eventpoll: Fix semi-unbounded recursion
Ensure that epoll instances can never form a graph deeper than
EP_MAX_NESTS+1 links.
Currently, ep_loop_check_proc() ensures that the graph is loop-free and
does some recursion depth checks, but those recursion depth checks don't
limit the depth of the resulting tree for two reasons:
- They don't look upwards in the tree.
- If there are multiple downwards paths of different lengths, only one of
the paths is actually considered for the depth check since commit
28d82dc1c4ed ("epoll: limit paths").
Essentially, the current recursion depth check in ep_loop_check_proc() just
serves to prevent it from recursing too deeply while checking for loops.
A more thorough check is done in reverse_path_check() after the new graph
edge has already been created; this checks, among other things, that no
paths going upwards from any non-epoll file with a length of more than 5
edges exist. However, this check does not apply to non-epoll files.
As a result, it is possible to recurse to a depth of at least roughly 500,
tested on v6.15. (I am unsure if deeper recursion is possible; and this may
have changed with commit 8c44dac8add7 ("eventpoll: Fix priority inversion
problem").)
To fix it:
1. In ep_loop_check_proc(), note the subtree depth of each visited node,
and use subtree depths for the total depth calculation even when a subtree
has already been visited.
2. Add ep_get_upwards_depth_proc() for similarly determining the maximum
depth of an upwards walk.
3. In ep_loop_check(), use these values to limit the total path length
between epoll nodes to EP_MAX_NESTS edges.
Analysis and contextual insights are available on OpenCVE Cloud.
No vendor fix or workaround currently provided.
Additional remediation guidance may be available on OpenCVE Cloud.
Tracking
Sign in to view the affected projects.
| Source | ID | Title |
|---|---|---|
Debian DLA |
DLA-4328-1 | linux-6.1 security update |
Debian DSA |
DSA-6009-1 | linux security update |
EUVD |
EUVD-2025-25367 | In the Linux kernel, the following vulnerability has been resolved: eventpoll: Fix semi-unbounded recursion Ensure that epoll instances can never form a graph deeper than EP_MAX_NESTS+1 links. Currently, ep_loop_check_proc() ensures that the graph is loop-free and does some recursion depth checks, but those recursion depth checks don't limit the depth of the resulting tree for two reasons: - They don't look upwards in the tree. - If there are multiple downwards paths of different lengths, only one of the paths is actually considered for the depth check since commit 28d82dc1c4ed ("epoll: limit paths"). Essentially, the current recursion depth check in ep_loop_check_proc() just serves to prevent it from recursing too deeply while checking for loops. A more thorough check is done in reverse_path_check() after the new graph edge has already been created; this checks, among other things, that no paths going upwards from any non-epoll file with a length of more than 5 edges exist. However, this check does not apply to non-epoll files. As a result, it is possible to recurse to a depth of at least roughly 500, tested on v6.15. (I am unsure if deeper recursion is possible; and this may have changed with commit 8c44dac8add7 ("eventpoll: Fix priority inversion problem").) To fix it: 1. In ep_loop_check_proc(), note the subtree depth of each visited node, and use subtree depths for the total depth calculation even when a subtree has already been visited. 2. Add ep_get_upwards_depth_proc() for similarly determining the maximum depth of an upwards walk. 3. In ep_loop_check(), use these values to limit the total path length between epoll nodes to EP_MAX_NESTS edges. |
Ubuntu USN |
USN-7909-1 | Linux kernel vulnerabilities |
Ubuntu USN |
USN-7909-2 | Linux kernel (Real-time) vulnerabilities |
Ubuntu USN |
USN-7909-3 | Linux kernel (FIPS) vulnerabilities |
Ubuntu USN |
USN-7910-1 | Linux kernel (Azure FIPS) vulnerabilities |
Ubuntu USN |
USN-7909-4 | Linux kernel vulnerabilities |
Ubuntu USN |
USN-7910-2 | Linux kernel (Azure) vulnerabilities |
Ubuntu USN |
USN-7909-5 | Linux kernel (Raspberry Pi) vulnerabilities |
Ubuntu USN |
USN-7933-1 | Linux kernel (KVM) vulnerabilities |
Ubuntu USN |
USN-7938-1 | Linux kernel (Azure) vulnerabilities |
Ubuntu USN |
USN-8028-1 | Linux kernel vulnerabilities |
Ubuntu USN |
USN-8028-2 | Linux kernel (Real-time) vulnerabilities |
