{"cve":"CVE-2024-26976","nvd":{"published":"2024-05-01T06:15:14.667","modified":"2026-08-04T11:17:30.040","status":"Modified","description":"In the Linux kernel, the following vulnerability has been resolved:\n\nKVM: Always flush async #PF workqueue when vCPU is being destroyed\n\nAlways flush the per-vCPU async #PF workqueue when a vCPU is clearing its\ncompletion queue, e.g. when a VM and all its vCPUs is being destroyed.\nKVM must ensure that none of its workqueue callbacks is running when the\nlast reference to the KVM _module_ is put.  Gifting a reference to the\nassociated VM prevents the workqueue callback from dereferencing freed\nvCPU/VM memory, but does not prevent the KVM module from being unloaded\nbefore the callback completes.\n\nDrop the misguided VM refcount gifting, as calling kvm_put_kvm() from\nasync_pf_execute() if kvm_put_kvm() flushes the async #PF workqueue will\nresult in deadlock.  async_pf_execute() can't return until kvm_put_kvm()\nfinishes, and kvm_put_kvm() can't return until async_pf_execute() finishes:\n\n WARNING: CPU: 8 PID: 251 at virt/kvm/kvm_main.c:1435 kvm_put_kvm+0x2d/0x320 [kvm]\n Modules linked in: vhost_net vhost vhost_iotlb tap kvm_intel kvm irqbypass\n CPU: 8 PID: 251 Comm: kworker/8:1 Tainted: G        W          6.6.0-rc1-e7af8d17224a-x86/gmem-vm #119\n Hardware name: QEMU Standard PC (Q35 + ICH9, 2009), BIOS 0.0.0 02/06/2015\n Workqueue: events async_pf_execute [kvm]\n RIP: 0010:kvm_put_kvm+0x2d/0x320 [kvm]\n Call Trace:\n  <TASK>\n  async_pf_execute+0x198/0x260 [kvm]\n  process_one_work+0x145/0x2d0\n  worker_thread+0x27e/0x3a0\n  kthread+0xba/0xe0\n  ret_from_fork+0x2d/0x50\n  ret_from_fork_asm+0x11/0x20\n  </TASK>\n ---[ end trace 0000000000000000 ]---\n INFO: task kworker/8:1:251 blocked for more than 120 seconds.\n       Tainted: G        W          6.6.0-rc1-e7af8d17224a-x86/gmem-vm #119\n \"echo 0 > /proc/sys/kernel/hung_task_timeout_secs\" disables this message.\n task:kworker/8:1     state:D stack:0     pid:251   ppid:2      flags:0x00004000\n Workqueue: events async_pf_execute [kvm]\n Call Trace:\n  <TASK>\n  __schedule+0x33f/0xa40\n  schedule+0x53/0xc0\n  schedule_timeout+0x12a/0x140\n  __wait_for_common+0x8d/0x1d0\n  __flush_work.isra.0+0x19f/0x2c0\n  kvm_clear_async_pf_completion_queue+0x129/0x190 [kvm]\n  kvm_arch_destroy_vm+0x78/0x1b0 [kvm]\n  kvm_put_kvm+0x1c1/0x320 [kvm]\n  async_pf_execute+0x198/0x260 [kvm]\n  process_one_work+0x145/0x2d0\n  worker_thread+0x27e/0x3a0\n  kthread+0xba/0xe0\n  ret_from_fork+0x2d/0x50\n  ret_from_fork_asm+0x11/0x20\n  </TASK>\n\nIf kvm_clear_async_pf_completion_queue() actually flushes the workqueue,\nthen there's no need to gift async_pf_execute() a reference because all\ninvocations of async_pf_execute() will be forced to complete before the\nvCPU and its VM are destroyed/freed.  And that in turn fixes the module\nunloading bug as __fput() won't do module_put() on the last vCPU reference\nuntil the vCPU has been freed, e.g. if closing the vCPU file also puts the\nlast reference to the KVM module.\n\nNote that kvm_check_async_pf_completion() may also take the work item off\nthe completion queue and so also needs to flush the work queue, as the\nwork will not be seen by kvm_clear_async_pf_completion_queue().  Waiting\non the workqueue could theoretically delay a vCPU due to waiting for the\nwork to complete, but that's a very, very small chance, and likely a very\nsmall delay.  kvm_arch_async_page_present_queued() unconditionally makes a\nnew request, i.e. will effectively delay entering the guest, so the\nremaining work is really just:\n\n        trace_kvm_async_pf_completed(addr, cr2_or_gpa);\n\n        __kvm_vcpu_wake_up(vcpu);\n\n        mmput(mm);\n\nand mmput() can't drop the last reference to the page tables if the vCPU is\nstill alive, i.e. the vCPU won't get stuck tearing down page tables.\n\nAdd a helper to do the flushing, specifically to deal with \"wakeup all\"\nwork items, as they aren't actually work items, i.e. are never placed in a\nworkqueue.  Trying to flush a bogus workqueue entry rightly makes\n__flush_work() complain (kudos to whoever added that sanity check).\n\nNote, commit 5f6de5cbebee (\"KVM: Prevent module exit until al\n---truncated---","cvss_v4":null,"cvss_v3":{"version":"3.1","vector":"CVSS:3.1/AV:L/AC:L/PR:L/UI:N/S:U/C:H/I:H/A:H","score":7.8},"cwes":["CWE-400"],"references":["https://git.kernel.org/stable/c/3d75b8aa5c29058a512db29da7cbee8052724157","https://git.kernel.org/stable/c/4f3a3bce428fb439c66a578adc447afce7b4a750","https://git.kernel.org/stable/c/82e25cc1c2e93c3023da98be282322fc08b61ffb","https://git.kernel.org/stable/c/83d3c5e309611ef593e2fcb78444fc8ceedf9bac","https://git.kernel.org/stable/c/a75afe480d4349c524d9c659b1a5a544dbc39a98"],"products":["debian:debian_linux","linux:linux_kernel"],"source":"nvd","synced_at":"2026-10-19T21:49:08.435428910+00:00"},"epss":{"cve":"CVE-2024-26976","score":0.00264,"percentile":0.18255,"date":"2026-11-01"},"kev":null,"osv":[],"attribution":["This product uses the NVD API but is not endorsed or certified by the NVD.","EPSS scores: FIRST Exploit Prediction Scoring System, https://www.first.org/epss","Known exploited vulnerabilities: CISA Known Exploited Vulnerabilities Catalog, https://www.cisa.gov/known-exploited-vulnerabilities-catalog","Package advisories: OSV (https://osv.dev), from the GitHub Advisory Database, PyPA, Go, RustSec and other ecosystem databases, under CC-BY 4.0 or CC0","CVE records: the CVE Program's CVE List (https://www.cve.org), under its terms of use (https://www.cve.org/Legal/TermsOfUse). CVE is a registered trademark of The MITRE Corporation; this product is not affiliated with the CVE Program."]}