Patents by Inventor Kenneth Dean JOHNSON
Kenneth Dean JOHNSON has filed for patents to protect the following inventions. This listing includes patent applications that are pending as well as patents that have already been granted by the United States Patent and Trademark Office (USPTO).
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Patent number: 11922168Abstract: A program is executed using a call stack and shadow stack. The call stack includes frames having respective return addresses. The frames may also store variables and/or parameters. The shadow stack stores duplicates of the return addresses in the call stack. The call stack and the shadow stack are maintained by, (i) each time a function is called, adding a corresponding stack frame to the call stack and adding a corresponding return address to the shadow stack, and (ii) each time a function is exited, removing a corresponding frame from the call stack and removing a corresponding return address from the shadow stack. A backtrace of the program's current call chain is generated by accessing the return addresses in the shadow stack. The outputted backtrace includes the return addresses from the shadow stack and/or information about the traced functions that is derived from the shadow stack's return addresses.Type: GrantFiled: March 23, 2022Date of Patent: March 5, 2024Assignee: Microsoft Technology Licensing, LLCInventors: Ben Niu, Gregory John Colombo, Weidong Cui, Jason Lin, Kenneth Dean Johnson
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Publication number: 20230259371Abstract: Dynamically overriding a function based on a capability set. A computer system reads a portion of an executable image file. The portion includes a first memory address corresponding to a first callee function implementation. The first memory address was inserted into the portion by a compiler toolchain. Based on extensible metadata included in the executable image file, and based on a capability set that is specific to the computer system, the computer system determines a second memory address corresponding to a second callee function implementation. Before execution of the portion, the computer system modifies the portion to replace the first memory address with the second memory address.Type: ApplicationFiled: April 19, 2022Publication date: August 17, 2023Inventors: Pranav KANT, Joseph Norman BIALEK, Xiang FAN, YongKang ZHU, Gabriel Thomas Kodjo DOS REIS, Russell Bivens KELDORPH, Mehmet IYIGUN, Russell Charles HADLEY, Roy WILLIAMS, Kenneth Dean JOHNSON, Pedro Miguel SEQUEIRA DE JUSTO TEIXEIRA, Yevgeniy BAK
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Patent number: 11720374Abstract: Dynamically overriding a function based on a capability set. A computer system reads a portion of an executable image file. The portion includes a first memory address corresponding to a first callee function implementation. The first memory address was inserted into the portion by a compiler toolchain. Based on extensible metadata included in the executable image file, and based on a capability set that is specific to the computer system, the computer system determines a second memory address corresponding to a second callee function implementation. Before execution of the portion, the computer system modifies the portion to replace the first memory address with the second memory address.Type: GrantFiled: April 19, 2022Date of Patent: August 8, 2023Assignee: Microsoft Technology Licensing, LLCInventors: Pranav Kant, Joseph Norman Bialek, Xiang Fan, YongKang Zhu, Gabriel Thomas Kodjo Dos Reis, Russell Bivens Keldorph, Mehmet Iyigun, Russell Charles Hadley, Roy Williams, Kenneth Dean Johnson, Pedro Miguel Sequeira De Justo Teixeira, Yevgeniy Bak
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Patent number: 11709931Abstract: Enforcing shadow stack violations at module granularity, rather than at thread or process granularity. An exception is processed during execution of a thread based on code of an application binary, which is enabled for shadow stack enforcement, that calls an external module. The exception results from a mismatch between a return address popped from the thread's call stack and a return address popped from the thread's shadow stack. Processing the exception includes determining that the exception resulted from execution of an instruction in the external module, and determining whether or not the external module is enabled for shadow stack enforcement. Based at least on these determinations, execution of the thread is terminated when the external module is enabled for shadow stack enforcement, or the thread is permitted to continue executing when the external module is not enabled for shadow stack enforcement.Type: GrantFiled: June 6, 2022Date of Patent: July 25, 2023Assignee: Microsoft Technology Licensing, LLCInventors: Jason Lin, Jin Lin, Gregory John Colombo, Niraj Majmudar, Mehmet Iyigun, Shayne Daniel Hiet-Block, Kenneth Dean Johnson
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Publication number: 20220342983Abstract: Enforcing shadow stack violations at module granularity, rather than at thread or process granularity. An exception is processed during execution of a thread based on code of an application binary, which is enabled for shadow stack enforcement, that calls an external module. The exception results from a mismatch between a return address popped from the thread's call stack and a return address popped from the thread's shadow stack. Processing the exception includes determining that the exception resulted from execution of an instruction in the external module, and determining whether or not the external module is enabled for shadow stack enforcement. Based at least on these determinations, execution of the thread is terminated when the external module is enabled for shadow stack enforcement, or the thread is permitted to continue executing when the external module is not enabled for shadow stack enforcement.Type: ApplicationFiled: June 6, 2022Publication date: October 27, 2022Inventors: Jason LIN, Jin LIN, Gregory John COLOMBO, Niraj MAJMUDAR, Mehmet IYIGUN, Shayne Daniel HIET-BLOCK, Kenneth Dean JOHNSON
