[PATCH] perf symbols: Don't let a module's last symbol overlap the next module

From: Alireza Haghdoost via B4 Relay

Date: Mon Sep 28 2026 - 19:32:47 EST


From: Alireza Haghdoost <haghdoost@xxxxxxxx>

symbols__fixup_end() extends a zero-size symbol that is the last one in
the kernel or in a module to the end of the next page. On x86 the next
module can start in that page, so the stretched symbol overlaps it, and
a lookup can return the wrong symbol. For example:

ffffffffc0c4aa50 t dca_sysfs_exit [dca]
ffffffffc0c4b000 t __nft_trace_packet [nf_tables]
ffffffffc0c4b0b0 t nft_do_chain [nf_tables]

dca_sysfs_exit gets end 0xffffffffc0c4c000, and samples in nft_do_chain
are reported as dca_sysfs_exit.

This patch clamps the end to the next symbol's start. The ARM case this
code was added for, where the next module is far away, is unchanged.

Add a "Kallsyms symbol ends" test case to the Symbols suite that covers
the kernel/module boundary, adjacent modules and a distant module.

Fixes: 8799ebce84d6 ("perf symbol: Update symbols__fixup_end()")
Fixes: bacefe0c7b77 ("perf tools: Fixup module symbol end address properly")
Signed-off-by: Alireza Haghdoost <haghdoost@xxxxxxxx>
---
tools/perf/util/symbol.c | 4 ++
tools/perf/tests/symbols.c | 96 +++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++-
2 files changed, 99 insertions(+), 1 deletion(-)

diff --git a/tools/perf/util/symbol.c b/tools/perf/util/symbol.c
index 163652f071c6f..f0a7f5a30e696 100644
--- a/tools/perf/util/symbol.c
+++ b/tools/perf/util/symbol.c
@@ -302,6 +302,10 @@ void symbols__fixup_end(struct rb_root_cached *symbols, bool is_kallsyms)
else
prev->end = curr->start;

+ /* The next module can start within that page */
+ if (prev->end > curr->start)
+ prev->end = curr->start;
+
pr_debug4("%s sym:%s end:%#" PRIx64 "\n",
__func__, prev->name, prev->end);
}
diff --git a/tools/perf/tests/symbols.c b/tools/perf/tests/symbols.c
index c09e04f36035a..b644d95c6be9a 100644
--- a/tools/perf/tests/symbols.c
+++ b/tools/perf/tests/symbols.c
@@ -2,6 +2,7 @@
#include <linux/compiler.h>
#include <linux/string.h>
#include <sys/mman.h>
+#include <inttypes.h>
#include <limits.h>
#include "debug.h"
#include "dso.h"
@@ -223,4 +224,97 @@ static int test__symbols(struct test_suite *test __maybe_unused, int subtest __m
return ret;
}

-DEFINE_SUITE("Symbols", symbols);
+struct kallsyms_sym {
+ u64 start;
+ const char *name;
+};
+
+/*
+ * kallsyms from an x86 host where nf_tables was loaded in the page right
+ * after the last symbol of dca, plus a kernel symbol followed closely by a
+ * module and a module far away from the others.
+ */
+static const struct kallsyms_sym kallsyms_syms[] = {
+ { 0xffffffff81000000, "_stext" },
+ { 0xffffffff81000ff0, "last_kernel_symbol" },
+ { 0xffffffff81001000, "near_module_symbol\t[near]" },
+ { 0xffffffffc0c4aa40, "dca_exit\t[dca]" },
+ { 0xffffffffc0c4aa50, "dca_sysfs_exit\t[dca]" },
+ { 0xffffffffc0c4b000, "__nft_trace_packet\t[nf_tables]" },
+ { 0xffffffffc0c4b0b0, "nft_do_chain\t[nf_tables]" },
+ { 0xffffffffc0c4b4e0, "nf_tables_core_module_exit\t[nf_tables]" },
+ { 0xffffffffc2000000, "far_module_symbol\t[far]" },
+};
+
+static int check_symbol(struct dso *dso, u64 addr, const char *name, u64 end)
+{
+ struct symbol *sym = dso__find_symbol_nocache(dso, addr);
+
+ if (!sym || strcmp(sym->name, name)) {
+ pr_debug("%#" PRIx64 ": expected %s, got %s\n", addr, name,
+ sym ? sym->name : "no symbol");
+ return TEST_FAIL;
+ }
+ if (sym->end != end) {
+ pr_debug("%s: expected end %#" PRIx64 ", got %#" PRIx64 "\n",
+ name, end, sym->end);
+ return TEST_FAIL;
+ }
+ return TEST_OK;
+}
+
+static int test__kallsyms_fixup_end(struct test_suite *test __maybe_unused,
+ int subtest __maybe_unused)
+{
+ struct dso *dso = dso__new("[kernel.kallsyms]");
+ int ret = TEST_FAIL;
+
+ if (!dso)
+ return TEST_FAIL;
+
+ for (unsigned int i = 0; i < ARRAY_SIZE(kallsyms_syms); i++) {
+ struct symbol *sym = symbol__new(kallsyms_syms[i].start, 0, 0, 0,
+ kallsyms_syms[i].name);
+
+ if (!sym)
+ goto out;
+ symbols__insert(dso__symbols(dso), sym);
+ }
+
+ symbols__fixup_end(dso__symbols(dso), true);
+
+ ret = TEST_OK;
+ /* The next symbol is too close for the end of the page. */
+ if (check_symbol(dso, 0xffffffff81000ff8, "last_kernel_symbol",
+ 0xffffffff81001000))
+ ret = TEST_FAIL;
+ if (check_symbol(dso, 0xffffffffc0c4aa58, "dca_sysfs_exit\t[dca]",
+ 0xffffffffc0c4b000))
+ ret = TEST_FAIL;
+ if (check_symbol(dso, 0xffffffffc0c4b280, "nft_do_chain\t[nf_tables]",
+ 0xffffffffc0c4b4e0))
+ ret = TEST_FAIL;
+
+ /* Far from the next module, the end of the page is still used. */
+ if (check_symbol(dso, 0xffffffffc0c4b4f0,
+ "nf_tables_core_module_exit\t[nf_tables]",
+ 0xffffffffc0c4d000))
+ ret = TEST_FAIL;
+ if (check_symbol(dso, 0xffffffff81001008, "near_module_symbol\t[near]",
+ 0xffffffff81002000))
+ ret = TEST_FAIL;
+out:
+ dso__put(dso);
+ return ret;
+}
+
+static struct test_case tests__symbols[] = {
+ TEST_CASE("Symbols", symbols),
+ TEST_CASE("Kallsyms symbol ends", kallsyms_fixup_end),
+ { .name = NULL, }
+};
+
+struct test_suite suite__symbols = {
+ .desc = "Symbols",
+ .test_cases = tests__symbols,
+};

---
base-commit: 0ae6fc78c5ce0dfd18d8712a50f0fd4602eff103
change-id: 20260928-haghdoost-perf-symbols-fixup-module-end-11ce6858f0c4

Best regards,
--
Alireza Haghdoost <haghdoost@xxxxxxxx>