CVE-2026-43445
Description
In the Linux kernel, the following vulnerability has been resolved:
e1000/e1000e: Fix leak in DMA error cleanup
If an error is encountered while mapping TX buffers, the driver should unmap any buffers already mapped for that skb.
Because count is incremented after a successful mapping, it will always match the correct number of unmappings needed when dma_error is reached. Decrementing count before the while loop in dma_error causes an off-by-one error. If any mapping was successful before an unsuccessful mapping, exactly one DMA mapping would leak.
In these commits, a faulty while condition caused an infinite loop in dma_error: Commit 03b1320dfcee ("e1000e: remove use of skb_dma_map from e1000e driver") Commit 602c0554d7b0 ("e1000: remove use of skb_dma_map from e1000 driver")
Commit c1fa347f20f1 ("e1000/e1000e/igb/igbvf/ixgb/ixgbe: Fix tests of unsigned in *_tx_map()") fixed the infinite loop, but introduced the off-by-one error.
This issue may still exist in the igbvf driver, but I did not address it in this patch.
AI Insight
LLM-synthesized narrative grounded in this CVE's description and references.
Off-by-one error in e1000/e1000e DMA error cleanup causes a single DMA mapping leak per TX buffer mapping failure.
In the Linux kernel's e1000 and e1000e network drivers, a DMA error cleanup path contains an off-by-one error. When mapping TX buffers, the driver increments a counter after each successful mapping. If a mapping fails, the cleanup loop decrements the counter before unmapping, causing one less unmapping than needed, leaving one DMA mapping leaked.
An attacker with the ability to trigger DMA mapping failures (e.g., by exhausting DMA memory or via malicious network packets) could cause the driver to leak DMA mappings. This requires local access or ability to send crafted packets to the network interface. The vulnerability is in the TX path, so any process sending network data could potentially trigger it.
Each occurrence leaks a single DMA mapping. Repeated exploitation could exhaust DMA memory, leading to denial of service (system hang or crash). No privilege escalation or data leak is indicated.
The fix is included in the Linux kernel stable commit [1]. Users should update to a kernel containing this patch. The issue may also exist in the igbvf driver but is not addressed in this patch.
AI Insight generated on May 18, 2026. Synthesized from this CVE's description and the cited reference URLs; citations are validated against the source bundle.
Affected products
1Patches
0No patches discovered yet.
Vulnerability mechanics
AI mechanics synthesis has not run for this CVE yet.
References
8- git.kernel.org/stable/c/0606c24a745bafd1be5d66c48361638cd9cad74bnvd
- git.kernel.org/stable/c/0a1fc25deabab4efce64610e3c449485c4fa8f5fnvd
- git.kernel.org/stable/c/10b5e65959e955a1c8894e0a5413944b5a70204anvd
- git.kernel.org/stable/c/30e87ade8d678c25a8546cf38c0b498fa5cb27d3nvd
- git.kernel.org/stable/c/519051c711dfd239ef6e4b28878efee400a035f9nvd
- git.kernel.org/stable/c/7eaeb778bfaa3b2a804f89321c234d59c74569dbnvd
- git.kernel.org/stable/c/e94eaef11142b01f77bf8ba4d0b59720b7858109nvd
- git.kernel.org/stable/c/fa5ba9867a55e640df0dc79bf0199770fb043f03nvd
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