Re: [PATCH] cgroup: fix a race condition in manipulating tsk->cg_list

From: Paul Menage
Date: Thu Apr 17 2008 - 00:17:52 EST


On Wed, Apr 16, 2008 at 9:11 PM, Andrew Morton
<akpm@xxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxx> wrote:
>
> I don't fully understand the race. Both paths hold css_set_lock.
>
> Can you describe it in more detail please?

Task A starts exiting, passes the check for unlinking current->cg_list.

Before it completely exits task B does the very first
cgroup_iter_begin() call (via reading a cgroups tasks file) which
links all tasks in to their css_set objects via tsk->cg_list.

Then task A finishes exiting and is freed, but doesn't unlink from the cg_list.

>
> afacit the task at *p could set PF_EXITING immediately after this code has
> tested PF_EXITING and then the task at *p could proceed until we hit the
> same race (whatever that is).

The important fact there is that the task sets PF_EXITING *before* it
checks whether it needs to unlink from current->cg_list.

Paul
--
To unsubscribe from this list: send the line "unsubscribe linux-kernel" in
the body of a message to majordomo@xxxxxxxxxxxxxxx
More majordomo info at http://vger.kernel.org/majordomo-info.html
Please read the FAQ at http://www.tux.org/lkml/