🛡️ CVE-2021-47044 on Debian — linux
Description
In the Linux kernel, the following vulnerability has been resolved: sched/fair: Fix shift-out-of-bounds in load_balance() Syzbot reported a handful of occurrences where an sd->nr_balance_failed can grow to much higher values than one would expect. A successful load_balance() resets it to 0; a failed one increments it. Once it gets to sd->cache_nice_tries + 3, this *should* trigger an active balance, which will either set it to sd->cache_nice_tries+1 or reset it to 0. However, in case the to-be-active-balanced task is not allowed to run on env->dst_cpu, then the increment is done without any further modification. This could then be repeated ad nauseam, and would explain the absurdly high values reported by syzbot (86, 149). VincentG noted there is value in letting sd->cache_nice_tries grow, so the shift itself should be fixed. That means preventing: """ If the value of the right operand is negative or is greater than or equal to the width of the promoted left operand, the behavior is undefined. """ Thus we need to cap the shift exponent to BITS_PER_TYPE(typeof(lefthand)) - 1. I had a look around for other similar cases via coccinelle: @expr@ position pos; expression E1; expression E2; @@ ( E1 >> E2@pos | E1 >> E2@pos ) @cst depends on expr@ position pos; expression expr.E1; constant cst; @@ ( E1 >> cst@pos | E1 << cst@pos ) @script:python depends on !cst@ pos << expr.pos; exp << expr.E2; @@ # Dirty hack to ignore constexpr if exp.upper() != exp: coccilib.report.print_report(pos[0], "Possible UB shift here") The only other match in kernel/sched is rq_clock_thermal() which employs sched_thermal_decay_shift, and that exponent is already capped to 10, so that one is fine.
Distribution advisory
This page covers CVE-2021-47044 as tracked by Debian, for the package linux. The fix is available in version 5.10.38-1; earlier versions remain affected.
How this vulnerability can be exploited
This issue can be reached with local access to the system, attack complexity is low, an attacker needs no privileges on the target. No user interaction is required. The scope is unchanged, so the impact stays within the vulnerable component. Rated impact: confidentiality high, integrity none, availability high.
Affected software
DEBIAN-CVE-2021-47044 is recorded against 1 package.
- linux (fixed in 5.10.38-1)
Timeline and source
Published on 28 February 2024 and last revised on 4 August 2026. No public exploit is currently recorded for this entry. Record sourced from OSV.
References
CVE-2021-47044 on other distributions
Each distribution ships its own build and its own fixed version. Pick the one you run:
Details
CVSS:3.1/AV:L/AC:L/PR:N/UI:N/S:U/C:H/I:N/A:H
Affected Packages
| Software | From version | Fixed in |
|---|---|---|
| linux | — | 5.10.38-1 |
References
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