Linux KernelOperating system · Linux

CVE-2022-49872

MEDIUM · 5.5 CVSS v3.1 Published 2025-05-01
Fix available
A fix is available. Upgrade to 4.9.334 / 4.14.300 or later.
See remediation →
57/100
Remediation priority · Elevated
Zero-click Patch available

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 · unedited
In the Linux kernel, the following vulnerability has been resolved: net: gso: fix panic on frag_list with mixed head alloc types Since commit 3dcbdb134f32 ("net: gso: Fix skb_segment splat when splitting gso_size mangled skb having linear-headed frag_list"), it is allowed to change gso_size of a GRO packet. However, that commit assumes that "checking the first list_skb member suffices; i.e if either of the list_skb members have non head_frag head, then the first one has too". It turns out this assumption does not hold. We've seen BUG_ON being hit in skb_segment when skbs on the frag_list had differing head_frag with the vmxnet3 driver. This happens because __netdev_alloc_skb and __napi_alloc_skb can return a skb that is page backed or kmalloced depending on the requested size. As the result, the last small skb in the GRO packet can be kmalloced. There are three different locations where this can be fixed: (1) We could check head_frag in GRO and not allow GROing skbs with different head_frag. However, that would lead to performance regression on normal forward paths with unmodified gso_size, where !head_frag in the last packet is not a problem. (2) Set a flag in bpf_skb_net_grow and bpf_skb_net_shrink indicating that NETIF_F_SG is undesirable. That would need to eat a bit in sk_buff. Furthermore, that flag can be unset when all skbs on the frag_list are page backed. To retain good performance, bpf_skb_net_grow/shrink would have to walk the frag_list. (3) Walk the frag_list in skb_segment when determining whether NETIF_F_SG should be cleared. This of course slows things down. This patch implements (3). To limit the performance impact in skb_segment, the list is walked only for skbs with SKB_GSO_DODGY set that have gso_size changed. Normal paths thus will not hit it. We could check only the last skb but since we need to walk the whole list anyway, let's stay on the safe side.

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 analysis

A detailed technical summary for this CVE is being prepared.

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
Affected:>= 4.9.194, < 4.9.334>= 4.14.145, < 4.14.300>= 4.19.74, < 4.19.267>= 5.2.16, < 5.3>= 5.3.1, < 5.4.225>= 5.5, < 5.10.155>= 5.11, < 5.15.79>= 5.16, < 6.0.9= 5.3= 6.1

CVSS 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
None
Integrity
None
Availability
High

CVSS:3.1/AV:L/AC:L/PR:L/UI:N/S:U/C:N/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 · scoped
Upgrade available Upgrade to 4.9.334 / 4.14.300 / 4.19.267 or later
Fixed in 4.9.3344.14.3004.19.267
Vendor patch git.kernel.org →
Recommended fix High confidence

Upgrade to one of: Linux 4.9.334+, 4.14.300+, 4.19.267+, or 5.3+ (depending on your current branch)

  1. 1. Identify the currently running Linux kernel version using `uname -r`
  2. 2. Determine which kernel branch your version belongs to (4.9.x, 4.14.x, 4.19.x, or 5.x)
  3. 3. For 4.9.x kernels: upgrade to kernel version 4.9.334 or later
  4. 4. For 4.14.x kernels: upgrade to kernel version 4.14.300 or later
  5. 5. For 4.19.x kernels: upgrade to kernel version 4.19.267 or later
  6. 6. For 5.x kernels: upgrade to kernel version 5.3 or later
  7. 7. Alternatively, apply the upstream patch commit 0a9f56e525ea871d3950b90076912f5c7494f00f to your kernel source and rebuild
  8. 8. Reboot into the patched/updated kernel
Caveat Kernel upgrades may require system downtime and could introduce compatibility issues with custom modules or specific hardware drivers; ensure backup and test in staging first

Generated from the published advisory — verify against the referenced sources before acting.

We can perform the upgrade in your staging environment and verify nothing breaks — typical engagement from $1,600. Get the upgrade done

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References Go to the primary sourcePrimary sources — vendor advisories, patches and trackers. Where our summary and a reference disagree, the reference wins.

Primary sources

Practitioner notes

Contributed

Peer-ranked notes from engineers who’ve handled CVE-2022-49872 in production — separate from our analysis above.

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