[RESEND PATCH v6 4/8] tracing/probes: Type casting always involves nested calls

From: Masami Hiramatsu (Google)

Date: Sat Jun 20 2026 - 23:29:30 EST


From: Masami Hiramatsu (Google) <mhiramat@xxxxxxxxxx>

This allows type casting to various fetchargs without parentheses
by recursively calling parse_probe_arg on the target when type
casting is used.

For example, this allows the following expressions:
- (STRUCT)%REG->FIELD
- (STRUCT)$stackN->FIELD
- (STRUCT)@SYM->FIELD

Signed-off-by: Masami Hiramatsu (Google) <mhiramat@xxxxxxxxxx>
---
Changes in v6:
- Newly added.
---
kernel/trace/trace_probe.c | 101 +++++++++++++++++++++++++++-----------------
kernel/trace/trace_probe.h | 1
2 files changed, 63 insertions(+), 39 deletions(-)

diff --git a/kernel/trace/trace_probe.c b/kernel/trace/trace_probe.c
index cebfba580922..b413bbe8c3af 100644
--- a/kernel/trace/trace_probe.c
+++ b/kernel/trace/trace_probe.c
@@ -691,19 +691,6 @@ static int parse_btf_arg(char *varname,
return -EOPNOTSUPP;
}

- if (ctx->flags & TPARG_FL_TEVENT) {
- ret = parse_trace_event(varname, code, ctx);
- if (ret < 0) {
- trace_probe_log_err(ctx->offset, BAD_ATTACH_ARG);
- return ret;
- }
- /* TEVENT is only here via a typecast */
- if (WARN_ON_ONCE(ctx->struct_btf == NULL))
- return -EINVAL;
- type = ctx->last_struct;
- goto found_type;
- }
-
if (ctx->flags & TPARG_FL_RETURN && !strcmp(varname, "$retval")) {
code->op = FETCH_OP_RETVAL;
/* Check whether the function return type is not void, even with typecast. */
@@ -867,7 +854,7 @@ static int handle_typecast(char *arg, struct fetch_insn **pcode,
struct traceprobe_parse_context *ctx)
{
int orig_offset = ctx->offset;
- bool nested = false;
+ char *close;
char *tmp;
int ret;

@@ -878,6 +865,17 @@ static int handle_typecast(char *arg, struct fetch_insn **pcode,
return -EOPNOTSUPP;
}

+ /*
+ * Always consider the token after typecast as a nested call
+ * For example: (STRUCT)VAR->FIELD and (STRUCT)(VAR)->FIELD are same.
+ * VAR is solved in the nested call.
+ */
+ ctx->nested_level++;
+ if (ctx->nested_level > TRACEPROBE_MAX_NESTED_LEVEL) {
+ trace_probe_log_err(ctx->offset, TOO_MANY_NESTED);
+ return -E2BIG;
+ }
+
tmp = strchr(arg, ')');
if (!tmp) {
trace_probe_log_err(ctx->offset + strlen(arg),
@@ -886,11 +884,10 @@ static int handle_typecast(char *arg, struct fetch_insn **pcode,
}
*tmp++ = '\0';

- /* Handle the nested structure like (STRUCT)(VAR->FIELD)->... */
+ ctx->offset += tmp - arg;
if (*tmp == '(') {
- char *close = find_matched_close_paren(tmp);
+ close = find_matched_close_paren(tmp);

- ctx->offset += tmp - arg;
if (!close) {
trace_probe_log_err(ctx->offset, DEREF_OPEN_BRACE);
return -EINVAL;
@@ -901,27 +898,57 @@ static int handle_typecast(char *arg, struct fetch_insn **pcode,
TYPECAST_REQ_FIELD);
return -EINVAL;
}
-
- ctx->nested_level++;
- if (ctx->nested_level > TRACEPROBE_MAX_NESTED_LEVEL) {
- trace_probe_log_err(ctx->offset, TOO_MANY_NESTED);
- return -E2BIG;
+ /* Skip '(' */
+ ctx->offset += 1;
+ tmp++;
+ } else if (*tmp == '+' || *tmp == '-') {
+ /* Dereference can have another field access inside it. */
+ char *open = strchr(tmp + 1, '(');
+
+ if (!open) {
+ trace_probe_log_err(ctx->offset,
+ DEREF_NEED_BRACE);
+ return -EINVAL;
}
- *close = '\0';
+ close = find_matched_close_paren(open);
+ if (!close) {
+ trace_probe_log_err(ctx->offset + strlen(tmp),
+ DEREF_OPEN_BRACE);
+ return -EINVAL;
+ }
+ close++;
+ /* We expect a field access for typecast */
+ if (close[0] != '-' || close[1] != '>') {
+ trace_probe_log_err(ctx->offset + close - tmp + 1,
+ TYPECAST_REQ_FIELD);
+ return -EINVAL;
+ }
+ } else {
+ /* Inner variable name */
+ close = strchr(tmp, '-');
+ if (!close || close[1] != '>') {
+ trace_probe_log_err(ctx->offset + strlen(tmp),
+ TYPECAST_REQ_FIELD);
+ return -EINVAL;
+ }
+ }
+ *close = '\0';

- ctx->offset += 1; /* for the '(' */
- /* We need to parse the nested one */
- ret = parse_probe_arg(tmp + 1, find_fetch_type(NULL, ctx->flags),
- pcode, end, ctx);
- if (ret < 0)
- return ret;
- ctx->nested_level--;
- clear_struct_btf(ctx);
+ /* We need to parse the nested one */
+ ret = parse_probe_arg(tmp, find_fetch_type(NULL, ctx->flags),
+ pcode, end, ctx);
+ if (ret < 0)
+ return ret;
+ ctx->nested_level--;
+ clear_struct_btf(ctx);

- tmp = close + 3;/* Skip "->" after closing parenthesis */
- nested = true;
- }
+ /* Let tmp point the field name. */
+ if (close[1] == '-')
+ tmp = close + 3; /* Skip "->" after closing parenthesis */
+ else
+ tmp = close + 2; /* Skip ">" after inner variable name */

+ /* resolve the typecast struct name */
ret = query_btf_struct(arg + 1, ctx);
if (ret < 0) {
trace_probe_log_err(orig_offset + 1, NO_PTR_STRCT);
@@ -929,11 +956,7 @@ static int handle_typecast(char *arg, struct fetch_insn **pcode,
}

ctx->offset = orig_offset + tmp - arg;
- /* If it is nested, tmp points to the field name. */
- if (nested)
- ret = parse_btf_field(tmp, ctx->last_struct, pcode, end, ctx);
- else
- ret = parse_btf_arg(tmp, pcode, end, ctx);
+ ret = parse_btf_field(tmp, ctx->last_struct, pcode, end, ctx);
return ret;
}

diff --git a/kernel/trace/trace_probe.h b/kernel/trace/trace_probe.h
index 1515b3dda5be..e66e0fcb91a3 100644
--- a/kernel/trace/trace_probe.h
+++ b/kernel/trace/trace_probe.h
@@ -455,6 +455,7 @@ struct traceprobe_parse_context {
int nested_level;
};

+/* Each typecast consumes nested level. So the max number of typecast is 3. */
#define TRACEPROBE_MAX_NESTED_LEVEL 3

extern int traceprobe_parse_probe_arg(struct trace_probe *tp, int i,