CVE-2025-37852 in Linux
Summary
by MITRE • 05/09/2025
In the Linux kernel, the following vulnerability has been resolved:
drm/amdgpu: handle amdgpu_cgs_create_device() errors in amd_powerplay_create()
Add error handling to propagate amdgpu_cgs_create_device() failures to the caller. When amdgpu_cgs_create_device() fails, release hwmgr and return -ENOMEM to prevent null pointer dereference.
[v1]->[v2]: Change error code from -EINVAL to -ENOMEM. Free hwmgr.
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Analysis
by VulDB Data Team • 11/17/2025
The vulnerability identified as CVE-2025-37852 resides within the Linux kernel's amdgpu driver component, specifically affecting the drm/amdgpu subsystem that manages graphics processing units from AMD. This issue manifests in the amd_powerplay_create() function where proper error handling mechanisms are lacking when dealing with device creation failures. The vulnerability represents a classic null pointer dereference risk that could lead to system instability or potential privilege escalation scenarios within the graphics subsystem.
The technical flaw occurs when the amdgpu_cgs_create_device() function fails during the powerplay initialization process. The current implementation does not properly propagate these errors back to the calling function, leading to situations where subsequent code attempts to dereference uninitialized or invalid pointers. This failure mode creates a dangerous condition where the hardware management structure hwmgr remains in an inconsistent state while the system continues execution with potentially invalid references. The vulnerability directly maps to CWE-476 which describes null pointer dereference conditions, and represents a failure in proper error code propagation within kernel space.
The operational impact of this vulnerability extends beyond simple system crashes or hangs, as it could potentially be exploited to gain elevated privileges within the kernel context. When amdgpu_cgs_create_device() returns an error condition, the system should immediately terminate the initialization sequence and return appropriate error codes to prevent further processing. The lack of proper cleanup and error propagation means that even if the underlying hardware creation fails, the system continues processing and may attempt to access invalid memory locations through the hwmgr structure. This behavior aligns with ATT&CK technique T1068 which describes local privilege escalation through kernel vulnerabilities, and T1059 which encompasses command and scripting interpreter usage in kernel contexts.
The fix implemented in the updated version addresses this by ensuring that when amdgpu_cgs_create_device() fails, the system properly releases the hwmgr resources and returns -ENOMEM to indicate memory allocation failure rather than the previous -EINVAL which was inappropriate for this context. This change represents a proper error handling pattern that follows kernel development best practices and ensures that resource cleanup occurs before returning error conditions to callers. The modification specifically addresses the resource management issue by explicitly freeing hwmgr before returning the error code, preventing potential memory leaks and maintaining system stability. This remediation aligns with the principle of defensive programming and proper resource management as recommended in kernel security guidelines and helps prevent cascading failures that could compromise the entire graphics subsystem or potentially the broader operating system kernel.