A linker replacement to help protect against malicious build scripts
build-wrap
"re-links" a build script so that it is executed under another command. By default, the command is Bubblewrap (Linux) or sandbox-exec
(macOS), though this is configurable. See Environment variables that build-wrap
reads and How build-wrap
works for more information.
Installing build-wrap
requires two steps:
- Install
build-wrap
with Cargo:cargo install build-wrap
- Create a
.cargo/config.toml
file in your home directory with the following contents:[target.'cfg(all())'] linker = "build-wrap"
Ubuntu's default AppArmor profiles changed with version 24.04. The changes affect Bubblewrap, which in turn affect build-wrap
. Thus, installing build-wrap
on Ubuntu 24.04 requires some additional steps:
sudo apt install apparmor-profiles
sudo cp /usr/share/apparmor/extra-profiles/bwrap-userns-restrict /etc/apparmor.d
sudo systemctl reload apparmor
Note that following these additional steps, Bubblewrap still runs unprivileged. More information on AppArmor profiles can be found on Ubuntu Server and the Ubuntu Community Wiki.
Note that the below environment variables are read when a build script is linked. So, for example, changing BUILD_WRAP_CMD
will not change the command used to execute already linked build scripts.
-
BUILD_WRAP_ALLOW
: When set to a value other than0
,build-wrap
uses the following weakened strategy. If running a build script underBUILD_WRAP_CMD
fails, report the failure and rerun the build script normally.Note that to see the reported failures, you must invoke Cargo with the
-vv
("very verbose") flag, e.g.:BUILD_WRAP_ALLOW=1 cargo build -vv
-
BUILD_WRAP_CMD
: Command used to execute a build script. Linux default:-
With comments:
bwrap --ro-bind / / # Allow read-only access everywhere --dev-bind /dev /dev # Allow device access --bind {OUT_DIR} {OUT_DIR} # Allow write access to `OUT_DIR` --bind /tmp /tmp # Allow write access to /tmp --unshare-net # Deny network access {} # Build script path
-
On one line (for copying-and-pasting):
bwrap --ro-bind / / --dev-bind /dev /dev --bind {OUT_DIR} {OUT_DIR} --bind /tmp /tmp --unshare-net {}
Note that
bwrap
is Bubblewrap.macOS default:
sandbox-exec -f {BUILD_WRAP_PROFILE_PATH} {}
See Environment variables that
build-wrap
treats as set regardingBUILD_WRAP_PROFILE_PATH
. -
-
BUILD_WRAP_LD
: Linker to use. Default:cc
-
BUILD_WRAP_PROFILE
: macOS only.build-wrap
expandsBUILD_WRAP_PROFILE
as it wouldBUILD_WRAP_CMD
, and writes the results to a temporary file.BUILD_WRAP_PROFILE_PATH
then expands to the absolute path of that temporary file. Default:(version 1) (deny default) (allow file-read*) ;; Allow read-only access everywhere (allow file-write* (subpath "/dev")) ;; Allow write access to /dev (allow file-write* (subpath "{OUT_DIR}")) ;; Allow write access to `OUT_DIR` (allow file-write* (subpath "{TMPDIR}")) ;; Allow write access to `TMPDIR` (allow file-write* (subpath "{PRIVATE_TMPDIR}")) ;; Allow write access to `PRIVATE_TMPDIR` (see below) (allow process-exec) ;; Allow `exec` (allow process-fork) ;; Allow `fork` (allow sysctl-read) ;; Allow reading kernel state (deny network*) ;; Deny network access
Note that we say "treats as set" because these are considered only when BUILD_WRAP_CMD
is expanded.
-
BUILD_WRAP_PROFILE_PATH
: Expands to the absolute path of a temporary file containing the expanded contents ofBUILD_WRAP_PROFILE
. -
PRIVATE_TMPDIR
: IfTMPDIR
is set to a path in/private
(as is typical on macOS), thenPRIVATE_TMPDIR
expands to that path. This is needed for some build scripts that usecc-rs
, though the exact reason it is needed is still unknown.
{}
is replaced with the path of a renamed copy of the original build script.{VAR}
is replaced with the value of environment variableVAR
.{{
is replaced with{
.}}
is replaced with}
.\
followed by a whitespace character is replaced with that whitespace character.\\
is replaced with\
.
When invoked, build-wrap
does the following:
- Link normally using
BUILD_WRAP_LD
. - Parse the arguments to determine whether the output file is a build script.
- If not, stop; otherwise, proceed.
- Let
B
be the build script's original name. - Rename the build script to a fresh, unused name
B'
. - At
B
, create a "wrapped" version of the build script whose behavior is described next.
The "wrapped" version of the build script does the following when invoked:
- Expand
BUILD_WRAP_CMD
in the manner described above, with{}
expanding toB'
. - Execute the expanded command.
- Aside from configuration and dealing with an occasional warning,
build-wrap
should not require a user to adjust their normal workflow.