CVE-2026-31397 Details
Description
In the Linux kernel, the following vulnerability has been resolved: mm/huge_memory: fix use of NULL folio in move_pages_huge_pmd() move_pages_huge_pmd() handles UFFDIO_MOVE for both normal THPs and huge zero pages. For the huge zero page path, src_folio is explicitly set to NULL, and is used as a sentinel to skip folio operations like lock and rmap. In the huge zero page branch, src_folio is NULL, so folio_mk_pmd(NULL, pgprot) passes NULL through folio_pfn() and page_to_pfn(). With SPARSEMEM_VMEMMAP this silently produces a bogus PFN, installing a PMD pointing to non-existent physical memory. On other memory models it is a NULL dereference. Use page_folio(src_page) to obtain the valid huge zero folio from the page, which was obtained from pmd_page() and remains valid throughout. After commit d82d09e48219 ("mm/huge_memory: mark PMD mappings of the huge zero folio special"), moved huge zero PMDs must remain special so vm_normal_page_pmd() continues to treat them as special mappings. move_pages_huge_pmd() currently reconstructs the destination PMD in the huge zero page branch, which drops PMD state such as pmd_special() on architectures with CONFIG_ARCH_HAS_PTE_SPECIAL. As a result, vm_normal_page_pmd() can treat the moved huge zero PMD as a normal page and corrupt its refcount. Instead of reconstructing the PMD from the folio, derive the destination entry from src_pmdval after pmdp_huge_clear_flush(), then handle the PMD metadata the same way move_huge_pmd() does for moved entries by marking it soft-dirty and clearing uffd-wp.
A vulnerability exists in the Linux kernel's handling of huge zero pages within the move_pages_huge_pmd() function. This function manages UFFDIO_MOVE operations for both standard transparent huge pages (THPs) and huge zero pages. When dealing with huge zero pages, the source folio is intentionally set to NULL, which serves as a sentinel to bypass certain folio operations. However, this NULL value leads to two critical issues: on systems using SPARSEMEM_VMEMMAP, it creates a bogus Page Frame Number (PFN) that points to non-existent physical memory, and on other memory models, it causes a NULL dereference. The vulnerability arises because the function fails to correctly process the huge zero folio, which can result in either a silent installation of a PMD pointing to invalid memory or a direct NULL dereference.
Users can upgrade to the latest version of the Linux kernel where this vulnerability has been addressed. The specific commit that fixes this issue is included in the Linux kernel stable tree.
Metrics
CVSS 4.0 Severity and Vector Strings:
No CVSS 4.0 data is available for this CVE.
CVSS 3.x Severity and Vector Strings:
No data available for CVSS Version 2.0 on this CVE.
No SSVC data is available for this CVE.
References to Advisories, Solutions, and Tools
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| URL | Source(s) | Tag(s) |
|---|---|---|
| https://git.kernel.org/stable/c/e3133d0986dc5a231d5419167dbac65312b28b41 | kernel.org | Patch |
| https://git.kernel.org/stable/c/f3caaee0f9e489fd2282d4ce45791dc8aed2da62 | kernel.org | Patch |
| https://git.kernel.org/stable/c/fae654083bfa409bb2244f390232e2be47f05bfc | kernel.org | Patch |
Weakness Enumeration
| CWE-ID | CWE Name | Source |
|---|---|---|
| CWE-476 | NULL Pointer Dereference | [email protected] |
Affected Products
| Product | Versions |
|---|---|
| linux linux kernel | >= 6.16, < 6.18.20 >= 6.19, < 6.19.10 7.0 rc1 7.0 rc2 7.0 rc3 7.0 rc4 |
CPE
Remediation
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Change History
5 change records found show changes
| Date | Action | Recorded By |
|---|---|---|
| Jul 24, 2026 | CVE Translated | [email protected] |
| Jun 17, 2026 | CVE Modified | kernel.org |
| May 20, 2026 | Initial Analysis | [email protected] |
| Apr 27, 2026 | CVE Modified | kernel.org |
| Apr 3, 2026 | New CVE Received | kernel.org |