iommu/vt-d: Clear Present bit before tearing down PASID entry
Key facts
- Attack vector
- Local
- Privileges required
- Low
- User interaction
- None
- Attack complexity
- High
- Impact type
- —
- Confidentiality · integrity · availability
- High · High · High
- Fix status
- Partial Red Hat: 14 fixed, 1 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: iommu/vt-d: Clear Present bit before tearing down PASID entry The Intel VT-d Scalable Mode PASID table entry consists of 512 bits (64 bytes). When tearing down an entry, the current implementation zeros the entire 64-byte structure immediately using multiple 64-bit writes. Since the IOMMU hardware may fetch these 64 bytes using multiple internal transactions (e.g., four 128-bit bursts), updating or zeroing the entire entry while it is active (P=1) risks a "torn" read. If a hardware fetch occurs simultaneously with the CPU zeroing the entry, the hardware could observe an inconsistent state, leading to unpredictable behavior or spurious faults. Follow the "Guidance to Software for Invalidations" in the VT-d spec (Section 6.5.3.3) by implementing the recommended ownership handshake: 1. Clear only the 'Present' (P) bit of the PASID entry. 2. Use a dma_wmb() to ensure the cleared bit is visible to hardware before proceeding. 3. Execute the required invalidation sequence (PASID cache, IOTLB, and Device-TLB flush) to ensure the hardware has released all cached references. 4. Only after the flushes are complete, zero out the remaining fields of the PASID entry. Also, add a dma_wmb() in pasid_set_present() to ensure that all other fields of the PASID entry are visible to the hardware before the Present bit is set.
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 | 5.0 and later | 6.1.191, 6.6.160, 6.12.75, 6.18.14, 6.19.4, 7.0 | Patch available | CNA |
- Linux VendorLinux Affected 5.0 and later Fixed in 6.1.191, 6.6.160, 6.12.75, 6.18.14, 6.19.4, 7.0 Patch available CNA
CPE configurations NVD · 1
| CPE | Versions | Role | Vendor |
|---|---|---|---|
| cpe:2.3:o:linux:linux_kernel:*:*:*:*:*:*:*:* | 5.0 to before 6.12.75; 6.13 to before 6.18.14; 6.19 to before 6.19.4 | Vulnerable | Linux |
- cpe:2.3:o:linux:linux_kernel:*:*:*:*:*:*:*:* Versions 5.0 to before 6.12.75; 6.13 to before 6.18.14; 6.19 to before 6.19.4 Vulnerable ·Linux
Remediation
- Fix · CNA Linux (Linux) Fixed in 6.1.191, 6.6.160, 6.12.75, 6.18.14, 6.19.4, 7.0
Red Hat 4 advisories
- RHSA-2026:70459 Released 2026-09-23 · Red Hat rating Importantkernel security, bug fix, and enhancement update
- Red Hat Enterprise Linux AppStream (v. 9) kernel-64k-debug-devel-5.14.0-687.50.1.el9_8, kernel-64k-debug-devel-matched-5.14.0-687.50.1.el9_8, kernel-64k-devel-5.14.0-687.50.1.el9_8 +12
- Red Hat Enterprise Linux BaseOS (v. 9) kernel-5.14.0-687.50.1.el9_8, kernel-64k-5.14.0-687.50.1.el9_8, kernel-64k-core-5.14.0-687.50.1.el9_8 +28
- Red Hat Enterprise Linux CodeReady Linux Builder (v. 9) kernel-tools-libs-devel-5.14.0-687.50.1.el9_8, libperf-5.14.0-687.50.1.el9_8
- Red Hat Enterprise Linux Real Time (v. 9) kernel-rt-5.14.0-687.50.1.el9_8, kernel-rt-64k-5.14.0-687.50.1.el9_8, kernel-rt-64k-core-5.14.0-687.50.1.el9_8 +21
- Red Hat Enterprise Linux Real Time for NFV (v. 9) kernel-rt-5.14.0-687.50.1.el9_8, kernel-rt-core-5.14.0-687.50.1.el9_8, kernel-rt-debug-5.14.0-687.50.1.el9_8 +9
- RHSA-2026:70498 Released 2026-09-23 · Red Hat rating Importantkernel security, bug fix, and enhancement update
- Red Hat Enterprise Linux AppStream (v. 10) kernel-64k-debug-devel-6.12.0-211.58.1.el10_2, kernel-64k-debug-devel-matched-6.12.0-211.58.1.el10_2, kernel-64k-devel-6.12.0-211.58.1.el10_2 +12
