KernelScan.io

HIGH

cxl Port Hierarchy UAF

CVE-2026-31530

CVSS 7.8 / 10.0 NVD

CVSS:3.1/AV:L/AC:L/PR:L/UI:N/S:U/C:H/I:H/A:H

KernelScan AI7.8HIGH

01

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.

02

Engine v0.2.0

Risk summary

A use-after-free vulnerability in the CXL port management code can cause memory corruption during device removal operations. While this requires local access and specific hardware configurations, it could lead to system crashes or potential privilege escalation in environments with CXL devices.

Affecteddrivers/cxl/core/port.c

Vulnerability analysis

Root Cause: The CXL port hierarchy lacks proper lifetime management between child and parent ports. During concurrent port removal operations, parent_port objects can be freed while still being accessed by child port cleanup code in cxl_detach_ep(). Two specific scenarios trigger this: (1) concurrent detach operations where one worker frees a parent_port while another worker attempts to unlock it after discovering port->dead, and (2) delete_switch_port() cascading device unregistration that can free parent_port before the function returns, leading to use-after-free when unlocking the parent device.

Attack Surface: This vulnerability affects systems with CXL (Compute Express Link) devices during device removal/hotplug operations. It requires local access to trigger device removal operations, typically through module reload (cxl_acpi) or device hotplug events. The bug is easily reproducible in virtualized environments like QEMU with CXL devices present.

Fix Mechanism: The patch establishes a proper lifetime rule by implementing reference counting between child and parent ports. When a non-root port is allocated, it takes a reference to its parent device via get_device(dev->parent). When the port is released, it drops this reference with put_device(dev->parent). This ensures the parent port remains valid for the entire lifetime of the child port, eliminating the use-after-free window during concurrent removal operations.

03

BranchFixed inPatch commit
6.126.12.80d216a4bd138e
6.186.18.212c3214146204
6.196.19.11f7dc6f381a1e
mainline7.019d2f0b97a13