CVE-2026-46115: linux kernel vulnerability

What is known

In the Linux kernel, the following vulnerability has been resolved: block: add pgmap check to biovec_phys_mergeable biovec_phys_mergeable() is used by the request merge, DMA mapping, and integrity merge paths to decide if two physically contiguous bvec segments can be coalesced into one. It currently has no check for whether the segments belong to different dev_pagemaps. When zone device memory is registered in multiple chunks, each chunk gets its own dev_pagemap. A single bio can legitimately contain bvecs from different pgmaps -- iov_iter_extract_bvecs() breaks at pgmap boundaries but the outer loop in bio_iov_iter_get_pages() continues filling the same bio. If such bvecs are physically contiguous, biovec_phys_mergeable() will coalesce them, making it impossible to recover the correct pgmap for the merged segment via page_pgmap(). Add a zone_device_pages_have_same_pgmap() check to prevent merging bvec segments that span different pgmaps.

Business impact

Successful exploitation of CVE-2026-46115, a critical vulnerability (CVSS 9.8) affecting linux kernel, may affect the confidentiality, integrity or availability of the vulnerable environment. The exact impact depends on the installed version, exposed interfaces and deployment configuration.

Recommended administrator action

Confirm whether linux kernel is present and compare installed versions with the vendor advisory and NVD record. Apply the vendor patch or documented mitigation; until remediation is complete, reduce exposure of affected interfaces, review relevant logs and monitor for indicators of exploitation. DataHouse can support version verification, managed patching, network exposure reduction, log review and backup validation for dedicated, cloud and colocated environments.

Sources

• NVD
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