Re: kernel NULL pointer deref in pipe() - hotplug in initramfs

[Andrew Morton <akpm@osdl.org>]

On Sun, 03 Dec 2006 02:55:04 +0300
Michael Tokarev <mjt@tls.msk.ru> wrote:

> When /sbin/hotplug is present in initramfs, and it's a shell
> script, kernel OOPSes on every hotplug invocation.  Here's an
> example:
> 
> <4> <1>BUG: unable to handle kernel NULL pointer dereference at virtual address 00000014
> <1> printing eip:
> <4>c015c80a
> <1>*pde = 00000000
> <0>Oops: 0000 [#2]
> <4>Modules linked in:
> <0>CPU:    0
> <0>EIP:    0060:[<c015c80a>]    Not tainted VLI
> <0>EFLAGS: 00010282   (2.6.19-c3 #2.6.19.0)
> <0>EIP is at create_write_pipe+0x1a/0x1c0
> <0>eax: 00000000   ebx: bfb07cfc   ecx: 00000000   edx: c13915a0
> <0>esi: cf739820   edi: ffffffff   ebp: c13a2fa8   esp: c13a2f40
> <0>ds: 007b   es: 007b   ss: 0068
> <0>Process hotplug (pid: 34, ti=c13a2000 task=c13915a0 task.ti=c13a2000)
> <0>Stack: 00001fff c1382da0 c137fba0 c1387b7c 00000000 c12b2ce0 080dfd04 080dfd04
> <0>       00000003 c015a27f 00000000 c1382da0 b7f64d30 00000004 c011412a 00000000
> <0>       bfb07cfc 00000004 ffffffff c015cfde c137fba0 bfb07cfc 00000004 ffffffff
> <0>Call Trace:
> <0> [<c015cfde>] do_pipe+0xe/0xa0
> <0> [<c0107cac>] sys_pipe+0xc/0x40
> <0> [<c0102eb7>] syscall_call+0x7/0xb
> <0> [<b7f6607d>] 0xb7f6607d
> <0> =======================
> <0>Code: 00 00 00 89 b3 74 01 00 00 89 d8 5b 5e c3 8d 76 00 57 56 53 83 ec 40 e8 35 bb ff ff 89 c6 85 c0 0f 84 7b 01 00 00 a1 c0 85 2d c0 <8b> 40 14 e8 de d0 00 00 89 c3 85 c0 0f 84 44 01 00 00 e8 8f ff
> <0>EIP: [<c015c80a>] create_write_pipe+0x1a/0x1c0 SS:ESP 0068:c13a2f40
> <4> <1>BUG: unable to handle kernel NULL pointer dereference at virtual address 00000014
> <1> printing eip:
> ...[more entries like this follows]...
> 
> (note also the formatting is a bit wrong here -- that <4> prefix in front of <1>BUG..)
> 
> The only pipe() call in my hotplug script is this:
> 
> case "$ACTION:$SUBSYSTEM" in
> add:block)
>   ...
>   usage="$(/bin/blkid $dev 2>/dev/null | cut -d\  -f2-)"
> ...
> 
> 
> This is 2.6.19 running on an x86 machine (VIA C3 "Ezra" CPU if that matters).
> The same thing happens on 2.6.18, but the error was slightly different (due
> to introduction of create_write_pipe() routine in 2.6.19).
> 
> Are pipes disallowed in hotplug fired off initramfs?
> (Even if they are, kernel probably still should not OOPS like that ;)
> 
> The error seems to be harmful however.  That is, hotplug script does not
> run, but the kernel continues running.
> 

blah.  pipefs isn't mounted yet.  I assume that swapping the order of the
calls to populate_rootfs() and do_basic_setup() in init/main.c:init() will
help.

I wonder what to do about this.  Perhaps create a new post-initramfs
initcall level.  Or mount pipefs before running populate_rootfs().  Or
require that the "drivers which want to access firmware files" be modular.


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