medium CVSS 5.5 EPSS <0.1%

CVE-2021-47424·Kernel vulnerability

In the Linux kernel, the following vulnerability has been resolved: i40e: Fix freeing of uninitialized misc IRQ vector When VSI set up failed in i40e_probe() as part of PF switch set up driver was trying to free misc IRQ vectors in i40e_clear_interrupt_scheme and produced a kernel Oops: Trying to free already-free IRQ 266 WARNING: CPU: 0 PID: 5 at kernel/irq/manage.c:1731 __free_irq+0x9a/0x300 Workqueue: events work_for_cpu_fn RIP: 0010:__free_irq+0x9a/0x300 Call Trace: ? synchronize_irq+0x3a/0xa0 free_irq+0x2e/0x60 i40e_clear_interrupt_scheme+0x53/0x190 [i40e] i40e_probe.part.108+0x134b/0x1a40 [i40e] ? kmem_cache_alloc+0x158/0x1c0 ? acpi_ut_update_ref_count.part.1+0x8e/0x345 ? acpi_ut_update_object_reference+0x15e/0x1e2 ? strstr+0x21/0x70 ? irq_get_irq_data+0xa/0x20 ? mp_check_pin_attr+0x13/0xc0 ? irq_get_irq_data+0xa/0x20 ? mp_map_pin_to_irq+0xd3/0x2f0 ? acpi_register_gsi_ioapic+0x93/0x170 ? pci_conf1_read+0xa4/0x100 ? pci_bus_read_config_word+0x49/0x70 ? do_pci_enable_device+0xcc/0x100 local_pci_probe+0x41/0x90 work_for_cpu_fn+0x16/0x20 process_one_work+0x1a7/0x360 worker_thread+0x1cf/0x390 ? create_worker+0x1a0/0x1a0 kthread+0x112/0x130 ? kthread_flush_work_fn+0x10/0x10 ret_from_fork+0x1f/0x40 The problem is that at that point misc IRQ vectors were not allocated yet and we get a call trace that driver is trying to free already free IRQ vectors. Add a check in i40e_clear_interrupt_scheme for __I40E_MISC_IRQ_REQUESTED PF state before calling i40e_free_misc_vector. This state is set only if misc IRQ vectors were properly initialized.

Severity
medium
Software
Kernel
Fixed in
5.14.12
Published

How likely is exploitation

FIRST's Exploit Prediction Scoring System puts the probability of this CVE being exploited in the next 30 days at <0.1% — higher than 8% of all published CVEs. EPSS is an independent forecast of exploitation, not a severity rating: it says nothing about how much damage a successful attack does, which is what a CVSS score measures.

Affected versions

From: 5.11

Until: 5.14.12

Fixed in: 5.14.12

How to fix this CVE

Update your Linux kernel to version 5.14.12 or later to resolve this interrupt handling vulnerability in the i40e driver. The fix adds a proper state check before attempting to free miscellaneous IRQ vectors, preventing kernel panics during failed VSI initialization. Apply the update during your next maintenance window to eliminate the risk of unexpected system crashes.

sudo dnf update kernel kernel-devel

Defensia detects this vulnerability

How to check if you are affected

  1. Check kernel version: uname -r — verify if version is between 5.11 and 5.14.11 (vulnerable range)
  2. Confirm i40e driver presence: lsmod | grep i40e — check if Intel i40e network driver is loaded
  3. Review kernel logs for IRQ errors: dmesg | grep -i 'Trying to free already-free IRQ' — look for the specific panic signature
  4. Verify fix applied: cat /proc/version — confirm kernel is at 5.14.12 or later

FAQ

What is CVE-2021-47424?

This vulnerability is a kernel memory management bug in the i40e Intel network driver where the interrupt cleanup routine attempts to free miscellaneous IRQ vectors that were never successfully allocated, causing a kernel oops when VSI initialization fails during driver probe.

Is CVE-2021-47424 being actively exploited?

No, this is not actively exploited. It is a kernel stability issue triggered only during specific hardware initialization failures, not a remote code execution vector.

What versions of Kernel are affected by CVE-2021-47424?

Linux kernel versions 5.11 through 5.14.11 are affected. Version 5.14.12 and later contain the fix.

How do I check if my server is vulnerable to CVE-2021-47424?

Run 'uname -r' to check your kernel version. If it falls between 5.11 and 5.14.11 and you have an i40e network adapter (check with 'lsmod | grep i40e'), your system is vulnerable.

Does Defensia detect CVE-2021-47424?

Yes — Defensia's CVE advisory scanner compares installed package versions against the NVD database. If the Linux kernel is installed on a monitored server, CVE-2021-47424 will appear in your dashboard with remediation steps.

