CVE-2025-22031

MEDIUM
2025-04-16 416baaa9-dc9f-4396-8d5f-8c081fb06d67
5.5
CVSS 3.1
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CVSS Vector

CVSS:3.1/AV:L/AC:L/PR:L/UI:N/S:U/C:N/I:N/A:H
Attack Vector
Local
Attack Complexity
Low
Privileges Required
Low
User Interaction
None
Scope
Unchanged
Confidentiality
None
Integrity
None
Availability
High

Lifecycle Timeline

3
Analysis Generated
Mar 28, 2026 - 18:37 vuln.today
Patch Released
Mar 28, 2026 - 18:37 nvd
Patch available
CVE Published
Apr 16, 2025 - 15:15 nvd
MEDIUM 5.5

Description

In the Linux kernel, the following vulnerability has been resolved: PCI/bwctrl: Fix NULL pointer dereference on bus number exhaustion When BIOS neglects to assign bus numbers to PCI bridges, the kernel attempts to correct that during PCI device enumeration. If it runs out of bus numbers, no pci_bus is allocated and the "subordinate" pointer in the bridge's pci_dev remains NULL. The PCIe bandwidth controller erroneously does not check for a NULL subordinate pointer and dereferences it on probe. Bandwidth control of unusable devices below the bridge is of questionable utility, so simply error out instead. This mirrors what PCIe hotplug does since commit 62e4492c3063 ("PCI: Prevent NULL dereference during pciehp probe"). The PCI core emits a message with KERN_INFO severity if it has run out of bus numbers. PCIe hotplug emits an additional message with KERN_ERR severity to inform the user that hotplug functionality is disabled at the bridge. A similar message for bandwidth control does not seem merited, given that its only purpose so far is to expose an up-to-date link speed in sysfs and throttle the link speed on certain laptops with limited Thermal Design Power. So error out silently. User-visible messages: pci 0000:16:02.0: bridge configuration invalid ([bus 00-00]), reconfiguring [...] pci_bus 0000:45: busn_res: [bus 45-74] end is updated to 74 pci 0000:16:02.0: devices behind bridge are unusable because [bus 45-74] cannot be assigned for them [...] pcieport 0000:16:02.0: pciehp: Hotplug bridge without secondary bus, ignoring [...] BUG: kernel NULL pointer dereference RIP: pcie_update_link_speed pcie_bwnotif_enable pcie_bwnotif_probe pcie_port_probe_service really_probe

Analysis

In the Linux kernel, the following vulnerability has been resolved: PCI/bwctrl: Fix NULL pointer dereference on bus number exhaustion When BIOS neglects to assign bus numbers to PCI bridges, the. Rated medium severity (CVSS 5.5), this vulnerability is low attack complexity.

Technical Context

This vulnerability is classified as NULL Pointer Dereference (CWE-476), which allows attackers to crash the application by dereferencing a null pointer. In the Linux kernel, the following vulnerability has been resolved: PCI/bwctrl: Fix NULL pointer dereference on bus number exhaustion When BIOS neglects to assign bus numbers to PCI bridges, the kernel attempts to correct that during PCI device enumeration. If it runs out of bus numbers, no pci_bus is allocated and the "subordinate" pointer in the bridge's pci_dev remains NULL. The PCIe bandwidth controller erroneously does not check for a NULL subordinate pointer and dereferences it on probe. Bandwidth control of unusable devices below the bridge is of questionable utility, so simply error out instead. This mirrors what PCIe hotplug does since commit 62e4492c3063 ("PCI: Prevent NULL dereference during pciehp probe"). The PCI core emits a message with KERN_INFO severity if it has run out of bus numbers. PCIe hotplug emits an additional message with KERN_ERR severity to inform the user that hotplug functionality is disabled at the bridge. A similar message for bandwidth control does not seem merited, given that its only purpose so far is to expose an up-to-date link speed in sysfs and throttle the link speed on certain laptops with limited Thermal Design Power. So error out silently. User-visible messages: pci 0000:16:02.0: bridge configuration invalid ([bus 00-00]), reconfiguring [...] pci_bus 0000:45: busn_res: [bus 45-74] end is updated to 74 pci 0000:16:02.0: devices behind bridge are unusable because [bus 45-74] cannot be assigned for them [...] pcieport 0000:16:02.0: pciehp: Hotplug bridge without secondary bus, ignoring [...] BUG: kernel NULL pointer dereference RIP: pcie_update_link_speed pcie_bwnotif_enable pcie_bwnotif_probe pcie_port_probe_service really_probe Affected products include: Linux Linux Kernel.

Affected Products

Linux Linux Kernel.

Remediation

A vendor patch is available. Apply the latest security update as soon as possible. Check pointers before dereferencing. Use static analysis tools to detect null pointer paths.

Priority Score

28
Low Medium High Critical
KEV: 0
EPSS: +0.1
CVSS: +28
POC: 0

Vendor Status

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CVE-2025-22031 vulnerability details – vuln.today

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