Race Condition Affecting kernel-debug package, versions *


Severity

Recommended
0.0
medium
0
10

Based on CentOS security rating.

Threat Intelligence

EPSS
0.04% (6th percentile)

Do your applications use this vulnerable package?

In a few clicks we can analyze your entire application and see what components are vulnerable in your application, and suggest you quick fixes.

Test your applications

Snyk Learn

Learn about Race Condition vulnerabilities in an interactive lesson.

Start learning
  • Snyk IDSNYK-CENTOS6-KERNELDEBUG-7902879
  • published5 Sept 2024
  • disclosed4 Sept 2024

Introduced: 4 Sep 2024

CVE-2024-44991  (opens in a new tab)
CWE-362  (opens in a new tab)

How to fix?

There is no fixed version for Centos:6 kernel-debug.

NVD Description

Note: Versions mentioned in the description apply only to the upstream kernel-debug package and not the kernel-debug package as distributed by Centos. See How to fix? for Centos:6 relevant fixed versions and status.

In the Linux kernel, the following vulnerability has been resolved:

tcp: prevent concurrent execution of tcp_sk_exit_batch

Its possible that two threads call tcp_sk_exit_batch() concurrently, once from the cleanup_net workqueue, once from a task that failed to clone a new netns. In the latter case, error unwinding calls the exit handlers in reverse order for the 'failed' netns.

tcp_sk_exit_batch() calls tcp_twsk_purge(). Problem is that since commit b099ce2602d8 ("net: Batch inet_twsk_purge"), this function picks up twsk in any dying netns, not just the one passed in via exit_batch list.

This means that the error unwind of setup_net() can "steal" and destroy timewait sockets belonging to the exiting netns.

This allows the netns exit worker to proceed to call

WARN_ON_ONCE(!refcount_dec_and_test(&net->ipv4.tcp_death_row.tw_refcount));

without the expected 1 -> 0 transition, which then splats.

At same time, error unwind path that is also running inet_twsk_purge() will splat as well:

WARNING: .. at lib/refcount.c:31 refcount_warn_saturate+0x1ed/0x210 ... refcount_dec include/linux/refcount.h:351 [inline] inet_twsk_kill+0x758/0x9c0 net/ipv4/inet_timewait_sock.c:70 inet_twsk_deschedule_put net/ipv4/inet_timewait_sock.c:221 inet_twsk_purge+0x725/0x890 net/ipv4/inet_timewait_sock.c:304 tcp_sk_exit_batch+0x1c/0x170 net/ipv4/tcp_ipv4.c:3522 ops_exit_list+0x128/0x180 net/core/net_namespace.c:178 setup_net+0x714/0xb40 net/core/net_namespace.c:375 copy_net_ns+0x2f0/0x670 net/core/net_namespace.c:508 create_new_namespaces+0x3ea/0xb10 kernel/nsproxy.c:110

... because refcount_dec() of tw_refcount unexpectedly dropped to 0.

This doesn't seem like an actual bug (no tw sockets got lost and I don't see a use-after-free) but as erroneous trigger of debug check.

Add a mutex to force strict ordering: the task that calls tcp_twsk_purge() blocks other task from doing final _dec_and_test before mutex-owner has removed all tw sockets of dying netns.

CVSS Scores

version 3.1