In the Linux kernel, the following vulnerability has been resolved:
x86/kvm: Don't consume async #PF flags on a kernel #PF in NMI context
An async #PF "page not present" event arrives through the #PF vector,
and its reason sits in the per-CPU apf_reason.flags until
__kvm_handle_async_pf() reads and clears it. If an NMI arrives after
the event is injected and before the #PF handler reads the flags, and
the NMI handler itself takes a #PF, that fault reads and clears the
flags belonging to the #PF it interrupted. It then finds interrupts
disabled in the NMI context it interrupted, and panics:
Kernel panic - not syncing: Host injected async #PF in interrupt
disabled region
Call Trace:
<NMI>
panic+0x52/0x60
__kvm_handle_async_pf+0xb0/0xb0
exc_page_fault+0x71/0xb0
asm_exc_page_fault+0x27/0x30
RIP: 0010:__get_user_nocheck_8+0x6/0x20
perf_callchain_user+0x147/0x1a0
get_perf_callchain+0x12d/0x1c0
...
perf_event_nmi_handler+0x26/0x50
exc_nmi+0xe8/0x110
RIP: 0010:asm_exc_page_fault+0x0/0x30
</NMI>
The last RIP line shows the NMI landing on the first instruction of
the #PF entry. perf with user call chains takes such a fault: the
sampling NMI walks the user stack with __get_user(), which faults when
a saved frame pointer is not a valid user address or the walk runs off
the top of the stack. The same window exists when KVM, running as an
L1 hypervisor with DELIVERY_AS_PF_VMEXIT, reads the flags itself after
a #PF VM-exit.
The NMI entry code saves and restores CR2 for this nesting, but not the
async #PF reason. Andy Lutomirski described the race, with perf as the
example, when async #PF delivery was reworked in 2020 [1]. Saving and
clearing the flags across the NMI, next to CR2, was discussed there but
not merged.
Since that rework, Linux has stopped setting KVM_ASYNC_PF_SEND_ALWAYS,
so the host delivers "page not present" only for user mode faults and
a kernel-mode fault in NMI context (including kernel-mode #MC and #DB)
cannot be an async page fault. In that case, return without touching
the flags so that the interrupted handler finds them intact.
Tested on v7.3-rc5 in a 4-vCPU, 2 GiB guest restored from a snapshot
whose memory is served on demand through userfaultfd, so that reading
it back takes async #PFs, while every thread samples hardware cycles
with user call chains and points its frame pointer at an unmapped page.
Without this patch the guest panicked as above in 3 of 3 runs. With it,
the guest survived 3 of 3 runs of 60 seconds, and the host counted
148,441 to 153,334 kvm_async_pf_not_present events in the first 20
seconds of each. On 6.18.50 the results were the same: the guest
panicked without the patch and survived with it.
x86/kvm: Don't consume async #PF flags on a kernel #PF in NMI context
An async #PF "page not present" event arrives through the #PF vector,
and its reason sits in the per-CPU apf_reason.flags until
__kvm_handle_async_pf() reads and clears it. If an NMI arrives after
the event is injected and before the #PF handler reads the flags, and
the NMI handler itself takes a #PF, that fault reads and clears the
flags belonging to the #PF it interrupted. It then finds interrupts
disabled in the NMI context it interrupted, and panics:
Kernel panic - not syncing: Host injected async #PF in interrupt
disabled region
Call Trace:
<NMI>
panic+0x52/0x60
__kvm_handle_async_pf+0xb0/0xb0
exc_page_fault+0x71/0xb0
asm_exc_page_fault+0x27/0x30
RIP: 0010:__get_user_nocheck_8+0x6/0x20
perf_callchain_user+0x147/0x1a0
get_perf_callchain+0x12d/0x1c0
...
perf_event_nmi_handler+0x26/0x50
exc_nmi+0xe8/0x110
RIP: 0010:asm_exc_page_fault+0x0/0x30
</NMI>
The last RIP line shows the NMI landing on the first instruction of
the #PF entry. perf with user call chains takes such a fault: the
sampling NMI walks the user stack with __get_user(), which faults when
a saved frame pointer is not a valid user address or the walk runs off
the top of the stack. The same window exists when KVM, running as an
L1 hypervisor with DELIVERY_AS_PF_VMEXIT, reads the flags itself after
a #PF VM-exit.
The NMI entry code saves and restores CR2 for this nesting, but not the
async #PF reason. Andy Lutomirski described the race, with perf as the
example, when async #PF delivery was reworked in 2020 [1]. Saving and
clearing the flags across the NMI, next to CR2, was discussed there but
not merged.
Since that rework, Linux has stopped setting KVM_ASYNC_PF_SEND_ALWAYS,
so the host delivers "page not present" only for user mode faults and
a kernel-mode fault in NMI context (including kernel-mode #MC and #DB)
cannot be an async page fault. In that case, return without touching
the flags so that the interrupted handler finds them intact.
