CVE-2025-21851: bpf: Fix softlockup in arena_map_free on 64k page kernel

Published Mar 12, 2025
·
Updated

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

bpf: Fix softlockup in arenamapfree on 64k page kernel

On an aarch64 kernel with CONFIGPAGESIZE64KB=y, arenahtab tests cause a segmentation fault and soft lockup. The same failure is not observed with 4k pages on aarch64.

It turns out arenamapfree() is calling applytoexistingpagerange() with the address returned by bpfarenagetkernvmstart(). If this address is not page-aligned the code ends up calling applytopterange() with that unaligned address causing soft lockup.

Fix it by round up GUARDSZ to PAGESIZE 1 so that the division by 2 in bpfarenagetkernvmstart() returns a page-aligned value.

Other sources

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

bpf: Fix softlockup in arenamapfree on 64k page kernel

On an aarch64 kernel with CONFIGPAGESIZE64KB=y, arenahtab tests cause a segmentation fault and soft lockup. The same failure is not observed with 4k pages on aarch64.

It turns out arenamapfree() is calling applytoexistingpagerange() with the address returned by bpfarenagetkernvmstart(). If this address is not page-aligned the code ends up calling applytopterange() with that unaligned address causing soft lockup.

Fix it by round up GUARDSZ to PAGESIZE << 1 so that the division by 2 in bpfarenagetkernvmstart() returns a page-aligned value.

NVD

Affected Software

11 affected components
Linux Linux kernel
Linux Linux kernel>=6.9<6.12.17
Linux Linux kernel>=6.13<6.13.5
Linux Linux kernel=6.9
Linux Linux kernel=6.14-rc1
Linux Linux kernel=6.14-rc2
Linux Linux kernel=6.14-rc3
IBM Verify Identity Access<=11.0 - 11.0.2
IBM Security Verify Access<=10.0 - 10.0.9.1
IBM Verify Identity Access Container<=11.0 - 11.0.2
IBM Security Verify Access Container<=10.0 - 10.0.9.1

Event History

Mar 12, 2025
CVE Published
via MITRE·09:42 AM
Data Sourced
via MITRE·09:42 AM
Description
Data Sourced
via NVD·10:15 AM
RemedyDescriptionSeverityWeaknessAffected Software
Data Sourced
via Red Hat·12:23 PM
DescriptionSeverityAffected Software
Jul 8, 2026
Data Sourced
via IBM·12:00 AM
DescriptionAffected Software

Parent advisories

This vulnerability appears in the following advisories.

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Frequently Asked Questions

1

What is the severity of CVE-2025-21851?

CVE-2025-21851 has been designated a high severity vulnerability due to its potential to cause segmentation faults and soft lockups.

2

How do I fix CVE-2025-21851?

To fix CVE-2025-21851, update your Linux kernel to the latest version that addresses this vulnerability.

3

What is affected by CVE-2025-21851?

CVE-2025-21851 affects the Linux kernel when configured with 64k page size on aarch64 systems.

4

What are the symptoms of CVE-2025-21851?

Symptoms of CVE-2025-21851 include experiencing segmentation faults and soft lockups during arena_htab tests.

5

Is there a workaround for CVE-2025-21851?

A potential workaround for CVE-2025-21851 is to configure the kernel to use a 4k page size instead of a 64k page size.

Contact

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