[PATCH 1/2] efi/runtime-wrappers: bound the wait for EFI runtime service calls
Breno Leitao <[email protected]> Tue, 09 Jun 2026 04:55:27 -0700
| Newsgroups | org.kernel.vger.linux-efi,org.kernel.vger.linux-kernel |
|---|---|
| Message-ID | <[email protected]> |
When an EFI runtime service call hangs in firmware, the kworker on efi_rts_wq is stuck inside the firmware call and cannot be cancelled. The kernel currently waits indefinitely on the completion, and the caller holds efi_runtime_lock for the duration, so every subsequent EFI runtime caller (efivarfs, NVRAM writes, set_wakeup_time, ACPI PRM handlers, ...) is wedged until reboot. The only externally visible symptom is a "workqueue lockup" message and userspace processes piling up uninterruptibly on the semaphore. Replace the indefinite wait_for_completion() in __efi_queue_work() with wait_for_completion_timeout() bounded by EFI_RTS_TIMEOUT (120 seconds). On timeout, log the wedged runtime service id and return EFI_TIMEOUT to the caller. The wedged worker is intentionally leaked - it is still inside firmware and cannot be cancelled - and the shared efi_rts_work is abandoned to it. EFI runtime services become unavailable until reboot; the alternative is permanent userspace hang. This patch should land together with the follow-up that introduces the efi_rts_dead fast-fail flag: between the two, a subsequent __efi_queue_work() caller will re-INIT_WORK() and re-init_completion() on the work_struct and completion that the leaked worker still owns, which can corrupt workqueue state and let the next caller observe the leaked call's status as if it were its own. The split exists for review clarity; reviewers may prefer to squash. Known limitation: the union efi_rts_args that __efi_queue_work() hands to the worker contains pointers into the caller's stack frame (the compound literal in efi_queue_work() and the in/out buffers it points to, e.g. *tm in GetTime). Once the caller returns -EIO and unwinds, those slots are reusable. If firmware eventually unblocks and writes to the output buffers after the timeout has fired, the writes land in whatever now occupies that memory. In practice firmware that hangs for more than 120 seconds tends to stay hung. A follow-up bouncing args and output buffers through kmalloc would close this gap. At fleet scale this turns a generic "workqueue lockup" or stalled-task mystery into an unambiguous "EFI firmware is at fault" signal in dmesg. Signed-off-by: Breno Leitao <[email protected]> --- drivers/firmware/efi/runtime-wrappers.c | 20 +++++++++++++++++--- 1 file changed, 17 insertions(+), 3 deletions(-) diff --git a/drivers/firmware/efi/runtime-wrappers.c b/drivers/firmware/efi/runtime-wrappers.c index da8d29621644..6ce6d094066e 100644 --- a/drivers/firmware/efi/runtime-wrappers.c +++ b/drivers/firmware/efi/runtime-wrappers.c @@ -118,6 +118,14 @@ union efi_rts_args { struct efi_runtime_work efi_rts_work; +/* + * Upper bound on how long we wait for a single EFI runtime service + * call to finish before declaring firmware wedged. Chosen to be longer + * than any plausible legitimate call (including UpdateCapsule on slow + * SPI-NOR) while still bounding userspace wait time. + */ +#define EFI_RTS_TIMEOUT (120 * HZ) + /* * efi_queue_work: Queue EFI runtime service call and wait for completion * @_rts: EFI runtime service function identifier @@ -338,10 +346,16 @@ static efi_status_t __efi_queue_work(enum efi_rts_ids id, * queue_work() returns 0 if work was already on queue, * _ideally_ this should never happen. */ - if (queue_work(efi_rts_wq, &efi_rts_work.work)) - wait_for_completion(&efi_rts_work.efi_rts_comp); - else + if (!queue_work(efi_rts_wq, &efi_rts_work.work)) { pr_err("Failed to queue work to efi_rts_wq.\n"); + goto exit; + } + + if (!wait_for_completion_timeout(&efi_rts_work.efi_rts_comp, + EFI_RTS_TIMEOUT)) { + pr_err("EFI runtime service %d wedged in firmware\n", id); + return EFI_TIMEOUT; + } WARN_ON_ONCE(efi_rts_work.status == EFI_ABORTED); exit: -- 2.53.0-Meta