CVE-2025-21991

x86/microcode/AMD: Fix out-of-bounds on systems with CPU-less NUMA nodes

Description

In the Linux kernel, the following vulnerability has been resolved: x86/microcode/AMD: Fix out-of-bounds on systems with CPU-less NUMA nodes Currently, load_microcode_amd() iterates over all NUMA nodes, retrieves their CPU masks and unconditionally accesses per-CPU data for the first CPU of each mask. According to Documentation/admin-guide/mm/numaperf.rst: "Some memory may share the same node as a CPU, and others are provided as memory only nodes." Therefore, some node CPU masks may be empty and wouldn't have a "first CPU". On a machine with far memory (and therefore CPU-less NUMA nodes): - cpumask_of_node(nid) is 0 - cpumask_first(0) is CONFIG_NR_CPUS - cpu_data(CONFIG_NR_CPUS) accesses the cpu_info per-CPU array at an index that is 1 out of bounds This does not have any security implications since flashing microcode is a privileged operation but I believe this has reliability implications by potentially corrupting memory while flashing a microcode update. When booting with CONFIG_UBSAN_BOUNDS=y on an AMD machine that flashes a microcode update. I get the following splat: UBSAN: array-index-out-of-bounds in arch/x86/kernel/cpu/microcode/amd.c:X:Y index 512 is out of range for type 'unsigned long[512]' [...] Call Trace: dump_stack __ubsan_handle_out_of_bounds load_microcode_amd request_microcode_amd reload_store kernfs_fop_write_iter vfs_write ksys_write do_syscall_64 entry_SYSCALL_64_after_hwframe Change the loop to go over only NUMA nodes which have CPUs before determining whether the first CPU on the respective node needs microcode update. [ bp: Massage commit message, fix typo. ]

Category

7.8
CVSS
Severity: High
CVSS 3.1 •
EPSS 0.02%
Affected: Linux Linux
Affected: Linux Linux
Published at:
Updated at:

References

Frequently Asked Questions

What is the severity of CVE-2025-21991?
CVE-2025-21991 has been scored as a high severity vulnerability.
How to fix CVE-2025-21991?
To fix CVE-2025-21991, make sure you are using an up-to-date version of the affected component(s) by checking the vendor release notes. As for now, there are no other specific guidelines available.
Is CVE-2025-21991 being actively exploited in the wild?
As for now, there are no information to confirm that CVE-2025-21991 is being actively exploited. According to its EPSS score, there is a ~0% probability that this vulnerability will be exploited by malicious actors in the next 30 days.
What software or system is affected by CVE-2025-21991?
CVE-2025-21991 affects Linux Linux, Linux Linux.
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