[PATCH v3 5/5] slab: test ERR_PTR handling in kfree and hardened usercopy
From: Karl Mehltretter
Date: Thu Sep 03 2026 - 16:38:32 EST
Add KUnit coverage that kfree() warns and returns for ERR_PTR values
while remaining silent for NULL and ZERO_SIZE_PTR.
Add an LKDTM test that verifies hardened usercopy rejects an ERR_PTR
before attempting the copy.
Assisted-by: LLM
Signed-off-by: Karl Mehltretter <kmehltretter@xxxxxxxxx>
---
drivers/misc/lkdtm/usercopy.c | 27 +++++++++++++++++++++++++
lib/tests/slub_kunit.c | 18 +++++++++++++++++
tools/testing/selftests/lkdtm/tests.txt | 1 +
3 files changed, 46 insertions(+)
diff --git a/drivers/misc/lkdtm/usercopy.c b/drivers/misc/lkdtm/usercopy.c
index 67db57249a34..10751e48211f 100644
--- a/drivers/misc/lkdtm/usercopy.c
+++ b/drivers/misc/lkdtm/usercopy.c
@@ -4,6 +4,7 @@
* hardening.
*/
#include "lkdtm.h"
+#include <linux/err.h>
#include <linux/slab.h>
#include <linux/highmem.h>
#include <linux/vmalloc.h>
@@ -273,6 +274,31 @@ static void do_usercopy_slab_whitelist(bool to_user)
}
/* Callable tests. */
+static void lkdtm_USERCOPY_ERR_PTR(void)
+{
+ unsigned long user_addr;
+ size_t size = unconst + 1;
+
+ user_addr = vm_mmap(NULL, 0, PAGE_SIZE,
+ PROT_READ | PROT_WRITE,
+ MAP_ANONYMOUS | MAP_PRIVATE, 0);
+ if (user_addr >= TASK_SIZE) {
+ pr_warn("Failed to allocate user memory\n");
+ return;
+ }
+
+ pr_info("attempting bad one-byte copy_to_user() from ERR_PTR\n");
+ if (copy_to_user((void __user *)user_addr, ERR_PTR(-EINVAL), size)) {
+ pr_warn("copy_to_user failed, but lacked Oops\n");
+ goto free_user;
+ }
+ pr_err("FAIL: ERR_PTR usercopy not detected!\n");
+ pr_expected_config_param(CONFIG_HARDENED_USERCOPY, "hardened_usercopy");
+
+free_user:
+ vm_munmap(user_addr, PAGE_SIZE);
+}
+
static void lkdtm_USERCOPY_SLAB_SIZE_TO(void)
{
do_usercopy_slab_size(true);
@@ -439,6 +465,7 @@ void __exit lkdtm_usercopy_exit(void)
}
static struct crashtype crashtypes[] = {
+ CRASHTYPE(USERCOPY_ERR_PTR),
CRASHTYPE(USERCOPY_SLAB_SIZE_TO),
CRASHTYPE(USERCOPY_SLAB_SIZE_FROM),
CRASHTYPE(USERCOPY_SLAB_WHITELIST_TO),
diff --git a/lib/tests/slub_kunit.c b/lib/tests/slub_kunit.c
index 923d8646bca1..079563387007 100644
--- a/lib/tests/slub_kunit.c
+++ b/lib/tests/slub_kunit.c
@@ -507,6 +507,23 @@ static void test_zero_size_alloc(struct kunit *test)
kvfree(ZERO_SIZE_PTR);
}
+static void test_kfree_err_ptr(struct kunit *test)
+{
+ if (!IS_ENABLED(CONFIG_BUG))
+ kunit_skip(test, "requires CONFIG_BUG");
+
+ kunit_warning_suppress(test) {
+ kfree(NULL);
+ KUNIT_EXPECT_SUPPRESSED_WARNING_COUNT(test, 0);
+
+ kfree(ZERO_SIZE_PTR);
+ KUNIT_EXPECT_SUPPRESSED_WARNING_COUNT(test, 0);
+
+ kfree(ERR_PTR(-EINVAL));
+ KUNIT_EXPECT_SUPPRESSED_WARNING_COUNT(test, 1);
+ }
+}
+
static int test_init(struct kunit *test)
{
slab_errors = 0;
@@ -532,6 +549,7 @@ static struct kunit_case test_cases[] = {
KUNIT_CASE(test_leak_destroy),
KUNIT_CASE(test_krealloc_redzone_zeroing),
KUNIT_CASE(test_zero_size_alloc),
+ KUNIT_CASE(test_kfree_err_ptr),
#ifdef CONFIG_PERF_EVENTS
KUNIT_CASE_SLOW(test_kmalloc_nolock_and_friends_perf),
#endif
diff --git a/tools/testing/selftests/lkdtm/tests.txt b/tools/testing/selftests/lkdtm/tests.txt
index bec57a02913a..d3e38c1c75cd 100644
--- a/tools/testing/selftests/lkdtm/tests.txt
+++ b/tools/testing/selftests/lkdtm/tests.txt
@@ -70,6 +70,7 @@ REFCOUNT_DEC_AND_TEST_SATURATED Saturation detected: still saturated
REFCOUNT_SUB_AND_TEST_SATURATED Saturation detected: still saturated
#REFCOUNT_TIMING timing only
#ATOMIC_TIMING timing only
+USERCOPY_ERR_PTR Kernel memory exposure attempt detected from ERR_PTR
USERCOPY_SLAB_SIZE_TO
USERCOPY_SLAB_SIZE_FROM
USERCOPY_SLAB_WHITELIST_TO
--
2.53.0