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Ming Lei a4ab97e34b mm: fix NULL NODE_DATA dereference for memoryless nodes on boot
Commit d49004c5f0 ("arch, mm: consolidate initialization of nodes, zones
and memory map") moved free_area_init() from setup_arch() to
mm_core_init_early(), which runs after setup_arch() returns.

This changed the ordering relative to init_cpu_to_node() on x86.  Before
the commit, free_area_init() ran during paging_init() (called from
setup_arch()) *before* init_cpu_to_node().  After the commit, it runs
*after* init_cpu_to_node().

On machines with memoryless NUMA nodes (e.g., node 0 has CPUs but no
memory), this causes a NULL pointer dereference:

 1. numa_register_nodes() skips memoryless nodes: no alloc_node_data()
    and no node_set_online() for them.
 2. init_cpu_to_node() sets memoryless nodes online (they have CPUs)
    but does not allocate NODE_DATA.
 3. free_area_init() checks "if (!node_online(nid))" to decide whether
    to call alloc_offline_node_data(). Since the memoryless node is now
    online, the allocation is skipped, leaving NODE_DATA(nid) == NULL.
 4. The immediate "pgdat = NODE_DATA(nid)" dereferences NULL.

The crash happens before console_init(), so no output is visible without
earlyprintk.  With earlyprintk enabled, the following panic is observed:

 BUG: unable to handle page fault for address: 000000000002a1e0
 Oops: Oops: 0000 [#1] SMP NOPTI
 RIP: 0010:free_area_init_node+0x3a/0x540
 Call Trace:
  <TASK>
  free_area_init+0x331/0x4e0
  start_kernel+0x69/0x4a0
  x86_64_start_reservations+0x24/0x30
  x86_64_start_kernel+0x125/0x130
  common_startup_64+0x13e/0x148
  </TASK>
 Kernel panic - not syncing: Attempted to kill the idle task!

Fix this by checking "if (!NODE_DATA(nid))" instead of "if
(!node_online(nid))".  This directly tests whether the per-node data
structure needs to be allocated, regardless of the node's online status. 
This change is also safe for non-x86 architectures as they all allocate
NODE_DATA for every node including memoryless ones, so the check simply
evaluates to false with no change in behavior.

