Local kernel crash via missing memory barrier
Published Apr 22, 2026 · Updated Apr 22, 2026
Race condition in the Linux Kernel allows local users to crash affected arm64 systems during concurrent memory-management operations. The softleaf_to_folio() and softleaf_to_page() paths read a migration-entry tail page without the smp_rmb() needed to order compound-head and page-flag observations. The fault requires a race between mTHP folio splitting and zap_nonpresent_ptes(); winning it reaches an unlocked folio and triggers a kernel warning or, on older kernels, a BUG_ON panic.
Summary
What happened
Race condition in the Linux Kernel allows local users to crash affected arm64 systems during concurrent memory-management operations. The softleaf_to_folio() and softleaf_to_page() paths read a migration-entry tail page without the smp_rmb() needed to order compound-head and page-flag observations. The fault requires a race between mTHP folio splitting and zap_nonpresent_ptes(); winning it reaches an unlocked folio and triggers a kernel warning or, on older kernels, a BUG_ON panic.
The record
- CVE
- CVE-2026-31466
- Published
- Apr 22, 2026
- Updated
- Apr 22, 2026
- Vendor
- The Linux Kernel Organization
- Product
- Linux Kernel
- Classifications
- CWE-362, T1499.004
- Attack vector
- local
- Privileges
- authenticated
Timeline
How it unfolded
- Apr 22, 2026CVE publishedPublication date reported by the CVE source.
- Apr 22, 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?
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- Affected versionversion=4.5
- Affected versionversion=e9b61f19858a5d6c42ce2298cf138279375d0d9b <426ee10711586617da869c8bb798214965337617
- Affected versionversion=e9b61f19858a5d6c42ce2298cf138279375d0d9b <4c5e7f0fcd592801c9cc18f29f80fbee84eb8669
- Affected versionversion=e9b61f19858a5d6c42ce2298cf138279375d0d9b <722cfaf6b31d31123439e67b5deac6b1261a3dea
- Affected versionversion=e9b61f19858a5d6c42ce2298cf138279375d0d9b <7ad1997b9bc8032603df8f091761114479285769
- Affected versionversion=e9b61f19858a5d6c42ce2298cf138279375d0d9b <7ddcf4a245c1c5a91fdd9698757e3d95179ffe41
- Affected versionversion=e9b61f19858a5d6c42ce2298cf138279375d0d9b <8bfb8414e9f2ce6f5f2f0e3d0da52f2d132128e7
- Affected versionversion=e9b61f19858a5d6c42ce2298cf138279375d0d9b <b8c49ad888892ad7b77062b9c102b799a3e9b4f8
- Affected versionversion=e9b61f19858a5d6c42ce2298cf138279375d0d9b <f1acf5887c2bbaf998dc3fe32c72b7a8b84a3ddd
What conditions does exploitation require?
What is affected?
Published CVSS scores
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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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