GHSA-X2FF-M8PM-H936
Vulnerability from github – Published: 2026-08-15 06:32 – Updated: 2026-08-17 06:33In the Linux kernel, the following vulnerability has been resolved:
SUNRPC: pin upper rpc_clnt across the TLS connect_worker
The TLS connect path has a use-after-free: nothing pins the upper rpc_clnt across the delayed connect_worker. xs_connect() stores task->tk_client in sock_xprt::clnt as a raw pointer and queues the worker; for TLS-secured transports that worker is xs_tcp_tls_setup_socket(), which reads several fields out of the saved pointer (cl_timeout, cl_program, cl_prog, cl_vers, cl_cred, cl_stats) to construct the args for the inner handshake rpc_clnt.
The xprt does not reference the rpc_clnt; the rpc_clnt references the xprt. xs_destroy() does cancel the connect_worker, but it runs only when the xprt's refcount drops to zero, which cannot happen until the rpc_clnt releases its cl_xprt reference in rpc_free_client_work(). When a TLS handshake fails fatally (for example, an mTLS mount whose client cert does not match the server), the connecting task is woken with -EACCES and exits, the mount caller invokes rpc_shutdown_client(), and the upper rpc_clnt is freed before the queued connect_worker fires. xs_tcp_tls_setup_socket() then dereferences the freed clnt, producing the refcount_t underflow Michael Nemanov reported.
Take a reference on the upper rpc_clnt in xs_connect() for TLS transports via a new rpc_hold_client() helper, and drop it in the connect_worker's exit path with rpc_release_client(). The xprt_lock_connect() / xprt_unlock_connect() pairing already serialises xs_connect() with xs_tcp_tls_setup_socket(), so the take and release are balanced one-for-one.
The non-TLS connect worker (xs_tcp_setup_socket) never reads sock_xprt::clnt, so leave that path alone and avoid the clnt-holds-xprt-holds-clnt cycle that would otherwise prevent xprt destruction.
{
"affected": [],
"aliases": [
"CVE-2026-72317"
],
"database_specific": {
"cwe_ids": [],
"github_reviewed": false,
"github_reviewed_at": null,
"nvd_published_at": "2026-08-15T06:22:04Z",
"severity": "CRITICAL"
},
"details": "In the Linux kernel, the following vulnerability has been resolved:\n\nSUNRPC: pin upper rpc_clnt across the TLS connect_worker\n\nThe TLS connect path has a use-after-free: nothing pins the\nupper rpc_clnt across the delayed connect_worker. xs_connect()\nstores task-\u003etk_client in sock_xprt::clnt as a raw pointer\nand queues the worker; for TLS-secured transports that worker\nis xs_tcp_tls_setup_socket(), which reads several fields out\nof the saved pointer (cl_timeout, cl_program, cl_prog,\ncl_vers, cl_cred, cl_stats) to construct the args for the\ninner handshake rpc_clnt.\n\nThe xprt does not reference the rpc_clnt; the rpc_clnt\nreferences the xprt. xs_destroy() does cancel the\nconnect_worker, but it runs only when the xprt\u0027s refcount\ndrops to zero, which cannot happen until the rpc_clnt\nreleases its cl_xprt reference in rpc_free_client_work().\nWhen a TLS handshake fails fatally (for example, an mTLS\nmount whose client cert does not match the server), the\nconnecting task is woken with -EACCES and exits, the mount\ncaller invokes rpc_shutdown_client(), and the upper rpc_clnt\nis freed before the queued connect_worker fires.\nxs_tcp_tls_setup_socket() then dereferences the freed clnt,\nproducing the refcount_t underflow Michael Nemanov reported.\n\nTake a reference on the upper rpc_clnt in xs_connect() for\nTLS transports via a new rpc_hold_client() helper, and drop\nit in the connect_worker\u0027s exit path with rpc_release_client().\nThe xprt_lock_connect() / xprt_unlock_connect() pairing\nalready serialises xs_connect() with xs_tcp_tls_setup_socket(),\nso the take and release are balanced one-for-one.\n\nThe non-TLS connect worker (xs_tcp_setup_socket) never reads\nsock_xprt::clnt, so leave that path alone and avoid the\nclnt-holds-xprt-holds-clnt cycle that would otherwise prevent\nxprt destruction.",
"id": "GHSA-x2ff-m8pm-h936",
"modified": "2026-08-17T06:33:23Z",
"published": "2026-08-15T06:32:20Z",
"references": [
{
"type": "ADVISORY",
"url": "https://nvd.nist.gov/vuln/detail/CVE-2026-72317"
},
{
"type": "WEB",
"url": "https://git.kernel.org/stable/c/46bc86c833956219bbfd246c1ffd832a479c5199"
},
{
"type": "WEB",
"url": "https://git.kernel.org/stable/c/5b0427ba582d143a364301f825f4e32272f06d2d"
},
{
"type": "WEB",
"url": "https://git.kernel.org/stable/c/79cd550f8c884523b604fbfa43eb02def74d6224"
},
{
"type": "WEB",
"url": "https://git.kernel.org/stable/c/7a65b41b657b71d5a77861f47dd13eb4bc8e10d0"
},
{
"type": "WEB",
"url": "https://git.kernel.org/stable/c/d49f6d098ed48775b9d27a9f9c5c220fdf76f102"
}
],
"schema_version": "1.4.0",
"severity": [
{
"score": "CVSS:3.1/AV:N/AC:L/PR:N/UI:N/S:U/C:H/I:H/A:H",
"type": "CVSS_V3"
}
]
}
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