[PATCH v2] cgroup/cpuset: use mems_allowed_seq when checking a policy nodemask

From: Gregory Price (Meta)

Date: Mon Oct 19 2026 - 13:04:25 EST


A cpuset update changes the task's mems_allowed and rebinds its
mempolicy in separate steps under mems_allowed_seq, but the check
reads both without it. This can cause a spurious numa placement
miss under some cpuset/mempolicy combinations.

A reader that loads one mask before the update and the other after
it can see a spurious empty intersection and drop the nodemask.

For example, a task with cpuset.mems={0} and MPOL_BIND={0}. If the
cpuset moves to mems={1,2}, the policy is rebound to {1}.

The allocator can race and compare the old mems_allowed {0} against
the new policy {1} - which will result in a dropped nodemask and a
misplaced allocation on node 2.

Simply retry the intersection until mems_allowed_seq is stable.

This covers the task policy, which is rebound under mems_allowed_seq.
VMA policies are rebound afterwards by mpol_rebind_mm(), outside
mems_allowed_seq, and are not covered by this change.

Fixes: cc9a6c877661 ("cpuset: mm: reduce large amounts of memory barrier related damage v3")
Reviewed-by: Vlastimil Babka (SUSE) <vbabka@xxxxxxxxxx>
Reviewed-by: Waiman Long <longman@xxxxxxxxxx>
Signed-off-by: Gregory Price (Meta) <gourry@xxxxxxxxxx>
---
v2: there is no real update here, i'm breaking it off of the page_alloc
series so the page_alloc fixes backport collectively cleaner.

kernel/cgroup/cpuset.c | 13 ++++++++++++-
1 file changed, 12 insertions(+), 1 deletion(-)

diff --git a/kernel/cgroup/cpuset.c b/kernel/cgroup/cpuset.c
index 3f52717c19654..8ee239d5c6b48 100644
--- a/kernel/cgroup/cpuset.c
+++ b/kernel/cgroup/cpuset.c
@@ -4354,10 +4354,21 @@ nodemask_t cpuset_mems_allowed(struct task_struct *tsk)
* @nodemask: the nodemask to be checked
*
* Are any of the nodes in the nodemask allowed in current->mems_allowed?
+ *
+ * A cpuset update rebinds the task's mempolicy and changes mems_allowed in
+ * separate steps, so retry if an update raced with the check.
*/
int cpuset_nodemask_valid_mems_allowed(const nodemask_t *nodemask)
{
- return nodes_intersects(*nodemask, current->mems_allowed);
+ unsigned int seq;
+ int ret;
+
+ do {
+ seq = read_mems_allowed_begin();
+ ret = nodes_intersects(*nodemask, current->mems_allowed);
+ } while (read_mems_allowed_retry(seq));
+
+ return ret;
}

/*
--
2.53.0-Meta