CVE-2024-42317 — mm/huge_memory: avoid PMD-size page cache if needed
In the Linux kernel, the following vulnerability has been resolved: mm/huge_memory: avoid PMD-size page cache if needed xarray can't support arbitrary page cache size. the largest and supported page cache size is defined as MAX_PAGECACHE_ORDER by commit 099d90642a71 ("mm/filemap: make MAX_PAGECACHE_ORDER acceptable to xarray"). However, it's possible to have 512MB page cache in the huge memory's collapsing path on ARM64 system whose base page size is 64KB. 512MB page cache is breaking the limitation and a warning is raised when the xarray entry is split as shown in the following example. [root@dhcp-10-26-1-207 ~]# cat /proc/1/smaps | grep KernelPageSize KernelPageSize: 64 kB [root@dhcp-10-26-1-207 ~]# cat /tmp/test.c : int main(int argc, char **argv) { const char *filename = TEST_XFS_FILENAME; int fd = 0; void *buf = (void *)-1, *p; int pgsize = getpagesize(); int ret = 0; if (pgsize != 0x10000) { fprintf(stdout, "System with 64KB base page size is required!\n"); return -EPERM; } system("echo 0 > /sys/devices/virtual/bdi/253:0/read_ahead_kb"); system("echo 1 > /proc/sys/vm/drop_caches"); /* Open the xfs file */ fd = open(filename, O_RDONLY); assert(fd > 0); /* Create VMA */ buf = mmap(NULL, TEST_MEM_SIZE, PROT_READ, MAP_SHARED, fd, 0); assert(buf != (void *)-1); fprintf(stdout, "mapped buffer at 0x%p\n", buf); /* Populate VMA */ ret = madvise(buf, TEST_MEM_SIZE, MADV_NOHUGEPAGE); assert(ret == 0); ret = madvise(buf, TEST_MEM_SIZE, MADV_POPULATE_READ); assert(ret == 0); /* Collapse VMA */ ret = madvise(buf, TEST_MEM_SIZE, MADV_HUGEPAGE); assert(ret == 0); ret = madvise(buf, TEST_MEM_SIZE, MADV_COLLAPSE); if (ret) { fprintf(stdout, "Error %d to madvise(MADV_COLLAPSE)\n", errno); goto out; } /* Split xarray entry. Write permission is needed */ munmap(buf, TEST_MEM_SIZE); buf = (void *)-1; close(fd); fd = open(filename, O_RDWR); assert(fd > 0); fallocate(fd, FALLOC_FL_KEEP_SIZE | FALLOC_FL_PUNCH_HOLE, TEST_MEM_SIZE - pgsize, pgsize); out: if (buf != (void *)-1) munmap(buf, TEST_MEM_SIZE); if (fd > 0) close(fd); return ret; } [root@dhcp-10-26-1-207 ~]# gcc /tmp/test.c -o /tmp/test [root@dhcp-10-26-1-207 ~]# /tmp/test ------------[ cut here ]------------ WARNING: CPU: 25 PID: 7560 at lib/xarray.c:1025 xas_split_alloc+0xf8/0x128 Modules linked in: nft_fib_inet nft_fib_ipv4 nft_fib_ipv6 nft_fib \ nft_reject_inet nf_reject_ipv4 nf_reject_ipv6 nft_reject nft_ct \ nft_chain_nat nf_nat nf_conntrack nf_defrag_ipv6 nf_defrag_ipv4 \ ip_set rfkill nf_tables nfnetlink vfat fat virtio_balloon drm fuse \ xfs libcrc32c crct10dif_ce ghash_ce sha2_ce sha256_arm64 virtio_net \ sha1_ce net_failover virtio_blk virtio_console failover dimlib virtio_mmio CPU: 25 PID: 7560 Comm: test Kdump: loaded Not tainted 6.10.0-rc7-gavin+ #9 Hardware name: QEMU KVM Virtual Machine, BIOS edk2-20240524-1.el9 05/24/2024 pstate: 83400005 (Nzcv daif +PAN -UAO +TCO +DIT -SSBS BTYPE=--) pc : xas_split_alloc+0xf8/0x128 lr : split_huge_page_to_list_to_order+0x1c4/0x780 sp : ffff8000ac32f660 x29: ffff8000ac32f660 x28: ffff0000e0969eb0 x27: ffff8000ac32f6c0 x26: 0000000000000c40 x25: ffff0000e0969eb0 x24: 000000000000000d x23: ffff8000ac32f6c0 x22: ffffffdfc0700000 x21: 0000000000000000 x20: 0000000000000000 x19: ffffffdfc0700000 x18: 0000000000000000 x17: 0000000000000000 x16: ffffd5f3708ffc70 x15: 0000000000000000 x14: 0000000000000000 x13: 0000000000000000 x12: 0000000000000000 x11: ffffffffffffffc0 x10: 0000000000000040 x9 : ffffd5f3708e692c x8 : 0000000000000003 x7 : 0000000000000000 x6 : ffff0000e0969eb8 x5 : ffffd5f37289e378 x4 : 0000000000000000 x3 : 0000000000000c40 x2 : 000000000000000d x1 : 000000000000000c x0 : 0000000000000000 Call trace: xas_split_alloc+0xf8/0x128 split_huge_page_to_list_to_order+0x1c4/0x780 truncate_inode_partial_folio+0xdc/0x160 truncate_inode_pages_range+0x1b4/0x4a8 truncate_pagecache_range+0x84/0xa ---truncated---
Who exploits it and how urgent it is
A 0–100 score combining confirmed exploitation, ransomware and APT use, public exploits, EPSS and severity.
