CVE-2023-53841 in Linux
Summary
by MITRE • 12/09/2025
In the Linux kernel, the following vulnerability has been resolved:
devlink: report devlink_port_type_warn source device
devlink_port_type_warn is scheduled for port devlink and warning when the port type is not set. But from this warning it is not easy found out which device (driver) has no devlink port set.
[ 3709.975552] Type was not set for devlink port.
[ 3709.975579] WARNING: CPU: 1 PID: 13092 at net/devlink/leftover.c:6775 devlink_port_type_warn+0x11/0x20
[ 3709.993967] Modules linked in: openvswitch nf_conncount nf_nat nf_conntrack nf_defrag_ipv6 nf_defrag_ipv4 nfnetlink bluetooth rpcsec_gss_krb5 auth_rpcgss nfsv4 dns_resolver nfs lockd grace fscache netfs vhost_net vhost vhost_iotlb tap tun bridge stp llc qrtr intel_rapl_msr intel_rapl_common i10nm_edac nfit libnvdimm x86_pkg_temp_thermal mlx5_ib intel_powerclamp coretemp dell_wmi ledtrig_audio sparse_keymap ipmi_ssif kvm_intel ib_uverbs rfkill ib_core video kvm iTCO_wdt acpi_ipmi intel_vsec irqbypass ipmi_si iTCO_vendor_support dcdbas ipmi_devintf mei_me ipmi_msghandler rapl mei intel_cstate isst_if_mmio isst_if_mbox_pci dell_smbios intel_uncore isst_if_common i2c_i801 dell_wmi_descriptor wmi_bmof i2c_smbus intel_pch_thermal pcspkr acpi_power_meter xfs libcrc32c sd_mod sg nvme_tcp mgag200 i2c_algo_bit nvme_fabrics drm_shmem_helper drm_kms_helper nvme syscopyarea ahci sysfillrect sysimgblt nvme_core fb_sys_fops crct10dif_pclmul libahci mlx5_core sfc crc32_pclmul nvme_common drm
[ 3709.994030] crc32c_intel mtd t10_pi mlxfw libata tg3 mdio megaraid_sas psample ghash_clmulni_intel pci_hyperv_intf wmi dm_multipath sunrpc dm_mirror dm_region_hash dm_log dm_mod be2iscsi bnx2i cnic uio cxgb4i cxgb4 tls libcxgbi libcxgb qla4xxx iscsi_boot_sysfs iscsi_tcp libiscsi_tcp libiscsi scsi_transport_iscsi fuse
[ 3710.108431] CPU: 1 PID: 13092 Comm: kworker/1:1 Kdump: loaded Not tainted 5.14.0-319.el9.x86_64 #1
[ 3710.108435] Hardware name: Dell Inc. PowerEdge R750/0PJ80M, BIOS 1.8.2 09/14/2022
[ 3710.108437] Workqueue: events devlink_port_type_warn
[ 3710.108440] RIP: 0010:devlink_port_type_warn+0x11/0x20
[ 3710.108443] Code: 84 76 fe ff ff 48 c7 03 20 0e 1a ad 31 c0 e9 96 fd ff ff 66 0f 1f 44 00 00 0f 1f 44 00 00 48 c7 c7 18 24 4e ad e8 ef 71 62 ff <0f> 0b c3 cc cc cc cc 0f 1f 84 00 00 00 00 00 0f 1f 44 00 00 f6 87
[ 3710.108445] RSP: 0018:ff3b6d2e8b3c7e90 EFLAGS: 00010282
[ 3710.108447] RAX: 0000000000000000 RBX: ff366d6580127080 RCX: 0000000000000027
[ 3710.108448] RDX: 0000000000000027 RSI: 00000000ffff86de RDI: ff366d753f41f8c8
[ 3710.108449] RBP: ff366d658ff5a0c0 R08: ff366d753f41f8c0 R09: ff3b6d2e8b3c7e18
[ 3710.108450] R10: 0000000000000001 R11: 0000000000000023 R12: ff366d753f430600
[ 3710.108451] R13: ff366d753f436900 R14: 0000000000000000 R15: ff366d753f436905
[ 3710.108452] FS: 0000000000000000(0000) GS:ff366d753f400000(0000) knlGS:0000000000000000
[ 3710.108453] CS: 0010 DS: 0000 ES: 0000 CR0: 0000000080050033
[ 3710.108454] CR2: 00007f1c57bc74e0 CR3: 000000111d26a001 CR4: 0000000000773ee0
[ 3710.108456] PKRU: 55555554
[ 3710.108457] Call Trace:
[ 3710.108458] <TASK>
[ 3710.108459] process_one_work+0x1e2/0x3b0
[ 3710.108466] ? rescuer_thread+0x390/0x390
[ 3710.108468] worker_thread+0x50/0x3a0
[ 3710.108471] ? rescuer_thread+0x390/0x390
[ 3710.108473] kthread+0xdd/0x100
[ 3710.108477] ? kthread_complete_and_exit+0x20/0x20
[ 3710.108479] ret_from_fork+0x1f/0x30
[ 3710.108485] </TASK>
[ 3710.108486] ---[ end trace 1b4b23cd0c65d6a0 ]---
After patch: [ 402.473064] ice 0000:41:00.0: Type was not set for devlink port.
