Updated kernel packages that fix several security issues and bugs in the Red Hat Enterprise Linux 4 kernel are now available.

This security advisory has been rated as having important security impact by the Red Hat Security Response Team.

The Linux kernel handles the basic functions of the operating system.

These new kernel packages contain fixes for the security issues described below :

* a flaw in the connection tracking support for SCTP that allowed a remote user to cause a denial of service by dereferencing a NULL pointer. (CVE-2007-2876, Important)

* a flaw in the mount handling routine for 64-bit systems that allowed a local user to cause denial of service (crash). (CVE-2006-7203, Important)

* a flaw in the IPv4 forwarding base that allowed a local user to cause an out-of-bounds access. (CVE-2007-2172, Important)

* a flaw in the PPP over Ethernet implementation that allowed a local user to cause a denial of service (memory consumption) by creating a socket using connect and then releasing it before the PPPIOCGCHAN ioctl has been called. (CVE-2007-2525, Important)

* a flaw in the fput ioctl handling of 32-bit applications running on 64-bit platforms that allowed a local user to cause a denial of service (panic). (CVE-2007-0773, Important)

* a flaw in the NFS locking daemon that allowed a local user to cause denial of service (deadlock). (CVE-2006-5158, Moderate)

* a flaw in the sysfs_readdir function that allowed a local user to cause a denial of service by dereferencing a NULL pointer.
(CVE-2007-3104, Moderate)

* a flaw in the core-dump handling that allowed a local user to create core dumps from unreadable binaries via PT_INTERP. (CVE-2007-0958, Low)

* a flaw in the Bluetooth subsystem that allowed a local user to trigger an information leak. (CVE-2007-1353, Low)

In addition, the following bugs were addressed :

* the NFS could recurse on the same spinlock. Also, NFS, under certain conditions, did not completely clean up Posix locks on a file close, leading to mount failures.

* the 32bit compatibility didn't return to userspace correct values for the rt_sigtimedwait system call.

* the count for unused inodes could be incorrect at times, resulting in dirty data not being written to disk in a timely manner.

* the cciss driver had an incorrect disk size calculation (off-by-one error) which prevented disk dumps.

Red Hat would like to thank Ilja van Sprundel and the OpenVZ Linux kernel team for reporting issues fixed in this erratum.

All Red Hat Enterprise Linux 4 users are advised to upgrade their kernels to the packages associated with their machine architectures and configurations as listed in this erratum.

Some vulnerabilities were discovered and corrected in the Linux 2.6 kernel :

The __block_prepate_write function in the 2.6 kernel before 2.6.13 does not properly clear buffers during certain error conditions, which allows users to read portions of files that have been unlinked (CVE-2006-4813).

The clip_mkip function of the ATM subsystem in the 2.6 kernel allows remote attackers to dause a DoS (panic) via unknown vectors that cause the ATM subsystem to access the memory of socket buffers after they are freed (CVE-2006-4997).

The NFS lockd in the 2.6 kernel before 2.6.16 allows remote attackers to cause a DoS (process crash) and deny access to NFS exports via unspecified vectors that trigger a kernel oops and a deadlock (CVE-2006-5158).

The seqfile handling in the 2.6 kernel up to 2.6.18 allows local users to cause a DoS (hang or oops) via unspecified manipulations that trigger an infinite loop while searching for flowlabels (CVE-2006-5619).

A missing call to init_timer() in the isdn_ppp code of the Linux kernel can allow remote attackers to send a special kind of PPP pakcet which may trigger a kernel oops (CVE-2006-5749).

An integer overflow in the 2.6 kernel prior to 2.6.18.4 could allow a local user to execute arbitrary code via a large maxnum value in an ioctl request (CVE-2006-5751).

A race condition in the ISO9660 filesystem handling could allow a local user to cause a DoS (infinite loop) by mounting a crafted ISO9660 filesystem containing malformed data structures (CVE-2006-5757).

A vulnerability in the bluetooth support could allow for overwriting internal CMTP and CAPI data structures via malformed packets (CVE-2006-6106).

The provided packages are patched to fix these vulnerabilities. All users are encouraged to upgrade to these updated kernels immediately and reboot to effect the fixes.