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Publication number: 20220214882Abstract: A program is executed using a call stack and shadow stack. The call stack includes frames having respective return addresses. The frames may also store variables and/or parameters. The shadow stack stores duplicates of the return addresses in the call stack. The call stack and the shadow stack are maintained by, (i) each time a function is called, adding a corresponding stack frame to the call stack and adding a corresponding return address to the shadow stack, and (ii) each time a function is exited, removing a corresponding frame from the call stack and removing a corresponding return address from the shadow stack. A backtrace of the program's current call chain is generated by accessing the return addresses in the shadow stack. The outputted backtrace includes the return addresses from the shadow stack and/or information about the traced functions that is derived from the shadow stack's return addresses.Type: ApplicationFiled: March 23, 2022Publication date: July 7, 2022Inventors: Ben NIU, Gregory John COLOMBO, Weidong CUI, Jason LIN, Kenneth Dean JOHNSON
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Patent number: 11379579Abstract: Enforcing shadow stack violations at module granularity, rather than at thread or process granularity. An exception is processed during execution of a thread based on code of an application binary, which is enabled for shadow stack enforcement, that calls an external module. The exception results from a mismatch between a return address popped from the thread's call stack and a return address popped from the thread's shadow stack. Processing the exception includes determining that the exception resulted from execution of an instruction in the external module, and determining whether or not the external module is enabled for shadow stack enforcement. Based at least on these determinations, execution of the thread is terminated when the external module is enabled for shadow stack enforcement, or the thread is permitted to continue executing when the external module is not enabled for shadow stack enforcement.Type: GrantFiled: March 24, 2020Date of Patent: July 5, 2022Assignee: Microsoft Technology Licensing, LLCInventors: Jason Lin, Jin Lin, Gregory John Colombo, Niraj Majmudar, Mehmet Iyigun, Shayne Daniel Hiet-Block, Kenneth Dean Johnson
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Patent number: 11294682Abstract: A program is executed using a call stack and shadow stack. The call stack includes frames having respective return addresses. The frames may also store variables and/or parameters. The shadow stack stores duplicates of the return addresses in the call stack. The call stack and the shadow stack are maintained by, (i) each time a function is called, adding a corresponding stack frame to the call stack and adding a corresponding return address to the shadow stack, and (ii) each time a function is exited, removing a corresponding frame from the call stack and removing a corresponding return address from the shadow stack. A backtrace of the program's current call chain is generated by accessing the return addresses in the shadow stack. The outputted backtrace includes the return addresses from the shadow stack and/or information about the traced functions that is derived from the shadow stack's return addresses.Type: GrantFiled: May 20, 2019Date of Patent: April 5, 2022Assignee: Microsoft Technology Licensing, LLCInventors: Ben Niu, Gregory John Colombo, Weidong Cui, Jason Lin, Kenneth Dean Johnson
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Publication number: 20210303680Abstract: Enforcing shadow stack violations at module granularity, rather than at thread or process granularity. An exception is processed during execution of a thread based on code of an application binary, which is enabled for shadow stack enforcement, that calls an external module. The exception results from a mismatch between a return address popped from the thread's call stack and a return address popped from the thread's shadow stack. Processing the exception includes determining that the exception resulted from execution of an instruction in the external module, and determining whether or not the external module is enabled for shadow stack enforcement. Based at least on these determinations, execution of the thread is terminated when the external module is enabled for shadow stack enforcement, or the thread is permitted to continue executing when the external module is not enabled for shadow stack enforcement.Type: ApplicationFiled: March 24, 2020Publication date: September 30, 2021Inventors: Jason LIN, Jin LIN, Gregory John COLOMBO, Niraj MAJMUDAR, Mehmet IYIGUN, Shayne Daniel HIET-BLOCK, Kenneth Dean JOHNSON
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Publication number: 20200371809Abstract: A program is executed using a call stack and shadow stack. The call stack includes frames having respective return addresses. The frames may also store variables and/or parameters. The shadow stack stores duplicates of the return addresses in the call stack. The call stack and the shadow stack are maintained by, (i) each time a function is called, adding a corresponding stack frame to the call stack and adding a corresponding return address to the shadow stack, and (ii) each time a function is exited, removing a corresponding frame from the call stack and removing a corresponding return address from the shadow stack. A backtrace of the program's current call chain is generated by accessing the return addresses in the shadow stack. The outputted backtrace includes the return addresses from the shadow stack and/or information about the traced functions that is derived from the shadow stack's return addresses.Type: ApplicationFiled: May 20, 2019Publication date: November 26, 2020Inventors: Ben NIU, Gregory John COLOMBO, Weidong CUI, Jason LIN, Kenneth Dean JOHNSON