Link: https://lkml.kernel.org/r/20260222115702.3659-1-ming.lei@redhat.com
Fixes: d49004c5f0 ("arch, mm: consolidate initialization of nodes, zones and memory map")
Signed-off-by: Ming Lei <ming.lei@redhat.com>
Reviewed-by: Mike Rapoport (Microsoft) <rppt@kernel.org>
Signed-off-by: Andrew Morton <akpm@linux-foundation.org>
2026-02-24 11:13:28 -08:00
arch Convert remaining multi-line kmalloc_obj/flex GFP_KERNEL uses 2026-02-22 08:26:33 -08:00
block Convert remaining multi-line kmalloc_obj/flex GFP_KERNEL uses 2026-02-22 08:26:33 -08:00
certs Convert 'alloc_obj' family to use the new default GFP_KERNEL argument 2026-02-21 17:09:51 -08:00
crypto x509: select CONFIG_CRYPTO_LIB_SHA256 2026-02-22 12:09:23 -08:00
Documentation RTC for 7.0 2026-02-22 09:43:11 -08:00
drivers RTC for 7.0 2026-02-22 09:43:11 -08:00
fs Squashfs: check metadata block offset is within range 2026-02-24 11:13:27 -08:00
include mm/tracing: rss_stat: ensure curr is false from kthread context 2026-02-24 11:13:27 -08:00
init Convert 'alloc_flex' family to use the new default GFP_KERNEL argument 2026-02-21 17:09:51 -08:00
io_uring Convert 'alloc_flex' family to use the new default GFP_KERNEL argument 2026-02-21 17:09:51 -08:00
ipc Convert 'alloc_obj' family to use the new default GFP_KERNEL argument 2026-02-21 17:09:51 -08:00
kernel liveupdate: luo_file: remember retrieve() status 2026-02-24 11:13:26 -08:00
lib Crypto library fix for v7.0-rc1 2026-02-22 13:09:33 -08:00
LICENSES LICENSES: Add modern form of the LGPL-2.1 tags to the usage guide section 2025-10-22 07:58:19 +02:00
mm mm: fix NULL NODE_DATA dereference for memoryless nodes on boot 2026-02-24 11:13:28 -08:00
net Convert remaining multi-line kmalloc_obj/flex GFP_KERNEL uses 2026-02-22 08:26:33 -08:00
rust Rust fixes for v7.0-rc1 2026-02-22 08:43:31 -08:00
samples USB / Thunderbolt changes for 7.0-rc1 2026-02-17 09:36:43 -08:00
scripts Convert 'alloc_obj' family to use the new default GFP_KERNEL argument 2026-02-21 17:09:51 -08:00
security Convert remaining multi-line kmalloc_obj/flex GFP_KERNEL uses 2026-02-22 08:26:33 -08:00
sound Convert remaining multi-line kmalloc_obj/flex GFP_KERNEL uses 2026-02-22 08:26:33 -08:00
tools Rust fixes for v7.0-rc1 2026-02-22 08:43:31 -08:00
usr kbuild: uapi: drop dependency on CC_CAN_LINK 2026-01-16 15:02:11 -07:00
virt Convert 'alloc_obj' family to use the new default GFP_KERNEL argument 2026-02-21 17:09:51 -08:00
.clang-format Devicetree updates for v7.0: 2026-02-11 18:27:08 -08:00
.clippy.toml rust: clean Rust 1.88.0's warning about clippy::disallowed_macros configuration 2025-05-07 00:11:47 +02:00
.cocciconfig
.editorconfig editorconfig: add rst extension 2026-01-26 19:07:09 -08:00
.get_maintainer.ignore MAINTAINERS: remove Alyssa Rosenzweig 2025-09-18 21:17:31 +02:00
.gitattributes .gitattributes: set diff driver for Rust source code files 2023-05-31 17:48:25 +02:00
.gitignore rust: kbuild: add proc macro library support 2025-11-24 17:15:36 +01:00
.mailmap MAINTAINERS, mailmap: update e-mail address for Vlastimil Babka 2026-02-24 11:13:26 -08:00
.pylintrc docs: Move the python libraries to tools/lib/python 2025-11-18 09:22:40 -07:00
.rustfmt.toml rust: add .rustfmt.toml 2022-09-28 09:02:20 +02:00
COPYING COPYING: state that all contributions really are covered by this file 2020-02-10 13:32:20 -08:00
CREDITS CREDITS: Add -next to Stephen Rothwell's entry 2026-02-22 12:11:33 -08:00
Kbuild sched: Make migrate_{en,dis}able() inline 2025-09-25 09:57:16 +02:00
Kconfig io_uring: Rename KConfig to Kconfig 2025-02-19 14:53:27 -07:00
MAINTAINERS MAINTAINERS, mailmap: update e-mail address for Vlastimil Babka 2026-02-24 11:13:26 -08:00
Makefile Linux 7.0-rc1 2026-02-22 13:18:59 -08:00
README docs: add AI Coding Assistants documentation 2026-01-06 14:55:06 -07:00

Linux kernel
============

The Linux kernel is the core of any Linux operating system. It manages hardware,
system resources, and provides the fundamental services for all other software.

Quick Start
-----------

* Report a bug: See Documentation/admin-guide/reporting-issues.rst
* Get the latest kernel: https://kernel.org
* Build the kernel: See Documentation/admin-guide/quickly-build-trimmed-linux.rst
* Join the community: https://lore.kernel.org/

Essential Documentation
-----------------------

All users should be familiar with:

* Building requirements: Documentation/process/changes.rst
* Code of Conduct: Documentation/process/code-of-conduct.rst
* License: See COPYING

Documentation can be built with make htmldocs or viewed online at:
https://www.kernel.org/doc/html/latest/


Who Are You?
============

Find your role below:

* New Kernel Developer - Getting started with kernel development
* Academic Researcher - Studying kernel internals and architecture
* Security Expert - Hardening and vulnerability analysis
* Backport/Maintenance Engineer - Maintaining stable kernels
* System Administrator - Configuring and troubleshooting
* Maintainer - Leading subsystems and reviewing patches
* Hardware Vendor - Writing drivers for new hardware
* Distribution Maintainer - Packaging kernels for distros
* AI Coding Assistant - LLMs and AI-powered development tools


For Specific Users
==================

New Kernel Developer
--------------------

Welcome! Start your kernel development journey here:

* Getting Started: Documentation/process/development-process.rst
* Your First Patch: Documentation/process/submitting-patches.rst
* Coding Style: Documentation/process/coding-style.rst
* Build System: Documentation/kbuild/index.rst
* Development Tools: Documentation/dev-tools/index.rst
* Kernel Hacking Guide: Documentation/kernel-hacking/hacking.rst
* Core APIs: Documentation/core-api/index.rst

