CVE-2026-98811

In the Linux kernel, the following vulnerability has been resolved:

net/sched: cls_api: reclaim an empty proto on the error path

Two racing tc filter add requests on the same chain/prio of an unlocked classifier both run change() on the shared proto and both can fail: the winners tcf_chain_tp_delete_empty() attempt gives up because the losers handle is still in the idr, and the losers error path drops only its own reference without a second reclamation attempt. The empty proto stays linked in the chain, holding the chain reference, a block reference and the classifier module reference until the chain or block is torn down.

Reclaim the proto on the error path of any failed request that holds a proto reference. The reclamation is emptiness-gated: tcf_chain_tp_delete_empty() unlinks the proto only when delete_empty() admits it is empty, so a live shared proto is never unlinked. A proto the request created is reclaimed unconditionally - it is the only owner, so marking it for deletion is safe even without a delete_empty callback. Classifiers without one (the check marks the proto unconditionally) are rtnl-serialized, so the raced window this guard closes cannot arise for them.

This is a follow-up to commit d4e359b3608a (net/sched: cls_api: fix teardown of an adopted proto on insert-race loss), which stopped the loser of the insert race from unlinking the winners live proto but left the empty-proto residual in place.

Conditions to recreate:

• CONFIG_NET_CLS_FLOWER=y; veth pair
• tc qdisc add dev veth0 ingress
• two concurrent tc filter add dev veth0 ingress protocol ip pref 1 flower skip_sw ... action drop (both fail in fl_hw_replace_filter after publishing their handle in the idr); repeat in a loop
• an empty flower tp stays linked after both requests fail; visible as a bare filter protocol ip pref 1 flower chain 0 header in tc filter show with no filter entries
• CAP_NET_ADMIN (namespace-local via unshare -Urn suffices)

Affected Software

References

• https://git.kernel.org/stable/c/00ad96ee96760d2f12f8c4b3a43f6c6b742c452f
• https://git.kernel.org/stable/c/0bb8eab29b55045281a4963d4557f2776cdf8cfa
• https://git.kernel.org/stable/c/0f005c9b8b2e4c018e598cbaf490f27bebfd3d1f
• https://git.kernel.org/stable/c/0fc74e7d97d232095ce64cb45d25f0919df7ad4a
• https://git.kernel.org/stable/c/315e4fe65cf02ef052de5e6298c3088e448b7517
• https://git.kernel.org/stable/c/570141625d212fbbcffb9665cb45c0f04610e61a
• https://git.kernel.org/stable/c/ebc9611ab154c0cd9f1320e2a73f5e936d7535a9