CVE-2025-40184 KVM: arm64: Fix debug checking for np-guests using huge mappings

What is CVE-2025-40184?

CVE-2025-40184 is a denial of service vulnerability in Linux, published on 12 Nov 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:

KVM: arm64: Fix debug checking for np-guests using huge mappings

When running with transparent huge pages and CONFIG_NVHE_EL2_DEBUG then the debug checking in assert_host_shared_guest() fails on the launch of an np-guest. This WARN_ON() causes a panic and generates the stack below.

In __pkvm_host_relax_perms_guest() the debug checking assumes the mapping is a single page but it may be a block map. Update the checking so that the size is not checked and just assumes the correct size.

While we're here make the same fix in __pkvm_host_mkyoung_guest().

Info: # lkvm run -k /share/arch/arm64/boot/Image -m 704 -c 8 --name guest-128 Info: Removed ghost socket file "/.lkvm//guest-128.sock". [ 1406.521757] kvm [141]: nVHE hyp BUG at: arch/arm64/kvm/hyp/nvhe/mem_protect.c:1088! [ 1406.521804] kvm [141]: nVHE call trace: [ 1406.521828] kvm [141]: [<ffff8000811676b4>] __kvm_nvhe_hyp_panic+0xb4/0xe8 [ 1406.521946] kvm [141]: [<ffff80008116d12c>] __kvm_nvhe_assert_host_shared_guest+0xb0/0x10c [ 1406.522049] kvm [141]: [<ffff80008116f068>] __kvm_nvhe___pkvm_host_relax_perms_guest+0x48/0x104 [ 1406.522157] kvm [141]: [<ffff800081169df8>] __kvm_nvhe_handle___pkvm_host_relax_perms_guest+0x64/0x7c [ 1406.522250] kvm [141]: [<ffff800081169f0c>] __kvm_nvhe_handle_trap+0x8c/0x1a8 [ 1406.522333] kvm [141]: [<ffff8000811680fc>] __kvm_nvhe___skip_pauth_save+0x4/0x4 [ 1406.522454] kvm [141]: ---[ end nVHE call trace ]--- [ 1406.522477] kvm [141]: Hyp Offset: 0xfffece8013600000 [ 1406.522554] Kernel panic - not syncing: HYP panic: [ 1406.522554] PS:834003c9 PC:0000b1806db6d170 ESR:00000000f2000800 [ 1406.522554] FAR:ffff8000804be420 HPFAR:0000000000804be0 PAR:0000000000000000 [ 1406.522554] VCPU:0000000000000000 [ 1406.523337] CPU: 3 UID: 0 PID: 141 Comm: kvm-vcpu-0 Not tainted 6.16.0-rc7 #97 PREEMPT [ 1406.523485] Hardware name: FVP Base RevC (DT) [ 1406.523566] Call trace: [ 1406.523629] show_stack+0x18/0x24 (C) [ 1406.523753] dump_stack_lvl+0xd4/0x108 [ 1406.523899] dump_stack+0x18/0x24 [ 1406.524040] panic+0x3d8/0x448 [ 1406.524184] nvhe_hyp_panic_handler+0x10c/0x23c [ 1406.524325] kvm_handle_guest_abort+0x68c/0x109c [ 1406.524500] handle_exit+0x60/0x17c [ 1406.524630] kvm_arch_vcpu_ioctl_run+0x2e0/0x8c0 [ 1406.524794] kvm_vcpu_ioctl+0x1a8/0x9cc [ 1406.524919] __arm64_sys_ioctl+0xac/0x104 [ 1406.525067] invoke_syscall+0x48/0x10c [ 1406.525189] el0_svc_common.constprop.0+0x40/0xe0 [ 1406.525322] do_el0_svc+0x1c/0x28 [ 1406.525441] el0_svc+0x38/0x120 [ 1406.525588] el0t_64_sync_handler+0x10c/0x138 [ 1406.525750] el0t_64_sync+0x1ac/0x1b0 [ 1406.525876] SMP: stopping secondary CPUs [ 1406.525965] Kernel Offset: disabled [ 1406.526032] CPU features: 0x0000,00000080,8e134ca1,9446773f [ 1406.526130] Memory Limit: none [ 1406.959099] ---[ end Kernel panic - not syncing: HYP panic: [ 1406.959099] PS:834003c9 PC:0000b1806db6d170 ESR:00000000f2000800 [ 1406.959099] FAR:ffff8000804be420 HPFAR:0000000000804be0 PAR:0000000000000000 [ 1406.959099] VCPU:0000000000000000 ]

Which versions are affected by CVE-2025-40184?

How do I fix CVE-2025-40184?

Apply the vendor's patch.

Upgrade, then put limits on request size, rate and nesting depth so one client cannot exhaust the service. More about Denial of service.

Is CVE-2025-40184 being exploited?

There is no known exploitation of CVE-2025-40184 in the wild and no public exploit code.

Sources

• CVE record
• NVD
• OSV
• GitHub advisory
• How this page is made

Also known as BELL-CVE-2025-40184, DEBIAN-CVE-2025-40184, GHSA-6j2m-mmvm-r4jh, UBUNTU-CVE-2025-40184.