CVE-2026-89958

s390/vfio-ap: Fix dereference matrix_mdev->kvm without checking for NULL

N/A
Published: September 16, 2026 at 10:32 AM UTC
Updated: October 19, 2026 at 09:18 AM UTC
1 product affected across 1 vendorLinux Kernel

Using Linux by Linux?

Get instant alerts when new vulnerabilities affect Linux - before attackers find them.

Real-time alertsTrack your software stackFree plan available
Severity
N/A
Exploit prediction
EPSS 0.2%

Description

In the Linux kernel, the following vulnerability has been resolved: s390/vfio-ap: Fix dereference matrix_mdev->kvm without checking for NULL The ap_driver structure has two fields which are function pointers to callbacks: * .on_config_changed: called at the start of the AP bus scan function to notify the device driver that the host AP configuration has changed and the associated AP devices will be added or removed accordingly. This gives the implementor a chance to evaluate the configuration changes and respond to them before the associated devices are added or removed. * .on_scan_complete: Called at the end of the AP bus scan function to notify the device driver that the host AP configuration has changed and the AP devices have been added or removed accordingly. This gives the implementor the opportunity to respond to the changes after the associated devices are added or removed. These two callbacks are implemented in the vfio_ap device driver via the vfio_ap_on_cfg_changed and vfio_ap_on_scan_complete functions respectively. Within the call stack of these two callback functions the matrix_mdev->kvm->lock mutex is taken without checking whether matrix_mdev->kvm is NULL or not. If matrix_mdev->kvm has never been set, trying to take the lock will trigger a NULL pointer dereference. This patch adds checks for matrix_mdev->kvm == NULL before taking the matrix_mdev->kvm->lock mutex. Note that the matrix_mdev->kvm->lock mutex taken in the vfio_ap_mdev_hot_plug_config function is moved to the calling function along with the matrix_dev->mdevs_lock which is needed there to access the fields of the matrix_mdev. It makes little sense to make the change the check for matrix_mdev->kvm there before taking the kvm->lock mutex only to have to move it out via another patch, so it is done in this patch. It is important to make note of the following: 1. The matrix_dev->guests_lock is acquired at the start of both callback functions. This ensures that matrix_mdev will not be removed via the vfio_ap_mdev_remove function because it too takes matrix_dev_guests_lock before removing the object; so, matrix_mdev will be available for the duration of the callback functions. 2. The matrix_dev->mdevs_lock mutex must be taken in order to access fields within the matrix_mdev structure 3. matrix_mdev->kvm->lock mutex must be taken before the matrix_dev->mdevs_lock to prevent a lockdep splat. 4: The kvm->lock must be held while plugging the guest's AP configuration into its SIE state description via the vfio_ap_mdev_update_guest_apcb function. 5. The vfio_ap_mdev_update_guest_apcb checks matrix_mdev->kvm to verify it is not NULL before doing the hot plug of the guest's AP configuration.

Affected

Our own answer: ranges merged, affected separated from platform-only, with confidence and review flags.

6.0eeb386aeb5b7c8d2dae6a3ba49255d8a97803182
Vendor states this is fixed in 178ea7a1c2c3c0c01d14b8f60aa35f1e0cdc6b78 (fixed)
Vendor states this is fixed in 334b435b951353f934d5110c4630e0cb58d2f9a7 (fixed)
Vendor states this is fixed in 4f7e869d0db24ae07b4c888fd3bc21554eef775d (fixed)
Vendor states this is fixed in 5e932abfcce6189d067fffb0eb8214443bc04374 (fixed)
Vendor states this is fixed in d50346801b4f144e42b49cd4f1496010498ab114 (fixed)
Vendor states this is fixed in 6.0 (unaffected)
Vendor states this is fixed in 6.12.110 (unaffected)
Vendor states this is fixed in 6.18.51 (unaffected)
Vendor states this is fixed in 6.6.157 (unaffected)
Vendor states this is fixed in 7.2.5 (unaffected)
Vendor states this is fixed in 7.3 (unaffected)
Vendor states this is fixed in 7.3-rc1 (unaffected)

Remediation

No guide yet

No remediation guidance has been written for this CVE yet, and no fixed version or vendor advisory is recorded against it.

Quick Info

StatusRECEIVED

Get alerted

Stop reading CVE feeds looking for your own stack

Track the products you run and VulnTracker tells you when a new CVE affects them — with what is known about fixing it, and nothing about the rest.

Free plan, no card