KVM: SVM: Add missing save/restore handling of LBR MSRs
Key facts
- Attack vector
- Local
- Privileges required
- Low
- User interaction
- None
- Attack complexity
- Low
- Impact type
- Denial of service
- Confidentiality · integrity · availability
- None · None · High
- Fix status
- Partial Red Hat: 5 without a fix
Attack profile from CVSS 3.1 · NVD. Fix status from CNA and Red Hat. Impact type from CWE-667 and the CVSS impact.
Summary
In the Linux kernel, the following vulnerability has been resolved: KVM: SVM: Add missing save/restore handling of LBR MSRs MSR_IA32_DEBUGCTLMSR and LBR MSRs are currently not enumerated by KVM_GET_MSR_INDEX_LIST, and LBR MSRs cannot be set with KVM_SET_MSRS. So save/restore is completely broken. Fix it by adding the MSRs to msrs_to_save_base, and allowing writes to LBR MSRs from userspace only (as they are read-only MSRs) if LBR virtualization is enabled. Additionally, to correctly restore L1's LBRs while L2 is running, make sure the LBRs are copied from the captured VMCB01 save area in svm_copy_vmrun_state(). Note, for VMX, this also fixes a flaw where MSR_IA32_DEBUGCTLMSR isn't reported as an MSR to save/restore. Note #2, over-reporting MSR_IA32_LASTxxx on Intel is ok, as KVM already handles unsupported reads and writes thanks to commit b5e2fec0ebc3 ("KVM: Ignore DEBUGCTL MSRs with no effect") (kvm_do_msr_access() will morph the unsupported userspace write into a nop). [sean: guard with lbrv checks, massage changelog]
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
Remediation
- Fix · CNA Linux (Linux) Fixed in 6.6.160, 6.12.114, 6.18.27, 7.0.4, 7.1
Vendor assessments
Red Hat
Red Hat rating: Low. 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 yet: Fix deferred |
| Red Hat Enterprise Linux 8 | Affected | No fix yet: Fix deferred |
| Red Hat Enterprise Linux 9 | Affected | No fix yet: Fix deferred |
Timeline
- 2026-10-02 Threatist record created from CVE-2026-46014
- 2026-10-03 Alias added: GHSA-866w-999j-pr8g
- 2026-10-21 Fix available: Linux/Linux@4428a0a8643b0acf4ed7b8ea3e5975023bf4aafb, Linux/[email protected], Linux/[email protected] +1 · CNA
- 2026-10-21 2 new references · CNA
- 2026-11-06 CISA SSVC decision points changed
References
Patch 3
More Linux Kernel vulnerabilities
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Sources
- CVE-2026-46014 · CVE Program
- CVE-2026-46014 · NVD
- FIRST EPSS
- GHSA-866w-999j-pr8g · GitHub Advisory Database · CC BY 4.0
- CVE-2026-46014 · 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