CPU hang via nonterminating SGX NUMA search
Published Oct 21, 2024 · Updated May 11, 2026
Infinite loop in the x86 SGX subsystem in affected Linux kernel versions allows local users to hang a CPU during EPC allocation. The NUMA fallback loop waits for the current node to reappear in sgx_numa_mask even when firmware assigned that node no EPC section, so its exit condition cannot be met after remote EPC sections fill. Exploitation requires local low-privileged access, SGX on a NUMA system, a current node without EPC memory, and exhaustion of EPC pages on other nodes; the result is a CPU soft lockup rather than data access or modification.
Summary
What happened
Infinite loop in the x86 SGX subsystem in affected Linux kernel versions allows local users to hang a CPU during EPC allocation. The NUMA fallback loop waits for the current node to reappear in sgx_numa_mask even when firmware assigned that node no EPC section, so its exit condition cannot be met after remote EPC sections fill. Exploitation requires local low-privileged access, SGX on a NUMA system, a current node without EPC memory, and exhaustion of EPC pages on other nodes; the result is a CPU soft lockup rather than data access or modification.
The record
- CVE
- CVE-2024-49856
- Published
- Oct 21, 2024
- Updated
- May 11, 2026
- Vendor
- The Linux Kernel Organization
- Product
- Linux
- Classifications
- CWE-835, T1499.004
- Attack vector
- local
- Privileges
- authenticated
Timeline
How it unfolded
- Oct 21, 2024CVE publishedPublication date reported by the CVE source.
- May 11, 2026Record updatedLatest update available in the CVE record.
Exploitability
Present is not the same as exploitable
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Is a vulnerable build present?
Compare these published version ranges with your installed build and any vendor patches.
- Affected versionversion=5.13
- Affected versionversion=901ddbb9ecf5425183ea0c09d10c2fd7868dce54 <0f89fb4042c08fd143bfc28af08bf6c8a0197eea
- Affected versionversion=901ddbb9ecf5425183ea0c09d10c2fd7868dce54 <20c96d0aaabfe361fc2a11c173968dc67feadbbf
- Affected versionversion=901ddbb9ecf5425183ea0c09d10c2fd7868dce54 <40fb64257dab507d86b5f1f2a62f3669ef0c91a8
- Affected versionversion=901ddbb9ecf5425183ea0c09d10c2fd7868dce54 <8132510c915815e6b537ab937d94ed66893bc7b8
- Affected versionversion=901ddbb9ecf5425183ea0c09d10c2fd7868dce54 <9c936844010466535bd46ea4ce4656ef17653644
- Affected versionversion=901ddbb9ecf5425183ea0c09d10c2fd7868dce54 <fb2d057539eda67ec7cfc369bf587e6518a9b99d
What conditions does exploitation require?
What is affected?
Published CVSS scores
CVSS describes severity. EPSS estimates exploitation probability.
Attacks
What attackers are doing with it
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Weakness, pattern, technique
Public exploit references
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Technologies
Your stack
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Your stack
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