Linux Kernel SMC splice buf double-free via tee() dup
CVE-2026-31507 Published on April 22, 2026
net/smc: fix double-free of smc_spd_priv when tee() duplicates splice pipe buffer
In the Linux kernel, the following vulnerability has been resolved:
net/smc: fix double-free of smc_spd_priv when tee() duplicates splice pipe buffer
smc_rx_splice() allocates one smc_spd_priv per pipe_buffer and stores
the pointer in pipe_buffer.private. The pipe_buf_operations for these
buffers used .get = generic_pipe_buf_get, which only increments the page
reference count when tee(2) duplicates a pipe buffer. The smc_spd_priv
pointer itself was not handled, so after tee() both the original and the
cloned pipe_buffer share the same smc_spd_priv *.
When both pipes are subsequently released, smc_rx_pipe_buf_release() is
called twice against the same object:
1st call: kfree(priv) sock_put(sk) smc_rx_update_cons() [correct]
2nd call: kfree(priv) sock_put(sk) smc_rx_update_cons() [UAF]
KASAN reports a slab-use-after-free in smc_rx_pipe_buf_release(), which
then escalates to a NULL-pointer dereference and kernel panic via
smc_rx_update_consumer() when it chases the freed priv->smc pointer:
BUG: KASAN: slab-use-after-free in smc_rx_pipe_buf_release+0x78/0x2a0
Read of size 8 at addr ffff888004a45740 by task smc_splice_tee_/74
Call Trace:
<TASK>
dump_stack_lvl+0x53/0x70
print_report+0xce/0x650
kasan_report+0xc6/0x100
smc_rx_pipe_buf_release+0x78/0x2a0
free_pipe_info+0xd4/0x130
pipe_release+0x142/0x160
__fput+0x1c6/0x490
__x64_sys_close+0x4f/0x90
do_syscall_64+0xa6/0x1a0
entry_SYSCALL_64_after_hwframe+0x77/0x7f
</TASK>
BUG: kernel NULL pointer dereference, address: 0000000000000020
RIP: 0010:smc_rx_update_consumer+0x8d/0x350
Call Trace:
<TASK>
smc_rx_pipe_buf_release+0x121/0x2a0
free_pipe_info+0xd4/0x130
pipe_release+0x142/0x160
__fput+0x1c6/0x490
__x64_sys_close+0x4f/0x90
do_syscall_64+0xa6/0x1a0
entry_SYSCALL_64_after_hwframe+0x77/0x7f
</TASK>
Kernel panic - not syncing: Fatal exception
Beyond the memory-safety problem, duplicating an SMC splice buffer is
semantically questionable: smc_rx_update_cons() would advance the
consumer cursor twice for the same data, corrupting receive-window
accounting. A refcount on smc_spd_priv could fix the double-free, but
the cursor-accounting issue would still need to be addressed separately.
The .get callback is invoked by both tee(2) and splice_pipe_to_pipe()
for partial transfers; both will now return -EFAULT. Users who need
to duplicate SMC socket data must use a copy-based read path.
Products Associated with CVE-2026-31507
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Affected Versions
Linux:- Version 9014db202cb764b8e14c53e7bacc81f9a1a2ba7f and below 7e8916f46c2f48607f907fd401590093753a6bc5 is affected.
- Version 9014db202cb764b8e14c53e7bacc81f9a1a2ba7f and below ae5575e660410c8d2c5d38fb28a0f37aea945676 is affected.
- Version 9014db202cb764b8e14c53e7bacc81f9a1a2ba7f and below 98ba5cb274768146e25ffbfde47753652c1c20d3 is affected.
- Version 9014db202cb764b8e14c53e7bacc81f9a1a2ba7f and below 81acbd345d405994875d419d43b319fee0b9ad62 is affected.
- Version 9014db202cb764b8e14c53e7bacc81f9a1a2ba7f and below 7bcb974c771c863e8588cea0012ac204443a7126 is affected.
- Version 9014db202cb764b8e14c53e7bacc81f9a1a2ba7f and below 54c87a730157868543ebdfa0ecb21b4590ed23a5 is affected.
- Version 9014db202cb764b8e14c53e7bacc81f9a1a2ba7f and below 3cc76380fea749280c026f410af56a28aaac388a is affected.
- Version 9014db202cb764b8e14c53e7bacc81f9a1a2ba7f and below 24dd586bb4cbba1889a50abe74143817a095c1c9 is affected.
- Version 4.18 is affected.
- Before 4.18 is unaffected.
- Version 5.10.253, <= 5.10.* is unaffected.
- Version 5.15.203, <= 5.15.* is unaffected.
- Version 6.1.168, <= 6.1.* is unaffected.
- Version 6.6.131, <= 6.6.* is unaffected.
- Version 6.12.80, <= 6.12.* is unaffected.
- Version 6.18.21, <= 6.18.* is unaffected.
- Version 6.19.11, <= 6.19.* is unaffected.
- Version 7.0, <= * is unaffected.