Kernel panic copying files from SMB share via wireless LAN

[Colin Fletcher]

Binary package hint: kernel-image-2.6.20-16-generic-di

When copying files from an SMB share to my laptop using Nautilus, I occasionally get a hard lockup (CapsLock and NumLock blinking). I've now reproduced this while in a text console, and grabbed some pictures of the call traces, which I'll attach, along with dmesg and so forth.

I was originally using the 2.6.20-16-lowlatency kernel when I found this, but I switched back to 2.6.20-16-generic and managed to provoke a similar crash.

[Colin Fletcher (colinf-axicon)]

This one was before I switched my console into 80x50 mode, so it only shows the end of the call trace.

[Colin Fletcher (colinf-axicon)]

This is dmesg output from startup: obviously there's nothing in there after the panic...

[Colin Fletcher (colinf-axicon)]

Ok, I'll really attach it this time... This is the end of the call stack from the previous time I caught it on screen (in 80x25 mode).

[Jérôme Guelfucci (jerome-guelfucci-deactivatedaccount)]

Thank you for your bug report. Could you please give us the output of uname -a ? Thanks.

[Colin Fletcher (colinf-axicon)]

Jérôme Guelfucci wrote:
> Thank you for your bug report. Could you please give us the output of
> uname -a ? Thanks.
>

Thanks for your prompt response. Of course, I meant to attach it, but it
seems I forgot: sorry!

At the moment I'm booted back into the lowlatency kernel:

Linux colinf-laptop 2.6.20-16-lowlatency #2 SMP PREEMPT Fri Aug 31
00:58:46 UTC 2007 i686 GNU/Linux

but the panic screenshots were from the standard 2.6.20-16-generic
Ubuntu kernel. I can boot back into that in a few moments if there's
anything else you'd like me to try or tell you.

Colin Fletcher.

[Jérôme Guelfucci (jerome-guelfucci-deactivatedaccount)]

Thank you very much. I'm marking this as triaged and assigning it to the kernel team.

[Leann Ogasawara (leannogasawara)]

Hi Colin,

This bug was reported a while ago but there hasn't been any recent activity. The Hardy Heron Alpha series is currently under development and contains an updated version of the kernel. It would be helpful if you could test the latest Hardy Alpha release: http://www.ubuntu.com/testing . You should be able to then test the new kernel via the LiveCD. If you can, please verify if this bug still exists or not and report back your results. Thanks.

[Alex Schiller (aschill)]

I am experiencing a similar problem to Colin's, though it seems to be more severe: viewing a directory mounted with CIFS in Nautilus produces a kernel panic within ~30 seconds (caps and num lock flashing). There is no problem with listing directory contents or copying files through the console.

$ uname -a
-| Linux bear 2.6.22-14-generic #1 SMP Tue Feb 12 07:42:25 UTC 2008 i686 GNU/Linux

I am on a Dell D630 Laptop with Gutsy 7.10. I will test this behavior when Hardy is released in several days.

[Colin Fletcher (colinf-axicon)]

I tried to reproduce this with the Hardy live CD, but for some reason wasn't able to log in to any SMB shares while booted from the CD.

However, I have booted my Gutsy 7.10 system with kernels 2.6.24.3, 2.6.24.4, and 2.6.25 from kernel.org (compiled with Gutsy .config and kernel.org defaults for new options, except for setting CONFIG_PREEMPT=y and CONFIG_HZ_1000=y), and I've not reproduced this problem with any of these kernels.

[Leann Ogasawara (leannogasawara)]

The Ubuntu Kernel Team is planning to move to the 2.6.27 kernel for the upcoming Intrepid Ibex 8.10 release. As a result, the kernel team would appreciate it if you could please test this newer 2.6.27 Ubuntu kernel. There are one of two ways you should be able to test:

1) If you are comfortable installing packages on your own, the linux-image-2.6.27-* package is currently available for you to install and test.

--or--

2) The upcoming Alpha5 for Intrepid Ibex 8.10 will contain this newer 2.6.27 Ubuntu kernel. Alpha5 is set to be released Thursday Sept 4. Please watch http://www.ubuntu.com/testing for Alpha5 to be announced. You should then be able to test via a LiveCD.

Please let us know immediately if this newer 2.6.27 kernel resolves the bug reported here or if the issue remains. More importantly, please open a new bug report for each new bug/regression introduced by the 2.6.27 kernel and tag the bug report with 'linux-2.6.27'. Also, please specifically note if the issue does or does not appear in the 2.6.26 kernel. Thanks again, we really appreicate your help and feedback.

