Bug 2482077 (CVE-2026-46036)

Summary: CVE-2026-46036 kernel: vfio/cdx: Serialize VFIO_DEVICE_SET_IRQS with a per-device mutex
Product: [Other] Security Response Reporter: OSIDB Bzimport <bzimport>
Component: vulnerabilityAssignee: Product Security <prodsec-ir-bot>
Status: NEW --- QA Contact:
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Version: unspecifiedCC: rhel-process-autobot, watson-tool-maintainers
Target Milestone: ---Keywords: Security
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Hardware: All   
OS: Linux   
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A flaw was found in the Linux kernel's vfio/cdx component. A race condition can occur during concurrent VFIO_DEVICE_SET_IRQS ioctls (input/output control calls), specifically within the vfio_cdx_set_msi_trigger() function. This allows two callers to interact in a way that leads to a use-after-free vulnerability of the cdx_irqs array. A local attacker could exploit this to cause a denial of service or potentially achieve privilege escalation.
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Description OSIDB Bzimport 2026-05-27 15:10:12 UTC
In the Linux kernel, the following vulnerability has been resolved:

vfio/cdx: Serialize VFIO_DEVICE_SET_IRQS with a per-device mutex

vfio_cdx_set_msi_trigger() reads vdev->config_msi and operates on the
vdev->cdx_irqs array based on its value, but provides no serialization
against concurrent VFIO_DEVICE_SET_IRQS ioctls.  Two callers can race
such that one observes config_msi as set while another clears it and
frees cdx_irqs via vfio_cdx_msi_disable(), resulting in a use-after-free
of the cdx_irqs array.

Add a cdx_irqs_lock mutex to struct vfio_cdx_device and acquire it in
vfio_cdx_set_msi_trigger(), which is the single chokepoint through
which all updates to config_msi, cdx_irqs, and msi_count flow, covering
both the ioctl path and the close-device cleanup path.  This keeps the
test of config_msi atomic with the subsequent enable, disable, or
trigger operations.

Drop the pre-call !cdx_irqs test from vfio_cdx_irqs_cleanup() as part
of this change: the optimization it provided is redundant with the
!config_msi early-return inside vfio_cdx_msi_disable(), and leaving the
test in place would be an unsynchronized read of state the new lock is
meant to protect.