Kernel Panic after linux-firmware-intel update

Asajj · 2025-07-02 21:39:32

Hi,

after using Arch for almost 2 years on my old Lenovo Ideapad 320, I have experienced my first ever kernel panic. This happend, after I upgraded the old linux-firmware package to the new split up packages and rebooted the laptop. I suspect the cause of the panic is the new linux-firmware-intel package.

To fix the kernel panic, I tried using a flash drive with the arch iso on it to arch-chroot into my install and downgrade the linux-fiirmware-intel package. This did not fix the issue, so I uninstalled the new split up linux-firmware and installed the linux-firmware package, before it was split up. This did not fix the issue either, so I just tried to reinstall the whole system again with the new intel firmware and as expected this did not help again.

Here is the kernel-panic:

[ 16.962579] <TASK>
[ 16.963330] ? uplate_load_avg+0x7c/0x780
[ 16.964058] ? update_load_avg+0x7c/0x780
[ 16.964807] ? sched_clock+0x10/0x30
[ 16.965557] ? scheh_clock_cpu+0xf/0x200
[ 16.966299] ? update_curr+0x33/0x2a0
[ 16.966986] ? psi_group_change+0x129/0x300
[ 16.967703] ? __efi_call+0x28/0x30
[ 16.968406] ? efi_call_rts+0x1c1/0x370
[ 16.969049] ? process_one_work+0x193/0x350
[ 16.969732] ? worker_thread+0x2d7/0x410
[ 16.970431] ? __pfx_worker_thread+0x10/0x10
[ 16.971082] ? kthread+0xfc/0x240
[ 16.971771] ? __pfx_kthread+0x10/0x10
[ 16.972462] ? ret_from_fork+0x34/0x50
[ 16.973108] ? __pfx_kthread+0x10/0x10
[ 16.973805] ? ret_from_fork_asm+0x1a/0x30
[ 16.974490] </TASK>
[ 16.975148] Modules linked in: sdn_sof_pci_intel_apl snd_sof_intel_hda_generic soundwire_intel snd_sof_intel_hda_sdw_bpt snd_sof_intel_hda_common snd_soc_hdac_hda snd_sof_intel_hda_mlink snd_sof_intel_hda soundwire_cadence intel_rapl_msr snd_sof_pci intel_rapl_common snd_sof_xtensa_dsp snd_sof intel_pcm_btx intel_telemetry_pltdrv snd_sof_utils intel_punit_ipc snd_soc_acpi_intel_match intel_telemetry_core snd_soc_acpi_intel_sdca_quirks soundwire_generic_allocation snd_soc_acpi x86_pkg_temp_thermal soundwire_bus intel_powerclamp coretemp snd_soc_sdca crc8 kvm_intel snd_soc_avs snd_hda_codec_hdmi snd_soc_hda_codec snd_hdaext_core snd_ctl_led kvm snd_soc_core rt18821ae snd_hda_codec_realtek snd_compress snd_hda_codec_generic btcoexist rtl_pci snd_hda_scodec_component ac97_bus irqbypass snd_pcm_dmaengine rtlwifi snd_hda_intel mac80211 polyval_generic snd_intel dspcfg uvcvideo snd_intel_sdw_acpi ghash_clmulni_intel videobuf2_vmalloc sha512_ssse3 btusb snd_hda_codec sha256_ssse3 uvc btrtl spi_nor sha1_ssse3 videobuf2_memops
[ 16.975222] snd_hda_core btintel aesni_intel videobuf2_v412 mtd r9169 libarc5 joydev crypto_simd snd_hwdep btbcm videofub2_common mousedev snd_pcm spi_intel_platform cryptd realtek btmtk ar24 mei_hdcp spi_intel mei_pxp cfg80211 rapl snd_timer mdio_devres videodev bluetooth intel_lpss_pci i2c_801 snd i2c_hid_acpi intel_lpss intel_cstate wdat_wdt wmi_bmof i2c_smbus indeapad_laptop pcspkr mei_me libphy intel_xhci_usb_role_switch mc vfat platform_profile i2c_mux idma64 lpc_ich i2c_hid fat soundcore roles lgo_bit uas drm_buddy ttm usb_storage intel_gtt serio_raw drm_display_helper video cec wmi
[ 16.984808] CR2 0000000066d591d0
[ 16.985720] ---[ end trace 0000000000000000 ]---
[ 16.986661] RIP: 0010:0xfffffffefb052d38
[ 16.987571] Code: cb 48 8b c1 48 83 c4 20 5b c3 48 8b d1 b9 04 00 00 00 e9 b7 ff ff ff cc cc cc 48 83 ec 28 48 8b 05 35 4b 00 00 4c 8d 44 24 40 <ff> 50 40 48 8b 4c 24 40 33 d2 48 85 c0 48 0f 48 ca 48 8b c1 48 83
[ 16.989487] RSP: 0018:ffffcb14c00b3c80 EFLAGS: 000010082
[ 16.990421] RAX: 0000000066d59190 RBX: 0000000000000002 RCX: 0000000000000004
[ 16.991357] RDX: 0000000000000002 RSI: 0000000000000000 RDI: 0000000000000002
[ 16.992237] RBP: ffffcb14c00b3d50 R08: ffffcb14c00b3cc0 R09: ffffcb14c00b3db0
[ 16.993113] R10: 0000000000000000 R11: 0000000000000000 R12: 0000000000000000
[ 16.994032] R13: 0000000000083fb0 R14: ffffcb14c00b3db0 R15: ffffcb14c00b3db8
[ 16.994940] FS: 0000000000000000(0000) GS:ffff893593e2f000(0000) knlGS:0000000000000000
[ 16.995852] CS: 0010 DS: 0000 ES: 0000 CR0: 0000000080050033
[ 16.996763] CR2: 0000000066d591d0 CR3: 000000010023c000 CR4: 00000000003526f0
[ 16.997673] Kernel panic - not syncing: Fatal exeption in interrupt
[ 16.998668] Kernel Offset: 0x23c00000 from 0xffffffff81000000
[ 16.999647] ---[ end Kernel panic - not syncing: Fatal exeption in interrupt ]---