Tested on v7.3-rc5 in a 4-vCPU, 2 GiB guest restored from a snapshot
whose memory is served on demand through userfaultfd, so that reading
it back takes async #PFs, while every thread samples hardware cycles
with user call chains and points its frame pointer at an unmapped page.
Without this patch the guest panicked as above in 3 of 3 runs. With it,
the guest survived 3 of 3 runs of 60 seconds, and the host counted
148,441 to 153,334 kvm_async_pf_not_present events in the first 20
seconds of each. On 6.18.50 the results were the same: the guest
panicked without the patch and survived with it.
Metrics
Affected Vendors & Products
Advisories
No advisories yet.
Fixes
Solution
No solution given by the vendor.
Workaround
No workaround given by the vendor.
References
History
Wed, 28 Oct 2026 21:15:00 +0000
| Type | Values Removed | Values Added |
|---|---|---|
| First Time appeared |
Linux linux
|
|
| Vendors & Products |
Linux linux
|
Wed, 28 Oct 2026 12:15:00 +0000
| Type | Values Removed | Values Added |
|---|---|---|
| Weaknesses | CWE-362 |
Wed, 28 Oct 2026 10:45:00 +0000
| Type | Values Removed | Values Added |
|---|---|---|
| Description | In the Linux kernel, the following vulnerability has been resolved: x86/kvm: Don't consume async #PF flags on a kernel #PF in NMI context An async #PF "page not present" event arrives through the #PF vector, and its reason sits in the per-CPU apf_reason.flags until __kvm_handle_async_pf() reads and clears it. If an NMI arrives after the event is injected and before the #PF handler reads the flags, and the NMI handler itself takes a #PF, that fault reads and clears the flags belonging to the #PF it interrupted. It then finds interrupts disabled in the NMI context it interrupted, and panics: Kernel panic - not syncing: Host injected async #PF in interrupt disabled region Call Trace: <NMI> panic+0x52/0x60 __kvm_handle_async_pf+0xb0/0xb0 exc_page_fault+0x71/0xb0 asm_exc_page_fault+0x27/0x30 RIP: 0010:__get_user_nocheck_8+0x6/0x20 perf_callchain_user+0x147/0x1a0 get_perf_callchain+0x12d/0x1c0 ... perf_event_nmi_handler+0x26/0x50 exc_nmi+0xe8/0x110 RIP: 0010:asm_exc_page_fault+0x0/0x30 </NMI> The last RIP line shows the NMI landing on the first instruction of the #PF entry. perf with user call chains takes such a fault: the sampling NMI walks the user stack with __get_user(), which faults when a saved frame pointer is not a valid user address or the walk runs off the top of the stack. The same window exists when KVM, running as an L1 hypervisor with DELIVERY_AS_PF_VMEXIT, reads the flags itself after a #PF VM-exit. The NMI entry code saves and restores CR2 for this nesting, but not the async #PF reason. Andy Lutomirski described the race, with perf as the example, when async #PF delivery was reworked in 2020 [1]. Saving and clearing the flags across the NMI, next to CR2, was discussed there but not merged. Since that rework, Linux has stopped setting KVM_ASYNC_PF_SEND_ALWAYS, so the host delivers "page not present" only for user mode faults and a kernel-mode fault in NMI context (including kernel-mode #MC and #DB) cannot be an async page fault. In that case, return without touching the flags so that the interrupted handler finds them intact. Tested on v7.3-rc5 in a 4-vCPU, 2 GiB guest restored from a snapshot whose memory is served on demand through userfaultfd, so that reading it back takes async #PFs, while every thread samples hardware cycles with user call chains and points its frame pointer at an unmapped page. Without this patch the guest panicked as above in 3 of 3 runs. With it, the guest survived 3 of 3 runs of 60 seconds, and the host counted 148,441 to 153,334 kvm_async_pf_not_present events in the first 20 seconds of each. On 6.18.50 the results were the same: the guest panicked without the patch and survived with it. | |
| Title | x86/kvm: Don't consume async #PF flags on a kernel #PF in NMI context | |
| First Time appeared |
Linux
Linux linux Kernel |
|
| CPEs | cpe:2.3:o:linux:linux_kernel:*:*:*:*:*:*:*:* | |
| Vendors & Products |
Linux
Linux linux Kernel |
|
| References |
|
Projects
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MITRE
Status: PUBLISHED
Assigner: Linux
Published:
Updated: 2026-10-28T10:35:31.961Z
Reserved: 2026-09-25T10:25:14.399Z
Link: CVE-2026-99178
Vulnrichment
No data.
NVD
Status : Received
Published: 2026-10-28T11:17:38.503
Modified: 2026-10-28T11:17:38.503
Link: CVE-2026-99178
Redhat
No data.
OpenCVE Enrichment
Updated: 2026-10-28T21:00:20Z
Weaknesses