CVE-2026-98488: net: atl1e: fix soft lockup on out-of-range hw_next_to_clean read
In the Linux kernel, the following vulnerability has been resolved:
net: atl1e: fix soft lockup on out-of-range hwnexttoclean read
Same issue as atl1c (see the first commit in this series, "net: atl1c: fix soft lockup on out-of-range tpdcons read"): the hardware can report an out-of-range hwnexttoclean (seen as 0xffff) while the PCIe link/MAC is resetting. An out-of-range value can never be reached and the loop below would spin forever. Treat it as "nothing new to clean" instead.
Affected Software
Remediation
Recommended actions to resolve this vulnerability, in priority order.
- Upgrade
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Fixed in 6.6.159.1-1 - Upgrade
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azurelinux/kernelto a version that resolves this vulnerability.Fixed in 6.6.159.1-1 - Upgrade
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ubuntu/linux-aws-5.15to a version that resolves this vulnerability.Fixed in 5.15.0-1119.126~20.04.1 - Upgrade
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ubuntu/linux-azure-5.15to a version that resolves this vulnerability.Fixed in 5.15.0-1125.134~20.04.1 - Upgrade
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ubuntu/linux-azure-fde-5.15to a version that resolves this vulnerability.Fixed in 5.15.0-1124.133~20.04.1 - Upgrade
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ubuntu/linux-gcp-5.15to a version that resolves this vulnerability.Fixed in 5.15.0-1120.130~20.04.1 - Upgrade
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ubuntu/linux-hwe-5.15to a version that resolves this vulnerability.Fixed in 5.15.0-202.212~20.04.1 - Upgrade
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ubuntu/linux-ibm-5.15to a version that resolves this vulnerability.Fixed in 5.15.0-1113.117~20.04.1 - Upgrade
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ubuntu/linux-intel-iotg-5.15to a version that resolves this vulnerability.Fixed in 5.15.0-1114.120~20.04.1 - Upgrade
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ubuntu/linux-lowlatency-hwe-5.15to a version that resolves this vulnerability.Fixed in 5.15.0-197.207~20.04.1 - Upgrade
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ubuntu/linux-nvidia-tegra-5.15to a version that resolves this vulnerability.Fixed in 5.15.0-1070.72~20.04.1 - Upgrade
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ubuntu/linux-oracle-5.15to a version that resolves this vulnerability.Fixed in 5.15.0-1116.122~20.04.1 - Upgrade
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ubuntu/linux-riscv-5.15to a version that resolves this vulnerability.Fixed in 5.15.0-1113.117~20.04.2 - Upgrade
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ubuntu/linuxto a version that resolves this vulnerability.Fixed in 5.15.0-202.212 - Upgrade
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ubuntu/linux-awsto a version that resolves this vulnerability.Fixed in 5.15.0-1119.126 - Upgrade
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ubuntu/linux-azureto a version that resolves this vulnerability.Fixed in 5.15.0-1125.134 - Upgrade
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ubuntu/linux-azure-fdeto a version that resolves this vulnerability.Fixed in 5.15.0-1124.133 - Upgrade
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ubuntu/linux-gcpto a version that resolves this vulnerability.Fixed in 5.15.0-1120.130 - Upgrade
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ubuntu/linux-gketo a version that resolves this vulnerability.Fixed in 5.15.0-1115.121 - Upgrade
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ubuntu/linux-gkeopto a version that resolves this vulnerability.Fixed in 5.15.0-1102.110 - Upgrade
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ubuntu/linux-ibmto a version that resolves this vulnerability.Fixed in 5.15.0-1113.117 - Upgrade
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ubuntu/linux-intel-iotgto a version that resolves this vulnerability.Fixed in 5.15.0-1114.120 - Upgrade
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ubuntu/linux-kvmto a version that resolves this vulnerability.Fixed in 5.15.0-1111.116 - Upgrade
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ubuntu/linux-lowlatencyto a version that resolves this vulnerability.Fixed in 5.15.0-197.207 - Upgrade
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ubuntu/linux-nvidiato a version that resolves this vulnerability.Fixed in 5.15.0-1114.115 - Upgrade
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ubuntu/linux-nvidia-tegrato a version that resolves this vulnerability.Fixed in 5.15.0-1070.72 - Upgrade
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ubuntu/linux-nvidia-tegra-igxto a version that resolves this vulnerability.Fixed in 5.15.0-1059.59 - Upgrade
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ubuntu/linux-oracleto a version that resolves this vulnerability.Fixed in 5.15.0-1116.122 - Upgrade
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ubuntu/linux-bluefieldto a version that resolves this vulnerability.Fixed in 5.15.0-1103.105 - Upgrade
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ubuntu/linux-intel-iot-realtimeto a version that resolves this vulnerability.Fixed in 5.15.0-1111.115 - Upgrade
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ubuntu/linux-realtimeto a version that resolves this vulnerability.Fixed in 5.15.0-1118.127 - Upgrade
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ubuntu/linux-aws-fipsto a version that resolves this vulnerability.Fixed in 5.15.0-1119.126+fips1 - Upgrade
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ubuntu/linux-azure-fipsto a version that resolves this vulnerability.Fixed in 5.15.0-1125.134+fips1 - Upgrade
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ubuntu/linux-fipsto a version that resolves this vulnerability.Fixed in 5.15.0-202.212+fips1 - Upgrade
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ubuntu/linux-gcp-fipsto a version that resolves this vulnerability.Fixed in 5.15.0-1120.130+fips1 - Upgrade
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ubuntu/linux-hwe-7.0to a version that resolves this vulnerability.Fixed in 7.0.0-42.42~24.04.1 - Upgrade
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ubuntu/linux-riscv-7.0to a version that resolves this vulnerability.Fixed in 7.0.0-42.42.1~24.04.1 - Upgrade
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ubuntu/linuxto a version that resolves this vulnerability.Fixed in 7.0.0-42.42 - Upgrade
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ubuntu/linux-awsto a version that resolves this vulnerability.Fixed in 7.0.0-1016.17 - Upgrade
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ubuntu/linux-gcpto a version that resolves this vulnerability.Fixed in 7.0.0-1016.18 - Upgrade
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ubuntu/linux-ibmto a version that resolves this vulnerability.Fixed in 7.0.0-1017.17 - Upgrade
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ubuntu/linux-oem-7.0to a version that resolves this vulnerability.Fixed in 7.0.0-1017.17 - Upgrade
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ubuntu/linux-oracleto a version that resolves this vulnerability.Fixed in 7.0.0-1015.16 - Upgrade
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ubuntu/linux-riscvto a version that resolves this vulnerability.Fixed in 7.0.0-42.42.1
Event History
Frequently Asked Questions
What systems are exposed to this issue?
Systems running the Linux kernel with the atl1e network driver are exposed when the affected hardware reports an invalid receive-cleanup index during a PCIe link or MAC reset.
What condition triggers the soft lockup?
The hardware can report an out-of-range hw_next_to_clean value, observed as 0xffff, while the PCIe link or MAC is resetting. Because that value cannot be reached by the cleanup loop, the loop can spin indefinitely.
Does exploitation require network access or attacker-controlled input?
The provided information identifies a hardware/driver state during PCIe link or MAC reset as the trigger. It does not establish that network access or attacker-controlled input can cause the condition.
What is the mitigation if an updated kernel cannot be deployed immediately?
No workaround is provided. The described fix treats an out-of-range hardware cleanup value as indicating that there is nothing new to clean, preventing the infinite loop.