# CVE-2026-98701: wifi: mac80211: release mesh path quota on failed additions

> Attackers can exhaust mesh path quotas via failed additions, causing denial of service in Linux kernel Wi-Fi mesh networking.

- **Severity:** Not scored
- **Exploited in the wild:** Not known
- **Login needed:** Not needed
- **Attackable:** Local or same network only
- **Victim action needed:** Not needed
- **Fix available:** Yes
- **Published:** 18 Oct 2026
- **Updated:** 21 Oct 2026
- **Also known as:** AZL-109200, BELL-CVE-2026-98701, DEBIAN-CVE-2026-98701, GHSA-v4pc-pf34-4h9h, UBUNTU-CVE-2026-98701

## What is CVE-2026-98701?

CVE-2026-98701 is a denial of service vulnerability in Linux, published on 18 Oct 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:

wifi: mac80211: release mesh path quota on failed additions

Repeated failed or duplicate mesh path additions can exhaust
MESH_MAX_MPATHS while the path table holds fewer paths, which stops new
paths to reachable destinations from being created.

mesh_path_add() reserves a slot before allocating and inserting a path.
If allocation fails, the function returns without releasing the slot. If
the rhashtable insertion reports an error or an existing destination, the
function discards its candidate but retains the reservation. No new path
is installed in any of these cases.

Release the reservation whenever the candidate is not installed.

## Which versions are affected by CVE-2026-98701?


## How do I fix CVE-2026-98701?

Apply the vendor's patch.

## Is CVE-2026-98701 being exploited?

There is no known exploitation of CVE-2026-98701 in the wild and no public exploit code.

## Fix prompt for AI coding agents

```text
Check this codebase for CVE-2026-98701 and fix it if it is affected.

What it is: CVE-2026-98701 is a denial of service vulnerability in Linux, published on 18 Oct 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-2026-98701 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-2026-98701/ (Markdown: https://insights.sbomify.com/CVE-2026-98701/index.md)
```

## Sources

- CVE record: https://www.cve.org/CVERecord?id=CVE-2026-98701
- NVD: https://nvd.nist.gov/vuln/detail/CVE-2026-98701
- OSV: https://osv.dev/vulnerability/CVE-2026-98701

---
From sbomify Insights: https://insights.sbomify.com/CVE-2026-98701/
Summaries are generated and may contain mistakes; the official description above is the record.