Memory Leak in tcindex_partial_destroy_work in Kernel
Summary
GSD-2021-1001311: net: sched: fix memory leak in tcindex_partial_destroy_work. Affects Kernel versions >= 8332904aa971ed4547514f57c8b3780ad4f0f949, < 8d7924ce85bae64e7a67c366c7c50840f49f3a62. No fix is published. How to fix ↓
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Background
The Kernel is a critical component of the Linux operating system that manages system resources and facilitates communication between hardware and software. It provides essential functions such as process management, memory management, and device drivers. The tcindex_partial_destroy_work function in the Kernel's networking subsystem is responsible for freeing resources associated with a traffic control index. However, a memory leak vulnerability has been identified in this function, which could lead to the exhaustion of system memory over time.
Vulnerability Detail
The memory leak vulnerability in tcindex_partial_destroy_work arises from a failure to properly release memory resources when destroying a traffic control index. This can result in a gradual accumulation of unreleased memory, leading to memory exhaustion and potential system instability. An attacker could potentially exploit this vulnerability to cause a denial-of-service (DoS) condition by repeatedly creating and destroying traffic control indexes, consuming excessive memory resources. The vulnerability was introduced in version v3.18 of the Linux Kernel and has been fixed in version v5.4.136.
How To Fix
No fixed version is published for this vulnerability.
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Workaround
As a workaround, users can mitigate the impact of this vulnerability by limiting the creation and destruction of traffic control indexes. By minimizing the frequency of these operations, the memory leak will occur at a slower rate, reducing the risk of memory exhaustion. However, this is only a temporary solution, and updating to the fixed version of the Kernel is strongly recommended.
Conclusion
The memory leak vulnerability in tcindex_partial_destroy_work in the Kernel can lead to memory exhaustion and potential system instability. It is crucial to update the Linux Kernel to version v5.4.136 or later to mitigate this vulnerability. Users can also limit the creation and destruction of traffic control indexes as a temporary workaround. For further support and assistance in vulnerability remediation, please contact DevNack.com.
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FAQ
The vulnerability can lead to memory exhaustion, potentially causing system instability and a denial-of-service (DoS) condition.
You can use the Vulert Playground (https://vulert.com/scanner) to check if your system is affected by this vulnerability. Simply upload your package-lock.json file to the playground, and it will analyze and alert you if the vulnerability is present.
At the time of this report, there is no known exploit for this vulnerability. However, it is still important to apply the fix to prevent potential future exploitation.
Yes, you can limit the creation and destruction of traffic control indexes to slow down the memory leak. However, updating to the fixed version of the Kernel is strongly recommended for a permanent solution.
You can refer to the official Linux Kernel Git repository (https://git.kernel.org/pub/scm/linux/kernel/git/stable/linux.git/) for detailed information about the fix. The vulnerability details can be found in the provided reference link.
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