CVE-2026-97479

Received Received - Intake

Kernel warning during driver removal in Linux

Publication date: 2026-09-24

Last updated on: 2026-09-28

Assigner: kernel.org

Description

In the Linux kernel, the following vulnerability has been resolved: driver core: Avoid warning when removing a device while its supplier is unbinding During driver removal, the following warning can appear: WARNING: CPU: 1 PID: 139 at drivers/base/core.c:1497 __device_links_no_driver+0xcc/0xfc ... Call trace: __device_links_no_driver+0xcc/0xfc (P) device_links_driver_cleanup+0xa8/0xf0 device_release_driver_internal+0x208/0x23c device_links_unbind_consumers+0xe0/0x108 device_release_driver_internal+0xec/0x23c device_links_unbind_consumers+0xe0/0x108 device_release_driver_internal+0xec/0x23c device_links_unbind_consumers+0xe0/0x108 device_release_driver_internal+0xec/0x23c driver_detach+0xa0/0x12c bus_remove_driver+0x6c/0xbc driver_unregister+0x30/0x60 pci_unregister_driver+0x20/0x9c lan966x_pci_driver_exit+0x18/0xa90 [lan966x_pci] This warning is triggered when a consumer is removed because the links status of its supplier is not DL_DEV_DRIVER_BOUND and the link flag DL_FLAG_SYNC_STATE_ONLY is not set. The topology in terms of consumers/suppliers used was the following (consumer ---> supplier): i2c -----------> OIC ----> PCI device | ^ | | +---> pinctrl ---+ When the PCI device is removed, the OIC (interrupt controller) has to be removed. In order to remove the OIC, pinctrl and i2c need to be removed and to remove pinctrl, i2c need to be removed. The removal order is: 1) i2c 2) pinctrl 3) OIC 4) PCI device In details, the removal sequence is the following (with 0000:01:00.0 the PCI device): driver_detach: call device_release_driver_internal(0000:01:00.0)... device_links_busy(0000:01:00.0): links->status = DL_DEV_UNBINDING device_links_unbind_consumers(0000:01:00.0): 0000:01:00.0--oic link->status = DL_STATE_SUPPLIER_UNBIND call device_release_driver_internal(oic)... device_links_busy(oic): links->status = DL_DEV_UNBINDING device_links_unbind_consumers(oic): oic--pinctrl link->status = DL_STATE_SUPPLIER_UNBIND call device_release_driver_internal(pinctrl)... device_links_busy(pinctrl): links->status = DL_DEV_UNBINDING device_links_unbind_consumers(pinctrl): pinctrl--i2c link->status = DL_STATE_SUPPLIER_UNBIND call device_release_driver_internal(i2c)... device_links_busy(i2c): links->status = DL_DEV_UNBINDING __device_links_no_driver(i2c)... pinctrl--i2c link->status is DL_STATE_SUPPLIER_UNBIND oic--i2c link->status is DL_STATE_ACTIVE oic--i2c link->supplier->links.status is DL_DEV_UNBINDING The warning is triggered by the i2c removal because the OIC (supplier) links status is not DL_DEV_DRIVER_BOUND. Its links status is indeed set to DL_DEV_UNBINDING. It is perfectly legit to have the links status set to DL_DEV_UNBINDING in that case. Indeed we had started to unbind the OIC which triggered the consumer unbinding and didn't finish yet when the i2c is unbound. Avoid the warning when the supplier links status is set to DL_DEV_UNBINDING and thus support this removal sequence without any warnings.

CVSS Scores

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Meta Information

Published

2026-09-24

Last Modified

2026-09-28

Generated

2026-10-15

AI Q&A

2026-09-25

EPSS Evaluated

2026-10-13

NVD

CVE-2026-97479

EUVD

EUVD-2026-86077

Affected Vendors & Products

Vendor	Product	Version / Range
linux_kernel	linux_kernel	*

Helpful Resources

Exploitability

CWE

KEV

CWE ID	Description
CWE-UNKNOWN

Attack-Flow Graph

Executive Summary

This vulnerability in the Linux kernel involves a warning that appears when removing a device while its supplier is unbinding. The warning occurs during driver removal due to a specific device link status not being in the expected state. The issue arises from a race condition in the removal sequence of interconnected devices (i2c, pinctrl, OIC, and PCI device), where the supplier's link status is set to DL_DEV_UNBINDING instead of DL_DEV_DRIVER_BOUND. The fix avoids triggering this warning when the supplier's link status is DL_DEV_UNBINDING.

Detection Guidance

This vulnerability is specific to the Linux kernel and manifests as a warning during device driver removal. Detection involves monitoring kernel logs for the warning message during driver unloading or system shutdown. Check dmesg or journalctl for messages like 'WARNING: CPU: ... __device_links_no_driver+0xcc/0xfc'.

Impact Analysis

This vulnerability primarily causes a warning message during device removal in the Linux kernel. It does not directly impact system functionality or security but may indicate improper device driver cleanup. Users might see error logs during system operations involving device removal, which could complicate debugging or system monitoring.

Compliance Impact

This vulnerability does not directly affect compliance with standards like GDPR or HIPAA. It is a kernel driver removal warning issue that does not impact data security, privacy, or system integrity in a way that would violate these regulations.

Mitigation Strategies

Apply the kernel patch that resolves this issue. Update your Linux kernel to a version containing the fix. If using a distribution kernel, check for and install available updates. No immediate workaround is needed as this is a warning, not a security issue.

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