In the Linux kernel, the following vulnerability has been resolved:
KVM: nSVM: Check instead of asserting on nested TSC scaling support
Check for nested TSC scaling support on nested SVM VMRUN instead of asserting that TSC scaling is exposed to L1 if L1's MSR_AMD64_TSC_RATIO has diverged from KVM's default. Userspace can trigger the WARN at will by writing the MSR and then updating guest CPUID to hide the feature (modifying guest CPUID is allowed anytime before KVM_RUN). E.g. hacking KVM's state_test selftest to do
vcpu_set_msr(vcpu, MSR_AMD64_TSC_RATIO, 0); vcpu_clear_cpuid_feature(vcpu, X86_FEATURE_TSCRATEMSR);
after restoring state in a new VM+vCPU yields an endless supply of:
------------[ cut here ]------------ WARNING: CPU: 164 PID: 62565 at arch/x86/kvm/svm/nested.c:699 nested_vmcb02_prepare_control+0x3d6/0x3f0 [kvm_amd] Call Trace: <TASK> enter_svm_guest_mode+0x114/0x560 [kvm_amd] nested_svm_vmrun+0x260/0x330 [kvm_amd] vmrun_interception+0x29/0x30 [kvm_amd] svm_invoke_exit_handler+0x35/0x100 [kvm_amd] svm_handle_exit+0xe7/0x180 [kvm_amd] kvm_arch_vcpu_ioctl_run+0x1eab/0x2570 [kvm] kvm_vcpu_ioctl+0x4c9/0x5b0 [kvm] __se_sys_ioctl+0x7a/0xc0 __x64_sys_ioctl+0x21/0x30 do_syscall_64+0x41/0x90 entry_SYSCALL_64_after_hwframe+0x63/0xcd RIP: 0033:0x45ca1b
Note, the nested #VMEXIT path has the same flaw, but needs a different fix and will be handled separately.
CVSS Details
- CVSS 3.1 Base Score: 5.5
- CVSS 3.1 Vector: (CVSS:3.1/AV:L/AC:L/PR:L/UI:N/S:U/C:N/I:N/A:H)
Covered by Rapid7
| Product | Vendor Advisory | Solution File | Added | Published |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Amazon_linux_2023 | — | Upgrade kernel-tools-develUpgrade perfUpgrade bpftool-debuginfoUpgrade kernel-headersUpgrade kernel-libbpfUpgrade kernel-debuginfoUpgrade kernel-tools-debuginfoUpgrade kernel-livepatch-6.1.55-75.123Upgrade perf-debuginfoUpgrade kernel-libbpf-staticUpgrade python3-perf-debuginfoUpgrade kernel-develUpgrade kernel-debuginfo-common-aarch64Upgrade bpftoolUpgrade kernelUpgrade python3-perfUpgrade kernel-toolsUpgrade kernel-libbpf-develUpgrade kernel-debuginfo-common-x86_64 | Oct 24, 2025 | Oct 7, 2025 |
| Debian | — | Upgrade linux | Oct 9, 2025 | Oct 9, 2025 |
| Redhat_linux | — | Upgrade kernelNo solution existsUpgrade kernel-rt | Nov 14, 2025 | Oct 7, 2025 |
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