Linux kernel mirror (for testing) git.kernel.org/pub/scm/linux/kernel/git/torvalds/linux.git
kernel os linux

libbpf: Fix a bug with checking bpf_probe_read_kernel() support in old kernels

Background:
Libbpf automatically replaces calls to BPF bpf_probe_read_{kernel,user}
[_str]() helpers with bpf_probe_read[_str](), if libbpf detects that
kernel doesn't support new APIs. Specifically, libbpf invokes the
probe_kern_probe_read_kernel function to load a small eBPF program into
the kernel in which bpf_probe_read_kernel API is invoked and lets the
kernel checks whether the new API is valid. If the loading fails, libbpf
considers the new API invalid and replaces it with the old API.

static int probe_kern_probe_read_kernel(void)
{
struct bpf_insn insns[] = {
BPF_MOV64_REG(BPF_REG_1, BPF_REG_10), /* r1 = r10 (fp) */
BPF_ALU64_IMM(BPF_ADD, BPF_REG_1, -8), /* r1 += -8 */
BPF_MOV64_IMM(BPF_REG_2, 8), /* r2 = 8 */
BPF_MOV64_IMM(BPF_REG_3, 0), /* r3 = 0 */
BPF_RAW_INSN(BPF_JMP | BPF_CALL, 0, 0, 0, BPF_FUNC_probe_read_kernel),
BPF_EXIT_INSN(),
};
int fd, insn_cnt = ARRAY_SIZE(insns);

fd = bpf_prog_load(BPF_PROG_TYPE_KPROBE, NULL,
"GPL", insns, insn_cnt, NULL);
return probe_fd(fd);
}

Bug:
On older kernel versions [0], the kernel checks whether the version
number provided in the bpf syscall, matches the LINUX_VERSION_CODE.
If not matched, the bpf syscall fails. eBPF However, the
probe_kern_probe_read_kernel code does not set the kernel version
number provided to the bpf syscall, which causes the loading process
alwasys fails for old versions. It means that libbpf will replace the
new API with the old one even the kernel supports the new one.

Solution:
After a discussion in [1], the solution is using BPF_PROG_TYPE_TRACEPOINT
program type instead of BPF_PROG_TYPE_KPROBE because kernel does not
enfoce version check for tracepoint programs. I test the patch in old
kernels (4.18 and 4.19) and it works well.

[0] https://elixir.bootlin.com/linux/v4.19/source/kernel/bpf/syscall.c#L1360
[1] Closes: https://github.com/libbpf/libbpf/issues/473

Signed-off-by: Runqing Yang <rainkin1993@gmail.com>
Signed-off-by: Andrii Nakryiko <andrii@kernel.org>
Link: https://lore.kernel.org/bpf/20220409144928.27499-1-rainkin1993@gmail.com

authored by

Runqing Yang and committed by
Andrii Nakryiko
d252a4a4 61ddff37

+1 -1
+1 -1
tools/lib/bpf/libbpf.c
··· 4594 4594 }; 4595 4595 int fd, insn_cnt = ARRAY_SIZE(insns); 4596 4596 4597 - fd = bpf_prog_load(BPF_PROG_TYPE_KPROBE, NULL, "GPL", insns, insn_cnt, NULL); 4597 + fd = bpf_prog_load(BPF_PROG_TYPE_TRACEPOINT, NULL, "GPL", insns, insn_cnt, NULL); 4598 4598 return probe_fd(fd); 4599 4599 } 4600 4600