cxl/port: Fix use after free of parent_port in cxl_detach_ep()
Key facts
- Attack vector
- Local
- Privileges required
- Low
- User interaction
- None
- Attack complexity
- Low
- Impact type
- Code execution
- Confidentiality · integrity · availability
- High · High · High
- Fix status
- Fixed
Attack profile from CVSS 3.1 · NVD. Fix status from CNA and Red Hat. Impact type from CWE-416 and the CVSS impact.
Summary
In the Linux kernel, the following vulnerability has been resolved: cxl/port: Fix use after free of parent_port in cxl_detach_ep() cxl_detach_ep() is called during bottom-up removal when all CXL memory devices beneath a switch port have been removed. For each port in the hierarchy it locks both the port and its parent, removes the endpoint, and if the port is now empty, marks it dead and unregisters the port by calling delete_switch_port(). There are two places during this work where the parent_port may be used after freeing: First, a concurrent detach may have already processed a port by the time a second worker finds it via bus_find_device(). Without pinning parent_port, it may already be freed when we discover port->dead and attempt to unlock the parent_port. In a production kernel that's a silent memory corruption, with lock debug, it looks like this: []DEBUG_LOCKS_WARN_ON(__owner_task(owner) != get_current()) []WARNING: kernel/locking/mutex.c:949 at __mutex_unlock_slowpath+0x1ee/0x310 []Call Trace: []mutex_unlock+0xd/0x20 []cxl_detach_ep+0x180/0x400 [cxl_core] []devm_action_release+0x10/0x20 []devres_release_all+0xa8/0xe0 []device_unbind_cleanup+0xd/0xa0 []really_probe+0x1a6/0x3e0 Second, delete_switch_port() releases three devm actions registered against parent_port. The last of those is unregister_port() and it calls device_unregister() on the child port, which can cascade. If parent_port is now also empty the device core may unregister and free it too. So by the time delete_switch_port() returns, parent_port may be free, and the subsequent device_unlock(&parent_port->dev) operates on freed memory. The kernel log looks same as above, with a different offset in cxl_detach_ep(). Both of these issues stem from the absence of a lifetime guarantee between a child port and its parent port. Establish a lifetime rule for ports: child ports hold a reference to their parent device until release. Take the reference when the port is allocated and drop it when released. This ensures the parent is valid for the full lifetime of the child and eliminates the use after free window in cxl_detach_ep(). This is easily reproduced with a reload of cxl_acpi in QEMU with CXL devices present.
Why it matters now
SSVC decision points
CISA ADP · SSVC 2.0.3
- Exploitation
- None
- Automatable
- No
- Technical impact
- Partial
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 | 6.3 and later | 6.6.160, 6.12.80, 6.18.21, 6.19.11, 7.0 | Patch available | CNA |
- Linux VendorLinux Affected 6.3 and later Fixed in 6.6.160, 6.12.80, 6.18.21, 6.19.11, 7.0 Patch available CNA
CPE configurations NVD · 6
| CPE | Versions | Role | Vendor |
|---|---|---|---|
| cpe:2.3:o:linux:linux_kernel:*:*:*:*:*:*:*:* | 6.3 to before 6.12.80; 6.13 to before 6.18.21; 6.19 to before 6.19.11 | Vulnerable | Linux |
| cpe:2.3:o:linux:linux_kernel:7.0:rc1:*:*:*:*:*:* | 7.0 rc1 | Vulnerable | Linux |
| cpe:2.3:o:linux:linux_kernel:7.0:rc2:*:*:*:*:*:* | 7.0 rc2 | Vulnerable | Linux |
| cpe:2.3:o:linux:linux_kernel:7.0:rc3:*:*:*:*:*:* | 7.0 rc3 | Vulnerable | Linux |
| cpe:2.3:o:linux:linux_kernel:7.0:rc4:*:*:*:*:*:* | 7.0 rc4 | Vulnerable | Linux |
| cpe:2.3:o:linux:linux_kernel:7.0:rc5:*:*:*:*:*:* | 7.0 rc5 | Vulnerable | Linux |
- cpe:2.3:o:linux:linux_kernel:*:*:*:*:*:*:*:* Versions 6.3 to before 6.12.80; 6.13 to before 6.18.21; 6.19 to before 6.19.11 Vulnerable ·Linux
- cpe:2.3:o:linux:linux_kernel:7.0:rc1:*:*:*:*:*:* Versions 7.0 rc1 Vulnerable ·Linux
- cpe:2.3:o:linux:linux_kernel:7.0:rc2:*:*:*:*:*:* Versions 7.0 rc2 Vulnerable ·Linux
- cpe:2.3:o:linux:linux_kernel:7.0:rc3:*:*:*:*:*:* Versions 7.0 rc3 Vulnerable ·Linux
- cpe:2.3:o:linux:linux_kernel:7.0:rc4:*:*:*:*:*:* Versions 7.0 rc4 Vulnerable ·Linux
- cpe:2.3:o:linux:linux_kernel:7.0:rc5:*:*:*:*:*:* Versions 7.0 rc5 Vulnerable ·Linux
Remediation
