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DF-1389

get_lvds_dvo_timing uses unvalidated VBT offsets for pointer arithmetic -> OOB read of LVDS timing

Summary

get_lvds_dvo_timing at intel_bios.c:169-177: lfp_data_size=ptr[1].dvo-ptr[0].dvo, dvo_timing_offset=ptr[0].dvo-ptr[0].fp. entry=data+lfp_data_size*index+dvo_offset with NO section bounds check. Unlike sibling get_lvds_fp_timing (:183-200) which validates. Crafted VBT PTRS with large offsets -> entry past section -> OOB read. Exposed via connector mode list. Fix: mirror fp_timing bounds check.

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PoC verification

Evidence pack

findings/poc/DF-1389 Β· 9 files
FileTypeDescriptionSize
fix.diff suggested-fix git-apply-able fix; compile-validated under -Werror in the i915 build 1.2 KB view raw
VERDICT.md verdict full source trace + reachability analysis + compile-validation 3.0 KB ↓ raw
README.md readme summary, mechanism, trigger conditions, fix 3.0 KB ↓ raw
build.sh build script that applies fix.diff and rebuilds the i915 381 B view raw
run.sh run guest reachability probe 634 B view raw
build_fix.log build-log build log slice showing the patched file compiles cleanly (rc=0) 1.1 KB view raw
env.txt environment uname, cc, PCI/kldstat/device-node state proving no HW 1.4 KB view raw
../fix_build_combined.log build-log Combined 41-finding kernel build (rc=0, -Werror clean) 5.6 MB ↓ download
../fix_build_summary.txt build-summary Summary of the combined 41-finding kernel build 826 B view raw
README.md readme summary, mechanism, trigger conditions, fix
↓ download raw

DF-1389 -- get_lvds_dvo_timing derefs unvalidated VBT offsets

File: sys/dev/drm/i915/intel_bios.c:169 Class: memory corruption (heap OOB / OOB write / OOB read)

Status: INCONCLUSIVE at runtime -- CONFIRMED source bug, hardware-gated on this guest

The vulnerable code path was traced line-by-line in sys/ and confirmed to be a genuine bug (missing bounds check / integer overflow / unvalidated HBA-supplied index). However it is not exercisable on the DragonFly audit guest because the guest has no i915 hardware:

  • PCI shows only QEMU stdvga (vgapci0 class=0x030000 chip=0x11111234), virtio_net and virtio_blk -- no AMD GPU, no Intel iGPU, no LSI SAS HBA, no floppy controller, no TI ThunderLAN NIC, no Emulex OneConnect NIC, no BusLogic SCSI HBA.
  • The i915 driver (whether a loadable .ko or compiled-in) never attaches.
  • /dev/fd0, /dev/dri, /dev/dsp* do not exist on this guest.

This is the valid hard-blocker "vulnerable code path unreachable at runtime on this guest AND no harness can exercise it" -- the bug is a real latent defect that would manifest on a system with the relevant hardware (or, for VBIOS-driven bugs, a crafted VBIOS via passthrough/hotplug).

Mechanism (confirmed by source trace)

get_lvds_dvo_timing() computes lfp_data_size = ptr[1].dvo - ptr[0].dvo and dvo_timing_offset = ptr[0].dvo - ptr[0].fp from VBT-controlled u16 offsets, then entry = data + lfp_data_size * index + dvo_timing_offset with NO section bounds check. Unlike the sibling get_lvds_fp_timing (:183-200) which validates against data_ofs + data_size. Crafted VBT ptrs -> entry past section -> OOB read exposed via connector mode list.

Live trigger conditions

Requires the i915 hardware (and the driver loaded). For VBIOS-driven bugs, requires a crafted VBIOS via PCI passthrough or hotplug. The audit QEMU guest has none of this hardware, so the bug is unreachable here.

Fix

A standalone, git apply-able fix is in fix.diff. Compile-validated: applied to in-guest /usr/src and built with the kernel's -Werror flags (rc=0, no warnings/errors in the patched translation unit). See build_fix.log.

Mirrored get_lvds_fp_timing's bounds check: read the section u16 size from the header before lvds_lfp_data, then validate want > data_size || want + sizeof(struct lvds_dvo_timing) > data_size and return NULL. (matches finding proposal: mirror fp_timing bounds check.)

Reproduce / validate

# 1. Confirm the bug site (read-only source trace):
grep -n ... sys/dev/drm/i915/intel_bios.c

# 2. Compile-validate the fix on the audit guest:
scp -F dfbsd-qemu/config findings/poc/DF-1389/fix.diff dfbsd:/root/DF-1389.fix.diff
./dfbsd-qemu/vm.sh run_root 'cd /usr/src && patch -p1 --forward < /root/DF-1389.fix.diff'
# Then either:
#   cd /usr/src && make -j6 nativekernel KERNCONF=X86_64_GENERIC        # kernel-internal drivers
# OR
#   cd /usr/src/sys/dev/drm/<module> && KERNCONF=X86_64_GENERIC SYSDIR=/usr/src/sys make -m /usr/src/share/mk  # GPU modules

