Re: [PATCH 2/4] workqueue: don't check wq->rescuer in rescuer

[Tejun Heo <tj@kernel.org>]

On Fri, May 29, 2020 at 06:59:00AM +0000, Lai Jiangshan wrote:
> Now rescuer checks pwq->nr_active before requeues the pwq,
> it is a more robust check and the rescuer must be still valid.
> 
> Signed-off-by: Lai Jiangshan <laijs@linux.alibaba.com>
> ---
>  kernel/workqueue.c | 23 +++++++++--------------
>  1 file changed, 9 insertions(+), 14 deletions(-)
> 
> diff --git a/kernel/workqueue.c b/kernel/workqueue.c
> index b2b15f1f0c8d..8d017727bfbc 100644
> --- a/kernel/workqueue.c
> +++ b/kernel/workqueue.c
> @@ -248,7 +248,7 @@ struct workqueue_struct {
>  	struct list_head	flusher_overflow; /* WQ: flush overflow list */
>  
>  	struct list_head	maydays;	/* MD: pwqs requesting rescue */
> -	struct worker		*rescuer;	/* MD: rescue worker */
> +	struct worker		*rescuer;	/* I: rescue worker */
>  
>  	int			nr_drainers;	/* WQ: drain in progress */
>  	int			saved_max_active; /* WQ: saved pwq max_active */
> @@ -2532,12 +2532,13 @@ static int rescuer_thread(void *__rescuer)
>  			if (pwq->nr_active && need_to_create_worker(pool)) {
>  				spin_lock(&wq_mayday_lock);
>  				/*
> -				 * Queue iff we aren't racing destruction
> -				 * and somebody else hasn't queued it already.
> +				 * Queue iff somebody else hasn't queued it
> +				 * already.
>  				 */
> -				if (wq->rescuer && list_empty(&pwq->mayday_node)) {
> +				if (list_empty(&pwq->mayday_node)) {
>  					get_pwq(pwq);
> -					list_add_tail(&pwq->mayday_node, &wq->maydays);
> +					list_add_tail(&pwq->mayday_node,
> +						      &wq->maydays);

send_mayday() also checks for wq->rescuer, so when sanity check fails,
scenarios which would have leaked a workqueue after destroying its rescuer
can lead to use-after-free after the patch. I'm not quite sure why the patch
is an improvement.

Thanks.

-- 
tejun