CVE-2024-50017: x86/mm/ident_map: Use gbpages only where full GB page should be mapped.

Severity: medium (CVSS 5.5 v3.1)
Exploited in the wild: not listed in CISA KEV
EPSS: 0.2% probability of exploitation in the next 30 days
Public exploit or detection template: none known
Published: 2024-10-21 · updated 2026-09-14

Description

In the Linux kernel, the following vulnerability has been resolved: x86/mm/ident_map: Use gbpages only where full GB page should be mapped. When ident_pud_init() uses only GB pages to create identity maps, large ranges of addresses not actually requested can be included in the resulting table; a 4K request will map a full GB. This can include a lot of extra address space past that requested, including areas marked reserved by the BIOS. That allows processor speculation into reserved regions, that on UV systems can cause system halts. Only use GB pages when map creation requests include the full GB page of space. Fall back to using smaller 2M pages when only portions of a GB page are included in the request. No attempt is made to coalesce mapping requests. If a request requires a map entry at the 2M (pmd) level, subsequent mapping requests within the same 1G region will also be at the pmd level, even if adjacent or overlapping such requests could have been combined to map a full GB page. Existing usage starts with larger regions and then adds smaller regions, so this should not have any great consequence.

Affected products

Linux kernel: before 6.10.14; from 6.11 before 6.11.3 — fixed in 6.10.14, 6.11.3

How to fix

Upgrade to a fixed version: Linux kernel 6.10.14, 6.11.3. Check the vendor advisory for mitigations.

References

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