[PATCH v2] media: uvcvideo: reject bulk output payloads too small for the header
From: Louis Clinckx
Date: Tue Oct 13 2026 - 07:03:00 EST
A bulk video output stream prefixes each payload with a fixed 2-byte
header written by uvc_video_encode_header(). The per-URB length counter
in uvc_video_encode_bulk() is a signed int initialised to the URB size:
int len = stream->urb_size;
...
len -= uvc_video_encode_header(...); /* returns 2 */
An output device can describe a bulk endpoint with wMaxPacketSize 1 and
negotiate dwMaxPayloadTransferSize 1, leaving stream->urb_size == 1. len
then becomes -1, and uvc_video_encode_data() casts it to unsigned
(nbytes = min((unsigned int)len, ...)), so (unsigned)-1 defeats the
clamp and the following memcpy() copies the whole frame past the
one-byte URB buffer.
Rather than guard the encode path, reject the invalid configuration when
the stream is started: the negotiated maximum payload transfer size must
be able to hold the 2-byte payload header. Requiring size >= 2 also
guarantees urb_size = psize * npackets >= 2, so the encode path can no
longer underflow.
Signed-off-by: Louis Clinckx <clinckx.louis@xxxxxxxxx>
---
v1 -> v2: per review (Ricardo Ribalda, Laurent Pinchart), reject the bad
configuration at stream start in uvc_init_video_bulk() instead
of adding a guard to the encode path. Can move the check to
probe/commit (uvc_fixup_video_ctrl) if preferred.
drivers/media/usb/uvc/uvc_video.c | 10 ++++++++++
1 file changed, 10 insertions(+)
diff --git a/drivers/media/usb/uvc/uvc_video.c b/drivers/media/usb/uvc/uvc_video.c
--- a/drivers/media/usb/uvc/uvc_video.c
+++ b/drivers/media/usb/uvc/uvc_video.c
@@ -1942,6 +1942,16 @@ static int uvc_init_video_bulk(struct uvc_streaming *stream,
size = stream->ctrl.dwMaxPayloadTransferSize;
stream->bulk.max_payload_size = size;
+ /*
+ * Output payloads start with a 2-byte header (see
+ * uvc_video_encode_header()), so a device negotiating a maximum
+ * payload transfer size smaller than that would make the encode
+ * path underflow its signed length counter. Reject it here.
+ */
+ if (stream->type == V4L2_BUF_TYPE_VIDEO_OUTPUT &&
+ stream->bulk.max_payload_size < 2)
+ return -EINVAL;
+
npackets = uvc_alloc_urb_buffers(stream, size, psize, gfp_flags);
if (npackets == 0)
return -ENOMEM;