Files
linux/include
Jamal Hadi Salim 5057e1aca0 net/sched: act_api: use RCU with deferred freeing for action lifecycle
When NEWTFILTER and DELFILTER are run concurrently it is possible to create a
race with an associated action.

Let's illustrate with CPU0 running NEWTFILTER and CPU1 running DELFILTER:

 0: mutex_lock() <-- holds the idr lock
 0: rcu_read_lock()
 0: p = idr_find(idr, index) <-- action p is valid (RCU protects IDR)
 0: mutex_unlock() <-- releases the idr lock
 1: refcount_dec_and_mutex_lock() <-- refcnt 1->0, mutex held
 1: idr_remove(idr, index) <-- Action removed from IDR
 1: mutex_unlock() <-- mutex released allowing us to delete the action
 1: tcf_action_cleanup(p); kfree(p) <-- Kfrees p immediately, no deferral
 0: refcount_inc_not_zero(&p->tcfa_refcnt) <-- ouch, UAF p points to freed memory

This patch fixes the race condition between NEWTFILTER and DELFILTER by
adding struct rcu_head to tc_action used in the deferral and introducing a
call_rcu() in the delete path to defer the final kfree().

Note: this is a revert of commit d7fb60b9ca ("net_sched: get rid of tcfa_rcu")
but also modernization/simplification to directly use kfree_rcu().

Let's illustrate the new restored code path:

 0: rcu_read_lock()
 1: refcount_dec_and_mutex_lock() <-- refcnt 1->0, mutex held
 1: idr_remove(idr, index)
 1: mutex_unlock()
 1: call_rcu(&p->tcfa_rcu, tcf_action_rcu_free) <-- defer kfree after grace period
 0: p = idr_find(idr, index)
 0: refcount_inc_not_zero(&p->tcfa_refcnt) <-- fails, refcnt already 0
 1: rcu_read_unlock() <-- release so freeing can run after grace period

After CPU1 calls idr_remove(), the object is no longer reachable through the IDR.
CPU0's subsequent idr_find() will return NULL, and even if it still held a
stale pointer, the immediate kfree() is now deferred until after the RCU grace
period, so no UAF can occur.

Fixes: d7fb60b9ca ("net_sched: get rid of tcfa_rcu")
Suggested-by: Jakub Kicinski <kuba@kernel.org>
Reported-by: Kyle Zeng <kylebot@openai.com>
Tested-by: Victor Nogueira <victor@mojatatu.com>
Tested-by: syzbot@syzkaller.appspotmail.com
Signed-off-by: Jamal Hadi Salim <jhs@mojatatu.com>
Tested-by: Kyle Zeng <kylebot@openai.com>
Reviewed-by: Pedro Tammela <pctammela@mojatatu.com>
Reviewed-by: Eric Dumazet <edumazet@google.com>
Reviewed-by: Victor Nogueira <victor@mojatatu.com>
Link: https://patch.msgid.link/20260531160812.68020-1-jhs@mojatatu.com
Signed-off-by: Jakub Kicinski <kuba@kernel.org>
2026-06-01 16:52:08 -07:00
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