CVE-2025-39843

Published Sep 19, 2025

Last updated 4 days ago

Overview

Description
In the Linux kernel, the following vulnerability has been resolved: mm: slub: avoid wake up kswapd in set_track_prepare set_track_prepare() can incur lock recursion. The issue is that it is called from hrtimer_start_range_ns holding the per_cpu(hrtimer_bases)[n].lock, but when enabled CONFIG_DEBUG_OBJECTS_TIMERS, may wake up kswapd in set_track_prepare, and try to hold the per_cpu(hrtimer_bases)[n].lock. Avoid deadlock caused by implicitly waking up kswapd by passing in allocation flags, which do not contain __GFP_KSWAPD_RECLAIM in the debug_objects_fill_pool() case. Inside stack depot they are processed by gfp_nested_mask(). Since ___slab_alloc() has preemption disabled, we mask out __GFP_DIRECT_RECLAIM from the flags there. The oops looks something like: BUG: spinlock recursion on CPU#3, swapper/3/0 lock: 0xffffff8a4bf29c80, .magic: dead4ead, .owner: swapper/3/0, .owner_cpu: 3 Hardware name: Qualcomm Technologies, Inc. Popsicle based on SM8850 (DT) Call trace: spin_bug+0x0 _raw_spin_lock_irqsave+0x80 hrtimer_try_to_cancel+0x94 task_contending+0x10c enqueue_dl_entity+0x2a4 dl_server_start+0x74 enqueue_task_fair+0x568 enqueue_task+0xac do_activate_task+0x14c ttwu_do_activate+0xcc try_to_wake_up+0x6c8 default_wake_function+0x20 autoremove_wake_function+0x1c __wake_up+0xac wakeup_kswapd+0x19c wake_all_kswapds+0x78 __alloc_pages_slowpath+0x1ac __alloc_pages_noprof+0x298 stack_depot_save_flags+0x6b0 stack_depot_save+0x14 set_track_prepare+0x5c ___slab_alloc+0xccc __kmalloc_cache_noprof+0x470 __set_page_owner+0x2bc post_alloc_hook[jt]+0x1b8 prep_new_page+0x28 get_page_from_freelist+0x1edc __alloc_pages_noprof+0x13c alloc_slab_page+0x244 allocate_slab+0x7c ___slab_alloc+0x8e8 kmem_cache_alloc_noprof+0x450 debug_objects_fill_pool+0x22c debug_object_activate+0x40 enqueue_hrtimer[jt]+0xdc hrtimer_start_range_ns+0x5f8 ...
Source
416baaa9-dc9f-4396-8d5f-8c081fb06d67
NVD status
Modified
Products
linux_kernel, debian_linux

Risk scores

CVSS 3.1

Type
Primary
Base score
5.5
Impact score
3.6
Exploitability score
1.8
Vector string
CVSS:3.1/AV:L/AC:L/PR:L/UI:N/S:U/C:N/I:N/A:H
Severity
MEDIUM

Weaknesses

nvd@nist.gov
CWE-667

Social media

Hype score
Not currently trending

Configurations

  1. In the Linux kernel, the following vulnerability has been resolved: cgroup: Avoid iteration of dying tasks with zero refcount The commit 260fbcb92bbea ("cgroup: Move dying_tasks cleanup from cgroup_task_release() to cgroup_task_free()") extended the lifetime of tasks on the dying_tasks list. The iterators have provision to go through dying_tasks because of dying threadgroup leaders or explicit CSS_TASK_ITER_WITH_DEAD, however, it was expected that such tasks can obtain a new reference (that is possible before cgroup_task_release()/put_task_struct_rcu_user()). The tasks after cgroup_task_release() and before cgroup_task_free() are subject to race when they may or may not have ->usage count > 0. The race window is between css_task_iter_next() invocations when css_set_lock is released and we may arrive at a new ->task_pos. The iterator should not attempt to resurrect tasks whose ->usage count dropped to zero. (When that happens, __put_task_struct_rcu_cb() is already imminent and the returned task_struct would could be used after free.) As for the fix, we cannot simply check the signal->live count of a task on the dying list because that won't distinguish regular zombies waiting to be reaped from RCU remnant tasks that are going to be free'd. Therefore add an extra check to rule out ->usage==0 tasks from any iteration. The repeat: loop in css_task_iter_advance() doesn't consider ->usage count, so add a new loop to css_task_iter_next() to skip de-used tasks on the dying_list. Rough illustration of the possible race R (reader of cgroup.procs) T (thread) L (group leader) --------------------------------- -------------------------------- -------------------------------- L exits, signal->live > 0 cgroup_task_dead(L) css_set_skip_task_iters() // skips only cset->tasks list_add_tail(&L->cg_list, &cset->dying_tasks) css_task_iter_next() take css_set_lock css_task_iter_advance() leader && signal->live != 0 => it->task_pos = &L->cg_list release css_set_lock T exits --signal->live == 0 cgroup_task_dead(T) // css_set_lock release_task(T) cgroup_task_release(T) release_task(L) // zap_leader cgroup_task_release(L) put_task_struct_rcu_user(L) ...RCU... put_task_struct(L) L->usage = 0 /* L still on dying_tasks */ ...RCU... __put_task_struct(L) css_task_iter_next() // another iteration take css_set_lock it->task_pos = &L->cg_list get_task_struct(L) => addition on 0 drop css_set_lock cgroup_task_free(L) css_set_skip_task_iters() // dying skip comes too late free_task(L) cgroup_procs_show() task_pid_vnr(L)•CVE-2026-98163