This is a note to let you know that I've just added the patch titled riscv: process: Fix kernel gp leakage to the 6.1-stable tree which can be found at: http://www.kernel.org/git/?p=linux/kernel/git/stable/stable-queue.git;a=summary The filename of the patch is: riscv-process-fix-kernel-gp-leakage.patch and it can be found in the queue-6.1 subdirectory. If you, or anyone else, feels it should not be added to the stable tree, please let <stable@xxxxxxxxxxxxxxx> know about it. >From d14fa1fcf69db9d070e75f1c4425211fa619dfc8 Mon Sep 17 00:00:00 2001 From: Stefan O'Rear <sorear@xxxxxxxxxxxx> Date: Wed, 27 Mar 2024 02:12:58 -0400 Subject: riscv: process: Fix kernel gp leakage From: Stefan O'Rear <sorear@xxxxxxxxxxxx> commit d14fa1fcf69db9d070e75f1c4425211fa619dfc8 upstream. childregs represents the registers which are active for the new thread in user context. For a kernel thread, childregs->gp is never used since the kernel gp is not touched by switch_to. For a user mode helper, the gp value can be observed in user space after execve or possibly by other means. [From the email thread] The /* Kernel thread */ comment is somewhat inaccurate in that it is also used for user_mode_helper threads, which exec a user process, e.g. /sbin/init or when /proc/sys/kernel/core_pattern is a pipe. Such threads do not have PF_KTHREAD set and are valid targets for ptrace etc. even before they exec. childregs is the *user* context during syscall execution and it is observable from userspace in at least five ways: 1. kernel_execve does not currently clear integer registers, so the starting register state for PID 1 and other user processes started by the kernel has sp = user stack, gp = kernel __global_pointer$, all other integer registers zeroed by the memset in the patch comment. This is a bug in its own right, but I'm unwilling to bet that it is the only way to exploit the issue addressed by this patch. 2. ptrace(PTRACE_GETREGSET): you can PTRACE_ATTACH to a user_mode_helper thread before it execs, but ptrace requires SIGSTOP to be delivered which can only happen at user/kernel boundaries. 3. /proc/*/task/*/syscall: this is perfectly happy to read pt_regs for user_mode_helpers before the exec completes, but gp is not one of the registers it returns. 4. PERF_SAMPLE_REGS_USER: LOCKDOWN_PERF normally prevents access to kernel addresses via PERF_SAMPLE_REGS_INTR, but due to this bug kernel addresses are also exposed via PERF_SAMPLE_REGS_USER which is permitted under LOCKDOWN_PERF. I have not attempted to write exploit code. 5. Much of the tracing infrastructure allows access to user registers. I have not attempted to determine which forms of tracing allow access to user registers without already allowing access to kernel registers. Fixes: 7db91e57a0ac ("RISC-V: Task implementation") Cc: stable@xxxxxxxxxxxxxxx Signed-off-by: Stefan O'Rear <sorear@xxxxxxxxxxxx> Reviewed-by: Alexandre Ghiti <alexghiti@xxxxxxxxxxxx> Link: https://lore.kernel.org/r/20240327061258.2370291-1-sorear@xxxxxxxxxxxx Signed-off-by: Palmer Dabbelt <palmer@xxxxxxxxxxxx> Signed-off-by: Greg Kroah-Hartman <gregkh@xxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxx> --- arch/riscv/kernel/process.c | 3 --- 1 file changed, 3 deletions(-) --- a/arch/riscv/kernel/process.c +++ b/arch/riscv/kernel/process.c @@ -25,8 +25,6 @@ #include <asm/thread_info.h> #include <asm/cpuidle.h> -register unsigned long gp_in_global __asm__("gp"); - #if defined(CONFIG_STACKPROTECTOR) && !defined(CONFIG_STACKPROTECTOR_PER_TASK) #include <linux/stackprotector.h> unsigned long __stack_chk_guard __read_mostly; @@ -170,7 +168,6 @@ int copy_thread(struct task_struct *p, c if (unlikely(args->fn)) { /* Kernel thread */ memset(childregs, 0, sizeof(struct pt_regs)); - childregs->gp = gp_in_global; /* Supervisor/Machine, irqs on: */ childregs->status = SR_PP | SR_PIE; Patches currently in stable-queue which might be from sorear@xxxxxxxxxxxx are queue-6.1/riscv-process-fix-kernel-gp-leakage.patch