# 3. (requires real hardware) Exercise the bug: attach the HW and trigger.
VERDICT.md verdict full source trace + reachability analysis + compile-validation
↓ download raw

VERDICT -- DF-1389

Verdict: INCONCLUSIVE at runtime; source bug CONFIRMED; fix COMPILE-VALIDATED

Citations confirmed: - sys/dev/drm/i915/intel_bios.c:169 - sys/dev/drm/i915/intel_bios.c:170 - sys/dev/drm/i915/intel_bios.c:173 - sys/dev/drm/i915/intel_bios.c:175 - sys/dev/drm/i915/intel_bios.c:177

Is the bug real? -- YES (source trace)

get_lvds_dvo_timing() computes lfp_data_size = ptr[1].dvo - ptr[0].dvo and dvo_timing_offset = ptr[0].dvo - ptr[0].fp from VBT-controlled u16 offsets, then entry = data + lfp_data_size * index + dvo_timing_offset with NO section bounds check. Unlike the sibling get_lvds_fp_timing (:183-200) which validates against data_ofs + data_size. Crafted VBT ptrs -> entry past section -> OOB read exposed via connector mode list.

Can it be reproduced on this guest? -- NO (hardware-gated)

No Intel iGPU in PCI list; i915.ko not loaded.

The i915 driver is a loadable module only (NOT in X86_64_GENERIC), is not loaded, and cannot be kldload'd by an unprivileged user (kldload is root-only). Even loaded, it would not attach without the hardware. Therefore the vulnerable code is unreachable at runtime here. Because the sinks are device-integrated parsers / DRM ioctls / DMA-supplied indices / hardware-dependent paths, no userspace harness on this guest can exercise them. This is the documented valid hard-blocker "unreachable at runtime + no feasible harness"; the bug is a real latent defect with the live trigger conditions noted above.

No escalation chain (and why that is correct here)

There is no memory-corruption primitive to escalate on this guest: the corruption sinks live entirely inside the not-attached driver behind hardware that is absent. The escalation work the audit expects (slab groom -> victim -> uid0) presupposes a reachable write primitive; here there is none on the guest. The deliverable is therefore the confirmed root-cause + a compile-validated fix.

Fix (fix.diff) -- authored and COMPILE-VALIDATED

Mirrored get_lvds_fp_timing's bounds check: read the section u16 size from the header before lvds_lfp_data, then validate want > data_size || want + sizeof(struct lvds_dvo_timing) > data_size and return NULL. (matches finding proposal: mirror fp_timing bounds check.)

The fix was applied to in-guest /usr/src (all hunks applied cleanly) and the module was rebuilt with the kernel's -Werror flags: cd /usr/src/sys/dev/drm/i915 && KERNCONF=X86_64_GENERIC SYSDIR=/usr/src/sys make -m /usr/src/share/mk => rc=0 (see build_fix.log). No warnings or errors in the patched translation unit. The runtime before/after of the bug cannot be tested on this guest (no hardware), so fix_status is not_testable (diff applies + compiles; code path traced closed).

Why not not_reproduced (false-positive)?

This is NOT a false positive. The cited sys/ code is genuinely missing the guard / has the overflow / has the unclamped loop -- verified by reading the source. It is a real bug that is simply out of reach of this particular (driverless) QEMU guest.

Confirmed kernel references

Detail

Exploit chain

none (not a memory-corruption primitive on this guest): i915.ko not attached (no Intel iGPU).

Evidence (decisive lines)

Source trace: intel_bios.c:169,170,173,175,177 + intel_vbt_defs.h:501 confirmed + the sibling get_lvds_fp_timing at :183-200 has the check. Guest PCI: only QEMU stdvga. Fix compile-validated: i915 module rc=0 under -Werror.

PoC changes

Wrote fresh evidence pack under findings/poc/DF-1389/ plus git-apply-able fix.diff mirroring get_lvds_fp_timing's bounds check: read section u16 size from header, validate want > data_size || want + sizeof(struct lvds_dvo_timing) > data_size, return NULL on OOB.

Verified recommended fix

Mirror the bounds check already done by sibling fn get_lvds_fp_timing() (intel_bios.c:189-198): read the section u16 size from ((const u16 *)lvds_lfp_data)[-1] and validate lfp_data_size * index + dvo_timing_offset + sizeof(struct lvds_dvo_timing) <= data_size before computing entry. matches finding proposal.

Verdict

Source-confirmed. get_lvds_dvo_timing() at intel_bios.c:169-177 computes lfp_data_size = ptr[1].dvo - ptr[0].dvo and dvo_timing_offset = ptr[0].dvo - ptr[0].fp from VBT-controlled u16 offsets (intel_vbt_defs.h:501-504 bdb_lvds_lfp_data_ptrs), then entry = data + lfp_data_size * index + dvo_timing_offset with NO section bounds check. Unlike the sibling get_lvds_fp_timing() at :183-200 which validates against data_ofs + data_size. Crafted VBT ptrs -> entry past section -> OOB read. Real OOB read exposed via connector mode list. HW-gated.