RHSA-2013:1348 - Security Advisory

Topic

Updated kernel packages that fix one security issue, several bugs, and add
various enhancements are now available as part of the ongoing support and
maintenance of Red Hat Enterprise Linux version 5. This is the tenth
regular update.

The Red Hat Security Response Team has rated this update as having moderate
security impact. A Common Vulnerability Scoring System (CVSS) base score,
which gives a detailed severity rating, is available from the CVE link in
the References section.

Description

The kernel packages contain the Linux kernel, the core of any Linux
operating system.

This update fixes the following security issue:

• It was found that a deadlock could occur in the Out of Memory (OOM)

killer. A process could trigger this deadlock by consuming a large amount
of memory, and then causing request_module() to be called. A local,
unprivileged user could use this flaw to cause a denial of service
(excessive memory consumption). (CVE-2012-4398, Moderate)

Red Hat would like to thank Tetsuo Handa for reporting this issue.

This update also fixes numerous bugs and adds various enhancements. Refer
to the Red Hat Enterprise Linux 5.10 Release Notes for information on the
most significant of these changes, and the Technical Notes for further
information, both linked to in the References.

All Red Hat Enterprise Linux 5 users are advised to install these updated
packages, which correct this issue, and fix the bugs and add the
enhancements noted in the Red Hat Enterprise Linux 5.10 Release Notes and
Technical Notes. The system must be rebooted for this update to take
effect.

Solution

Before applying this update, make sure all previously released errata
relevant to your system have been applied.

This update is available via the Red Hat Network. Details on how to use the
Red Hat Network to apply this update are available at
https://access.redhat.com/site/articles/11258

To install kernel packages manually, use "rpm -ivh [package]". Do not use
"rpm -Uvh" as that will remove the running kernel binaries from your
system. You may use "rpm -e" to remove old kernels after determining that
the new kernel functions properly on your system.

Affected Products

• Red Hat Enterprise Linux Server 5 x86_64
• Red Hat Enterprise Linux Server 5 ia64
• Red Hat Enterprise Linux Server 5 i386
• Red Hat Enterprise Linux Workstation 5 x86_64
• Red Hat Enterprise Linux Workstation 5 i386
• Red Hat Enterprise Linux Desktop 5 x86_64
• Red Hat Enterprise Linux Desktop 5 i386
• Red Hat Enterprise Linux for IBM z Systems 5 s390x
• Red Hat Enterprise Linux for Power, big endian 5 ppc
• Red Hat Enterprise Linux Server from RHUI 5 x86_64
• Red Hat Enterprise Linux Server from RHUI 5 i386

Fixes

• BZ - 709658 - Bad build req: No Package Found for kernel-debug-devel-x86_64
• BZ - 756309 - extN: new file created even if open(2) returned -EPERM
• BZ - 853474 - CVE-2012-4398 kernel: request_module() OOM local DoS
• BZ - 862862 - long ixgbevf interface name crashes kernel
• BZ - 865292 - [Hyper-V] storvsc: Account for in-transit packets in the RESET path
• BZ - 865736 - Only 2 VF can be seen in RHEL5.9 PV guest
• BZ - 894360 - starting a F18 install as a CentOS5 xen guest
• BZ - 961667 - xen: numa: guest crash on second restore

CVEs

• CVE-2012-4398

References

• https://access.redhat.com/security/updates/classification/#moderate
• https://access.redhat.com/site/documentation/en-US/Red_Hat_Enterprise_Linux/5/html-single/5.10_Release_Notes/index.html
• https://access.redhat.com/site/documentation/en-US/Red_Hat_Enterprise_Linux/5/html-single/5.10_Technical_Notes/index.html