Related Kernel CVEs

CVE-2026-63795CVSS 10In the Linux kernel, the following vulnerability has been resolved: 9p: avoid putting oldfid in p9_client_walk() error path When p9_client_walk() is called with clone set to false, fid aliases oldfid. If the walk subsequently fails after the request has been sent, the error path jumps to clunk_fid, which currently calls p9_fid_put(fid) unconditionally. This drops a reference to oldfid even though ownership of oldfid remains with the caller. If this is the last reference, oldfid can be clunked and destroyed while the caller still expects it to be valid. A later use or put of oldfid can then trigger a use-after-free or refcount underflow. Fix this by only putting fid in the clunk_fid error path when it does not alias oldfid, matching the existing guard in the error path below. This can be triggered when a multi-component walk is split into multiple p9_client_walk() calls and a later non-cloning walk fails. A reproducer and refcount warning logs are available on request.
CVE-2026-53398CVSS 9.8In the Linux kernel, the following vulnerability has been resolved: NFSD: Fix SECINFO_NO_NAME decode error cleanup nfsd4_decode_secinfo_no_name() currently initializes sin_exp after decoding sin_style. If the XDR stream is truncated, the decoder returns nfserr_bad_xdr before sin_exp is initialized. Since commit 3fdc54646234 ("NFSD: Reduce amount of struct nfsd4_compoundargs that needs clearing"), the inline iops array is not cleared between RPC calls. A failed SECINFO_NO_NAME decode can therefore leave sin_exp holding stale union contents from a previous operation. The error response path still invokes nfsd4_secinfo_no_name_release(), which calls exp_put() on a non-NULL sin_exp. Initialize sin_exp before the first failable decode step, matching nfsd4_decode_secinfo().
CVE-2026-64268CVSS 9.8In the Linux kernel, the following vulnerability has been resolved: RDMA/siw: bound Read Response placement to the RREAD length In drivers/infiniband/sw/siw/siw_qp_rx.c, siw_proc_rresp() places each inbound Read Response DDP segment at sge->laddr + wqe->processed and then accumulates wqe->processed, but it never checks the running total against the sink buffer length on continuation segments. siw_check_sge() resolves and validates the sink memory only on the first fragment (the if (!*mem) branch), and siw_rresp_check_ntoh() compares the cumulative length against wqe->bytes only on the final segment (the !frx->more_ddp_segs guard). A connected siw peer that answers an outstanding RREAD with Read Response segments that keep the DDP Last flag clear, carrying more total payload than the RREAD requested, drives wqe->processed past the validated sink buffer; the next siw_rx_data() call writes out of bounds at sge->laddr + wqe->processed. siw runs iWARP over ordinary routable TCP, so the peer is the remote end of an established RDMA connection and needs no local privilege. Bound every segment before placement, exactly as siw_proc_send() and siw_proc_write() already do for their tagged and untagged paths, and terminate the connection with a base-or-bounds DDP error when the Read Response would overrun the sink buffer. This is the second receive-path length fix for this file. A separate change rejects an MPA FPDU length that underflows the per-fragment remainder in the header decode; that guard does not cover this case, because here each individual segment length is self-consistent and only the accumulated placement offset overruns the buffer.
CVE-2026-53228CVSS 9.8In the Linux kernel, the following vulnerability has been resolved: ipv6: sit: reload inner IPv6 header after GSO offloads ipip6_tunnel_xmit() caches the inner IPv6 header pointer at function entry and continues using it after iptunnel_handle_offloads(). For GSO skbs, iptunnel_handle_offloads() calls skb_header_unclone(). When the skb header is cloned, skb_header_unclone() can call pskb_expand_head(), which may move the skb head. The pskb_expand_head() contract requires pointers into the skb header to be reloaded after the call. If the later skb_realloc_headroom() branch is not taken, SIT uses the stale iph6 pointer to read the inner hop limit and DS field. That can read from a freed skb head after the old head's remaining clone is released. Reload iph6 after the offload helper succeeds and before subsequent reads from the inner IPv6 header. Keep the existing reload after skb_realloc_headroom(), since that branch can also replace the skb.
CVE-2026-53384CVSS 9.8In the Linux kernel, the following vulnerability has been resolved: serial: 8250_dw: unregister 8250 port if clk_notifier_register() fails dw8250_probe() registers the 8250 port via serial8250_register_8250_port() and then, if the device has a clock, registers a clock notifier. If clk_notifier_register() fails, probe returns the error but leaves the 8250 port registered. The matching serial8250_unregister_port() lives in dw8250_remove(), which is not called when probe fails, so the port slot stays occupied until the device is rebound or the system is rebooted. The devm-allocated driver data is freed while the port still references it (via the saved private_data and serial_in/serial_out callbacks), so any access to that port slot before a rebind is a use-after-free hazard. Unregister the port on the clk_notifier_register() error path.

References

Track CVEs across your fleet automatically

Defensia scans your Linux servers and tells you exactly which ones are running vulnerable versions — including CVE-2021-47424. Free for 1 server.

Get started free