CVE-2026-63988
MediumIn the Linux kernel, the following vulnerability has been resolved: bridge: Fix sleep in atomic context in sysfs path Since the start of the git history, brport_store() always acquired the bridge lock. Back then this decision made sense: The bridge lock protects the STP state of the bridge and its ports and at that time the function was only used by two STP related attributes (cost and priority). Nowadays, brport_store() processes a lot more attributes and most of them do not need the bridge lock: * Bridge flags: Only require RTNL. Read locklessly by the data path. Annotations can be added in net-next. * FDB port flushing: Only requires the FDB lock. * Multicast attributes: Only require the multicast lock. * Group forward mask: Only requires RTNL. Read locklessly by the data path. Annotations can be added in net-next. * Backup port: Only requires RTNL. Read locklessly by the data path. This is a problem as the bridge calls dev_set_promiscuity() when certain bridge port flags change and this function can sleep since the commit cited below, resulting in a splat such as [1]. Fix this by reducing the scope of the bridge lock and only take it when processing the two STP related attributes that require it. Remove the now stale comment from br_switchdev_set_port_flag(). The SWITCHDEV_F_DEFER flag can be removed in net-next. [1] BUG: sleeping function called from invalid context at net/core/dev_addr_lists.c:1262 in_atomic(): 1, irqs_disabled(): 0, non_block: 0, pid: 372, name: bash preempt_count: 201, expected: 0 RCU nest depth: 0, expected: 0 5 locks held by bash/372: #0: ffff88810c51c3f0 (sb_writers#7){.+.+}-{0:0}, at: ksys_write (fs/read_write.c:740) #1: ffff888115ce9480 (&of->mutex){+.+.}-{4:4}, at: kernfs_fop_write_iter (fs/kernfs/file.c:343) #2: ffff88810b9fd330 (kn->active#37){.+.+}-{0:0}, at: kernfs_fop_write_iter (fs/kernfs/file.c:80 fs/kernfs/file.c:344) #3: ffffffffa59473a0 (rtnl_mutex){+.+.}-{4:4}, at: brport_store (net/bridge/br_sysfs_if.c:326) #4: ffff8881099d2d58 (&br->lock){+...}-{3:3}, at: brport_store (./include/linux/spinlock.h:348 net/bridge/br_sysfs_if.c:345) Preemption disabled at: 0x0 Hardware name: Bochs Bochs, BIOS Bochs 01/01/2011 Call Trace: <TASK> dump_stack_lvl (lib/dump_stack.c:94 lib/dump_stack.c:120) __might_resched.cold (kernel/sched/core.c:9163) netif_rx_mode_run (net/core/dev_addr_lists.c:1262) netif_rx_mode_sync (net/core/dev_addr_lists.c:1428) dev_set_promiscuity (net/core/dev_api.c:289) br_manage_promisc (net/bridge/br_if.c:135 net/bridge/br_if.c:172) br_port_flags_change (net/bridge/br_if.c:242 net/bridge/br_if.c:747) store_learning (net/bridge/br_sysfs_if.c:79 net/bridge/br_sysfs_if.c:235) brport_store (net/bridge/br_sysfs_if.c:346) kernfs_fop_write_iter (fs/kernfs/file.c:352) new_sync_write (fs/read_write.c:595) vfs_write (fs/read_write.c:688) ksys_write (fs/read_write.c:740) do_syscall_64 (arch/x86/entry/syscall_64.c:63 arch/x86/entry/syscall_64.c:94) entry_SYSCALL_64_after_hwframe (arch/x86/entry/entry_64.S:121)
CVSS 3.1 score
5.5
CVSS:3.1/AV:L/AC:L/PR:L/UI:N/S:U/C:N/I:N/A:H
Weakness type
CWE-667CVE-2026-63988 is a Improper Locking vulnerability
What is Improper Locking?
The product does not properly acquire or release a lock, which can lead to unexpected behaviour. Learn more on MITRE CWE
Affected versions
Linux kernel versions
6.15
and later are affected. Fixed in
6.18.35,
7.0.12,
7.1
and their respective stable series.
References
3 totalFrequently asked questions
-
What is CVE-2026-63988?
CVE-2026-63988 is a Medium severity Linux kernel vulnerability with a CVSS score of 5.5 out of 10 , classified as an Improper Locking flaw (CWE-667) . It affects Linux kernel versions from 6.15 onward and has been patched in 6.18.35, 7.0.12 and 7.1. CVE-2026-63988 has not been confirmed as actively exploited and is not listed in the CISA KEV catalog.
-
What is the CVSS score for CVE-2026-63988?
CVE-2026-63988 has a CVSS score of 5.5 out of 10, rated Medium severity (CVSS 3.1). The vector string is
CVSS:3.1/AV:L/AC:L/PR:L/UI:N/S:U/C:N/I:N/A:H. -
Is there a patch available for CVE-2026-63988?
Yes. CVE-2026-63988 has been patched. Fixed versions include 6.18.35, 7.0.12 and 7.1. If you are running Linux kernel 6.15 or later up to the fix versions, apply the relevant patch for your kernel branch.
-
Is CVE-2026-63988 actively exploited?
No. CVE-2026-63988 has not been confirmed as actively exploited. It is not listed in the CISA Known Exploited Vulnerabilities (KEV) catalog.