CVE-2025-68178
Unknown Unknown - Not Provided
BaseFortify

Publication date: 2025-12-16

Last updated on: 2025-12-18

Assigner: kernel.org

Description
In the Linux kernel, the following vulnerability has been resolved: blk-cgroup: fix possible deadlock while configuring policy Following deadlock can be triggered easily by lockdep: WARNING: possible circular locking dependency detected 6.17.0-rc3-00124-ga12c2658ced0 #1665 Not tainted ------------------------------------------------------ check/1334 is trying to acquire lock: ff1100011d9d0678 (&q->sysfs_lock){+.+.}-{4:4}, at: blk_unregister_queue+0x53/0x180 but task is already holding lock: ff1100011d9d00e0 (&q->q_usage_counter(queue)#3){++++}-{0:0}, at: del_gendisk+0xba/0x110 which lock already depends on the new lock. the existing dependency chain (in reverse order) is: -> #2 (&q->q_usage_counter(queue)#3){++++}-{0:0}: blk_queue_enter+0x40b/0x470 blkg_conf_prep+0x7b/0x3c0 tg_set_limit+0x10a/0x3e0 cgroup_file_write+0xc6/0x420 kernfs_fop_write_iter+0x189/0x280 vfs_write+0x256/0x490 ksys_write+0x83/0x190 __x64_sys_write+0x21/0x30 x64_sys_call+0x4608/0x4630 do_syscall_64+0xdb/0x6b0 entry_SYSCALL_64_after_hwframe+0x76/0x7e -> #1 (&q->rq_qos_mutex){+.+.}-{4:4}: __mutex_lock+0xd8/0xf50 mutex_lock_nested+0x2b/0x40 wbt_init+0x17e/0x280 wbt_enable_default+0xe9/0x140 blk_register_queue+0x1da/0x2e0 __add_disk+0x38c/0x5d0 add_disk_fwnode+0x89/0x250 device_add_disk+0x18/0x30 virtblk_probe+0x13a3/0x1800 virtio_dev_probe+0x389/0x610 really_probe+0x136/0x620 __driver_probe_device+0xb3/0x230 driver_probe_device+0x2f/0xe0 __driver_attach+0x158/0x250 bus_for_each_dev+0xa9/0x130 driver_attach+0x26/0x40 bus_add_driver+0x178/0x3d0 driver_register+0x7d/0x1c0 __register_virtio_driver+0x2c/0x60 virtio_blk_init+0x6f/0xe0 do_one_initcall+0x94/0x540 kernel_init_freeable+0x56a/0x7b0 kernel_init+0x2b/0x270 ret_from_fork+0x268/0x4c0 ret_from_fork_asm+0x1a/0x30 -> #0 (&q->sysfs_lock){+.+.}-{4:4}: __lock_acquire+0x1835/0x2940 lock_acquire+0xf9/0x450 __mutex_lock+0xd8/0xf50 mutex_lock_nested+0x2b/0x40 blk_unregister_queue+0x53/0x180 __del_gendisk+0x226/0x690 del_gendisk+0xba/0x110 sd_remove+0x49/0xb0 [sd_mod] device_remove+0x87/0xb0 device_release_driver_internal+0x11e/0x230 device_release_driver+0x1a/0x30 bus_remove_device+0x14d/0x220 device_del+0x1e1/0x5a0 __scsi_remove_device+0x1ff/0x2f0 scsi_remove_device+0x37/0x60 sdev_store_delete+0x77/0x100 dev_attr_store+0x1f/0x40 sysfs_kf_write+0x65/0x90 kernfs_fop_write_iter+0x189/0x280 vfs_write+0x256/0x490 ksys_write+0x83/0x190 __x64_sys_write+0x21/0x30 x64_sys_call+0x4608/0x4630 do_syscall_64+0xdb/0x6b0 entry_SYSCALL_64_after_hwframe+0x76/0x7e other info that might help us debug this: Chain exists of: &q->sysfs_lock --> &q->rq_qos_mutex --> &q->q_usage_counter(queue)#3 Possible unsafe locking scenario: CPU0 CPU1 ---- ---- lock(&q->q_usage_counter(queue)#3); lock(&q->rq_qos_mutex); lock(&q->q_usage_counter(queue)#3); lock(&q->sysfs_lock); Root cause is that queue_usage_counter is grabbed with rq_qos_mutex held in blkg_conf_prep(), while queue should be freezed before rq_qos_mutex from other context. The blk_queue_enter() from blkg_conf_prep() is used to protect against policy deactivation, which is already protected with blkcg_mutex, hence convert blk_queue_enter() to blkcg_mutex to fix this problem. Meanwhile, consider that blkcg_mutex is held after queue is freezed from policy deactivation, also convert blkg_alloc() to use GFP_NOIO.
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Meta Information
Published
2025-12-16
Last Modified
2025-12-18
Generated
2026-05-07
AI Q&A
2025-12-16
EPSS Evaluated
2026-05-05
NVD
CVE-2025-68178
Affected Vendors & Products
Showing 1 associated CPE
Vendor Product Version / Range
linux linux_kernel 6.17.0-rc3
Helpful Resources
Exploitability
CWE
CWE Icon
KEV
KEV Icon
CWE ID Description
CWE-UNKNOWN
Attack-Flow Graph
AI Powered Q&A
Can you explain this vulnerability to me?

This vulnerability is a possible deadlock in the Linux kernel's blk-cgroup subsystem while configuring policy. It occurs due to a circular locking dependency involving multiple locks (sysfs_lock, rq_qos_mutex, and q_usage_counter). The deadlock can be triggered when one task tries to acquire a lock that is already held in a conflicting order by another task, causing a circular wait. The root cause is that queue_usage_counter is grabbed with rq_qos_mutex held, while the queue should be frozen before rq_qos_mutex from another context. The fix involves converting blk_queue_enter() to use blkcg_mutex instead of rq_qos_mutex to avoid this unsafe locking scenario.


How can this vulnerability impact me? :

This vulnerability can cause a deadlock in the Linux kernel, which means that certain operations related to block device control groups (blk-cgroup) may hang indefinitely. This can lead to system instability, degraded performance, or unresponsiveness in affected systems, especially those relying on block device cgroup policies.


How can this vulnerability be detected on my network or system? Can you suggest some commands?

This vulnerability can be detected by observing kernel warnings related to possible circular locking dependencies. Specifically, the kernel log may show messages like 'WARNING: possible circular locking dependency detected' involving blk-cgroup locks such as sysfs_lock, rq_qos_mutex, and q_usage_counter. Monitoring kernel logs (e.g., using 'dmesg' or 'journalctl -k') for such warnings can help detect this issue. There are no specific commands provided to detect this vulnerability beyond checking for these kernel warnings.


What immediate steps should I take to mitigate this vulnerability?

Immediate mitigation involves updating the Linux kernel to a version where this deadlock issue in blk-cgroup has been fixed. The fix involves converting blk_queue_enter() to use blkcg_mutex instead of rq_qos_mutex and changing blkg_alloc() to use GFP_NOIO to avoid the deadlock scenario. Until the kernel is updated, monitoring for deadlock warnings and avoiding operations that trigger blk_unregister_queue and del_gendisk concurrently may reduce the risk. However, the primary recommended step is to apply the kernel patch that addresses this locking order problem.


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