Ubuntu USN |
USN-8031-1 | Linux kernel (GCP) vulnerabilities |
Ubuntu USN |
USN-8028-3 | Linux kernel (Real-time) vulnerabilities |
Ubuntu USN |
USN-8028-4 | Linux kernel (FIPS) vulnerabilities |
Ubuntu USN |
USN-8028-5 | Linux kernel vulnerabilities |
Ubuntu USN |
USN-8031-2 | Linux kernel (GCP FIPS) vulnerabilities |
Ubuntu USN |
USN-8028-6 | Linux kernel (HWE) vulnerabilities |
Ubuntu USN |
USN-8031-3 | Linux kernel vulnerabilities |
Ubuntu USN |
USN-8052-1 | Linux kernel (Low Latency) vulnerabilities |
Ubuntu USN |
USN-8028-7 | Linux kernel (Low Latency NVIDIA) vulnerabilities |
Ubuntu USN |
USN-8028-8 | Linux kernel (IBM) vulnerabilities |
Ubuntu USN |
USN-8052-2 | Linux kernel (Xilinx) vulnerabilities |
Ubuntu USN |
USN-8074-1 | Linux kernel (Azure) vulnerabilities |
Ubuntu USN |
USN-8074-2 | Linux kernel (Azure FIPS) vulnerabilities |
Ubuntu USN |
USN-8126-1 | Linux kernel (Azure) vulnerabilities |
Tue, 12 May 2026 13:30:00 +0000
| Type | Values Removed | Values Added |
|---|---|---|
| References |
|
Fri, 09 Jan 2026 16:15:00 +0000
| Type | Values Removed | Values Added |
|---|---|---|
| First Time appeared |
Debian
Debian debian Linux |
|
| Weaknesses | CWE-674 | |
| CPEs | cpe:2.3:o:debian:debian_linux:11.0:*:*:*:*:*:*:* cpe:2.3:o:linux:linux_kernel:*:*:*:*:*:*:*:* cpe:2.3:o:linux:linux_kernel:2.6.38:-:*:*:*:*:*:* cpe:2.3:o:linux:linux_kernel:2.6.38:rc7:*:*:*:*:*:* cpe:2.3:o:linux:linux_kernel:2.6.38:rc8:*:*:*:*:*:* |
|
| Vendors & Products |
Debian
Debian debian Linux |
Mon, 03 Nov 2025 18:30:00 +0000
| Type | Values Removed | Values Added |
|---|---|---|
| References |
|
Thu, 28 Aug 2025 15:00:00 +0000
| Type | Values Removed | Values Added |
|---|---|---|
| References |
|
Thu, 21 Aug 2025 12:45:00 +0000
| Type | Values Removed | Values Added |
|---|---|---|
| First Time appeared |
Linux
Linux linux Kernel |
|
| Vendors & Products |
Linux
Linux linux Kernel |
Wed, 20 Aug 2025 18:00:00 +0000
| Type | Values Removed | Values Added |
|---|---|---|
| References |
|
Wed, 20 Aug 2025 00:30:00 +0000
| Type | Values Removed | Values Added |
|---|---|---|
| References |
| |
| Metrics |
threat_severity
|
cvssV3_1
|
Tue, 19 Aug 2025 17:15:00 +0000
| Type | Values Removed | Values Added |
|---|---|---|
| Description | In the Linux kernel, the following vulnerability has been resolved: eventpoll: Fix semi-unbounded recursion Ensure that epoll instances can never form a graph deeper than EP_MAX_NESTS+1 links. Currently, ep_loop_check_proc() ensures that the graph is loop-free and does some recursion depth checks, but those recursion depth checks don't limit the depth of the resulting tree for two reasons: - They don't look upwards in the tree. - If there are multiple downwards paths of different lengths, only one of the paths is actually considered for the depth check since commit 28d82dc1c4ed ("epoll: limit paths"). Essentially, the current recursion depth check in ep_loop_check_proc() just serves to prevent it from recursing too deeply while checking for loops. A more thorough check is done in reverse_path_check() after the new graph edge has already been created; this checks, among other things, that no paths going upwards from any non-epoll file with a length of more than 5 edges exist. However, this check does not apply to non-epoll files. As a result, it is possible to recurse to a depth of at least roughly 500, tested on v6.15. (I am unsure if deeper recursion is possible; and this may have changed with commit 8c44dac8add7 ("eventpoll: Fix priority inversion problem").) To fix it: 1. In ep_loop_check_proc(), note the subtree depth of each visited node, and use subtree depths for the total depth calculation even when a subtree has already been visited. 2. Add ep_get_upwards_depth_proc() for similarly determining the maximum depth of an upwards walk. 3. In ep_loop_check(), use these values to limit the total path length between epoll nodes to EP_MAX_NESTS edges. | |
| Title | eventpoll: Fix semi-unbounded recursion | |
| References |
|
Status: PUBLISHED
Assigner: Linux
Published:
Updated: 2026-05-12T12:05:15.482Z
Reserved: 2025-04-16T04:51:24.029Z
Link: CVE-2025-38614
No data.
Status : Modified
Published: 2025-08-19T17:15:40.040
Modified: 2026-05-12T13:16:52.220
Link: CVE-2025-38614
OpenCVE Enrichment
Updated: 2025-08-21T12:31:56Z
Debian DLA
Debian DSA
EUVD
Ubuntu USN