Re: [PATCH] memstick: core: reclaim the request before freeing a timed-out card

[Nguyen Ngoc Thang]

On Tue, Sep 29, 2026 at 12:57 PM Ulf Hansson wrote:
> Reviewing another patch [1] for the same issue, indicates the memstick
> host drivers are already managing the timeout themselves. So, even if
> your approach seems reasonable, I decided to go with the other
> solution for now.

Fine with me. Raj's patch fixes the UAF in my reproducer as well.

One concern: it is effectively a revert of b65e630a55a4 ("memstick: Add
timeout to prevent indefinite waiting"), which was the backstop for the
rtsx_usb_ms remove race that 99d7ab8db9d8 ("memstick: Fix deadlock by
moving removing flag earlier") only narrowed.

memstick_check() can still pass the host->removing check just before
rtsx_usb_ms_drv_remove() sets eject/removing. Its next request then
reaches rtsx_usb_ms_request(), which drops it because eject is set, so
nobody completes mrq_complete. With an unbounded wait, memstick_check()
never returns and memstick_remove_host() blocks in flush_workqueue()
forever. (cancel_work_sync() in drv_remove cancelling a queued
handle_req before it picks up the request looks like another way to
get there.)

I reproduced it in QEMU with dummy_hcd + raw-gadget emulating an
RTS5129, widening the window with a debug msleep() right after the
host->removing check and unplugging the device during it:

  INFO: task kworker/u10:3:65 blocked for more than 20 seconds.
  Workqueue: kmemstick memstick_check
   __wait_for_common
   memstick_check

  INFO: task kworker/1:1:33 blocked for more than 20 seconds.
  Workqueue: usb_hub_wq hub_event
   __flush_workqueue
   memstick_remove_host
   rtsx_usb_ms_drv_remove
   platform_remove
   ...
   rtsx_usb_disconnect
   usb_disconnect
   hub_event

The same test on mainline (500 ms timeout) recovers fine.

Since memstick hosts are expected to always complete a request, I think
the right follow-up is in rtsx_usb_ms: complete requests with an error
after eject instead of dropping them. I can send that as a separate
rtsx_usb_ms patch on top of Raj's, if that works for you.

Thanks,
Thang