In addition to these security fixes, other fixes have been included such as :

  - __bread oops fix

  - added e1000_ng (nineveh support)

  - added sata_svw (Broadcom SATA support)

  - added Marvell PATA chipset support

  - disabled mmconf on some broken hardware/BIOSes

  - use GENERICARCH and enable bigsmp apic model for tulsa     machines

To update your kernel, please follow the directions located at :

http://www.mandriva.com/en/security/kernelupdate

These new kernel packages contain fixes for the security issues described below :

  - a flaw in the connection tracking support for SCTP that     allowed a remote user to cause a denial of service by     dereferencing a NULL pointer. (CVE-2007-2876, Important)

  - a flaw in the mount handling routine for 64-bit systems     that allowed a local user to cause denial of service     (crash). (CVE-2006-7203, Important)

  - a flaw in the IPv4 forwarding base that allowed a local     user to cause an out-of-bounds access. (CVE-2007-2172,     Important)

  - a flaw in the PPP over Ethernet implementation that     allowed a local user to cause a denial of service     (memory consumption) by creating a socket using connect     and then releasing it before the PPPIOCGCHAN ioctl has     been called. (CVE-2007-2525, Important)

  - a flaw in the fput ioctl handling of 32-bit applications     running on 64-bit platforms that allowed a local user to     cause a denial of service (panic). (CVE-2007-0773,     Important)

  - a flaw in the NFS locking daemon that allowed a local     user to cause denial of service (deadlock).
    (CVE-2006-5158, Moderate)

  - a flaw in the sysfs_readdir function that allowed a     local user to cause a denial of service by dereferencing     a NULL pointer. (CVE-2007-3104, Moderate)

  - a flaw in the core-dump handling that allowed a local     user to create core dumps from unreadable binaries via     PT_INTERP. (CVE-2007-0958, Low)

  - a flaw in the Bluetooth subsystem that allowed a local     user to trigger an information leak. (CVE-2007-1353,     Low)

In addition, the following bugs were addressed :

  - the NFS could recurse on the same spinlock. Also, NFS,     under certain conditions, did not completely clean up     Posix locks on a file close, leading to mount failures.

  - the 32bit compatibility didn't return to userspace     correct values for the rt_sigtimedwait system call.

  - the count for unused inodes could be incorrect at times,     resulting in dirty data not being written to disk in a     timely manner.

  - the cciss driver had an incorrect disk size calculation     (off-by-one error) which prevented disk dumps.

NOTE1: From The Upstream Vendors release notes 'During PCI probing, Red Hat Enterprise Linux 4 Update 5 attempts to use information obtained from MCFG (memory-mapped PCI configuration space). On AMD-systems, this type of access does not work on some buses, as the kernel cannot parse the MCFG table.

To work around this, add the parameter pci=conf1 or pci=nommconf on the kernel boot line in /etc/grub.conf. For example :

title Red Hat Enterprise Linux AS (2.6.9-42.0.2.EL) root (hd0,0) kernel /vmlinuz-2.6.9-42.0.2.EL ro root=/dev/VolGroup00/LogVol00 rhgb quiet pci=conf1 initrd /initrd-2.6.9-42.0.2.EL.img

Doing this instructs the kernel to use PCI Conf1 access instead of MCFG-based access.'

NOTE2: From The Upstream Vendors Knowledge Base 'Why did the ordering of my NIC devices change in Red Hat Enterprise Linux 4.5?

The 2.6.9-55 version of the Red Hat Enterprise Linux 4 kernel (Update 5) reverts to the 2.4 ordering of network interface cards (NICs) on certain systems. Note that if the 'HWADDR=MAC ADDRESS' line is present in the /etc/sysconfig/network-scripts/ifcfg-ethX files, the NIC ordering will not change.

To restore the original 2.6 ordering, which is different from the 2.4 ordering, boot with the option pci=nobfsort '

From Red Hat Security Advisory 2007:0488 :

Updated kernel packages that fix several security issues and bugs in the Red Hat Enterprise Linux 4 kernel are now available.

This security advisory has been rated as having important security impact by the Red Hat Security Response Team.

The Linux kernel handles the basic functions of the operating system.

These new kernel packages contain fixes for the security issues described below :

* a flaw in the connection tracking support for SCTP that allowed a remote user to cause a denial of service by dereferencing a NULL pointer. (CVE-2007-2876, Important)

* a flaw in the mount handling routine for 64-bit systems that allowed a local user to cause denial of service (crash). (CVE-2006-7203, Important)

* a flaw in the IPv4 forwarding base that allowed a local user to cause an out-of-bounds access. (CVE-2007-2172, Important)

* a flaw in the PPP over Ethernet implementation that allowed a local user to cause a denial of service (memory consumption) by creating a socket using connect and then releasing it before the PPPIOCGCHAN ioctl has been called. (CVE-2007-2525, Important)

* a flaw in the fput ioctl handling of 32-bit applications running on 64-bit platforms that allowed a local user to cause a denial of service (panic). (CVE-2007-0773, Important)

* a flaw in the NFS locking daemon that allowed a local user to cause denial of service (deadlock). (CVE-2006-5158, Moderate)

* a flaw in the sysfs_readdir function that allowed a local user to cause a denial of service by dereferencing a NULL pointer.
(CVE-2007-3104, Moderate)

* a flaw in the core-dump handling that allowed a local user to create core dumps from unreadable binaries via PT_INTERP. (CVE-2007-0958, Low)

* a flaw in the Bluetooth subsystem that allowed a local user to trigger an information leak. (CVE-2007-1353, Low)

In addition, the following bugs were addressed :

* the NFS could recurse on the same spinlock. Also, NFS, under certain conditions, did not completely clean up Posix locks on a file close, leading to mount failures.

