CVE-2024-26837: net: bridge: switchdev: Skip MDB replays of deferred events on offload

Published Apr 17, 2024
·
Updated

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

net: bridge: switchdev: Skip MDB replays of deferred events on offload

Before this change, generation of the list of MDB events to replay would race against the creation of new group memberships, either from the IGMP/MLD snooping logic or from user configuration.

While new memberships are immediately visible to walkers of br->mdblist, the notification of their existence to switchdev event subscribers is deferred until a later point in time. So if a replay list was generated during a time that overlapped with such a window, it would also contain a replay of the not-yet-delivered event.

The driver would thus receive two copies of what the bridge internally considered to be one single event. On destruction of the bridge, only a single membership deletion event was therefore sent. As a consequence of this, drivers which reference count memberships (at least DSA), would be left with orphan groups in their hardware database when the bridge was destroyed.

This is only an issue when replaying additions. While deletion events may still be pending on the deferred queue, they will already have been removed from br->mdblist, so no duplicates can be generated in that scenario.

To a user this meant that old group memberships, from a bridge in which a port was previously attached, could be reanimated (in hardware) when the port joined a new bridge, without the new bridge's knowledge.

For example, on an mv88e6xxx system, create a snooping bridge and immediately add a port to it:

root@infix-06-0b-00:~$ ip link add dev br0 up type bridge mcastsnooping 1 && \ > ip link set dev x3 up master br0

And then destroy the bridge:

root@infix-06-0b-00:~$ ip link del dev br0 root@infix-06-0b-00:~$ mvls atu ADDRESS FID STATE Q F 0 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 a DEV:0 Marvell 88E6393X 33:33:00:00:00:6a 1 static - - 0 . . . . . . . . . . 33:33:ff:87:e4:3f 1 static - - 0 . . . . . . . . . . ff:ff:ff:ff:ff:ff 1 static - - 0 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 a root@infix-06-0b-00:~$

The two IPv6 groups remain in the hardware database because the port (x3) is notified of the host's membership twice: once via the original event and once via a replay. Since only a single delete notification is sent, the count remains at 1 when the bridge is destroyed.

Then add the same port (or another port belonging to the same hardware domain) to a new bridge, this time with snooping disabled:

root@infix-06-0b-00:~$ ip link add dev br1 up type bridge mcastsnooping 0 && \ > ip link set dev x3 up master br1

All multicast, including the two IPv6 groups from br0, should now be flooded, according to the policy of br1. But instead the old memberships are still active in the hardware database, causing the switch to only forward traffic to those groups towards the CPU (port 0).

Eliminate the race in two steps:

1. Grab the write-side lock of the MDB while generating the replay list.

This prevents new memberships from showing up while we are generating the replay list. But it leaves the scenario in which a deferred event was already generated, but not delivered, before we grabbed the lock. Therefore:

2. Make sure that no deferred version of a replay event is already enqueued to the switchdev deferred queue, before adding it to the replay list, when replaying additions.

Other sources

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

net: bridge: switchdev: Skip MDB replays of deferred events on offload

The Linux kernel CVE team has assigned CVE-2024-26837 to this issue.

Upstream advisory: https://lore.kernel.org/linux-cve-announce/2024041715-CVE-2024-26837-753c@gregkh/T

Red Hat

Affected Software

18 affected componentsFixes available
Linux Linux kernel>=5.13<6.1.80
Linux Linux kernel>=6.2<6.6.19
Linux Linux kernel>=6.7<6.7.7
Linux Linux kernel=6.8-rc1
Linux Linux kernel=6.8-rc2
Linux Linux kernel=6.8-rc3
Linux Linux kernel=6.8-rc4
Linux Linux kernel=6.8-rc5
IBM Security Verify Governance<=ISVG 10.0.2
IBM Security Verify Governance, Identity Manager Software Stack<=ISVG 10.0.2
IBM Security Verify Governance, Identity Manager Virtual Appliance<=ISVG 10.0.2
IBM Security Verify Governance Identity Manager Container<=ISVG 10.0.2
debian/linux
5.10.223-15.10.234-16.1.129-16.1.135-16.12.25-16.12.27-1
redhat/kernel<6.1.80
6.1.80
redhat/kernel<6.6.19
6.6.19
redhat/kernel<6.7.7
6.7.7
redhat/kernel<6.8
6.8
Microsoft cbl2 kernel 5.15.186.1-1

Event History

Apr 17, 2024
CVE Published
via MITRE·10:10 AM
Data Sourced
via MITRE·10:10 AM
Description
Data Sourced
via Red Hat·04:11 PM
DescriptionSeverityAffected Software
Apr 28, 2025
Data Sourced
via Launchpad·01:40 PM
Description
May 2, 2025
Data Sourced
via Ubuntu·01:40 PM
RemedyDescriptionSeverityAffected Software
Sep 3, 2025
Data Sourced
via Microsoft·10:11 PM
DescriptionSeverityWeakness
Data Sourced
via Microsoft·10:11 PM
Affected Software
Updated
via Microsoft·10:11 PM
DescriptionSeverity

Parent advisories

This vulnerability appears in the following advisories.

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Frequently Asked Questions

1

What is the severity of CVE-2024-26837?

CVE-2024-26837 has a high severity rating due to a potential race condition in the Linux kernel.

2

How do I fix CVE-2024-26837?

To fix CVE-2024-26837, upgrade the Linux kernel to versions 6.1.80, 6.6.19, 6.7.7, or 6.8.

3

What systems are affected by CVE-2024-26837?

CVE-2024-26837 affects various versions of the Linux kernel ranging from 5.13 to 6.8-rc5.

4

What types of devices are vulnerable to CVE-2024-26837?

Devices running vulnerable versions of the Linux kernel, including servers and other systems utilizing network bridging, are at risk from CVE-2024-26837.

5

Is there a known exploit for CVE-2024-26837?

As of now, there is no public knowledge of active exploits for CVE-2024-26837.

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