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CVE-2025-38623

MEDIUMCVSS 5.5/10EPSS 0.15%

Last modified

CVE-2025-38623 is a medium-severity vulnerability rated 5.5/10 on the CVSS scale. In the Linux kernel, the following vulnerability has been resolved: PCI: pnv_php: Fix surprise plug detection and recovery The existing PowerNV hotplug code did not handle surprise plug events correctly, leading to a complete failure of the hotplug system after device removal and a required reboot to detect new devices. This comes down to two issues: 1) When a device is surprise removed, often the bridge upstream port will cause a PE freeze on the PHB. If this freeze is not cleared, the MSI interrupts from the bridge hotplug notification logic will not be received by the kernel, stalling all plug events on all slots associated with the PE. 2) When a device is removed from a slot, regardless of surprise or programmatic removal, the associated PHB/PE ls left frozen. If this freeze is not cleared via a fundamental reset, skiboot is unable to clear the freeze and cannot retrain / rescan the slot. EPSS estimates a 0.15% chance of exploitation in the next 30 days.

Description

In the Linux kernel, the following vulnerability has been resolved: PCI: pnv_php: Fix surprise plug detection and recovery The existing PowerNV hotplug code did not handle surprise plug events correctly, leading to a complete failure of the hotplug system after device removal and a required reboot to detect new devices. This comes down to two issues: 1) When a device is surprise removed, often the bridge upstream port will cause a PE freeze on the PHB. If this freeze is not cleared, the MSI interrupts from the bridge hotplug notification logic will not be received by the kernel, stalling all plug events on all slots associated with the PE. 2) When a device is removed from a slot, regardless of surprise or programmatic removal, the associated PHB/PE ls left frozen. If this freeze is not cleared via a fundamental reset, skiboot is unable to clear the freeze and cannot retrain / rescan the slot. This also requires a reboot to clear the freeze and redetect the device in the slot. Issue the appropriate unfreeze and rescan commands on hotplug events, and don't oops on hotplug if pci_bus_to_OF_node() returns NULL. [bhelgaas: tidy comments]

Metrics

CVSS 3.1
5.5/10

CVSS:3.1/AV:L/AC:L/PR:L/UI:N/S:U/C:N/I:N/A:H

EPSS Probability
0.15%

4.5th percentile

Probability of exploitation in the next 30 days. Learn more

Affected Software

VendorProductVersions
LinuxLinux Kernel>= 4.9, < 5.10.241
LinuxLinux Kernel>= 5.11, < 5.15.190
LinuxLinux Kernel>= 5.16, < 6.1.148
LinuxLinux Kernel>= 6.2, < 6.6.102
LinuxLinux Kernel>= 6.7, < 6.12.42
LinuxLinux Kernel>= 6.13, < 6.15.10
LinuxLinux Kernel>= 6.16, < 6.16.1
DebianDebian Linux11.0

References

Timeline

Published
Last Modified
Status
Analyzed

Frequently Asked Questions

What is CVE-2025-38623?
In the Linux kernel, the following vulnerability has been resolved: PCI: pnv_php: Fix surprise plug detection and recovery The existing PowerNV hotplug code did not handle surprise plug events correctly, leading to a complete failure of the hotplug system after device removal and a required reboot to detect new devices. This comes down to two issues: 1) When a device is surprise removed, often the bridge upstream port will cause a PE freeze on the PHB. If this freeze is not cleared, the MSI interrupts from the bridge hotplug notification logic will not be received by the kernel, stalling all plug events on all slots associated with the PE. 2) When a device is removed from a slot, regardless of surprise or programmatic removal, the associated PHB/PE ls left frozen. If this freeze is not cleared via a fundamental reset, skiboot is unable to clear the freeze and cannot retrain / rescan the slot. This also requires a reboot to clear the freeze and redetect the device in the slot. Issue the appropriate unfreeze and rescan commands on hotplug events, and don't oops on hotplug if pci_bus_to_OF_node() returns NULL. [bhelgaas: tidy comments]
How severe is CVE-2025-38623?
CVE-2025-38623 has a CVSS score of 5.5/10 (MEDIUM severity). The EPSS model estimates a 0.15% probability of exploitation in the next 30 days.
How do I fix CVE-2025-38623?
Check the vendor references and advisories linked above for patched versions and mitigation guidance. You can also run a Strix scan to test if your systems are affected.

Are you affected by CVE-2025-38623?

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Source: NVD / NIST