# CVE-2022-49371: driver core: fix deadlock in __device_attach

> A deadlock in the Linux kernel driver core can cause a denial of service when asynchronous device attachment fails due to resource limits.

- **Severity:** Medium 5.5 (`CVSS:3.1/AV:L/AC:L/PR:L/UI:N/S:U/C:N/I:N/A:H`)
- **Exploited in the wild:** Not known
- **Login needed:** Any signed-in user
- **Attackable:** Local or same network only
- **Victim action needed:** Not needed
- **Fix available:** Yes
- **Published:** 26 Feb 2025
- **Updated:** 11 May 2026
- **Also known as:** DEBIAN-CVE-2022-49371, GHSA-r45q-6fx6-2q7q, UBUNTU-CVE-2022-49371

## What is CVE-2022-49371?

CVE-2022-49371 is a medium-severity vulnerability in Linux kernel, published on 26 Feb 2025. It can only be exploited from the same machine or local network, with no action from the victim.

### Official description

In the Linux kernel, the following vulnerability has been resolved:

driver core: fix deadlock in __device_attach

In __device_attach function, The lock holding logic is as follows:
...
__device_attach
device_lock(dev)      // get lock dev
  async_schedule_dev(__device_attach_async_helper, dev); // func
    async_schedule_node
      async_schedule_node_domain(func)
        entry = kzalloc(sizeof(struct async_entry), GFP_ATOMIC);
	/* when fail or work limit, sync to execute func, but
	   __device_attach_async_helper will get lock dev as
	   well, which will lead to A-A deadlock.  */
	if (!entry || atomic_read(&entry_count) > MAX_WORK) {
	  func;
	else
	  queue_work_node(node, system_unbound_wq, &entry->work)
  device_unlock(dev)

As shown above, when it is allowed to do async probes, because of
out of memory or work limit, async work is not allowed, to do
sync execute instead. it will lead to A-A deadlock because of
__device_attach_async_helper getting lock dev.

To fix the deadlock, move the async_schedule_dev outside device_lock,
as we can see, in async_schedule_node_domain, the parameter of
queue_work_node is system_unbound_wq, so it can accept concurrent
operations. which will also not change the code logic, and will
not lead to deadlock.

Weakness: CWE-667 (Improper Locking)

## Which versions are affected by CVE-2022-49371?

It affects 1 product.


Products: Linux kernel.

## How do I fix CVE-2022-49371?

Apply the vendor's patch.

## Is CVE-2022-49371 being exploited?

There is no known exploitation of CVE-2022-49371 in the wild and no public exploit code.

## Other vulnerabilities in Linux kernel

- [CVE-2026-53266](https://insights.sbomify.com/CVE-2026-53266/): Linux Kernel Out-of-Bounds Write (high 8.8, exploited in the wild)
- [CVE-2013-6282](https://insights.sbomify.com/CVE-2013-6282/): Linux Kernel Improper Input Validation (high 8.8, exploited in the wild)
- [CVE-2022-0185](https://insights.sbomify.com/CVE-2022-0185/): Linux Kernel Heap-Based Buffer Overflow (high 8.4, exploited in the wild)
- [CVE-2013-2094](https://insights.sbomify.com/CVE-2013-2094/): Linux Kernel Privilege Escalation (high 8.4, exploited in the wild)
- [CVE-2026-53362](https://insights.sbomify.com/CVE-2026-53362/): Linux Kernel Unspecified (high 7.8, exploited in the wild)

## Fix prompt for AI coding agents

```text
Check this codebase for CVE-2022-49371 and fix it if it is affected.

What it is: CVE-2022-49371 is a medium-severity vulnerability in Linux kernel, published on 26 Feb 2025. It can only be exploited from the same machine or local network, with no action from the victim.
Exploitation: There is no known exploitation of CVE-2022-49371 in the wild and no public exploit code.

Affected product: Linux kernel. No package-level version data is available, so check the vendor advisory linked from the reference page.

Task:
1. Search the dependency manifests and lockfiles (for example package.json, package-lock.json, requirements.txt, poetry.lock, uv.lock, pom.xml, build.gradle, go.mod, Cargo.lock, Gemfile.lock) and any Dockerfiles for the affected packages, including transitive dependencies.
2. If an affected version is in use, upgrade it to the fixed version for its release line with the project's package manager, so the lockfile is regenerated. Prefer the smallest upgrade that fixes it.
3. If there is no fix, or the upgrade would break the build, do not guess: explain the risk and the safest workaround instead.
4. Run the tests and summarise what changed and why.
5. If nothing in the project is affected, say so and change nothing.

Reference: https://insights.sbomify.com/CVE-2022-49371/ (Markdown: https://insights.sbomify.com/CVE-2022-49371/index.md)
```

## Sources

- CVE record: https://www.cve.org/CVERecord?id=CVE-2022-49371
- NVD: https://nvd.nist.gov/vuln/detail/CVE-2022-49371
- OSV: https://osv.dev/vulnerability/CVE-2022-49371

---
From sbomify Insights: https://insights.sbomify.com/CVE-2022-49371/
Summaries are generated and may contain mistakes; the official description above is the record.