CVE-2023-54278

Boot failure via unsplit large memory mappings

Published Dec 30, 2025 · Updated Dec 30, 2025

A boot-time memory-mapping flaw in Linux 6.3 through 6.4.9 causes an s390 kernel panic when debug page allocation is enabled. The s390 vmem initialization path retains large EDAT1 or EDAT2 mappings while __kernel_map_pages invalidates memory at 4 KB boundaries. The condition requires the build-time default or debug_pagealloc boot option, and the resulting addressing exception prevents startup.

CVSS severityUnavailable
Unscored
EPSS probability0.18%
Next 30 days · Sep 16, 2026
Known exploitationUnconfirmed
Based on sourced intelligence
Hinoki checkNot available
Coverage for this vulnerability

See if you're affected

Explore vulnerability checks for your environment with Hinoki.

Book a demo

Summary

What happened

A boot-time memory-mapping flaw in Linux 6.3 through 6.4.9 causes an s390 kernel panic when debug page allocation is enabled. The s390 vmem initialization path retains large EDAT1 or EDAT2 mappings while __kernel_map_pages invalidates memory at 4 KB boundaries. The condition requires the build-time default or debug_pagealloc boot option, and the resulting addressing exception prevents startup.

The record

CVE
CVE-2023-54278
Published
Dec 30, 2025
Updated
Dec 30, 2025
Vendor
The Linux Kernel Organization
Product
Linux
Classifications
Unavailable
Attack vector
local
Privileges
admin

Timeline

How it unfolded

  1. Dec 30, 2025CVE publishedPublication date reported by the CVE source.
  2. Dec 30, 2025Record updatedLatest update available in the CVE record.

Exploitability

Present is not the same as exploitable

Compare your product and version with the public record. A matching version still requires validation against your environment.

Is a vulnerable build present?

Compare these published version ranges with your installed build and any vendor patches.

  1. Affected versionversion=6.3
  2. Affected versionversion=bb1520d581a3a46e2d6e12bb74604ace33404de5 <601e467e29a960f7ab7ec4075afc6a68c3532a65
  3. Affected versionversion=bb1520d581a3a46e2d6e12bb74604ace33404de5 <edc1e4b6e26536868ef819a735e04a5b32c10589

What conditions does exploitation require?

Attack vectorlocal
Required privilegesadmin

What is affected?

The Linux Kernel Organization · Linuxversion=6.3; version=bb1520d581a3a46e2d6e12bb74604ace33404de5 <601e467e29a960f7ab7ec4075afc6a68c3532a65; version=bb1520d581a3a46e2d6e12bb74604ace33404de5 <edc1e4b6e26536868ef819a735e04a5b32c10589

Published CVSS scores

No CVSS assessment is available in this record.

CVSS describes severity. EPSS estimates exploitation probability.

Attacks

What attackers are doing with it

Daily unique IPs observed by Shadowserver honeypots for known exploited vulnerabilities (KEVs). Missing observations do not establish an absence of attacks.

Daily unique IPsNo honeypot observations are available for this CVE in the selected window.

No observations available

Sep 10, 2026Sep 16, 2026
Latest reporting daySep 16, 2026
Latest daily unique IPsUnavailable
Prior 30-day averageUnavailable
SourceShadowserver honeypots (KEV)
Vectorlocal
Privilegesadmin
Known exploitationUnconfirmed
Public exploitUnconfirmed

Weakness, pattern, technique

No sourced classifications are available.

Public exploit references

No public exploit references are available in this record.

Labels summarize the accepted research assessment. They do not indicate a test against your environment.

Technologies

Your stack

See the directory against your own environment.

Your stack

Check the software in your environment

Book a demo to see how Hinoki identifies affected software and validates exploitability in your environment.

Book a demo