[PATCH] futex: Drop CLONE_THREAD requirement for private default hash alloc

From: Davidlohr Bueso

Date: Fri May 01 2026 - 15:44:44 EST


Currently need_futex_hash_allocate_default() depends on strict
pthread semantics, abusing CLONE_THREAD. This breaks the
non-concurrency assumptions when doing the mm->futex_ref pcpu
allocations, leading to bugs[0] when sharing the mm in other ways;
ie:

BUG: KASAN: slab-use-after-free in futex_hash_put

... where the +1 bias can end up on a percpu counter that mm->futex_ref
no longer points at.

Loosen the check to cover any CLONE_VM clone, except vfork(). Excluding
vfork keeps the existing paths untouched (no overhead), and we can't
race in the first place: either the parent is suspended and the child runs
alone, or mm->futex_ref is already allocated from an earlier CLONE_THREAD.

[0] https://lore.kernel.org/all/CAL_bE8LsmCQ-FAtYDuwbJhOkt9p2wwYQwAbMh=PifC=VsiBM6A@xxxxxxxxxxxxxx/
Fixes: d9b05321e21e ("futex: Move futex_hash_free() back to __mmput()")
Reported-by: Yiming Qian <yimingqian591@xxxxxxxxx>
Signed-off-by: Davidlohr Bueso <dave@xxxxxxxxxxxx>
---
kernel/fork.c | 12 +++++-------
1 file changed, 5 insertions(+), 7 deletions(-)

diff --git a/kernel/fork.c b/kernel/fork.c
index f1ad69c6dc2d..5f3fdfdb14c7 100644
--- a/kernel/fork.c
+++ b/kernel/fork.c
@@ -1951,9 +1951,11 @@ static void rv_task_fork(struct task_struct *p)

static bool need_futex_hash_allocate_default(u64 clone_flags)
{
- if ((clone_flags & (CLONE_THREAD | CLONE_VM)) != (CLONE_THREAD | CLONE_VM))
- return false;
- return true;
+ /*
+ * Allocate a default futex hash for any sibling that will
+ * share the parent's mm, except vfork.
+ */
+ return (clone_flags & (CLONE_VM | CLONE_VFORK)) == CLONE_VM;
}

/*
@@ -2380,10 +2382,6 @@ __latent_entropy struct task_struct *copy_process(
if (retval)
goto bad_fork_cancel_cgroup;

- /*
- * Allocate a default futex hash for the user process once the first
- * thread spawns.
- */
if (need_futex_hash_allocate_default(clone_flags)) {
retval = futex_hash_allocate_default();
if (retval)
--
2.39.5