Low: kernel security and bug fix update

Related Vulnerabilities: CVE-2009-4307   CVE-2012-2100   CVE-2012-2100   CVE-2012-2934   CVE-2012-2100  

Synopsis

Low: kernel security and bug fix update

Type/Severity

Security Advisory: Low

Topic

Updated kernel packages that fix one security issue and several bugs are
now available for Red Hat Enterprise Linux 5.

The Red Hat Security Response Team has rated this update as having low
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 the RHSA-2010:0178 update did not correctly fix the
    CVE-2009-4307 issue, a divide-by-zero flaw in the ext4 file system code. A
    local, unprivileged user with the ability to mount an ext4 file system
    could use this flaw to cause a denial of service. (CVE-2012-2100, Low)

This update also fixes several bugs. Documentation for these changes will
be available shortly from the Technical Notes document linked to in the
References section.

Users should upgrade to these updated packages, which contain backported
patches to correct this issue, and fix the bugs noted in the 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/knowledge/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 - 809687 - CVE-2012-2100 kernel: ext4: fix inconsistency in ext4_fill_flex_info()
  • BZ - 859946 - kernel: xen: change the default behaviour of CVE-2012-2934 fix [rhel-5.8.z]

CVEs

References