dm thin: make get_first_thin use rcu-safe list first function
Key facts
- Attack vector
- Local
- Privileges required
- Low
- User interaction
- None
- Attack complexity
- Low
- Impact type
- —
- Confidentiality · integrity · availability
- High · High · High
- Fix status
- Partial Red Hat: 5 without a fix
Attack profile from CVSS 3.1 · CNA. Fix status from CNA and Red Hat.
Summary
In the Linux kernel, the following vulnerability has been resolved: dm thin: make get_first_thin use rcu-safe list first function The documentation in rculist.h explains the absence of list_empty_rcu() and cautions programmers against relying on a list_empty() -> list_first() sequence in RCU safe code. This is because each of these functions performs its own READ_ONCE() of the list head. This can lead to a situation where the list_empty() sees a valid list entry, but the subsequent list_first() sees a different view of list head state after a modification. In the case of dm-thin, this author had a production box crash from a GP fault in the process_deferred_bios path. This function saw a valid list head in get_first_thin() but when it subsequently dereferenced that and turned it into a thin_c, it got the inside of the struct pool, since the list was now empty and referring to itself. The kernel on which this occurred printed both a warning about a refcount_t being saturated, and a UBSAN error for an out-of-bounds cpuid access in the queued spinlock, prior to the fault itself. When the resulting kdump was examined, it was possible to see another thread patiently waiting in thin_dtr's synchronize_rcu. The thin_dtr call managed to pull the thin_c out of the active thins list (and have it be the last entry in the active_thins list) at just the wrong moment which lead to this crash. Fortunately, the fix here is straight forward. Switch get_first_thin() function to use list_first_or_null_rcu() which performs just a single READ_ONCE() and returns NULL if the list is already empty. This was run against the devicemapper test suite's thin-provisioning suites for delete and suspend and no regressions were observed.
Why it matters now
SSVC decision points
CISA ADP · SSVC 2.0.3
- Exploitation
- None
- Automatable
- No
- Technical impact
- Total
The decision (Track, Attend, Act) also depends on your mission and well-being impact; see CISA's SSVC guide.
Affected products
| Vendor | Product | Affected versions | Fixed in | Status | Source |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Linux | Linux | 3.15 and later | 5.4.290, 5.10.234, 5.15.177, 6.1.125, 6.6.72, 6.12.10, 6.13 | Patch available | CNA |
- Linux VendorLinux Affected 3.15 and later Fixed in 5.4.290, 5.10.234, 5.15.177, 6.1.125, 6.6.72, 6.12.10, 6.13 Patch available CNA
CPE configurations NVD · 13
| CPE | Versions | Role | Vendor |
|---|---|---|---|
| cpe:2.3:o:linux:linux_kernel:*:*:*:*:*:*:*:* | 3.15.1 to before 5.4.290; 5.5 to before 5.10.234; 5.11 to before 5.15.177; 5.16 to before 6.1.125; 6.2 to before 6.6.72; 6.7 to before 6.12.10 | Vulnerable | Linux |
| cpe:2.3:o:linux:linux_kernel:3.15:-:*:*:*:*:*:* | 3.15 | Vulnerable | Linux |
| cpe:2.3:o:linux:linux_kernel:3.15:rc4:*:*:*:*:*:* | 3.15 rc4 | Vulnerable | Linux |
