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CVE Record

CVE-2022-50144: soundwire: revisit driver bind/unbind and callbacks

In the Linux kernel, the following vulnerability has been resolved: soundwire: revisit driver bind/unbind and callbacks In the SoundWire probe, we store a pointer from the driver ops into the 'slave' structure. This can lead to kernel oopses when unbinding codec drivers, e.g. with the following sequence to remove machine driver and codec driver. /sbin/modprobe -r snd_soc_sof_sdw /sbin/modprobe -r snd_soc_rt711 The full details can be found in the BugLink below, for reference the two following examples show different cases of driver ops/callbacks being invoked after the driver .remove(). kernel: BUG: kernel NULL pointer dereference, address: 0000000000000150 kernel: Workqueue: events cdns_update_slave_status_work [soundwire_cadence] kernel: RIP: 0010:mutex_lock+0x19/0x30 kernel: Call Trace: kernel: ? sdw_handle_slave_status+0x426/0xe00 [soundwire_bus 94ff184bf398570c3f8ff7efe9e32529f532e4ae] kernel: ? newidle_balance+0x26a/0x400 kernel: ? cdns_update_slave_status_work+0x1e9/0x200 [soundwire_cadence 1bcf98eebe5ba9833cd433323769ac923c9c6f82] kernel: BUG: unable to handle page fault for address: ffffffffc07654c8 kernel: Workqueue: pm pm_runtime_work kernel: RIP: 0010:sdw_bus_prep_clk_stop+0x6f/0x160 [soundwire_bus] kernel: Call Trace: kernel: <TASK> kernel: sdw_cdns_clock_stop+0xb5/0x1b0 [soundwire_cadence 1bcf98eebe5ba9833cd433323769ac923c9c6f82] kernel: intel_suspend_runtime+0x5f/0x120 [soundwire_intel aca858f7c87048d3152a4a41bb68abb9b663a1dd] kernel: ? dpm_sysfs_remove+0x60/0x60 This was not detected earlier in Intel tests since the tests first remove the parent PCI device and shut down the bus. The sequence above is a corner case which keeps the bus operational but without a driver bound. While trying to solve this kernel oopses, it became clear that the existing SoundWire bus does not deal well with the unbind case. Commit 528be501b7d4a ("soundwire: sdw_slave: add probe_complete structure and new fields") added a 'probed' status variable and a 'probe_complete' struct completion. This status is however not reset on remove and likewise the 'probe complete' is not re-initialized, so the bind/unbind/bind test cases would fail. The timeout used before the 'update_status' callback was also a bad idea in hindsight, there should really be no timing assumption as to if and when a driver is bound to a device. An initial draft was based on device_lock() and device_unlock() was tested. This proved too complicated, with deadlocks created during the suspend-resume sequences, which also use the same device_lock/unlock() as the bind/unbind sequences. On a CometLake device, a bad DSDT/BIOS caused spurious resumes and the use of device_lock() caused hangs during suspend. After multiple weeks or testing and painful reverse-engineering of deadlocks on different devices, we looked for alternatives that did not interfere with the device core. A bus notifier was used successfully to keep track of DRIVER_BOUND and DRIVER_UNBIND events. This solved the bind-unbind-bind case in tests, but it can still be defeated with a theoretical corner case where the memory is freed by a .remove while the callback is in use. The notifier only helps make sure the driver callbacks are valid, but not that the memory allocated in probe remains valid while the callbacks are invoked. This patch suggests the introduction of a new 'sdw_dev_lock' mutex protecting probe/remove and all driver callbacks. Since this mutex is 'local' to SoundWire only, it does not interfere with existing locks and does not create deadlocks. In addition, this patch removes the 'probe_complete' completion, instead we directly invoke the 'update_status' from the probe routine. That removes any sort of timing dependency and a much better support for the device/driver model, the driver could be bound before the bus started, or eons after the bus started and the hardware would be properly initialized in all cases. BugLink: https://github.com/thesofproject/linux/is ---truncated---

UnknownCVSS not scoredNot KEV-listedUpdated
Glexia's TakeAutomated analysismoderate

Security readout for executives and security teams

Plain-English summary

This is a Linux kernel SoundWire driver lifecycle bug. In a specific bind/unbind corner case, stale driver callback pointers can be used after a codec driver is removed, causing a kernel crash. The main business risk shown by the sources is endpoint or server instability, not confirmed remote compromise.

Executive priority

Treat as a focused stability remediation. Patch through normal kernel maintenance, with higher urgency for fleets where SoundWire audio drivers are present or driver lifecycle operations are automated.

Technical view

SoundWire stored driver ops in the slave structure and did not safely coordinate probe, remove, and callbacks. Callback paths could run after driver removal, causing NULL dereference or page fault oopses. The fix introduces SoundWire-local locking and changes probe status handling to remove timing assumptions around driver binding.

Likely exposure

Exposure appears limited to Linux systems with SoundWire support and affected kernel builds, especially systems using SoundWire codec drivers. The CVE source lists Linux kernel affected ranges and stable kernel commit references, but does not provide distro package mappings.

Exploitation context

The source describes crashes triggered by driver unbind/removal ordering and calls it a corner case. CISA KEV is false in the bundle, and no cited source states active exploitation. The evidence supports local reliability impact, not public exploitation or remote attackability.

Researcher notes

Evidence is strongest for kernel oops conditions around SoundWire bind/unbind and runtime callbacks. The bundle lacks CVSS, CWE, exploitability analysis, and distro fix matrices. Do not assume broader privilege escalation without additional vendor or maintainer evidence.

Mitigation direction

  • Update to a kernel containing the referenced stable SoundWire fixes.
  • Check your Linux distribution advisory for fixed package versions.
  • Prioritize affected laptops or embedded systems using SoundWire audio hardware.
  • Avoid operational workflows that unbind affected SoundWire codec drivers until patched.

Validation and detection

  • Inventory kernel versions and identify systems with SoundWire modules or hardware.
  • Compare installed kernel builds with vendor advisories and referenced stable commits.
  • Review kernel logs for SoundWire-related oopses during driver removal or runtime power events.
  • Confirm patched systems no longer carry the vulnerable SoundWire callback behavior.
Prepared
Confidence
medium
Sources
6

Generated from the cited source records. This long-tail analysis has not been individually reviewed by a named human.

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Vulnerability profileCVE Program record
Severity
Unknown
CVSS
Not scored
Known Exploited
No
Published
Official CVE source material

CNA and ADP enrichment extracted from CVE v5

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0CVSS vectors
3Timeline events
0ADP providers
5Source links

Vulnerability timeline

Timeline events are normalized from CVE metadata, CNA source timelines, ADP timelines, and KEV metadata when present.

  1. CVE reservedCVE Program

    The CVE ID was reserved by the assigning CNA.

  2. CVE publishedCVE Program

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  3. CVE updatedCVE Program

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Affected products

Products and packages named in the record

VendorProductVersion / packageStatus
LinuxLinux56d4fe31af77f684bed62fb8201e6327e6ddf4e6, 56d4fe31af77f684bed62fb8201e6327e6ddf4e6, 56d4fe31af77f684bed62fb8201e6327e6ddf4e6, 56d4fe31af77f684bed62fb8201e6327e6ddf4e6unaffected
LinuxLinux4.16, 0, 5.15.61, 5.18.18, 5.19.2, 6.0affected
Weakness

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