* the 32bit compatibility didn't return to userspace correct values for the rt_sigtimedwait system call.

* the count for unused inodes could be incorrect at times, resulting in dirty data not being written to disk in a timely manner.

* the cciss driver had an incorrect disk size calculation (off-by-one error) which prevented disk dumps.

Red Hat would like to thank Ilja van Sprundel and the OpenVZ Linux kernel team for reporting issues fixed in this erratum.

All Red Hat Enterprise Linux 4 users are advised to upgrade their kernels to the packages associated with their machine architectures and configurations as listed in this erratum.

Mark Dowd discovered that the netfilter iptables module did not correcly handle fragmented packets. By sending specially crafted packets, a remote attacker could exploit this to bypass firewall rules. This has only be fixed for Ubuntu 6.10; the corresponding fix for Ubuntu 5.10 and 6.06 will follow soon. (CVE-2006-4572)

Dmitriy Monakhov discovered an information leak in the
__block_prepare_write() function. During error recovery, this function did not properly clear memory buffers which could allow local users to read portions of unlinked files. This only affects Ubuntu 5.10.
(CVE-2006-4813)

ADLab Venustech Info Ltd discovered that the ATM network driver referenced an already released pointer in some circumstances. By sending specially crafted packets to a host over ATM, a remote attacker could exploit this to crash that host. This does not affect Ubuntu 6.10. (CVE-2006-4997)

Matthias Andree discovered that the NFS locking management daemon (lockd) did not correctly handle mixing of 'lock' and 'nolock' option mounts on the same client. A remote attacker could exploit this to crash lockd and thus rendering the NFS imports inaccessible. This only affects Ubuntu 5.10. (CVE-2006-5158)

The task switching code did not save and restore EFLAGS of processes.
By starting a specially crafted executable, a local attacker could exploit this to eventually crash many other running processes. This does not affect Ubuntu 6.10. (CVE-2006-5173)

James Morris discovered that the ip6fl_get_n() function incorrectly handled flow labels. A local attacker could exploit this to crash the kernel. (CVE-2006-5619)

Fabio Massimo Di Nitto discovered that the sys_get_robust_list and sys_set_robust_list system calls lacked proper lock handling on the powerpc platform. A local attacker could exploit this to create unkillable processes, drain all available CPU/memory, and render the machine unrebootable. This only affects Ubuntu 6.10. (CVE-2006-5648)

Fabio Massimo Di Nitto discovered a flaw in the alignment check exception handling on the powerpc platform. A local attacker could exploit this to cause a kernel panic and crash the machine.
(CVE-2006-5649)

Certain corrupted squashfs file system images caused a memory allocation to be freed twice. By mounting a specially crafted squashfs file system, a local attacker could exploit this to crash the kernel.
This does not affect Ubuntu 5.10. (CVE-2006-5701)

An integer overflow was found in the get_fdb_entries() function of the network bridging code. By executing a specially crafted ioctl, a local attacker could exploit this to execute arbitrary code with root privileges. (CVE-2006-5751).

Note that Tenable Network Security has extracted the preceding description block directly from the Ubuntu security advisory. Tenable has attempted to automatically clean and format it as much as possible without introducing additional issues.

The remote CentOS system is missing a security update which has been documented in Red Hat advisory RHSA-2007-0488.

ID	Name	Product	Family	Published	Updated	Severity
25605	RHEL 4 : kernel (RHSA-2007:0488)	Nessus	Red Hat Local Security Checks	6/27/2007	1/14/2021	medium
24628	Mandrake Linux Security Advisory : kernel (MDKSA-2007:012)	Nessus	Mandriva Local Security Checks	2/18/2007	1/6/2021	high
60215	Scientific Linux Security Update : kernel on SL4.x i386/x86_64	Nessus	Scientific Linux Local Security Checks	8/1/2012	1/14/2021	medium
67520	Oracle Linux 4 : kernel (ELSA-2007-0488)	Nessus	Oracle Linux Local Security Checks	7/12/2013	8/24/2021	medium
25575	CentOS 4 : kernel (CESA-2007:0488)	Nessus	CentOS Local Security Checks	6/27/2007	1/4/2021	medium
27981	Ubuntu 5.10 / 6.06 LTS / 6.10 : linux-source-2.6.12/-2.6.15/-2.6.17 vulnerabilities (USN-395-1)	Nessus	Ubuntu Local Security Checks	11/10/2007	1/19/2021	high
801431	CentOS RHSA-2007-0488 Security Check	Log Correlation Engine	Generic			high

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