Executive brief
A vulnerability in the Linux kernel's QLogic Fibre Channel driver can lead to a complete system crash. This driver is used to manage high-speed storage connections in enterprise data centers. An exploit could cause a denial-of-service, disrupting access to critical storage resources and impacting business operations.
Technical details
A NULL pointer dereference vulnerability exists in the qla2xxx Fibre Channel driver within the Linux kernel, specifically in the qla_fab_async_scan and qla24xx_async_gpnft functions. The issue stems from a failure to validate the 'sp' (SRB) pointer before attempting to free associated DMA memory and decrementing its reference count. An attacker or specific network conditions during fabric discovery can trigger this condition, leading to a kernel oops and system crash. The vulnerability was introduced by a commit intended to simplify fabric discovery and has been resolved by adding proper NULL checks before memory deallocation.
Affected products
- Linux Linux Kernel a4239945b8ad to 85c0890fea6b
- Linux Linux Kernel a4239945b8ad to a46f81c1e627
Timeline
- 2025-12-10: patched: Initial patch authored by Marvell engineers
- 2026-02-18: advisory: NVD publication date
References
- https://git.kernel.org/stable/c/044131fce27749cb6ea986baf861fbe63c6d8a17
- https://git.kernel.org/stable/c/1a9585e4c58d1f1662b3ca46110ed4f583082ce5
- https://git.kernel.org/stable/c/40ae93668226b610edb952c6036f607a61750b57
- https://git.kernel.org/stable/c/85c0890fea6baeba9c4ae6ae090182cbb1a93fb2
- https://git.kernel.org/stable/c/944378ead9a48d5d50e9e3cc85e4cdb911c37ca1
- https://git.kernel.org/stable/c/949010291bb941d53733ed08a33454254d9afb1b
- https://git.kernel.org/stable/c/a46f81c1e627437de436e517f5fd4b725c15a1e6