In the Linux kernel, the following vulnerability has been resolved:
KVM: arm64: nv: Fix null ptr deref on nested wp/unmap, teardown race
Commit 7270cc9157f4 ("KVM: arm64: nv: Handle VNCR_EL2 invalidation from MMU
notifiers") introduced VNCR_EL2 invalidation in both kvm_nested_s2_unmap()
and kvm_nested_s2_wp().
However at the point of this being performed concurrent stage 2 teardown of
a nested guest can cause kvm->arch.mmu.pgt to be set to NULL.
This happens in kvm_flush_shadow_all() -> kvm_arch_flush_shadow_all() ->
kvm_free_stage2_pgd() and is performed under the kvm->mmu_lock.
Commit ec14c272408a ("KVM: arm64: nv: Unmap/flush shadow stage 2 page
tables") introduced the teardown of the entire nested MMU range, which then
invokes stage2_apply_range() with resched=true:
mmu_notifier_invalidate_range_start()
-> ... -> kvm_mmu_notifier_invalidate_range_start()
-> kvm_mmu_unmap_gfn_range()
-> kvm_unmap_gfn_range()
-> kvm_nested_s2_unmap()
-> kvm_stage2_unmap_range()
-> __unmap_stage2_range()
-> stage2_apply_range()
This means that stage2_apply_range() can drop the kvm->mmu_lock and thus
concurrent progress can be made in lockstep with
kvm_arch_flush_shadow_all().
If kvm_arch_flush_shadow_all() advances ahead of stage2_apply_range() and
completes its operation it guarantees a NULL pointer deref.
Since kvm_free_stage2_pgd() is performed under the kvm->mmu_lock this will
either be observed NULL or not and serialised against
kvm_free_stage2_pgd().
Resolve the issue by abstracting the invalidation to a new function,
kvm_invalidate_vncr_ipa_all(), and check that the pgt is non-NULL before
dereferencing it.
KVM: arm64: nv: Fix null ptr deref on nested wp/unmap, teardown race
Commit 7270cc9157f4 ("KVM: arm64: nv: Handle VNCR_EL2 invalidation from MMU
notifiers") introduced VNCR_EL2 invalidation in both kvm_nested_s2_unmap()
and kvm_nested_s2_wp().
However at the point of this being performed concurrent stage 2 teardown of
a nested guest can cause kvm->arch.mmu.pgt to be set to NULL.
This happens in kvm_flush_shadow_all() -> kvm_arch_flush_shadow_all() ->
kvm_free_stage2_pgd() and is performed under the kvm->mmu_lock.
Commit ec14c272408a ("KVM: arm64: nv: Unmap/flush shadow stage 2 page
tables") introduced the teardown of the entire nested MMU range, which then
invokes stage2_apply_range() with resched=true:
mmu_notifier_invalidate_range_start()
-> ... -> kvm_mmu_notifier_invalidate_range_start()
-> kvm_mmu_unmap_gfn_range()
-> kvm_unmap_gfn_range()
-> kvm_nested_s2_unmap()
-> kvm_stage2_unmap_range()
-> __unmap_stage2_range()
-> stage2_apply_range()
This means that stage2_apply_range() can drop the kvm->mmu_lock and thus
concurrent progress can be made in lockstep with
kvm_arch_flush_shadow_all().
If kvm_arch_flush_shadow_all() advances ahead of stage2_apply_range() and
completes its operation it guarantees a NULL pointer deref.
Since kvm_free_stage2_pgd() is performed under the kvm->mmu_lock this will
either be observed NULL or not and serialised against
kvm_free_stage2_pgd().
Resolve the issue by abstracting the invalidation to a new function,
kvm_invalidate_vncr_ipa_all(), and check that the pgt is non-NULL before
dereferencing it.
Default status is the baseline for the product, each version can override it (e.g. patched versions marked unaffected).
| Vendor | Product | Default status | Versions | ||||||||||||||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Linux | Linux | unaffected |
|
||||||||||||||||||
| Linux | Linux | affected |
|
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Fixes
Solution
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Workaround
No workaround given by the vendor.
References
History
Sun, 18 Oct 2026 17:00:00 +0000
| Type | Values Removed | Values Added |
|---|---|---|
| Weaknesses | CWE-362 CWE-476 |
Sun, 18 Oct 2026 15:30:00 +0000
| Type | Values Removed | Values Added |
|---|---|---|
| Description | In the Linux kernel, the following vulnerability has been resolved: KVM: arm64: nv: Fix null ptr deref on nested wp/unmap, teardown race Commit 7270cc9157f4 ("KVM: arm64: nv: Handle VNCR_EL2 invalidation from MMU notifiers") introduced VNCR_EL2 invalidation in both kvm_nested_s2_unmap() and kvm_nested_s2_wp(). However at the point of this being performed concurrent stage 2 teardown of a nested guest can cause kvm->arch.mmu.pgt to be set to NULL. This happens in kvm_flush_shadow_all() -> kvm_arch_flush_shadow_all() -> kvm_free_stage2_pgd() and is performed under the kvm->mmu_lock. Commit ec14c272408a ("KVM: arm64: nv: Unmap/flush shadow stage 2 page tables") introduced the teardown of the entire nested MMU range, which then invokes stage2_apply_range() with resched=true: mmu_notifier_invalidate_range_start() -> ... -> kvm_mmu_notifier_invalidate_range_start() -> kvm_mmu_unmap_gfn_range() -> kvm_unmap_gfn_range() -> kvm_nested_s2_unmap() -> kvm_stage2_unmap_range() -> __unmap_stage2_range() -> stage2_apply_range() This means that stage2_apply_range() can drop the kvm->mmu_lock and thus concurrent progress can be made in lockstep with kvm_arch_flush_shadow_all(). If kvm_arch_flush_shadow_all() advances ahead of stage2_apply_range() and completes its operation it guarantees a NULL pointer deref. Since kvm_free_stage2_pgd() is performed under the kvm->mmu_lock this will either be observed NULL or not and serialised against kvm_free_stage2_pgd(). Resolve the issue by abstracting the invalidation to a new function, kvm_invalidate_vncr_ipa_all(), and check that the pgt is non-NULL before dereferencing it. | |
| Title | KVM: arm64: nv: Fix null ptr deref on nested wp/unmap, teardown race | |
| First Time appeared |
Linux
Linux linux Kernel |
|
| CPEs | cpe:2.3:o:linux:linux_kernel:*:*:*:*:*:*:*:* | |
| Vendors & Products |
Linux
Linux linux Kernel |
|
| References |
|
Projects
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MITRE
Status: PUBLISHED
Assigner: Linux
Published:
Updated: 2026-10-18T15:15:19.294Z
Reserved: 2026-09-25T10:25:14.351Z
Link: CVE-2026-98467
Vulnrichment
No data.
NVD
Status : Received
Published: 2026-10-18T16:16:57.190
Modified: 2026-10-18T16:16:57.190
Link: CVE-2026-98467
Redhat
No data.
OpenCVE Enrichment
Updated: 2026-10-18T16:45:17Z