Improper Protection Against Physical Side Channels Affecting kernel-rt-debug-devel package, versions <0:5.14.0-503.11.1.el9_5


Severity

Recommended
0.0
medium
0
10

Based on Red Hat Enterprise Linux security rating.

Threat Intelligence

EPSS
0.05% (18th percentile)

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  • Snyk IDSNYK-RHEL9-KERNELRTDEBUGDEVEL-6520877
  • published3 Apr 2024
  • disclosed2 Apr 2024

Introduced: 2 Apr 2024

CVE-2024-26670  (opens in a new tab)
CWE-1300  (opens in a new tab)

How to fix?

Upgrade RHEL:9 kernel-rt-debug-devel to version 0:5.14.0-503.11.1.el9_5 or higher.
This issue was patched in RHSA-2024:9315.

NVD Description

Note: Versions mentioned in the description apply only to the upstream kernel-rt-debug-devel package and not the kernel-rt-debug-devel package as distributed by RHEL. See How to fix? for RHEL:9 relevant fixed versions and status.

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

arm64: entry: fix ARM64_WORKAROUND_SPECULATIVE_UNPRIV_LOAD

Currently the ARM64_WORKAROUND_SPECULATIVE_UNPRIV_LOAD workaround isn't quite right, as it is supposed to be applied after the last explicit memory access, but is immediately followed by an LDR.

The ARM64_WORKAROUND_SPECULATIVE_UNPRIV_LOAD workaround is used to handle Cortex-A520 erratum 2966298 and Cortex-A510 erratum 3117295, which are described in:

In both cases the workaround is described as:

| If pagetable isolation is disabled, the context switch logic in the | kernel can be updated to execute the following sequence on affected | cores before exiting to EL0, and after all explicit memory accesses: | | 1. A non-shareable TLBI to any context and/or address, including | unused contexts or addresses, such as a TLBI VALE1 Xzr. | | 2. A DSB NSH to guarantee completion of the TLBI.

The important part being that the TLBI+DSB must be placed "after all explicit memory accesses".

Unfortunately, as-implemented, the TLBI+DSB is immediately followed by an LDR, as we have:

| alternative_if ARM64_WORKAROUND_SPECULATIVE_UNPRIV_LOAD | tlbi vale1, xzr | dsb nsh | alternative_else_nop_endif | alternative_if_not ARM64_UNMAP_KERNEL_AT_EL0 | ldr lr, [sp, #S_LR] | add sp, sp, #PT_REGS_SIZE // restore sp | eret | alternative_else_nop_endif | | [ ... KPTI exception return path ... ]

This patch fixes this by reworking the logic to place the TLBI+DSB immediately before the ERET, after all explicit memory accesses.

The ERET is currently in a separate alternative block, and alternatives cannot be nested. To account for this, the alternative block for ARM64_UNMAP_KERNEL_AT_EL0 is replaced with a single alternative branch to skip the KPTI logic, with the new shape of the logic being:

| alternative_insn "b .L_skip_tramp_exit_@", nop, ARM64_UNMAP_KERNEL_AT_EL0 | [ ... KPTI exception return path ... ] | .L_skip_tramp_exit_@: | | ldr lr, [sp, #S_LR] | add sp, sp, #PT_REGS_SIZE // restore sp | | alternative_if ARM64_WORKAROUND_SPECULATIVE_UNPRIV_LOAD | tlbi vale1, xzr | dsb nsh | alternative_else_nop_endif | eret

The new structure means that the workaround is only applied when KPTI is not in use; this is fine as noted in the documented implications of the erratum:

| Pagetable isolation between EL0 and higher level ELs prevents the | issue from occurring.

... and as per the workaround description quoted above, the workaround is only necessary "If pagetable isolation is disabled".

CVSS Scores

version 3.1