[PATCH v2 2/2] KVM: x86/mmu: Convert can't-happen fault path EFAULTs to KVM_BUG_ON() + -EIO
From: mike . malyshev
Date: Sun Sep 20 2026 - 03:28:26 EST
From: Mikhail Malyshev <mike.malyshev@xxxxxxxxx>
Four -EFAULT returns in x86's page fault path are guarded by
WARN_ON_ONCE() because they describe KVM bugs, not conditions the guest
or userspace can reach:
- direct_map() and FNAME(fetch)() completing the walk at a level other
than the goal level, i.e. KVM's shadow page table walk disagreeing
with the mapping level KVM itself just computed.
- a CR2 with bits 63:32 set on 32-bit KVM, which the hardware cannot
produce.
- PFERR_PRIVATE_ACCESS set on a reserved-bit fault. KVM sets that
synthetic bit itself, and only when PFERR_RSVD_MASK is clear.
Returning -EFAULT for a KVM bug conflicts with KVM_CAP_MEMORY_FAULT_INFO,
which promises that an -EFAULT out of KVM_RUN on a guest page fault
VM-Exit is accompanied by kvm_run.memory_fault. Describing a broken
KVM invariant as a memory fault would be actively misleading, as there
is no guest access for userspace to resolve and retry.
Convert the four sites to KVM_BUG_ON() + -EIO, the established way to
report that KVM is hosed, so that -EFAULT out of the fault path always
means "guest memory access KVM could not resolve".
Suggested-by: Sean Christopherson <seanjc@xxxxxxxxxx>
Link: https://lore.kernel.org/all/Zr-8M9rYplgN6IS3@xxxxxxxxxx/
Signed-off-by: Mikhail Malyshev <mike.malyshev@xxxxxxxxx>
---
arch/x86/kvm/mmu/mmu.c | 12 ++++++------
arch/x86/kvm/mmu/paging_tmpl.h | 4 ++--
2 files changed, 8 insertions(+), 8 deletions(-)
diff --git a/arch/x86/kvm/mmu/mmu.c b/arch/x86/kvm/mmu/mmu.c
index 244575f576071..6529ff9e98358 100644
--- a/arch/x86/kvm/mmu/mmu.c
+++ b/arch/x86/kvm/mmu/mmu.c
@@ -3577,8 +3577,8 @@ static int direct_map(struct kvm_vcpu *vcpu, struct kvm_page_fault *fault)
fault->req_level >= it.level);
}
- if (WARN_ON_ONCE(it.level != fault->goal_level))
- return -EFAULT;
+ if (KVM_BUG_ON(it.level != fault->goal_level, vcpu->kvm))
+ return -EIO;
ret = mmu_set_spte(vcpu, fault->slot, it.sptep, access,
base_gfn, fault->pfn, fault);
@@ -4942,8 +4942,8 @@ int kvm_handle_page_fault(struct kvm_vcpu *vcpu, u64 error_code,
#ifndef CONFIG_X86_64
/* A 64-bit CR2 should be impossible on 32-bit KVM. */
- if (WARN_ON_ONCE(fault_address >> 32))
- return -EFAULT;
+ if (KVM_BUG_ON(fault_address >> 32, vcpu->kvm))
+ return -EIO;
#endif
/*
* Legacy #PF exception only have a 32-bit error code. Simply drop the
@@ -6658,8 +6658,8 @@ int noinline kvm_mmu_page_fault(struct kvm_vcpu *vcpu, gpa_t cr2_or_gpa, u64 err
r = RET_PF_INVALID;
if (unlikely(error_code & PFERR_RSVD_MASK)) {
- if (WARN_ON_ONCE(error_code & PFERR_PRIVATE_ACCESS))
- return -EFAULT;
+ if (KVM_BUG_ON(error_code & PFERR_PRIVATE_ACCESS, vcpu->kvm))
+ return -EIO;
r = handle_mmio_page_fault(vcpu, cr2_or_gpa, direct);
if (r == RET_PF_EMULATE)
diff --git a/arch/x86/kvm/mmu/paging_tmpl.h b/arch/x86/kvm/mmu/paging_tmpl.h
index c8ec47b09264b..8e350095508c5 100644
--- a/arch/x86/kvm/mmu/paging_tmpl.h
+++ b/arch/x86/kvm/mmu/paging_tmpl.h
@@ -778,8 +778,8 @@ static int FNAME(fetch)(struct kvm_vcpu *vcpu, struct kvm_page_fault *fault,
fault->req_level >= it.level);
}
- if (WARN_ON_ONCE(it.level != fault->goal_level))
- return -EFAULT;
+ if (KVM_BUG_ON(it.level != fault->goal_level, vcpu->kvm))
+ return -EIO;
ret = mmu_set_spte(vcpu, fault->slot, it.sptep, gw->pte_access,
base_gfn, fault->pfn, fault);
--
2.43.0