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Add xen_privcmd.unrestricted to workstation kernel opts#80

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legoktm merged 1 commit intomainfrom
79-cut-privcmd-loose
Apr 9, 2026
Merged

Add xen_privcmd.unrestricted to workstation kernel opts#80
legoktm merged 1 commit intomainfrom
79-cut-privcmd-loose

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@zenmonkeykstop
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@zenmonkeykstop zenmonkeykstop commented Apr 9, 2026

Adds xen_privcmd.unrestricted to the boot options for the workstation kernel, to work around fixes for XSA-482 that are not security-relevant for Qubes.

Test plan

  • Visual review confirming the .cfg file is correctly formatted is sufficient
  • extra points - run make securedrop-workstation-6.6 and verify the additional grub.cfg file is present in the securedrop-workstation-grsec package
  • super extra points - as above but also install the kernel in an SDW template and verify that it boots.

@legoktm legoktm added this pull request to the merge queue Apr 9, 2026
Merged via the queue into main with commit 43995d6 Apr 9, 2026
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@deeplow deeplow deleted the 79-cut-privcmd-loose branch April 10, 2026 14:40
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deeplow commented Apr 10, 2026

I may be late on this one, but I'll share my findings anyways.

Adds xen_privcmd.unrestricted to the boot options for the workstation kernel, to work around fixes for XSA-482 that are not security-relevant for Qubes.

In the commit message where this patch is introduced it's mentioned:

Note this does weaken in-VM isolation a bit (or rather: revert recent improvement), especially against processes with access to /dev/xen/privcmd. But it does not affect cross-VM isolation.

Since it's creation the client's apparmor includes binary and therefore think that it deserves some consideration.

Since it was a relatively recent feature, I don't think this should block a kernel release (whole delay also has security implications), but I wanted to share my findings for a potential future evaluation in an topic-adjacent conversation we have planned.

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3 participants