# CVE-2024-35991: dmaengine: idxd: Convert spinlock to mutex to lock evl workqueue

> A race condition in the Intel DSA driver causes a kernel warning and potential instability when draining workqueues, requiring a patch to switch locking mechanisms.

- **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:** 20 May 2024
- **Updated:** 11 May 2026
- **Also known as:** BELL-CVE-2024-35991, DEBIAN-CVE-2024-35991, GHSA-g55p-876w-v4vx, UBUNTU-CVE-2024-35991

## What is CVE-2024-35991?

CVE-2024-35991 is a medium-severity vulnerability in Linux kernel, published on 20 May 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:

dmaengine: idxd: Convert spinlock to mutex to lock evl workqueue

drain_workqueue() cannot be called safely in a spinlocked context due to
possible task rescheduling. In the multi-task scenario, calling
queue_work() while drain_workqueue() will lead to a Call Trace as
pushing a work on a draining workqueue is not permitted in spinlocked
context.
    Call Trace:
    <TASK>
    ? __warn+0x7d/0x140
    ? __queue_work+0x2b2/0x440
    ? report_bug+0x1f8/0x200
    ? handle_bug+0x3c/0x70
    ? exc_invalid_op+0x18/0x70
    ? asm_exc_invalid_op+0x1a/0x20
    ? __queue_work+0x2b2/0x440
    queue_work_on+0x28/0x30
    idxd_misc_thread+0x303/0x5a0 [idxd]
    ? __schedule+0x369/0xb40
    ? __pfx_irq_thread_fn+0x10/0x10
    ? irq_thread+0xbc/0x1b0
    irq_thread_fn+0x21/0x70
    irq_thread+0x102/0x1b0
    ? preempt_count_add+0x74/0xa0
    ? __pfx_irq_thread_dtor+0x10/0x10
    ? __pfx_irq_thread+0x10/0x10
    kthread+0x103/0x140
    ? __pfx_kthread+0x10/0x10
    ret_from_fork+0x31/0x50
    ? __pfx_kthread+0x10/0x10
    ret_from_fork_asm+0x1b/0x30
    </TASK>

The current implementation uses a spinlock to protect event log workqueue
and will lead to the Call Trace due to potential task rescheduling.

To address the locking issue, convert the spinlock to mutex, allowing
the drain_workqueue() to be called in a safe mutex-locked context.

This change ensures proper synchronization when accessing the event log
workqueue, preventing potential Call Trace and improving the overall
robustness of the code.

Weakness: CWE-667 (Improper Locking)

## Which versions are affected by CVE-2024-35991?

It affects 1 product.


Products: Linux kernel.

## How do I fix CVE-2024-35991?

Apply the vendor's patch.

## Is CVE-2024-35991 being exploited?

There is no known exploitation of CVE-2024-35991 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-2024-35991 and fix it if it is affected.

What it is: CVE-2024-35991 is a medium-severity vulnerability in Linux kernel, published on 20 May 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-2024-35991 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-2024-35991/ (Markdown: https://insights.sbomify.com/CVE-2024-35991/index.md)
```

## Sources

- CVE record: https://www.cve.org/CVERecord?id=CVE-2024-35991
- NVD: https://nvd.nist.gov/vuln/detail/CVE-2024-35991
- OSV: https://osv.dev/vulnerability/CVE-2024-35991

---
From sbomify Insights: https://insights.sbomify.com/CVE-2024-35991/
Summaries are generated and may contain mistakes; the official description above is the record.