When CONFIG_ZERO_CALL_USED_REGS is enabled, build the kernel with
"-fzero-call-used-regs=used-gpr" (in GCC 11). This option will zero any
caller-used register contents just before returning from a function,
ensuring that temporary values are not leaked beyond the function
boundary. This means that register contents are less likely to be
available for side channel attacks and information exposures.
Additionally this helps reduce the number of useful ROP gadgets in the
kernel image by about 20%:
$ ROPgadget.py --nosys --nojop --binary vmlinux.stock | tail -n1
Unique gadgets found: 337245
$ ROPgadget.py --nosys --nojop --binary vmlinux.zero-call-regs | tail -n1
Unique gadgets found: 267175
and more notably removes simple "write-what-where" gadgets:
$ ROPgadget.py --ropchain --binary vmlinux.stock | sed -n '/Step 1/,/Step 2/p'
- Step 1 -- Write-what-where gadgets
[+] Gadget found: 0xffffffff8102d76c mov qword ptr [rsi], rdx ; ret
[+] Gadget found: 0xffffffff81000cf5 pop rsi ; ret
[+] Gadget found: 0xffffffff8104d7c8 pop rdx ; ret
[-] Can't find the 'xor rdx, rdx' gadget. Try with another 'mov [reg], reg'
[+] Gadget found: 0xffffffff814c2b4c mov qword ptr [rsi], rdi ; ret
[+] Gadget found: 0xffffffff81000cf5 pop rsi ; ret
[+] Gadget found: 0xffffffff81001e51 pop rdi ; ret
[-] Can't find the 'xor rdi, rdi' gadget. Try with another 'mov [reg], reg'
[+] Gadget found: 0xffffffff81540d61 mov qword ptr [rsi], rdi ; pop rbx ; pop rbp ; ret
[+] Gadget found: 0xffffffff81000cf5 pop rsi ; ret
[+] Gadget found: 0xffffffff81001e51 pop rdi ; ret
[-] Can't find the 'xor rdi, rdi' gadget. Try with another 'mov [reg], reg'
[+] Gadget found: 0xffffffff8105341e mov qword ptr [rsi], rax ; ret
[+] Gadget found: 0xffffffff81000cf5 pop rsi ; ret
[+] Gadget found: 0xffffffff81029a11 pop rax ; ret
[+] Gadget found: 0xffffffff811f1c3b xor rax, rax ; ret
- Step 2 -- Init syscall number gadgets
$ ROPgadget.py --ropchain --binary vmlinux.zero* | sed -n '/Step 1/,/Step 2/p'
- Step 1 -- Write-what-where gadgets
[-] Can't find the 'mov qword ptr [r64], r64' gadget
In parallel build tests, this has a less than 1% performance impact,
and grows the image size less than 1%:
$ size vmlinux.stock vmlinux.zero-call-regs
text data bss dec hex filename
22437676 8559152 14127340 45124168 2b08a48 vmlinux.stock
22453184 8563248 14110956 45127388 2b096dc vmlinux.zero-call-regs
Signed-off-by: Kees Cook <keescook@xxxxxxxxxxxx>
---
Makefile | 5 +++++
security/Kconfig.hardening | 17 +++++++++++++++++
2 files changed, 22 insertions(+)
diff --git a/Makefile b/Makefile
index 31dcdb3d61fa..810600618490 100644
--- a/Makefile
+++ b/Makefile
@@ -811,6 +811,11 @@ KBUILD_CFLAGS += -ftrivial-auto-var-init=zero
KBUILD_CFLAGS += -enable-trivial-auto-var-init-zero-knowing-it-will-be-removed-from-clang
endif
+# Clear used registers at func exit (to reduce data lifetime and ROP gadgets).
+ifdef CONFIG_ZERO_CALL_USED_REGS
+KBUILD_CFLAGS += -fzero-call-used-regs=used-gpr
+endif
+
DEBUG_CFLAGS :=
# Workaround for GCC versions < 5.0
diff --git a/security/Kconfig.hardening b/security/Kconfig.hardening
index 269967c4fc1b..85f7f2036725 100644
--- a/security/Kconfig.hardening
+++ b/security/Kconfig.hardening
@@ -217,6 +217,23 @@ config INIT_ON_FREE_DEFAULT_ON
touching "cold" memory areas. Most cases see 3-5% impact. Some
synthetic workloads have measured as high as 8%.
+config CC_HAS_ZERO_CALL_USED_REGS
+ def_bool $(cc-option,-fzero-call-used-regs=used-gpr)
+
+config ZERO_CALL_USED_REGS
+ bool "Enable register zeroing on function exit"
+ depends on CC_HAS_ZERO_CALL_USED_REGS
+ help
+ At the end of functions, always zero any caller-used register
+ contents. This helps ensure that temporary values are not
+ leaked beyond the function boundary. This means that register
+ contents are less likely to be available for side channels
+ and information exposures. Additionally, this helps reduce the
+ number of useful ROP gadgets by about 20% (and removes compiler
+ generated "write-what-where" gadgets) in the resulting kernel
+ image. This has a less than 1% performance impact on most
+ workloads, and grows the image size less than 1%.
+
endmenu
endmenu
--
2.25.1