[minneyar (phillip-reed)]

I'm seeing kernel panics on two different computers running Intrepid when accessing CIFS shares. Both of them have the following in their uname -a:

2.6.27-7-generic #1 SMP Tue Nov 4 19:33:20 UTC 2008 i686 GNU/Linux

I've tried to get a picture of the call stack, but my computers seem to immediately reboot after the trace is done printing.

[Colin Fletcher (colinf-axicon)]

I've not been able to test the Intrepid Ibex 2.6.27 kernel, but I'm still seeing an occasional kernel panic in Hardy with kernel.org 2.6.27.6. It's happened once or twice under heavy network load but without CIFS or SMB involved, too

I eventually caught the panic log with netconsole, and I think the bug is this one:

http://bugzilla.kernel.org/show_bug.cgi?id=11386

[i1 (ian-oliver)]

I'm getting similar problems under Intrepid Ibex:

Linux ian-desktop 2.6.27-7-generic #1 SMP Tue Nov 4 19:33:20 UTC 2008 i686 GNU/Linux

mount -t cifs //xxx.xxx.xxx.xxx/yyy /home/zzz/UnixHome -o username=zzz,iocharset=utf8,file_mode=0777,dir_mode=0777

Any attempt to access this mount via Nautilus ( graphical UI file manager under Gnome) results in the machine locking with the caps lock and scroll lock lights flashing.

Machine is a Dell Precision 690 (2xdual core, 4Gb RAM)

[Launchpad Janitor (janitor)]

Per a decision made by the Ubuntu Kernel Team, bugs will longer be assigned to the ubuntu-kernel-team in Launchpad as part of the bug triage process. The ubuntu-kernel-team is being unassigned from this bug report. Refer to https://wiki.ubuntu.com/KernelTeamBugPolicies for more information. Thanks.

[Stefan Bader (smb)]

Is this issue still seen with the latest Jaunty beta? If so, please provide exactly which network card is used. It is also near impossible to get ahead without the actual backtrace. Is it possible to switch quickly to the console with ctrl-alt-f1?

[Colin Fletcher (colinf-axicon)]

I've just booted the Jaunty beta live CD and set up netconsole logging: I'm trying to reproduce this bug now. It may take a while: I don't have a reliable recipe to make it fail besides 'send & receive loads of data via the wireless network', which sometimes fails immediately and sometimes works for hours.

sudo lspci -vv says the following about the wireless network card:

02:00.0 Network controller: Intersil Corporation ISL3890 [Prism GT/Prism Duette]/ISL3886 [Prism Javelin/Prism Xbow] (rev 01)
 Subsystem: Z-Com, Inc. Device 0014
 Control: I/O- Mem+ BusMaster+ SpecCycle- MemWINV+ VGASnoop- ParErr- Stepping- SERR- FastB2B- DisINTx-
 Status: Cap+ 66MHz- UDF- FastB2B+ ParErr- DEVSEL=medium >TAbort- <TAbort- <MAbort- >SERR- <PERR- INTx+
 Latency: 64 (2500ns min, 7000ns max), Cache Line Size: 128 bytes
 Interrupt: pin A routed to IRQ 17
 Region 0: Memory at 44000000 (32-bit, non-prefetchable) [size=8K]
 Capabilities: [dc] Power Management version 1
  Flags: PMEClk- DSI- D1+ D2+ AuxCurrent=0mA PME(D0+,D1+,D2+,D3hot+,D3cold+)
  Status: D0 PME-Enable- DSel=0 DScale=0 PME-
 Kernel driver in use: p54pci
 Kernel modules: p54pci, prism54

[Colin Fletcher (colinf-axicon)]

I've just copied files continuously for over an hour over the wireless network, and so far it hasn't failed, so that's pretty good (though maybe not 100% conclusive) evidence that this is fixed in Jaunty.

I've been using Hardy with the 2.6.27.21 kernel.org kernel, where this bug definitely still exists. I'll try updating that kernel to the latest stable 2.6.28, to see whether it's been fixed there: if that's the case, and assuming that all the relevant -stable patches are in the Jaunty kernel, I reckon this bug could be closed.

[Colin Fletcher (colinf-axicon)]

For the sake of completeness, here's a crash log from Hardy with vanilla kernel 2.6.27.21.

[Stefan Bader (smb)]

Ok, the trace clearly indicates, that the bug happens in the p54 wireless driver. It might even be that this was already resolved in the updated wireless drivers in the linux-backports-modules. The drivers in the kernel are often behind, as it is often a problem to get those fixed.
I would somehow close of this bug as fixed, as it seems to work in Jaunty. But feel free to open it again if you disagree with that decision.

[Stefan Bader (smb)]

Problem has been resolved in Jaunty.