How the score was calculated
- EPSS 0.3% (30-day exploitation probability)+3
- Technical severity (medium)+3
The score orders the patch queue; it does not replace your asset context (internet exposure, criticality, compensating controls).
Triage
Is it exploited, how likely is exploitation, what does it touch, and how severe do the sources call it.
CISA SSVC assessment CISA
Three decision points CISA publishes for the CVEs it assesses (SSVC 2.0.3). A stakeholder decision, not a severity score.
Remediation
Fixes and mitigations documented by the sources — linked to the original advisory.
- Documented patch — git.kernel.org (NIST National Vulnerability Database)
- Documented patch — git.kernel.org (NIST National Vulnerability Database)
First 24 hours
Ordered from the record’s own fields — exposure first, because you cannot patch what you have not found. A rule-generated starting point.
- Identify exposed assets running the affected vendor/product/version combinations (Linux Linux, Linux Linux Kernel).
- Apply the fixed version or the patch documented under Remediation.
- Search available logs for exploit probes, errors and authentication anomalies.
Affected scope
Vendor, product and versions as the sources word them.
| Vendor | Product | Versions | Status | Source |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Linux | Linux | ≥ 6b24ca4a1a8d4ee3221d6d44ddbb99f542e4bda3 and < 2011c0ebaf710194900f31e64e2ab7295037dbab≥ 6b24ca4a1a8d4ee3221d6d44ddbb99f542e4bda3 and < e60f62f75c99740a28e2bf7e6044086033012a16≥ 6b24ca4a1a8d4ee3221d6d44ddbb99f542e4bda3 and < d659b715e94ac039803d7601505d3473393fc0beversion 5.17 | Vulnerable | CVE Program (cve.org) e CISA ADP |
| Linux | Linux Kernel | ≥ 5.17 and < 6.10.3 | Vulnerable | NIST National Vulnerability Database |
Attack characteristics
The CVSS vector, decoded. It describes the attack, not your exposure to it.
Every base score collected
Sources score independently and may disagree; each row says who scored it and under which version.
| Score | Version | Severity | Expl. | Impact | Scored by |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 5.5 | CVSS 3.1 | Medium | 1.8 | 3.6 | nvd@nist.gov via NIST National Vulnerability Database |
| 5.5 | CVSS 3.1 | Medium | — | — | GitHub, Inc. via GitHub Security Advisories |
CVSS:3.1/AV:L/AC:L/PR:L/UI:N/S:U/C:N/I:N/A:H (score shown at the top: nvd@nist.gov) EPSS over time FIRST
Oct 20, 2026 → Oct 29, 2026 · 10 reading(s) · max 0.25%
Detection
Read off the CVSS vector and the weakness class. Starting points, not tested rules.
- Local/physical vector: focus on endpoint telemetry (EDR) from affected hosts.
Timeline
What happened to this CVE, newest first.
- 2026
- Affected products added · linux/linux
- SSVC assessment updated
- Record published
- Fix documented
- Affected products added · linux/linux kernel
- CVSS changed · 5.5
- Source status changed · → Modified
- Record created in this database
- 2024
- CVE published
Source activity
Repeated readings are counted rather than listed.
- 2× References added · Oct 21, 2026 – Oct 21, 2026
- 1× Official description updated · Oct 21, 2026 – Oct 21, 2026
References
5 on the record
Elsewhere on this site
Related CVEs (same products)
- Unknown CVE-2026-99216 Drivers: hv: Don't reset VMBus connection state on error/exit paths 2d
- Unknown CVE-2026-99215 power: supply: core: prevent unregistering a power supply while a callback runs 2d
- Unknown CVE-2026-99207 scsi: target: Disable interrupts while holding delayed_cmd_lock 2d
- Unknown CVE-2026-99208 drm/xe/oa: Zero OA buffer at allocation 2d
- Unknown CVE-2026-99209 drm/xe: skip eviction of a BO with no resource 2d
- Unknown CVE-2026-99210 accel/rocket: clear rdev on device init failure 2d
Not in any source we poll
Listed rather than left blank: an empty field and an unmeasured one look identical on screen, and only one is a reason to look elsewhere.
- No CWE classification.
- No confirmed IOCs, IP addresses, domains, file hashes, or malware artifacts supplied.
- No organization-specific asset inventory, compensating-control status, or patch deployment evidence supplied.
- No exploit packet captures, log samples, or incident case IDs supplied.
Answered from this record
Text assembled only from the fields above — no additional claims.
What should defenders know first?
CVE-2024-42317 is "mm/huge_memory: avoid PMD-size page cache if needed", rated Medium. It affects Linux (Linux); versions are in the scope table. It is not in CISA KEV, which does not rule out exploitation. CVSS 5.5 describes technical severity. EPSS 0.25% estimates the probability of exploitation in 30 days; neither replaces your asset context. First verify whether exposed or business-critical assets run the affected versions, apply vendor fixes or mitigations, and preserve logs for review.
Comments
Moderated technical discussion. Read the community guidelines.
No comments yet.
Sign in or create an account to comment and suggest corrections.