# CVE-2022-49490: drm/msm/mdp5: Return error code in mdp5_pipe_release when deadlock is detected

> A missing error check in the Linux kernel MSM display driver can lead to a NULL pointer dereference and system crash when a deadlock is detected.

- **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-2022-49490, GHSA-rpvf-9x4w-8h3f, UBUNTU-CVE-2022-49490

## What is CVE-2022-49490?

CVE-2022-49490 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:

drm/msm/mdp5: Return error code in mdp5_pipe_release when deadlock is detected

mdp5_get_global_state runs the risk of hitting a -EDEADLK when acquiring
the modeset lock, but currently mdp5_pipe_release doesn't check for if
an error is returned. Because of this, there is a possibility of
mdp5_pipe_release hitting a NULL dereference error.

To avoid this, let's have mdp5_pipe_release check if
mdp5_get_global_state returns an error and propogate that error.

Changes since v1:
- Separated declaration and initialization of *new_state to avoid
  compiler warning
- Fixed some spelling mistakes in commit message

Changes since v2:
- Return 0 in case where hwpipe is NULL as this is considered normal
  behavior
- Added 2nd patch in series to fix a similar NULL dereference issue in
  mdp5_mixer_release

Patchwork: https://patchwork.freedesktop.org/patch/485179/

Weakness: CWE-476 (NULL Pointer Dereference)

## Which versions are affected by CVE-2022-49490?

It affects 1 product.


Products: Linux kernel.

## How do I fix CVE-2022-49490?

Apply the vendor's patch.

## Is CVE-2022-49490 being exploited?

There is no known exploitation of CVE-2022-49490 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-2022-49490 and fix it if it is affected.

What it is: CVE-2022-49490 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-2022-49490 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-2022-49490/ (Markdown: https://insights.sbomify.com/CVE-2022-49490/index.md)
```

## Sources

- CVE record: https://www.cve.org/CVERecord?id=CVE-2022-49490
- NVD: https://nvd.nist.gov/vuln/detail/CVE-2022-49490
- OSV: https://osv.dev/vulnerability/CVE-2022-49490

---
From sbomify Insights: https://insights.sbomify.com/CVE-2022-49490/
Summaries are generated and may contain mistakes; the official description above is the record.