0.0
NA
CVE-2021-46978
KVM VMware Nested VM Exit Guest OS Map RCE
Description

In the Linux kernel, the following vulnerability has been resolved: KVM: nVMX: Always make an attempt to map eVMCS after migration When enlightened VMCS is in use and nested state is migrated with vmx_get_nested_state()/vmx_set_nested_state() KVM can't map evmcs page right away: evmcs gpa is not 'struct kvm_vmx_nested_state_hdr' and we can't read it from VP assist page because userspace may decide to restore HV_X64_MSR_VP_ASSIST_PAGE after restoring nested state (and QEMU, for example, does exactly that). To make sure eVMCS is mapped /vmx_set_nested_state() raises KVM_REQ_GET_NESTED_STATE_PAGES request. Commit f2c7ef3ba955 ("KVM: nSVM: cancel KVM_REQ_GET_NESTED_STATE_PAGES on nested vmexit") added KVM_REQ_GET_NESTED_STATE_PAGES clearing to nested_vmx_vmexit() to make sure MSR permission bitmap is not switched when an immediate exit from L2 to L1 happens right after migration (caused by a pending event, for example). Unfortunately, in the exact same situation we still need to have eVMCS mapped so nested_sync_vmcs12_to_shadow() reflects changes in VMCS12 to eVMCS. As a band-aid, restore nested_get_evmcs_page() when clearing KVM_REQ_GET_NESTED_STATE_PAGES in nested_vmx_vmexit(). The 'fix' is far from being ideal as we can't easily propagate possible failures and even if we could, this is most likely already too late to do so. The whole 'KVM_REQ_GET_NESTED_STATE_PAGES' idea for mapping eVMCS after migration seems to be fragile as we diverge too much from the 'native' path when vmptr loading happens on vmx_set_nested_state().

INFO

Published Date :

Feb. 28, 2024, 9:15 a.m.

Last Modified :

Feb. 28, 2024, 2:06 p.m.

Source :

416baaa9-dc9f-4396-8d5f-8c081fb06d67

Remotely Exploitable :

No

Impact Score :

Exploitability Score :

Affected Products

The following products are affected by CVE-2021-46978 vulnerability. Even if cvefeed.io is aware of the exact versions of the products that are affected, the information is not represented in the table below.

ID Vendor Product Action
1 Linux linux_kernel
References to Advisories, Solutions, and Tools

We scan GitHub repositories to detect new proof-of-concept exploits. Following list is a collection of public exploits and proof-of-concepts, which have been published on GitHub (sorted by the most recently updated).

Results are limited to the first 15 repositories due to potential performance issues.

The following list is the news that have been mention CVE-2021-46978 vulnerability anywhere in the article.

The following table lists the changes that have been made to the CVE-2021-46978 vulnerability over time.

Vulnerability history details can be useful for understanding the evolution of a vulnerability, and for identifying the most recent changes that may impact the vulnerability's severity, exploitability, or other characteristics.

  • CVE Modified by 416baaa9-dc9f-4396-8d5f-8c081fb06d67

    May. 28, 2024

    Action Type Old Value New Value
  • CVE Modified by 416baaa9-dc9f-4396-8d5f-8c081fb06d67

    May. 14, 2024

    Action Type Old Value New Value
  • CVE Received by 416baaa9-dc9f-4396-8d5f-8c081fb06d67

    Feb. 28, 2024

    Action Type Old Value New Value
    Added Description In the Linux kernel, the following vulnerability has been resolved: KVM: nVMX: Always make an attempt to map eVMCS after migration When enlightened VMCS is in use and nested state is migrated with vmx_get_nested_state()/vmx_set_nested_state() KVM can't map evmcs page right away: evmcs gpa is not 'struct kvm_vmx_nested_state_hdr' and we can't read it from VP assist page because userspace may decide to restore HV_X64_MSR_VP_ASSIST_PAGE after restoring nested state (and QEMU, for example, does exactly that). To make sure eVMCS is mapped /vmx_set_nested_state() raises KVM_REQ_GET_NESTED_STATE_PAGES request. Commit f2c7ef3ba955 ("KVM: nSVM: cancel KVM_REQ_GET_NESTED_STATE_PAGES on nested vmexit") added KVM_REQ_GET_NESTED_STATE_PAGES clearing to nested_vmx_vmexit() to make sure MSR permission bitmap is not switched when an immediate exit from L2 to L1 happens right after migration (caused by a pending event, for example). Unfortunately, in the exact same situation we still need to have eVMCS mapped so nested_sync_vmcs12_to_shadow() reflects changes in VMCS12 to eVMCS. As a band-aid, restore nested_get_evmcs_page() when clearing KVM_REQ_GET_NESTED_STATE_PAGES in nested_vmx_vmexit(). The 'fix' is far from being ideal as we can't easily propagate possible failures and even if we could, this is most likely already too late to do so. The whole 'KVM_REQ_GET_NESTED_STATE_PAGES' idea for mapping eVMCS after migration seems to be fragile as we diverge too much from the 'native' path when vmptr loading happens on vmx_set_nested_state().
    Added Reference Linux https://git.kernel.org/stable/c/c8bf64e3fb77cc19bad146fbe26651985b117194 [No types assigned]
    Added Reference Linux https://git.kernel.org/stable/c/200a45649ab7361bc80c70aebf7165b64f9a6c9f [No types assigned]
    Added Reference Linux https://git.kernel.org/stable/c/bd0e8455b85b651a4c77de9616e307129b15aaa7 [No types assigned]
    Added Reference Linux https://git.kernel.org/stable/c/f5c7e8425f18fdb9bdb7d13340651d7876890329 [No types assigned]
EPSS is a daily estimate of the probability of exploitation activity being observed over the next 30 days. Following chart shows the EPSS score history of the vulnerability.
CWE - Common Weakness Enumeration

While CVE identifies specific instances of vulnerabilities, CWE categorizes the common flaws or weaknesses that can lead to vulnerabilities. CVE-2021-46978 is associated with the following CWEs:

Common Attack Pattern Enumeration and Classification (CAPEC)

Common Attack Pattern Enumeration and Classification (CAPEC) stores attack patterns, which are descriptions of the common attributes and approaches employed by adversaries to exploit the CVE-2021-46978 weaknesses.

NONE - Vulnerability Scoring System