- Fix · CNA Linux (Linux) Fixed in 6.6.160, 6.12.80, 6.18.21, 6.19.11, 7.0
Red Hat 2 advisories
- RHSA-2026:53329 Released 2026-08-11 · Red Hat rating Importantkernel security, bug fix, and enhancement update
- Red Hat Enterprise Linux AppStream (v. 9) kernel-64k-debug-devel-5.14.0-687.38.1.el9_8, kernel-64k-debug-devel-matched-5.14.0-687.38.1.el9_8, kernel-64k-devel-5.14.0-687.38.1.el9_8 +12
- Red Hat Enterprise Linux BaseOS (v. 9) kernel-5.14.0-687.38.1.el9_8, kernel-64k-5.14.0-687.38.1.el9_8, kernel-64k-core-5.14.0-687.38.1.el9_8 +28
- Red Hat Enterprise Linux CodeReady Linux Builder (v. 9) kernel-tools-libs-devel-5.14.0-687.38.1.el9_8, libperf-5.14.0-687.38.1.el9_8
- Red Hat Enterprise Linux Real Time (v. 9) kernel-rt-5.14.0-687.38.1.el9_8, kernel-rt-64k-5.14.0-687.38.1.el9_8, kernel-rt-64k-core-5.14.0-687.38.1.el9_8 +21
- Red Hat Enterprise Linux Real Time for NFV (v. 9) kernel-rt-5.14.0-687.38.1.el9_8, kernel-rt-core-5.14.0-687.38.1.el9_8, kernel-rt-debug-5.14.0-687.38.1.el9_8 +9
- RHSA-2026:42919 Released 2026-07-21 · Red Hat rating Importantkernel security, bug fix, and enhancement update
- Red Hat Enterprise Linux AppStream (v. 10) kernel-64k-debug-devel-6.12.0-211.37.1.el10_2, kernel-64k-debug-devel-matched-6.12.0-211.37.1.el10_2, kernel-64k-devel-6.12.0-211.37.1.el10_2 +12
- Red Hat Enterprise Linux BaseOS (v. 10) kernel-6.12.0-211.37.1.el10_2, kernel-64k-6.12.0-211.37.1.el10_2, kernel-64k-core-6.12.0-211.37.1.el10_2 +29
- Red Hat Enterprise Linux CodeReady Linux Builder (v. 10) kernel-tools-libs-devel-6.12.0-211.37.1.el10_2, libperf-6.12.0-211.37.1.el10_2
- Red Hat Enterprise Linux Real Time (v. 10) kernel-rt-6.12.0-211.37.1.el10_2, kernel-rt-64k-6.12.0-211.37.1.el10_2, kernel-rt-64k-core-6.12.0-211.37.1.el10_2 +21
- Red Hat Enterprise Linux Real Time for NFV (v. 10) kernel-rt-6.12.0-211.37.1.el10_2, kernel-rt-core-6.12.0-211.37.1.el10_2, kernel-rt-debug-6.12.0-211.37.1.el10_2 +9
Vendor assessments
Red Hat
Red Hat rating: Moderate. Red Hat's page for this CVE →
| Product | Status | Plan or fix |
|---|---|---|
| Red Hat Enterprise Linux AppStream (v. 10) | Fixed | RHSA-2026:42919 |
| Red Hat Enterprise Linux AppStream (v. 9) | Fixed | RHSA-2026:53329 |
| Red Hat Enterprise Linux BaseOS (v. 10) | Fixed | RHSA-2026:42919 |
| Red Hat Enterprise Linux BaseOS (v. 9) | Fixed | RHSA-2026:53329 |
| Red Hat Enterprise Linux CodeReady Linux Builder (v. 10) | Fixed | RHSA-2026:42919 |
| Red Hat Enterprise Linux CodeReady Linux Builder (v. 9) | Fixed | RHSA-2026:53329 |
| Red Hat Enterprise Linux Real Time (v. 10) | Fixed | RHSA-2026:42919 |
| Red Hat Enterprise Linux Real Time (v. 9) | Fixed | RHSA-2026:53329 |
| Red Hat Enterprise Linux Real Time for NFV (v. 10) | Fixed | RHSA-2026:42919 |
| Red Hat Enterprise Linux Real Time for NFV (v. 9) | Fixed | RHSA-2026:53329 |
Not affected: 4 products
- Red Hat Enterprise Linux 6
- Red Hat Enterprise Linux 7
- Red Hat Enterprise Linux 8
- Red Hat Enterprise Linux 9
Timeline
- 2026-10-02 Threatist record created from CVE-2026-31530
- 2026-10-03 Alias added: GHSA-6pf8-h7c8-42fv
- 2026-10-21 Fix available: Linux/[email protected], Linux/Linux@b1f62588ab1be6c9535d74348003c86b47ec4abd · CNA
- 2026-10-21 1 new reference · CNA
- 2026-10-29 Affected versions changed · Red Hat
- 2026-11-05 CISA SSVC decision points changed
References
Patch 4
More Linux Kernel vulnerabilities
- TI-2025-26358 tls: fix handling of zero-length records on the rx_list KEVCVSS 3.1CRITICAL 9.8
- TI-2026-38352 netfilter: bridge: make ebt_snat ARP rewrite writable KEVCVSS 3.1HIGH 8.8
- TI-2013-05264 The (1) get_user and (2) put_user API functions in the Linux kernel before 3.5.5 on the… KEVCVSS 3.1HIGH 8.8
- TI-2022-00125 Integer overflow in kernel KEVCVSS 3.1HIGH 8.4
- TI-2013-01864 The perf_swevent_init function in kernel/events/core.c in the Linux kernel before 3.8.9… KEVCVSS 3.1HIGH 8.4
- TI-2021-05514 Heap Out-Of-Bounds Write in Netfilter IP6T_SO_SET_REPLACE KEVCVSS 3.1HIGH 8.3
Sources
- CVE-2026-31530 · CVE Program
- CVE-2026-31530 · NVD
- FIRST EPSS
- GHSA-6pf8-h7c8-42fv · GitHub Advisory Database · CC BY 4.0
- CVE-2026-31530 · Red Hat security data · CC BY 4.0
This product uses the NVD API but is not endorsed or certified by the NVD. Sources and licences