KVM: guest_memfd: Remove RCU-protected attribute from slot->gmem.file

Remove the RCU-protected attribute from slot->gmem.file. No need to use RCU
primitives rcu_assign_pointer()/synchronize_rcu() to update this pointer.

- slot->gmem.file is updated in 3 places:
  kvm_gmem_bind(), kvm_gmem_unbind(), kvm_gmem_release().
  All of them are protected by kvm->slots_lock.

- slot->gmem.file is read in 2 paths:
  (1) kvm_gmem_populate
        kvm_gmem_get_file
        __kvm_gmem_get_pfn

  (2) kvm_gmem_get_pfn
         kvm_gmem_get_file
         __kvm_gmem_get_pfn

  Path (1) kvm_gmem_populate() requires holding kvm->slots_lock, so
  slot->gmem.file is protected by the kvm->slots_lock in this path.

  Path (2) kvm_gmem_get_pfn() does not require holding kvm->slots_lock.
  However, it's also not guarded by rcu_read_lock() and rcu_read_unlock().
  So synchronize_rcu() in kvm_gmem_unbind()/kvm_gmem_release() actually
  will not wait for the readers in kvm_gmem_get_pfn() due to lack of RCU
  read-side critical section.

  The path (2) kvm_gmem_get_pfn() is safe without RCU protection because:
  a) kvm_gmem_bind() is called on a new memslot, before the memslot is
     visible to kvm_gmem_get_pfn().
  b) kvm->srcu ensures that kvm_gmem_unbind() and freeing of a memslot
     occur after the memslot is no longer visible to kvm_gmem_get_pfn().
  c) get_file_active() ensures that kvm_gmem_get_pfn() will not access the
     stale file if kvm_gmem_release() sets it to NULL.  This is because if
     kvm_gmem_release() occurs before kvm_gmem_get_pfn(), get_file_active()
     will return NULL; if get_file_active() does not return NULL,
     kvm_gmem_release() should not occur until after kvm_gmem_get_pfn()
     releases the file reference.

Signed-off-by: Yan Zhao <yan.y.zhao@intel.com>
Message-ID: <20241104084303.29909-1-yan.y.zhao@intel.com>
Signed-off-by: Paolo Bonzini <pbonzini@redhat.com>

1 files changed, 6 insertions, 1 deletions

diff --git a/include/linux/kvm_host.h b/include/linux/kvm_host.h
index 401439bb21e3..9df216943eb4 100644
--- a/include/linux/kvm_host.h
+++ b/include/linux/kvm_host.h
@@ -596,7 +596,12 @@ struct kvm_memory_slot {
 
 #ifdef CONFIG_KVM_PRIVATE_MEM
 	struct {
-		struct file __rcu *file;
+		/*
+		 * Writes protected by kvm->slots_lock.  Acquiring a
+		 * reference via kvm_gmem_get_file() is protected by
+		 * either kvm->slots_lock or kvm->srcu.
+		 */
+		struct file *file;
 		pgoff_t pgoff;
 	} gmem;
 #endif