Academic Researcher
-------------------

Explore the kernel's architecture and internals:

* Researcher Guidelines: Documentation/process/researcher-guidelines.rst
* Memory Management: Documentation/mm/index.rst
* Scheduler: Documentation/scheduler/index.rst
* Networking Stack: Documentation/networking/index.rst
* Filesystems: Documentation/filesystems/index.rst
* RCU (Read-Copy Update): Documentation/RCU/index.rst
* Locking Primitives: Documentation/locking/index.rst
* Power Management: Documentation/power/index.rst

Security Expert
---------------

Security documentation and hardening guides:

* Security Documentation: Documentation/security/index.rst
* LSM Development: Documentation/security/lsm-development.rst
* Self Protection: Documentation/security/self-protection.rst
* Reporting Vulnerabilities: Documentation/process/security-bugs.rst
* CVE Procedures: Documentation/process/cve.rst
* Embargoed Hardware Issues: Documentation/process/embargoed-hardware-issues.rst
* Security Features: Documentation/userspace-api/seccomp_filter.rst

Backport/Maintenance Engineer
-----------------------------

Maintain and stabilize kernel versions:

* Stable Kernel Rules: Documentation/process/stable-kernel-rules.rst
* Backporting Guide: Documentation/process/backporting.rst
* Applying Patches: Documentation/process/applying-patches.rst
* Subsystem Profile: Documentation/maintainer/maintainer-entry-profile.rst
* Git for Maintainers: Documentation/maintainer/configure-git.rst

System Administrator
--------------------

Configure, tune, and troubleshoot Linux systems:

* Admin Guide: Documentation/admin-guide/index.rst
* Kernel Parameters: Documentation/admin-guide/kernel-parameters.rst
* Sysctl Tuning: Documentation/admin-guide/sysctl/index.rst
* Tracing/Debugging: Documentation/trace/index.rst
* Performance Security: Documentation/admin-guide/perf-security.rst
* Hardware Monitoring: Documentation/hwmon/index.rst

Maintainer
----------

Lead kernel subsystems and manage contributions:

* Maintainer Handbook: Documentation/maintainer/index.rst
* Pull Requests: Documentation/maintainer/pull-requests.rst
* Managing Patches: Documentation/maintainer/modifying-patches.rst
* Rebasing and Merging: Documentation/maintainer/rebasing-and-merging.rst
* Development Process: Documentation/process/maintainer-handbooks.rst
* Maintainer Entry Profile: Documentation/maintainer/maintainer-entry-profile.rst
* Git Configuration: Documentation/maintainer/configure-git.rst

Hardware Vendor
---------------

Write drivers and support new hardware:

* Driver API Guide: Documentation/driver-api/index.rst
* Driver Model: Documentation/driver-api/driver-model/driver.rst
* Device Drivers: Documentation/driver-api/infrastructure.rst
* Bus Types: Documentation/driver-api/driver-model/bus.rst
* Device Tree Bindings: Documentation/devicetree/bindings/
* Power Management: Documentation/driver-api/pm/index.rst
* DMA API: Documentation/core-api/dma-api.rst

Distribution Maintainer
-----------------------

Package and distribute the kernel:

* Stable Kernel Rules: Documentation/process/stable-kernel-rules.rst
* ABI Documentation: Documentation/ABI/README
* Kernel Configuration: Documentation/kbuild/kconfig.rst
* Module Signing: Documentation/admin-guide/module-signing.rst
* Kernel Parameters: Documentation/admin-guide/kernel-parameters.rst
* Tainted Kernels: Documentation/admin-guide/tainted-kernels.rst

AI Coding Assistant
-------------------

CRITICAL: If you are an LLM or AI-powered coding assistant, you MUST read and
follow the AI coding assistants documentation before contributing to the Linux
kernel:

* Documentation/process/coding-assistants.rst

This documentation contains essential requirements about licensing, attribution,
and the Developer Certificate of Origin that all AI tools must comply with.


Communication and Support
=========================

* Mailing Lists: https://lore.kernel.org/
* IRC: #kernelnewbies on irc.oftc.net
* Bugzilla: https://bugzilla.kernel.org/
* MAINTAINERS file: Lists subsystem maintainers and mailing lists
* Email Clients: Documentation/process/email-clients.rst