- Red Hat Enterprise Linux BaseOS (v. 10) kernel-6.12.0-211.58.1.el10_2, kernel-64k-6.12.0-211.58.1.el10_2, kernel-64k-core-6.12.0-211.58.1.el10_2 +29
- Red Hat Enterprise Linux CodeReady Linux Builder (v. 10) kernel-tools-libs-devel-6.12.0-211.58.1.el10_2, libperf-6.12.0-211.58.1.el10_2
- Red Hat Enterprise Linux Real Time (v. 10) kernel-rt-6.12.0-211.58.1.el10_2, kernel-rt-64k-6.12.0-211.58.1.el10_2, kernel-rt-64k-core-6.12.0-211.58.1.el10_2 +21
- Red Hat Enterprise Linux Real Time for NFV (v. 10) kernel-rt-6.12.0-211.58.1.el10_2, kernel-rt-core-6.12.0-211.58.1.el10_2, kernel-rt-debug-6.12.0-211.58.1.el10_2 +9
- RHSA-2026:70402 Released 2026-09-22 · Red Hat rating Importantkernel security, bug fix, and enhancement update
- Red Hat Enterprise Linux BaseOS (v. 8) bpftool-4.18.0-553.166.1.el8_10, kernel-4.18.0-553.166.1.el8_10, kernel-abi-stablelists-4.18.0-553.166.1.el8_10 +19
- Red Hat Enterprise Linux CRB (v. 8) kernel-tools-libs-devel-4.18.0-553.166.1.el8_10
Show 1 more Red Hat advisories
- RHSA-2026:70403 Released 2026-09-22 · Red Hat rating Importantkernel-rt security, bug fix, and enhancement update
- Red Hat Enterprise Linux NFV (v. 8) kernel-rt-4.18.0-553.166.1.rt7.507.el8_10, kernel-rt-core-4.18.0-553.166.1.rt7.507.el8_10, kernel-rt-debug-4.18.0-553.166.1.rt7.507.el8_10 +9
- Red Hat Enterprise Linux RT (v. 8) kernel-rt-4.18.0-553.166.1.rt7.507.el8_10, kernel-rt-core-4.18.0-553.166.1.rt7.507.el8_10, kernel-rt-debug-4.18.0-553.166.1.rt7.507.el8_10 +7
Vendor assessments
Red Hat
Red Hat rating: Moderate. Red Hat's page for this CVE →
| Product | Status | Plan or fix |
|---|---|---|
| Red Hat Enterprise Linux 9 | Affected | No fix yet |
| Red Hat Enterprise Linux AppStream (v. 10) | Fixed | RHSA-2026:70498 |
| Red Hat Enterprise Linux AppStream (v. 9) | Fixed | RHSA-2026:70459 |
| Red Hat Enterprise Linux BaseOS (v. 10) | Fixed | RHSA-2026:70498 |
| Red Hat Enterprise Linux BaseOS (v. 8) | Fixed | RHSA-2026:70402 |
| Red Hat Enterprise Linux BaseOS (v. 9) | Fixed | RHSA-2026:70459 |
| Red Hat Enterprise Linux CRB (v. 8) | Fixed | RHSA-2026:70402 |
| Red Hat Enterprise Linux CodeReady Linux Builder (v. 10) | Fixed | RHSA-2026:70498 |
| Red Hat Enterprise Linux CodeReady Linux Builder (v. 9) | Fixed | RHSA-2026:70459 |
| Red Hat Enterprise Linux NFV (v. 8) | Fixed | RHSA-2026:70403 |
| Red Hat Enterprise Linux RT (v. 8) | Fixed | RHSA-2026:70403 |
| Red Hat Enterprise Linux Real Time (v. 10) | Fixed | RHSA-2026:70498 |
| Red Hat Enterprise Linux Real Time (v. 9) | Fixed | RHSA-2026:70459 |
| Red Hat Enterprise Linux Real Time for NFV (v. 10) | Fixed | RHSA-2026:70498 |
| Red Hat Enterprise Linux Real Time for NFV (v. 9) | Fixed | RHSA-2026:70459 |
Not affected: 2 products
- Red Hat Enterprise Linux 6
- Red Hat Enterprise Linux 7
Timeline
- 2026-10-02 Threatist record created from CVE-2026-45894
- 2026-10-03 Alias added: GHSA-8pm8-q9qq-gqgp
- 2026-10-16 CISA SSVC decision points changed
- 2026-10-19 Weakness changed · CISA ADP
- 2026-10-21 Fix available: Linux/[email protected], Linux/Linux@c36b0515c6445bd137ec8ad86ef5470c45d6e4bf · CNA
- 2026-10-21 1 new reference · CNA
- 2026-10-30 Fix available: Linux/[email protected], Linux/Linux@bed36f5657d34ae982d48045a75bff6113790cf9 · CNA
- 2026-10-30 1 new reference · CNA
- 2026-11-06 CVSS score changed · Red Hat
References
Patch 4
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Sources
- CVE-2026-45894 · CVE Program
- CVE-2026-45894 · NVD
- FIRST EPSS
- GHSA-8pm8-q9qq-gqgp · GitHub Advisory Database · CC BY 4.0
- CVE-2026-45894 · Red Hat security data · CC BY 4.0
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