# CVE-2024-56674: virtio_net: correct netdev_tx_reset_queue() invocation point

> A logic error in the virtio_net driver causes a kernel crash when network interfaces are rapidly toggled, leading to 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:** 27 Dec 2024
- **Updated:** 11 May 2026
- **Also known as:** BELL-CVE-2024-56674, DEBIAN-CVE-2024-56674, GHSA-4vc6-7qhx-wxq5, ROOT-OS-UBUNTU-2204-CVE-2024-56674, ROOT-OS-UBUNTU-2404-CVE-2024-56674, UBUNTU-CVE-2024-56674

## What is CVE-2024-56674?

CVE-2024-56674 is a medium-severity vulnerability in Linux kernel, published on 27 Dec 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:

virtio_net: correct netdev_tx_reset_queue() invocation point

When virtnet_close is followed by virtnet_open, some TX completions can
possibly remain unconsumed, until they are finally processed during the
first NAPI poll after the netdev_tx_reset_queue(), resulting in a crash
[1]. Commit b96ed2c97c79 ("virtio_net: move netdev_tx_reset_queue() call
before RX napi enable") was not sufficient to eliminate all BQL crash
cases for virtio-net.

This issue can be reproduced with the latest net-next master by running:
`while :; do ip l set DEV down; ip l set DEV up; done` under heavy network
TX load from inside the machine.

netdev_tx_reset_queue() can actually be dropped from virtnet_open path;
the device is not stopped in any case. For BQL core part, it's just like
traffic nearly ceases to exist for some period. For stall detector added
to BQL, even if virtnet_close could somehow lead to some TX completions
delayed for long, followed by virtnet_open, we can just take it as stall
as mentioned in commit 6025b9135f7a ("net: dqs: add NIC stall detector
based on BQL"). Note also that users can still reset stall_max via sysfs.

So, drop netdev_tx_reset_queue() from virtnet_enable_queue_pair(). This
eliminates the BQL crashes. As a result, netdev_tx_reset_queue() is now
explicitly required in freeze/restore path. This patch adds it to
immediately after free_unused_bufs(), following the rule of thumb:
netdev_tx_reset_queue() should follow any SKB freeing not followed by
netdev_tx_completed_queue(). This seems the most consistent and
streamlined approach, and now netdev_tx_reset_queue() runs whenever
free_unused_bufs() is done.

[1]:
------------[ cut here ]------------
kernel BUG at lib/dynamic_queue_limits.c:99!
Oops: invalid opcode: 0000 [#1] PREEMPT SMP NOPTI
CPU: 7 UID: 0 PID: 1598 Comm: ip Tainted: G    N 6.12.0net-next_main+ #2
Tainted: [N]=TEST
Hardware name: QEMU Standard PC (Q35 + ICH9, 2009), \
BIOS rel-1.16.3-0-ga6ed6b701f0a-prebuilt.qemu.org 04/01/2014
RIP: 0010:dql_completed+0x26b/0x290
Code: b7 c2 49 89 e9 44 89 da 89 c6 4c 89 d7 e8 ed 17 47 00 58 65 ff 0d
4d 27 90 7e 0f 85 fd fe ff ff e8 ea 53 8d ff e9 f3 fe ff ff <0f> 0b 01
d2 44 89 d1 29 d1 ba 00 00 00 00 0f 48 ca e9 28 ff ff ff
RSP: 0018:ffffc900002b0d08 EFLAGS: 00010297
RAX: 0000000000000000 RBX: ffff888102398c80 RCX: 0000000080190009
RDX: 0000000000000000 RSI: 000000000000006a RDI: 0000000000000000
RBP: ffff888102398c00 R08: 0000000000000000 R09: 0000000000000000
R10: 00000000000000ca R11: 0000000000015681 R12: 0000000000000001
R13: ffffc900002b0d68 R14: ffff88811115e000 R15: ffff8881107aca40
FS:  00007f41ded69500(0000) GS:ffff888667dc0000(0000)
knlGS:0000000000000000
CS:  0010 DS: 0000 ES: 0000 CR0: 0000000080050033
CR2: 0000556ccc2dc1a0 CR3: 0000000104fd8003 CR4: 0000000000772ef0
PKRU: 55555554
Call Trace:
 <IRQ>
 ? die+0x32/0x80
 ? do_trap+0xd9/0x100
 ? dql_completed+0x26b/0x290
 ? dql_completed+0x26b/0x290
 ? do_error_trap+0x6d/0xb0
 ? dql_completed+0x26b/0x290
 ? exc_invalid_op+0x4c/0x60
 ? dql_completed+0x26b/0x290
 ? asm_exc_invalid_op+0x16/0x20
 ? dql_completed+0x26b/0x290
 __free_old_xmit+0xff/0x170 [virtio_net]
 free_old_xmit+0x54/0xc0 [virtio_net]
 virtnet_poll+0xf4/0xe30 [virtio_net]
 ? __update_load_avg_cfs_rq+0x264/0x2d0
 ? update_curr+0x35/0x260
 ? reweight_entity+0x1be/0x260
 __napi_poll.constprop.0+0x28/0x1c0
 net_rx_action+0x329/0x420
 ? enqueue_hrtimer+0x35/0x90
 ? trace_hardirqs_on+0x1d/0x80
 ? kvm_sched_clock_read+0xd/0x20
 ? sched_clock+0xc/0x30
 ? kvm_sched_clock_read+0xd/0x20
 ? sched_clock+0xc/0x30
 ? sched_clock_cpu+0xd/0x1a0
 handle_softirqs+0x138/0x3e0
 do_softirq.part.0+0x89/0xc0
 </IRQ>
 <TASK>
 __local_bh_enable_ip+0xa7/0xb0
 virtnet_open+0xc8/0x310 [virtio_net]
 __dev_open+0xfa/0x1b0
 __dev_change_flags+0x1de/0x250
 dev_change_flags+0x22/0x60
 do_setlink.isra.0+0x2df/0x10b0
 ? rtnetlink_rcv_msg+0x34f/0x3f0
 ? netlink_rcv_skb+0x54/0x100
 ? netlink_unicas
---truncated---

Weakness: CWE-672 (Operation on a Resource after Expiration or Release)

## Which versions are affected by CVE-2024-56674?

It affects 1 product.


Products: Linux kernel.

## How do I fix CVE-2024-56674?

Apply the vendor's patch.

## Is CVE-2024-56674 being exploited?

There is no known exploitation of CVE-2024-56674 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-2024-56674 and fix it if it is affected.

What it is: CVE-2024-56674 is a medium-severity vulnerability in Linux kernel, published on 27 Dec 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-2024-56674 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-2024-56674/ (Markdown: https://insights.sbomify.com/CVE-2024-56674/index.md)
```

## Sources

- CVE record: https://www.cve.org/CVERecord?id=CVE-2024-56674
- NVD: https://nvd.nist.gov/vuln/detail/CVE-2024-56674
- OSV: https://osv.dev/vulnerability/CVE-2024-56674

---
From sbomify Insights: https://insights.sbomify.com/CVE-2024-56674/
Summaries are generated and may contain mistakes; the official description above is the record.