Description
An issue was discovered in Xen through 4.12.x allowing ARM guest OS users to cause a denial of service via a XENMEM_add_to_physmap hypercall. p2m->max_mapped_gfn is used by the functions p2m_resolve_translation_fault() and p2m_get_entry() to sanity check guest physical frame. The rest of the code in the two functions will assume that there is a valid root table and check that with BUG_ON(). The function p2m_get_root_pointer() will ignore the unused top bits of a guest physical frame. This means that the function p2m_set_entry() will alias the frame. However, p2m->max_mapped_gfn will be updated using the original frame. It would be possible to set p2m->max_mapped_gfn high enough to cover a frame that would lead p2m_get_root_pointer() to return NULL in p2m_get_entry() and p2m_resolve_translation_fault(). Additionally, the sanity check on p2m->max_mapped_gfn is off-by-one allowing "highest mapped + 1" to be considered valid. However, p2m_get_root_pointer() will return NULL. The problem could be triggered with a specially crafted hypercall XENMEM_add_to_physmap{, _batch} followed by an access to an address (via hypercall or direct access) that passes the sanity check but cause p2m_get_root_pointer() to return NULL. A malicious guest administrator may cause a hypervisor crash, resulting in a Denial of Service (DoS). Xen version 4.8 and newer are vulnerable. Only Arm systems are vulnerable. x86 systems are not affected.
Fixed in Linux distributions
Distributions backport fixes, so the version that fixes this vulnerability differs per release — upgrade to at least the version shown. From the distributions' security trackers and advisories.
Debian
Security tracker ↗| Release | Package | Fixed in | Advisory |
|---|---|---|---|
| Debian 14 | xen | 4.11.3+24-g14b62ab3e5-1 | — |
| Debian 13 | xen | 4.11.3+24-g14b62ab3e5-1 | — |
| Debian 12 | xen | 4.11.3+24-g14b62ab3e5-1 | — |
| Debian 10 | xen | 4.11.3+24-g14b62ab3e5-1~deb10u1 | DSA-4602-1 |
| Debian 9 | xen | 4.8.5.final+shim4.10.4-1+deb9u12 | DSA-4602-1 |
Ubuntu
Security tracker ↗| Release | Package | Fixed in | Advisory |
|---|---|---|---|
| Ubuntu 18.04 LTS | xen | No fix yet | — |
| Ubuntu 16.04 LTS | xen | No fix yet | — |
SUSE
Security tracker ↗| Release | Package | Fixed in | Advisory |
|---|---|---|---|
| SLES 15 SP1 | xen | 4.12.1_04-3.6.1 | SUSE-SU-2019:2961-1 |
| SLES 15 | xen | 4.10.4_08-3.28.1 | SUSE-SU-2019:3309-1 |
| SLES 12 SP4 | xen | 4.11.3_02-2.20.1 | SUSE-SU-2019:3310-1 |
| SLES 12 SP3 | xen | 4.9.4_06-3.59.1 | SUSE-SU-2019:3297-1 |
Show 6 more (older releases, extended support, other products)Fewer releases
| Release | Package | Fixed in | Advisory |
|---|---|---|---|
| SLES for SAP 12 SP4 | xen | 4.11.3_02-2.20.1 | SUSE-SU-2019:3310-1 |
| SLES for SAP 12 SP3 | xen | 4.9.4_06-3.59.1 | SUSE-SU-2019:3297-1 |
| SUSE OpenStack Cloud Crowbar 8 | xen | 4.9.4_06-3.59.1 | SUSE-SU-2019:3297-1 |
| SUSE OpenStack Cloud 8 | xen | 4.9.4_06-3.59.1 | SUSE-SU-2019:3297-1 |
| SUSE HPE Helion OpenStack 8 | xen | 4.9.4_06-3.59.1 | SUSE-SU-2019:3297-1 |
| SUSE Enterprise Storage 5 | xen | 4.9.4_06-3.59.1 | SUSE-SU-2019:3297-1 |
Alpine
Security tracker ↗| Release | Package | Fixed in | Advisory |
|---|---|---|---|
| Alpine v3.24 | xen | 4.13.0-r0 | — |
| Alpine v3.23 | xen | 4.13.0-r0 | — |
| Alpine v3.22 | xen | 4.13.0-r0 | — |
| Alpine v3.21 | xen | 4.13.0-r0 | — |
| Alpine v3.20 | xen | 4.13.0-r0 | — |
Show 12 more (older releases, extended support, other products)Fewer releases
| Release | Package | Fixed in | Advisory |
|---|---|---|---|
| Alpine v3.19 | xen | 4.13.0-r0 | — |
| Alpine v3.18 | xen | 4.13.0-r0 | — |
| Alpine v3.17 | xen | 4.13.0-r0 | — |
| Alpine v3.16 | xen | 4.13.0-r0 | — |
| Alpine v3.15 | xen | 4.13.0-r0 | — |
| Alpine v3.14 | xen | 4.13.0-r0 | — |
| Alpine v3.13 | xen | 4.13.0-r0 | — |
| Alpine v3.12 | xen | 4.13.0-r0 | — |
| Alpine v3.11 | xen | 4.13.0-r0 | — |
| Alpine v3.10 | xen | 4.12.1-r1 | — |
| Alpine v3.9 | xen | 4.11.2-r1 | — |
| Alpine v3.8 | xen | 4.10.4-r1 | — |
Advisories 5
- DSA-4602-1 xen - security update Debian Security (DSA / DLA) · Mar 9, 2026
- SUSE-SU-2019:3309-1 Security update for xen SUSE / openSUSE Security Updates · Feb 4, 2026
- SUSE-SU-2019:2961-1 Security update for xen SUSE / openSUSE Security Updates · Feb 4, 2026
- SUSE-SU-2019:3297-1 Security update for xen SUSE / openSUSE Security Updates · Feb 4, 2026
- SUSE-SU-2019:3310-1 Security update for xen SUSE / openSUSE Security Updates · Feb 4, 2026
References
- http://xenbits.xen.org/xsa/advisory-301.html
- [oss-security] 20191031 Xen Security Advisory 301 v3 (CVE-2019-18423) - add-to-physmap can be abused to DoS Arm hosts mailing-list
- FEDORA-2019-865bb16900 vendor-advisory
- FEDORA-2019-376ec5c107 vendor-advisory
- FEDORA-2019-cbb732f760 vendor-advisory
- DSA-4602 vendor-advisory
- 20200114 [SECURITY] [DSA 4602-1] xen security update mailing-list
- GLSA-202003-56 vendor-advisory