Subject: Re: [PATCH v2 2/2] powerpc/vmx: avoid KASAN instrumentation in enter_vmx_ops() for kexec

From: Aboorva Devarajan <[email-masked]>
Date: Tue, 07 Apr 2026 01:23:31 +0530

On Sat, 2026-04-04 at 00:31 +0530, Sourabh Jain wrote:
> The kexec sequence invokes enter_vmx_ops() via copy_page() with the MMU
> disabled. In this context, code must not rely on normal virtual address
> translations or trigger page faults.
> 
> With KASAN enabled, functions get instrumented and may access shadow
> memory using regular address translation. When executed with the MMU
> off, this can lead to page faults (bad_page_fault) from which the
> kernel cannot recover in the kexec path, resulting in a hang.
> 
> The kexec path sets preempt_count to HARDIRQ_OFFSET before entering
> the MMU-off copy sequence.
> 
> current_thread_info()->preempt_count = HARDIRQ_OFFSET
>   kexec_sequence(..., copy_with_mmu_off = 1)
>     -> kexec_copy_flush(image)
>          copy_segments()
>            -> copy_page(dest, addr)
> 	         bl enter_vmx_ops()
>                    if (in_interrupt())
>                      return 0
> 	         beq .Lnonvmx_copy
> 
> Since kexec sets preempt_count to HARDIRQ_OFFSET, in_interrupt()
> evaluates to true and enter_vmx_ops() returns early.
> 
> As in_interrupt() (and preempt_count()) are always inlined, mark
> enter_vmx_ops() with __no_sanitize_address to avoid KASAN
> instrumentation and shadow memory access with MMU disabled, helping
> kexec boot fine with KASAN enabled.
> 
> Cc: Aditya Gupta <[email-masked]>
> Cc: Daniel Axtens <[email-masked]>
> Cc: Hari Bathini <[email-masked]>
> Cc: Madhavan Srinivasan <[email-masked]>
> Cc: Mahesh Salgaonkar <[email-masked]>
> Cc: Michael Ellerman <[email-masked]>
> Cc: Ritesh Harjani (IBM) <[email-masked]>
> Cc: Shivang Upadhyay <[email-masked]>
> Cc: Venkat Rao Bagalkote <[email-masked]>
> Reported-by: Aboorva Devarajan <[email-masked]>
> Signed-off-by: Sourabh Jain <[email-masked]>
> ---
> Changelog:
> 
> v2:
> - Remove __no_sanitize_address from exit_vmx_ops
> - Add a comment explaining that marking only enter_vmx_ops
>   with __no_sanitize_address is sufficient for kexec to
>   function properly with KASAN enabled
> 
> v1:
> https://lore.kernel.org/all/[email-masked]/
> ---
>  arch/powerpc/lib/vmx-helper.c | 9 ++++++++-
>  1 file changed, 8 insertions(+), 1 deletion(-)
> 
> diff --git a/arch/powerpc/lib/vmx-helper.c b/arch/powerpc/lib/vmx-helper.c
> index 554b248002b4..57e897b60db8 100644
> --- a/arch/powerpc/lib/vmx-helper.c
> +++ b/arch/powerpc/lib/vmx-helper.c
> @@ -52,7 +52,14 @@ int exit_vmx_usercopy(void)
>  }
>  EXPORT_SYMBOL(exit_vmx_usercopy);
>  
> -int enter_vmx_ops(void)
> +/*
> + * Can be called from kexec copy_page() path with MMU off. The kexec
> + * code sets preempt_count to HARDIRQ_OFFSET so we return early here.
> + * Since in_interrupt() is always inline, __no_sanitize_address on this
> + * function is sufficient to avoid KASAN shadow memory accesses in real
> + * mode.
> + */
> +int __no_sanitize_address enter_vmx_ops(void)
>  {
>  	if (in_interrupt())
>  		return 0;

Without these patches, when KASAN is enabled, I observe a hang during kexec boot on
pseries (PowerVM):

[ 3459.012617][ T4209] kexec_core: Starting new kernel
[ 3459.012814][ T4209] kexec: waiting for cpu 1 (physical 1) to enter 2 state
[ 3459.016236][ T4209] kexec: waiting for cpu 11 (physical 11) to enter 2 state
[ 3459.016287][ T4209] kexec: waiting for cpu 12 (physical 12) to enter 2 state
[ 3459.016380][ T4209] kexec: waiting for cpu 13 (physical 13) to enter 2 state
[ 3459.016418][ T4209] kexec: waiting for cpu 14 (physical 14) to enter 2 state
[ 3459.016444][ T4209] kexec: waiting for cpu 15 (physical 15) to enter 2 state
[ 3459.016462][ T4209] kexec: waiting for cpu 18 (physical 18) to enter 2 state
[ 3459.271929][ T4209] kexec: Starting switchover sequence.
[system hangs here and no further progress]

==============

With both the patches applied, kexec completes successfully with KASAN enabled.

Reviewed-by: Aboorva Devarajan <[email-masked]>
Tested-by: Aboorva Devarajan <[email-masked]>

Thanks,
Aboorva