On Tue, Sep 19, 2017 at 05:09:02PM +0100, David Howells wrote: > Eric Biggers <ebiggers3@xxxxxxxxx> wrote: > > > + if (test_bit(KEY_FLAG_NEGATIVE, &key->flags)) { > > + ret = -ENOKEY; > > + goto error2; > > + } > > It might be better to do this check in key_validate(). Also, it should > perhaps take the error from key->reject_error. > > David Putting the check in key_validate() would make lookups with KEY_LOOKUP_PARTIAL stop returning negative keys, which would break keyctl_describe(), keyctl_chown(), keyctl_setperm(), keyctl_set_timeout(), keyctl_get_security() on negative keys. I presume those are supposed to work? Another solution would be to remove the special case from lookup_user_key() where it can return a negative/revoked/invalidated/expired key if KEY_LOOKUP_PARTIAL is not specified and the 'perm' mask is 0. The only callers it would affect are the case in question here which is clearly a bug, and the root-only exceptions for keyctl_invalidate() and keyctl_clear(). And I suspect the latter two are unintentional as well. (Is root *supposed* to be able to invalidate a negative/revoked/invalidated/expired key, or clear a revoked/invalidated/expired keyring?) Eric