guide/perf-security.rst
* Hardware Monitoring: Documentation/hwmon/index.rst

Maintainer
----------

Lead kernel subsystems and manage contributions:

* Maintainer Handbook: Documentation/maintainer/index.rst
* Pull Requests: Documentation/maintainer/pull-requests.rst
* Managing Patches: Documentation/maintainer/modifying-patches.rst
* Rebasing and Merging: Documentation/maintainer/rebasing-and-merging.rst
* Development Process: Documentation/process/maintainer-handbooks.rst
* Maintainer Entry Profile: Documentation/maintainer/maintainer-entry-profile.rst
* Git Configuration: Documentation/maintainer/configure-git.rst

Hardware Vendor
---------------

Write drivers and support new hardware:

* Driver API Guide: Documentation/driver-api/index.rst
* Driver Model: Documentation/driver-api/driver-model/driver.rst
* Device Drivers: Documentation/driver-api/infrastructure.rst
* Bus Types: Documentation/driver-api/driver-model/bus.rst
* Device Tree Bindings: Documentation/devicetree/bindings/
* Power Management: Documentation/driver-api/pm/index.rst
* DMA API: Documentation/core-api/dma-api.rst

Distribution Maintainer
-----------------------

Package and distribute the kernel:

* Stable Kernel Rules: Documentation/process/stable-kernel-rules.rst
* ABI Documentation: Documentation/ABI/README
* Kernel Configuration: Documentation/kbuild/kconfig.rst
* Module Signing: Documentation/admin-guide/module-signing.rst
* Kernel Parameters: Documentation/admin-guide/kernel-parameters.rst
* Tainted Kernels: Documentation/admin-guide/tainted-kernels.rst

AI Coding Assistant
-------------------

CRITICAL: If you are an LLM or AI-powered coding assistant, you MUST read and
follow the AI coding assistants documentation before contributing to the Linux
kernel:

* Documentation/process/coding-assistants.rst

This documentation contains essential requirements about licensing, attribution,
and the Developer Certificate of Origin that all AI tools must comply with.


Communication and Support
=========================

* Mailing Lists: https://lore.kernel.org/
* IRC: #kernelnewbies on irc.oftc.net
* Bugzilla: https://bugzilla.kernel.org/
* MAINTAINERS file: Lists subsystem maintainers and mailing lists
* Email Clients: Documentation/process/email-clients.rst