CVE Catalog

CVE-2026-43271

MediumCVSS 5.5
Published: Updated: Translated: NVD NIST

Exploitation Probability (EPSS)

Low risk
0.12%

2th percentile - higher than 2% of all known CVEs

Summary

In the Linux kernel, process_metadata_update() in md-cluster blindly dereferences a NULL thread pointer. During MD array startup there is a race window where recv_daemon processes a METADATA_UPDATED message before mddev->thread is initialized, causing a kernel panic.

Risk Assessment

This can cause a kernel panic and system unavailability for clustered MD arrays if a message from a remote node arrives during the critical startup window.

Recommendation

Update the Linux kernel to a version containing the fix that validates the thread pointer in process_metadata_update().

Other vulnerabilities in Linux kernel

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Original NVD description (English source)

In the Linux kernel, the following vulnerability has been resolved: md-cluster: fix NULL pointer dereference in process_metadata_update The function process_metadata_update() blindly dereferences the 'thread' pointer (acquired via rcu_dereference_protected) within the wait_event() macro. While the code comment states "daemon thread must exist", there is a valid race condition window during the MD array startup sequence (md_run): 1. bitmap_load() is called, which invokes md_cluster_ops->join(). 2. join() starts the "cluster_recv" thread (recv_daemon). 3. At this point, recv_daemon is active and processing messages. 4. However, mddev->thread (the main MD thread) is not initialized until later in md_run(). If a METADATA_UPDATED message is received from a remote node during this specific window, process_metadata_update() will be called while mddev->thread is still NULL, leading to a kernel panic. To fix this, we must validate the 'thread' pointer. If it is NULL, we release the held lock (no_new_dev_lockres) and return early, safely ignoring the update request as the array is not yet fully ready to process it.

Vulnerability data from NVD (NIST) · CISA KEV · EPSS