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CVE Record

CVE-2022-50849: pstore: Avoid kcore oops by vmap()ing with VM_IOREMAP

In the Linux kernel, the following vulnerability has been resolved: pstore: Avoid kcore oops by vmap()ing with VM_IOREMAP An oops can be induced by running 'cat /proc/kcore > /dev/null' on devices using pstore with the ram backend because kmap_atomic() assumes lowmem pages are accessible with __va(). Unable to handle kernel paging request at virtual address ffffff807ff2b000 Mem abort info: ESR = 0x96000006 EC = 0x25: DABT (current EL), IL = 32 bits SET = 0, FnV = 0 EA = 0, S1PTW = 0 FSC = 0x06: level 2 translation fault Data abort info: ISV = 0, ISS = 0x00000006 CM = 0, WnR = 0 swapper pgtable: 4k pages, 39-bit VAs, pgdp=0000000081d87000 [ffffff807ff2b000] pgd=180000017fe18003, p4d=180000017fe18003, pud=180000017fe18003, pmd=0000000000000000 Internal error: Oops: 96000006 [#1] PREEMPT SMP Modules linked in: dm_integrity CPU: 7 PID: 21179 Comm: perf Not tainted 5.15.67-10882-ge4eb2eb988cd #1 baa443fb8e8477896a370b31a821eb2009f9bfba Hardware name: Google Lazor (rev3 - 8) (DT) pstate: a0400009 (NzCv daif +PAN -UAO -TCO -DIT -SSBS BTYPE=--) pc : __memcpy+0x110/0x260 lr : vread+0x194/0x294 sp : ffffffc013ee39d0 x29: ffffffc013ee39f0 x28: 0000000000001000 x27: ffffff807ff2b000 x26: 0000000000001000 x25: ffffffc0085a2000 x24: ffffff802d4b3000 x23: ffffff80f8a60000 x22: ffffff802d4b3000 x21: ffffffc0085a2000 x20: ffffff8080b7bc68 x19: 0000000000001000 x18: 0000000000000000 x17: 0000000000000000 x16: 0000000000000000 x15: ffffffd3073f2e60 x14: ffffffffad588000 x13: 0000000000000000 x12: 0000000000000001 x11: 00000000000001a2 x10: 00680000fff2bf0b x9 : 03fffffff807ff2b x8 : 0000000000000001 x7 : 0000000000000000 x6 : 0000000000000000 x5 : ffffff802d4b4000 x4 : ffffff807ff2c000 x3 : ffffffc013ee3a78 x2 : 0000000000001000 x1 : ffffff807ff2b000 x0 : ffffff802d4b3000 Call trace: __memcpy+0x110/0x260 read_kcore+0x584/0x778 proc_reg_read+0xb4/0xe4 During early boot, memblock reserves the pages for the ramoops reserved memory node in DT that would otherwise be part of the direct lowmem mapping. Pstore's ram backend reuses those reserved pages to change the memory type (writeback or non-cached) by passing the pages to vmap() (see pfn_to_page() usage in persistent_ram_vmap() for more details) with specific flags. When read_kcore() starts iterating over the vmalloc region, it runs over the virtual address that vmap() returned for ramoops. In aligned_vread() the virtual address is passed to vmalloc_to_page() which returns the page struct for the reserved lowmem area. That lowmem page is passed to kmap_atomic(), which effectively calls page_to_virt() that assumes a lowmem page struct must be directly accessible with __va() and friends. These pages are mapped via vmap() though, and the lowmem mapping was never made, so accessing them via the lowmem virtual address oopses like above. Let's side-step this problem by passing VM_IOREMAP to vmap(). This will tell vread() to not include the ramoops region in the kcore. Instead the area will look like a bunch of zeros. The alternative is to teach kmap() about vmalloc areas that intersect with lowmem. Presumably such a change isn't a one-liner, and there isn't much interest in inspecting the ramoops region in kcore files anyway, so the most expedient route is taken for now.

UnknownCVSS not scoredNot KEV-listedUpdated
Glexia's TakeAutomated analysismoderate

Security readout for executives and security teams

Plain-English summary

This Linux kernel issue can crash affected devices when /proc/kcore is read on systems using pstore with the ram/ramoops backend. The most likely business impact is local denial of service on specific configurations, not remote compromise. No active exploitation is reported in the provided sources.

Executive priority

Treat as a targeted stability risk for affected Linux fleets, especially embedded, appliance, or ChromeOS-like devices using ramoops. Patch through normal kernel maintenance unless critical systems depend on /proc/kcore diagnostics or have panic-on-oops behavior.

Technical view

The bug is in Linux pstore ram backend memory mapping. Ramoops reserved memory is vmapped without VM_IOREMAP, and read_kcore can pass it through vmalloc_to_page and kmap_atomic assumptions, causing a kernel oops. The fix marks the vmap area with VM_IOREMAP so kcore reads return zeros for that region.

Likely exposure

Exposure appears limited to Linux systems using pstore with the ram/ramoops backend where /proc/kcore can be read. Many environments restrict /proc/kcore to privileged users, but the source bundle does not specify required privileges.

Exploitation context

The described trigger is local reading of /proc/kcore on affected devices. The provided sources do not indicate remote exploitation, privilege escalation, public exploit availability, or CISA KEV listing.

Researcher notes

Severity metadata, CVSS, and CWE are absent in the bundle. Affected version data is partially ambiguous, so rely on vendor advisories and commit presence rather than version strings alone. Do not infer broader memory disclosure or code execution from the provided description.

Mitigation direction

  • Update to a vendor kernel containing the referenced upstream stable fix.
  • Prioritize systems using pstore ram/ramoops and exposing /proc/kcore to administrators or tooling.
  • If patching is delayed, avoid diagnostic workflows that read /proc/kcore on affected systems.
  • Check Linux distribution advisories for exact fixed package versions.

Validation and detection

  • Inventory Linux kernel versions and pstore ram/ramoops usage.
  • Confirm whether /proc/kcore is present and accessible to operational users or tools.
  • Verify the running kernel includes one of the referenced stable commits or vendor backport.
  • Review logs for kernel oops events during kcore reads.
Prepared
Confidence
medium
Sources
5

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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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

These fields come from the CVE record and ADP containers, not from Glexia's Take. They preserve time-varying source decisions such as CISA SSVC, KEV status, CVSS metrics, and provider references.

0CVSS vectors
0Timeline events
0ADP providers
10Source links

CVSS and timeline data

No CVSS vectors or timeline events were available in the normalized CVE source material.

Affected products

Products and packages named in the record

VendorProductVersion / packageStatus
LinuxLinux404a6043385de17273624b076599669db5ad891f, 404a6043385de17273624b076599669db5ad891f, 404a6043385de17273624b076599669db5ad891f, 404a6043385de17273624b076599669db5ad891f, 404a6043385de17273624b076599669db5ad891f, 404a6043385de17273624b076599669db5ad891f, 404a6043385de17273624b076599669db5ad891f, 404a6043385de17273624b076599669db5ad891f, 404a6043385de17273624b076599669db5ad891funaffected
LinuxLinux3.4, 0, 4.9.337, 4.14.303, 4.19.270, 5.4.229, 5.10.163, 5.15.86, 6.0.16, 6.1.2, 6.2affected
Weakness

CWE details

No CWE listed

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