Linux KernelOperating system · Linux
CVE-2024-43855
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: md: fix deadlock between mddev_suspend and flush bio Deadlock occurs when mddev is being suspended while some flush bio is in progress. It is a complex issue. T1. the first flush is at the ending stage, it clears 'mddev->flush_bio' and tries to submit data, but is blocked because mddev is suspended by T4. T2. the second flush sets 'mddev->flush_bio', and attempts to queue md_submit_flush_data(), which is already running (T1) and won't execute again if on the same CPU as T1. T3. the third flush inc active_io and tries to flush, but is blocked because 'mddev->flush_bio' is not NULL (set by T2). T4. mddev_suspend() is called and waits for active_io dec to 0 which is inc by T3. T1 T2 T3 T4 (flush 1) (flush 2) (third 3) (suspend) md_submit_flush_data mddev->flush_bio = NULL; . . md_flush_request . mddev->flush_bio = bio . queue submit_flushes . . . . md_handle_request . . active_io + 1 . . md_flush_request . . wait !mddev->flush_bio . . . . mddev_suspend . . wait !active_io . . . submit_flushes . queue_work md_submit_flush_data . //md_submit_flush_data is already running (T1) . md_handle_request wait resume The root issue is non-atomic inc/dec of active_io during flush process. active_io is dec before md_submit_flush_data is queued, and inc soon after md_submit_flush_data() run. md_flush_request active_io + 1 submit_flushes active_io - 1 md_submit_flush_data md_handle_request active_io + 1 make_request active_io - 1 If active_io is dec after md_handle_request() instead of within submit_flushes(), make_request() can be called directly intead of md_handle_request() in md_submit_flush_data(), and active_io will only inc and dec once in the whole flush process. Deadlock will be fixed. Additionally, the only difference between fixing the issue and before is that there is no return error handling of make_request(). But after previous patch cleaned md_write_start(), make_requst() only return error in raid5_make_request() by dm-raid, see commit 41425f96d7aa ("dm-raid456, md/raid456: fix a deadlock for dm-raid456 while io concurrent with reshape)". Since dm always splits data and flush operation into two separate io, io size of flush submitted by dm always is 0, make_request() will not be called in md_submit_flush_data(). To prevent future modifications from introducing issues, add WARN_ON to ensure make_request() no error is returned in this context.
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 follows a pointer that is null, crashing the process. An attacker who can reliably trigger it turns the crash into a denial of service. The fix is checking for null before use and handling the failure path gracefully.
General guidance for the null pointer dereference 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
< 6.1.103>= 6.2, < 6.6.44>= 6.7, < 6.10.3CVSS 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 · scoped6.1.1036.6.446.10.3
6.1.103+ / 6.6.44+ / 6.10.3+ (depending on branch)
- Identify the current running kernel version using 'uname -r'
- Check which vulnerable version range the current kernel falls into (< 6.1.103, >= 6.2 and < 6.6.44, or >= 6.7 and < 6.10.3)
- Upgrade the Linux kernel to a fixed release: 6.1.103 or later for the 6.1.y branch, 6.6.44 or later for the 6.6.y branch, or 6.10.3 or later for newer branches
- Reboot the system to load the fixed kernel
- Verify the kernel version after reboot with 'uname -r' to confirm the fix is applied
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-2024-43855 — 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-2024-43855 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
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