Linux KernelOperating system · Linux
CVE-2022-49851
Official description Straight from the sourceThe vendor's or NVD's own wording, published unedited. Authoritative, but often terse — it says what broke, rarely what to do.
NVD · uneditedIn the Linux kernel, the following vulnerability has been resolved: riscv: fix reserved memory setup Currently, RISC-V sets up reserved memory using the "early" copy of the device tree. As a result, when trying to get a reserved memory region using of_reserved_mem_lookup(), the pointer to reserved memory regions is using the early, pre-virtual-memory address which causes a kernel panic when trying to use the buffer's name: Unable to handle kernel paging request at virtual address 00000000401c31ac Oops [#1] Modules linked in: CPU: 0 PID: 0 Comm: swapper Not tainted 6.0.0-rc1-00001-g0d9d6953d834 #1 Hardware name: Microchip PolarFire-SoC Icicle Kit (DT) epc : string+0x4a/0xea ra : vsnprintf+0x1e4/0x336 epc : ffffffff80335ea0 ra : ffffffff80338936 sp : ffffffff81203be0 gp : ffffffff812e0a98 tp : ffffffff8120de40 t0 : 0000000000000000 t1 : ffffffff81203e28 t2 : 7265736572203a46 s0 : ffffffff81203c20 s1 : ffffffff81203e28 a0 : ffffffff81203d22 a1 : 0000000000000000 a2 : ffffffff81203d08 a3 : 0000000081203d21 a4 : ffffffffffffffff a5 : 00000000401c31ac a6 : ffff0a00ffffff04 a7 : ffffffffffffffff s2 : ffffffff81203d08 s3 : ffffffff81203d00 s4 : 0000000000000008 s5 : ffffffff000000ff s6 : 0000000000ffffff s7 : 00000000ffffff00 s8 : ffffffff80d9821a s9 : ffffffff81203d22 s10: 0000000000000002 s11: ffffffff80d9821c t3 : ffffffff812f3617 t4 : ffffffff812f3617 t5 : ffffffff812f3618 t6 : ffffffff81203d08 status: 0000000200000100 badaddr: 00000000401c31ac cause: 000000000000000d [<ffffffff80338936>] vsnprintf+0x1e4/0x336 [<ffffffff80055ae2>] vprintk_store+0xf6/0x344 [<ffffffff80055d86>] vprintk_emit+0x56/0x192 [<ffffffff80055ed8>] vprintk_default+0x16/0x1e [<ffffffff800563d2>] vprintk+0x72/0x80 [<ffffffff806813b2>] _printk+0x36/0x50 [<ffffffff8068af48>] print_reserved_mem+0x1c/0x24 [<ffffffff808057ec>] paging_init+0x528/0x5bc [<ffffffff808031ae>] setup_arch+0xd0/0x592 [<ffffffff8080070e>] start_kernel+0x82/0x73c early_init_fdt_scan_reserved_mem() takes no arguments as it operates on initial_boot_params, which is populated by early_init_dt_verify(). On RISC-V, early_init_dt_verify() is called twice. Once, directly, in setup_arch() if CONFIG_BUILTIN_DTB is not enabled and once indirectly, very early in the boot process, by parse_dtb() when it calls early_init_dt_scan_nodes(). This first call uses dtb_early_va to set initial_boot_params, which is not usable later in the boot process when early_init_fdt_scan_reserved_mem() is called. On arm64 for example, the corresponding call to early_init_dt_scan_nodes() uses fixmap addresses and doesn't suffer the same fate. Move early_init_fdt_scan_reserved_mem() further along the boot sequence, after the direct call to early_init_dt_verify() in setup_arch() so that the names use the correct virtual memory addresses. The above supposed that CONFIG_BUILTIN_DTB was not set, but should work equally in the case where it is - unflatted_and_copy_device_tree() also updates initial_boot_params.
Technical summary Written by usOur analysis, written from the advisory, the CVSS vector and the affected-version data. It adds context the advisory leaves out, and never invents facts that are not in the source.
dbcve analysisThe code reads past the end (or before the start) of a buffer, returning memory that was never meant to be exposed. Attackers use it to leak secrets like keys or to defeat memory-protection defences. Remediation is validating indices and lengths before every read.
General guidance for the out-of-bounds read class — the official description and references above are authoritative for this specific CVE. Want a bespoke review and a reviewed fix? Ask our team →
Affected products & versions What the vendor confirmedThe version ranges the vendor confirmed as vulnerable. If your version sits inside a range here, treat yourself as exposed until you have upgraded.
NVD · CPE data
Linux KernelOperating system
>= 5.3.8, < 5.4>= 5.4.1, < 5.10.155>= 5.11, < 5.15.79>= 5.16, < 6.0.9= 5.4= 6.1CVSS breakdown How the score is builtThe industry scoring standard. It rates how the flaw is reached, what it takes to exploit, and what an attacker gains — the score is derived from those, not the other way round.
From the vector- Attack vector
- Local
- Complexity
- Low
- Privileges
- Low
- User interaction
- None
- Scope
- Unchanged
- Confidentiality
- High
- Integrity
- None
- Availability
- High
CVSS:3.1/AV:L/AC:L/PR:L/UI:N/S:U/C:H/I:N/A:H
Remediation Closing itWhat it takes to close this. Where a vendor fix exists we point at it; where none exists we say so plainly, and can build one. Effort estimates are scoped from the advisory, not from your codebase.
dbcve · scoped5.45.10.1555.15.79
Upgrade to Linux kernel 5.4.155+, 5.10.155+, 5.15.79+, 5.16.9+, or 6.0.9+ (any version containing commit 50e63dd8ed92045eb70a72d7ec725488320fb68b)
- 1. Locate the setup_arch() function in the RISC-V architecture-specific code (typically in arch/riscv/kernel/setup.c)
- 2. Find the current call to early_init_fdt_scan_reserved_mem() which happens before the direct call to early_init_dt_verify()
- 3. Move the early_init_fdt_scan_reserved_mem() call to after the direct early_init_dt_verify() call in setup_arch()
- 4. Apply the fix from commit 50e63dd8ed92045eb70a72d7ec725488320fb68b which reorders these function calls so reserved memory uses correct virtual addresses instead of early device tree addresses
- 5. Rebuild the RISC-V kernel with the corrected code
Generated from the published advisory — verify against the referenced sources before acting.
Scan for this in your stack
Free · runs locallyCheck whether your project pulls in CVE-2022-49851 — or any other known-vulnerable package — straight from your lock files. Free and open source; it runs locally and uploads nothing.
References Go to the primary sourcePrimary sources — vendor advisories, patches and trackers. Where our summary and a reference disagree, the reference wins.
Primary sourcesPractitioner notes
ContributedPeer-ranked notes from engineers who’ve handled CVE-2022-49851 in production — separate from our analysis above.
The advisory tells you what broke. It rarely tells you what actually worked. If you’ve dealt with this one, that detail is what the next engineer is searching for.
- The version that genuinely resolved it — not the one the vendor claimed
- A config change or rule that shut the vector down
- A gotcha in the upgrade path that cost you an afternoon
No notes yet
Be the first to add a field note for this CVE — a mitigation you’ve verified, a version caveat, or a link to a working fix. Sign in above to contribute.
A place for practitioners to share what actually worked: a mitigation you’ve tested, a configuration change, a version- or environment-specific caveat, or a link to a verified patch. The most useful notes rise to the top as peers upvote them, so the signal stays high.
- Verified mitigations, workarounds, and config changes
- Version or environment caveats, and links to real fixes
- No weaponised exploit code, or anything meant to cause harm
- No spam, self-promotion, credentials, or personal data