CVE-2026-99019 - In the Linux kernel, the following vulnerability has been resolved: scsi: ch: Do not keep references to data transfer e
In the Linux kernel, the following vulnerability has been resolved:
scsi: ch: Do not keep references to data transfer element devices
ch_readconfig() looks up the scsi_device of every data transfer element
whose SCSI id the changer reports in READ ELEMENT STATUS, and stores it in
ch->dt[]. scsi_device_lookup() takes a reference, and nothing ever drops
it: ch_destroy() frees the array with kfree(). ch->dt[] is read nowhere
else - it only supplies the vendor, model and revision printed in the same
loop.
Once such a drive is removed, its scsi_device can never be released. It
stays on the host's device list at its address, so a new device there is
refused by anything that walks the list - target_core_pscsi reports
"scsi_device_get() failed for H:C:T:L" - and the low-level driver's module
can no longer be unloaded. Only a reboot recovers.
It shows with any changer that reports its drives' ids; with the mhvtl
virtual library (IBM 3573-TL personality), each create and remove of a
library with four drives leaves four references behind, counted by the
module's use count in lsmod. With ch not bound the count is unchanged, and
with this patch applied it is unchanged too.
Drop the reference as soon as the name has been printed, and remove the now
unused dt[] array. That also removes the array leaked when ch_probe() fails
after ch_readconfig().
The same leak was reported with an RFC patch in 2022, which was not merged.
INFORMATIONAL
Severity & confidence
Source severityinformational
Platform severityinformational
Confidencehigh
Exploitationunknown
CVSS-
Affected
Vendorslinux
Reporting sources (1)
NIST NVD - National Vulnerability Database
Timeline & provenance
Published2026-10-23T13:17:24
Last updated2026-10-26T13:03:58
Ingested2026-10-25T17:18:51
FreshnessNEAR-REAL-TIME
Threat typevulnerability
Recommended action
No recommended action published with this item - review the original source.
Next steps
- Identify affected systems in your environment.
- Apply the vendor patch or mitigation guidance.
- Review logs for indicators described in the advisory.
- Follow the affected vendor/product to track updates.
Confidence explanation
Reported by a government or cert-grade source (CISA, NCSC, NVD, ENISA, MSRC).
Source type: standards ยท Original: NIST NVD - National Vulnerability Database