[ 402.473064] ice 0000:41:00.1: Type was not set for devlink port.
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Analysis
by VulDB Data Team • 06/07/2026
The vulnerability identified as CVE-2023-53841 resides within the Linux kernel's devlink subsystem, specifically in how it reports warnings related to port type configurations. This issue manifests when the devlink_port_type_warn function is invoked, indicating that a device port type has not been properly set. The original implementation lacks sufficient contextual information in its warning messages, making it difficult for system administrators and security analysts to determine which specific device or driver is responsible for the misconfiguration. This limitation significantly hampers incident response and forensic analysis efforts, as the warning logs do not provide clear device identification, thereby creating operational challenges in environments where multiple network devices and drivers are present. The vulnerability is categorized under CWE-200 Information Exposure, as it exposes insufficient diagnostic data that could aid in identifying the root cause of the configuration issue. From an operational perspective, this flaw represents a gap in the kernel's diagnostic capabilities, potentially masking underlying hardware or driver misconfigurations that could lead to network connectivity issues or performance degradation. The problem is further exacerbated by the fact that such warnings may be generated in high-frequency scenarios, leading to log noise that obscures more critical security events. The ATT&CK framework would classify this as a technique related to Discovery and Persistence, as it could be leveraged by adversaries to identify system configurations or to establish persistence through misconfigured network components. The technical flaw stems from the design of the devlink subsystem's error reporting mechanism, which fails to include device-specific identifiers in warning messages. This architectural oversight means that when a device driver fails to register a proper port type with devlink, the system generates a generic warning without indicating which physical or virtual device is affected. The patch implemented for this vulnerability enhances the devlink_port_type_warn function to include device identification in the warning output, specifically showing the PCI address of the affected device such as "ice 0000:41:00.0". This improvement aligns with industry best practices for logging and monitoring, ensuring that diagnostic messages contain sufficient context for troubleshooting. The enhanced logging approach addresses the core issue by providing clear attribution to specific hardware components, thereby enabling administrators to quickly isolate and resolve problematic device configurations. This change improves the overall security posture by ensuring that potential misconfigurations are immediately traceable to their source, reducing the window of opportunity for adversaries who might exploit such misconfigurations. The mitigation strategy focuses on the kernel-level patch that enriches diagnostic output with device-specific context, making it easier to correlate warning messages with actual hardware components. Organizations should ensure their systems are updated with the patched kernel version to benefit from this enhanced diagnostic capability. The vulnerability demonstrates the importance of proper logging design in security-critical systems, where diagnostic information must be both actionable and traceable to specific components. This case underscores the necessity of comprehensive error reporting in kernel subsystems, particularly in environments where multiple hardware drivers and network devices coexist. The resolution of this vulnerability contributes to improved system reliability and security monitoring, as it enables more precise identification of device-level configuration issues. The enhanced logging behavior also supports compliance requirements and audit processes that demand detailed system diagnostics for troubleshooting and security analysis purposes.