CVE-2021-46910: ARM: 9063/1: mm: reduce maximum number of CPUs if DEBUG_KMAP_LOCAL is enabled
In the Linux kernel, the following vulnerability has been resolved:
ARM: 9063/1: mm: reduce maximum number of CPUs if DEBUG_KMAP_LOCAL is enabled
The debugging code for kmap_local() doubles the number of per-CPU fixmap
slots allocated for kmap_local(), in order to use half of them as guard
regions. This causes the fixmap region to grow downwards beyond the start
of its reserved window if the supported number of CPUs is large, and collide
with the newly added virtual DT mapping right below it, which is obviously
not good.
One manifestation of this is EFI boot on a kernel built with NR_CPUS=32
and CONFIG_DEBUG_KMAP_LOCAL=y, which may pass the FDT in highmem, resulting
in block entries below the fixmap region that the fixmap code misidentifies
as fixmap table entries, and subsequently tries to dereference using a
phys-to-virt translation that is only valid for lowmem. This results in a
cryptic splat such as the one below.
ftrace: allocating 45548 entries in 89 pages
8<--- cut here ---
Unable to handle kernel paging request at virtual address fc6006f0
pgd = (ptrval)
[fc6006f0] *pgd=80000040207003, *pmd=00000000
Internal error: Oops: a06 [#1] SMP ARM
Modules linked in:
CPU: 0 PID: 0 Comm: swapper Not tainted 5.11.0+ #382
Hardware name: Generic DT based system
PC is at cpu_ca15_set_pte_ext+0x24/0x30
LR is at __set_fixmap+0xe4/0x118
pc : [<c041ac9c>] lr : [<c04189d8>] psr: 400000d3
sp : c1601ed8 ip : 00400000 fp : 00800000
r10: 0000071f r9 : 00421000 r8 : 00c00000
r7 : 00c00000 r6 : 0000071f r5 : ffade000 r4 : 4040171f
r3 : 00c00000 r2 : 4040171f r1 : c041ac78 r0 : fc6006f0
Flags: nZcv IRQs off FIQs off Mode SVC_32 ISA ARM Segment none
Control: 30c5387d Table: 40203000 DAC: 00000001
Process swapper (pid: 0, stack limit = 0x(ptrval))
So let's limit CONFIG_NR_CPUS to 16 when CONFIG_DEBUG_KMAP_LOCAL=y. Also,
fix the BUILD_BUG_ON() check that was supposed to catch this, by checking
whether the region grows below the start address rather than above the end
address.
Security readout for executives and security teams
Plain-English summary
This is a Linux kernel ARM configuration bug. With a debug mapping option enabled and a high CPU limit, boot-time memory mappings can overlap and crash the kernel. The sources describe an availability failure during EFI boot, not data theft or remote compromise.
Executive priority
Treat as a targeted availability risk for ARM systems using uncommon debug kernel builds. Prioritize embedded, appliance, or lab-to-production images where custom kernel configs may have shipped unnoticed.
Technical view
CONFIG_DEBUG_KMAP_LOCAL doubles per-CPU fixmap slots for guard regions. On ARM with large CONFIG_NR_CPUS, the fixmap area can grow below its reserved window and collide with the virtual device tree mapping. The kernel fix limits NR_CPUS to 16 when DEBUG_KMAP_LOCAL is enabled and corrects the build-time bounds check.
Likely exposure
Exposure appears limited to ARM Linux kernels built with CONFIG_DEBUG_KMAP_LOCAL=y and high CONFIG_NR_CPUS, especially around the listed 5.11 and 5.12-era versions. Production exposure is likely uncommon because the triggering option is a debug configuration.
Exploitation context
No source in the bundle reports active exploitation, and KEV is false. The described failure is a kernel paging fault during boot under specific ARM, EFI, highmem FDT, debug, and CPU-count conditions.
Researcher notes
The available evidence supports a configuration-dependent ARM fixmap overlap causing boot-time Oops. The source bundle does not provide CVSS, CWE, exploitability analysis, or affected distribution package names, so product mapping requires vendor-specific kernel provenance.
Mitigation direction
Review vendor kernel advisories for the affected ARM build stream.
Apply a kernel containing the referenced stable fixes.
Avoid CONFIG_DEBUG_KMAP_LOCAL=y on high-CPU ARM production builds unless fixed.
Keep CONFIG_NR_CPUS at or below 16 when using the debug option on unfixed kernels.
Validation and detection
Check kernel version against the CVE-listed 5.11 and 5.12-era affected versions.
Inspect ARM kernel config for CONFIG_DEBUG_KMAP_LOCAL=y.
Inspect ARM kernel config for CONFIG_NR_CPUS greater than 16.
Confirm whether the stable fix commits are present in the deployed kernel tree.
Generated from the cited source records. This long-tail analysis has not been individually reviewed by a named human.
Potential ATT&CK relevance
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CVE-2021-46910 mapping review
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