# CVE-2023-52516: dma-debug: don't call __dma_entry_alloc_check_leak() under free_entries_lock > A locking dependency issue in the Linux kernel DMA debug subsystem can cause a deadlock, leading to system denial of service. - **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:** 2 Mar 2024 - **Updated:** 11 May 2026 - **Also known as:** BELL-CVE-2023-52516, DEBIAN-CVE-2023-52516, GHSA-4jr3-hwqp-2vq3, UBUNTU-CVE-2023-52516 ## What is CVE-2023-52516? CVE-2023-52516 is a medium-severity vulnerability in Linux kernel, published on 2 Mar 2024. 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: dma-debug: don't call __dma_entry_alloc_check_leak() under free_entries_lock __dma_entry_alloc_check_leak() calls into printk -> serial console output (qcom geni) and grabs port->lock under free_entries_lock spin lock, which is a reverse locking dependency chain as qcom_geni IRQ handler can call into dma-debug code and grab free_entries_lock under port->lock. Move __dma_entry_alloc_check_leak() call out of free_entries_lock scope so that we don't acquire serial console's port->lock under it. Trimmed-down lockdep splat: The existing dependency chain (in reverse order) is: -> #2 (free_entries_lock){-.-.}-{2:2}: _raw_spin_lock_irqsave+0x60/0x80 dma_entry_alloc+0x38/0x110 debug_dma_map_page+0x60/0xf8 dma_map_page_attrs+0x1e0/0x230 dma_map_single_attrs.constprop.0+0x6c/0xc8 geni_se_rx_dma_prep+0x40/0xcc qcom_geni_serial_isr+0x310/0x510 __handle_irq_event_percpu+0x110/0x244 handle_irq_event_percpu+0x20/0x54 handle_irq_event+0x50/0x88 handle_fasteoi_irq+0xa4/0xcc handle_irq_desc+0x28/0x40 generic_handle_domain_irq+0x24/0x30 gic_handle_irq+0xc4/0x148 do_interrupt_handler+0xa4/0xb0 el1_interrupt+0x34/0x64 el1h_64_irq_handler+0x18/0x24 el1h_64_irq+0x64/0x68 arch_local_irq_enable+0x4/0x8 ____do_softirq+0x18/0x24 ... -> #1 (&port_lock_key){-.-.}-{2:2}: _raw_spin_lock_irqsave+0x60/0x80 qcom_geni_serial_console_write+0x184/0x1dc console_flush_all+0x344/0x454 console_unlock+0x94/0xf0 vprintk_emit+0x238/0x24c vprintk_default+0x3c/0x48 vprintk+0xb4/0xbc _printk+0x68/0x90 register_console+0x230/0x38c uart_add_one_port+0x338/0x494 qcom_geni_serial_probe+0x390/0x424 platform_probe+0x70/0xc0 really_probe+0x148/0x280 __driver_probe_device+0xfc/0x114 driver_probe_device+0x44/0x100 __device_attach_driver+0x64/0xdc bus_for_each_drv+0xb0/0xd8 __device_attach+0xe4/0x140 device_initial_probe+0x1c/0x28 bus_probe_device+0x44/0xb0 device_add+0x538/0x668 of_device_add+0x44/0x50 of_platform_device_create_pdata+0x94/0xc8 of_platform_bus_create+0x270/0x304 of_platform_populate+0xac/0xc4 devm_of_platform_populate+0x60/0xac geni_se_probe+0x154/0x160 platform_probe+0x70/0xc0 ... -> #0 (console_owner){-...}-{0:0}: __lock_acquire+0xdf8/0x109c lock_acquire+0x234/0x284 console_flush_all+0x330/0x454 console_unlock+0x94/0xf0 vprintk_emit+0x238/0x24c vprintk_default+0x3c/0x48 vprintk+0xb4/0xbc _printk+0x68/0x90 dma_entry_alloc+0xb4/0x110 debug_dma_map_sg+0xdc/0x2f8 __dma_map_sg_attrs+0xac/0xe4 dma_map_sgtable+0x30/0x4c get_pages+0x1d4/0x1e4 [msm] msm_gem_pin_pages_locked+0x38/0xac [msm] msm_gem_pin_vma_locked+0x58/0x88 [msm] msm_ioctl_gem_submit+0xde4/0x13ac [msm] drm_ioctl_kernel+0xe0/0x15c drm_ioctl+0x2e8/0x3f4 vfs_ioctl+0x30/0x50 ... Chain exists of: console_owner --> &port_lock_key --> free_entries_lock Possible unsafe locking scenario: CPU0 CPU1 ---- ---- lock(free_entries_lock); lock(&port_lock_key); lock(free_entries_lock); lock(console_owner); *** DEADLOCK *** Call trace: dump_backtrace+0xb4/0xf0 show_stack+0x20/0x30 dump_stack_lvl+0x60/0x84 dump_stack+0x18/0x24 print_circular_bug+0x1cc/0x234 check_noncircular+0x78/0xac __lock_acquire+0xdf8/0x109c lock_acquire+0x234/0x284 console_flush_all+0x330/0x454 consol ---truncated--- Weakness: CWE-667 (Improper Locking) ## Which versions are affected by CVE-2023-52516? It affects 1 product. Products: Linux kernel. ## How do I fix CVE-2023-52516? Apply the vendor's patch. ## Is CVE-2023-52516 being exploited? There is no known exploitation of CVE-2023-52516 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-2023-52516 and fix it if it is affected. What it is: CVE-2023-52516 is a medium-severity vulnerability in Linux kernel, published on 2 Mar 2024. 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-2023-52516 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-2023-52516/ (Markdown: https://insights.sbomify.com/CVE-2023-52516/index.md) ``` ## Sources - CVE record: https://www.cve.org/CVERecord?id=CVE-2023-52516 - NVD: https://nvd.nist.gov/vuln/detail/CVE-2023-52516 - OSV: https://osv.dev/vulnerability/CVE-2023-52516 --- From sbomify Insights: https://insights.sbomify.com/CVE-2023-52516/ Summaries are generated and may contain mistakes; the official description above is the record.