# CVE-2026-98014: net/mlx5: E-Switch, prevent mc_list repopulation during vport disable

> A use-after-free vulnerability in the Linux kernel mlx5 driver allows local attackers to cause a system crash or potentially execute code during vport disable operations.

- **Severity:** Not scored
- **Exploited in the wild:** Not known
- **Login needed:** An administrator
- **Attackable:** Local or same network only
- **Victim action needed:** Not needed
- **Fix available:** Yes
- **Published:** 25 Sep 2026
- **Updated:** 19 Oct 2026
- **Also known as:** AZL-104759, BELL-CVE-2026-98014, DEBIAN-CVE-2026-98014, GHSA-hjxx-jpr5-hfgw, UBUNTU-CVE-2026-98014

## What is CVE-2026-98014?

CVE-2026-98014 is an use after free vulnerability in Linux, published on 25 Sep 2026. 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:

net/mlx5: E-Switch, prevent mc_list repopulation during vport disable

In mlx5_esw_vport_disable(), move esw_apply_vport_rx_mode() ahead
of esw_vport_change_handle_locked() so vport->allmulti_rule is
NULL before the change handler observes it.

During FW-fatal recovery the disable runs while dev->state ==
INTERNAL_ERROR. The promisc query inside esw_update_vport_rx_mode()
fails and returns early, leaving vport->allmulti_rule intact, so
esw_update_vport_mc_promisc() runs and adds MLX5_ACTION_ADD entries
to vport->mc_list whose flow rules are then installed in the FDB
by esw_add_mc_addr(). esw_destroy_legacy_table() tears down the
FDB with those refs still held, corrupting the sub-tree and
leaving dangling flow_rule pointers in vport->mc_list.

Two-stage failure on `echo 1 > /sys/bus/pci/devices/<bdf>/reset`:

  refcount_t: underflow; use-after-free.
   tree_put_node+0xef/0x110 [mlx5_core]
   clean_tree+0x44/0xd0 [mlx5_core] (x5)
   mlx5_fs_core_cleanup+0x57/0x1c0 [mlx5_core]
   mlx5_unload+0x65/0xd0 [mlx5_core]
   ... mlx5_health_try_recover

  BUG: unable to handle page fault for address: 0000000003000055
   down_write+0x1c/0x60
   mlx5_del_flow_rules+0x33/0x1f0 [mlx5_core]
   esw_del_mc_addr+0x7b/0x170 [mlx5_core]
   esw_apply_vport_addr_list+0x56/0xf0 [mlx5_core]
   esw_vport_change_handle_locked+0x28b/0x310 [mlx5_core]
   mlx5_esw_vport_enable+0x270/0x4a0 [mlx5_core]
   ... mlx5_load ... mlx5_health_try_recover

esw_apply_vport_rx_mode(false, false) clears vport->allmulti_rule
via its local state machine even when the FW del fails. With the
rule NULL the !IS_ERR_OR_NULL(allmulti_rule) gate in the change
handler closes, no rules are installed during disable, and the
reload starts with a clean mc_list.

## Which versions are affected by CVE-2026-98014?


## How do I fix CVE-2026-98014?

Apply the vendor's patch.

## Is CVE-2026-98014 being exploited?

There is no known exploitation of CVE-2026-98014 in the wild and no public exploit code.

## Fix prompt for AI coding agents

```text
Check this codebase for CVE-2026-98014 and fix it if it is affected.

What it is: CVE-2026-98014 is an use after free vulnerability in Linux, published on 25 Sep 2026. 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-2026-98014 in the wild and no public exploit code.

Affected product: Linux. 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-2026-98014/ (Markdown: https://insights.sbomify.com/CVE-2026-98014/index.md)
```

## Sources

- CVE record: https://www.cve.org/CVERecord?id=CVE-2026-98014
- NVD: https://nvd.nist.gov/vuln/detail/CVE-2026-98014
- OSV: https://osv.dev/vulnerability/CVE-2026-98014

---
From sbomify Insights: https://insights.sbomify.com/CVE-2026-98014/
Summaries are generated and may contain mistakes; the official description above is the record.