| cpe:2.3:o:linux:linux_kernel:3.15:rc5:*:*:*:*:*:* | 3.15 rc5 | Vulnerable | Linux |
| cpe:2.3:o:linux:linux_kernel:3.15:rc6:*:*:*:*:*:* | 3.15 rc6 | Vulnerable | Linux |
| cpe:2.3:o:linux:linux_kernel:3.15:rc7:*:*:*:*:*:* | 3.15 rc7 | Vulnerable | Linux |
| cpe:2.3:o:linux:linux_kernel:3.15:rc8:*:*:*:*:*:* | 3.15 rc8 | Vulnerable | Linux |
| cpe:2.3:o:linux:linux_kernel:6.13:rc1:*:*:*:*:*:* | 6.13 rc1 | Vulnerable | Linux |
| cpe:2.3:o:linux:linux_kernel:6.13:rc2:*:*:*:*:*:* | 6.13 rc2 | Vulnerable | Linux |
| cpe:2.3:o:linux:linux_kernel:6.13:rc3:*:*:*:*:*:* | 6.13 rc3 | Vulnerable | Linux |
- cpe:2.3:o:linux:linux_kernel:*:*:*:*:*:*:*:* Versions 3.15.1 to before 5.4.290; 5.5 to before 5.10.234; 5.11 to before 5.15.177; 5.16 to before 6.1.125; 6.2 to before 6.6.72; 6.7 to before 6.12.10 Vulnerable ·Linux
- cpe:2.3:o:linux:linux_kernel:3.15:-:*:*:*:*:*:* Versions 3.15 Vulnerable ·Linux
- cpe:2.3:o:linux:linux_kernel:3.15:rc4:*:*:*:*:*:* Versions 3.15 rc4 Vulnerable ·Linux
- cpe:2.3:o:linux:linux_kernel:3.15:rc5:*:*:*:*:*:* Versions 3.15 rc5 Vulnerable ·Linux
- cpe:2.3:o:linux:linux_kernel:3.15:rc6:*:*:*:*:*:* Versions 3.15 rc6 Vulnerable ·Linux
- cpe:2.3:o:linux:linux_kernel:3.15:rc7:*:*:*:*:*:* Versions 3.15 rc7 Vulnerable ·Linux
- cpe:2.3:o:linux:linux_kernel:3.15:rc8:*:*:*:*:*:* Versions 3.15 rc8 Vulnerable ·Linux
- cpe:2.3:o:linux:linux_kernel:6.13:rc1:*:*:*:*:*:* Versions 6.13 rc1 Vulnerable ·Linux
- cpe:2.3:o:linux:linux_kernel:6.13:rc2:*:*:*:*:*:* Versions 6.13 rc2 Vulnerable ·Linux
- cpe:2.3:o:linux:linux_kernel:6.13:rc3:*:*:*:*:*:* Versions 6.13 rc3 Vulnerable ·Linux
Remediation
- Fix · CNA Linux (Linux) Fixed in 5.4.290, 5.10.234, 5.15.177, 6.1.125, 6.6.72, 6.12.10, 6.13
Vendor assessments
Red Hat
Red Hat rating: Moderate. Red Hat's page for this CVE →
| Product | Status | Plan or fix |
|---|---|---|
| Red Hat Enterprise Linux 10 | Affected | No fix yet: Fix deferred |
| Red Hat Enterprise Linux 6 | Affected | No fix planned: Out of support scope |
| Red Hat Enterprise Linux 7 | Affected | No fix planned: Out of support scope |
| Red Hat Enterprise Linux 8 | Affected | No fix planned: Out of support scope |
| Red Hat Enterprise Linux 9 | Affected | No fix yet: Fix deferred |
Timeline
- 2026-10-02 Threatist record created from CVE-2025-21664
- 2026-10-03 Alias added: GHSA-vp4f-mc7f-v3pc
- 2026-10-16 CISA SSVC decision points changed
References
Patch 7
- https://git.kernel.org/stable/c/ec037fe8c0d0f6140e3d8a49c7b29cb5582160b8
- https://git.kernel.org/stable/c/cd30a3960433ec2db94b3689752fa3c5df44d649
- https://git.kernel.org/stable/c/802666a40c71a23542c43a3f87e3a2d0f4e8fe45
- https://git.kernel.org/stable/c/12771050b6d059eea096993bf2001da9da9fddff
- https://git.kernel.org/stable/c/6b305e98de0d225ccebfb225730a9f560d28ecb0
- https://git.kernel.org/stable/c/cbd0d5ecfa390ac29c5380200147d09c381b2ac6
- https://git.kernel.org/stable/c/80f130bfad1dab93b95683fc39b87235682b8f72
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Sources
- CVE-2025-21664 · CVE Program
- CVE-2025-21664 · NVD
- FIRST EPSS
- GHSA-vp4f-mc7f-v3pc · GitHub Advisory Database · CC BY 4.0
- CVE-2025-21664 · Red Hat security data · CC BY 4.0
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