ntb314 · 2025-07-03 06:28:16

This looks like a crash early in the boot process, likely related to firmware or microcode issues on your older Intel hardware.

A few things you could try:

- Fully downgrade linux-firmware
Make sure you're downgrading all the new split packages (linux-firmware-intel, -network, etc.) and reinstall the last monolithic linux-firmware package together. Mixing them can cause problems.

Download from the archive:

https://archive.archlinux.org/packages/l/linux-firmware/

- Check microcode
Try booting without intel-ucode.img to rule out a microcode/firmware mismatch. If you normally load it, temporarily remove the

 initrd=/boot/intel-ucode.img

line in your bootloader.

- Boot with linux-lts
Install linux-lts and boot into it — it’s often more stable on older devices:

pacman -S linux-lts

If that doesn’t help, it might be worth waiting for upstream fixes or reporting this to the bug tracker.

seth · 2025-07-03 07:27:44

[ 16.963330] ? uplate_load_avg+0x7c/0x780
[ 16.965557] ? scheh_clock_cpu+0xf/0x200

Is this some OCR trace?
If you cannot get the actual text, rather post the picture than some AI interpretation of it.
Don't you get a fancy QR code? Can you access the output above that?

Random guess, add "spectre_v2=off" or "mitigations=off" to the https://wiki.archlinux.org/title/Kernel_parameters
Also

after using Arch for almost 2 years … happend, after I upgraded the old linux-firmware package

Did you *only* update linux-firmware (and apparently the downgrade didn't help much) or where there other packages involved?
B/c or the QR code: what kernel is this actually?

Asajj · 2025-07-03 15:47:01

Thanks for the many suggestions. Here is what I tried:

First I removed all the split up firmware packages with:

 pacman -Rns linux-firmware

and installed the last monolithic linux-firmware package (I did not quite know when the packages were split up, but I went with a firmware version from march 2025, which should be save)

 pacman -U https://archive.archlinux.org/packages/l/linux-firmware/linux-firmware-20250508.788aadc8-2-any.pkg.tar.zst

Then I checked my Bootloader, but the line

 initrd=/boot/intel-ucode.img

wasn't even there.

Then I tried to boot with linux-lts which also did not work.

Now to the Kernel panic message:

seth wrote:

Don't you get a fancy QR code?

I did not get a fancy QR-Code so I tried to take a picture with my phone of the screen and let the OCR of my phone generate the panic for me, but the text I got was just complete gibberish so I typed the panic by hand so this:

[ 16.965557] ? scheh_clock_cpu+0xf/0x200

is just my typo.

seth wrote:

Can you access the output above that?

No, pressing the keys on my keyboard don't do anything.

I kept the packages on my Laptop pretty up-to-date, but when I upgraded the linux-firmware it was while upgrading my whole system with

 pacman -Suy

so there were many packages upgraded at once which I cant't remember anymore and won't find the logs of.

seth wrote:

Did you *only* update linux-firmware (and apparently the downgrade didn't help much) or where there other packages involved?

I think this is just plain Linux kernel, no linux-zen etc.

seth · 2025-07-03 16:50:10

" initrd=/boot/intel-ucode.img" isn't related to any firmware package, https://wiki.archlinux.org/title/Microcode

so there were many packages upgraded at once which I cant't remember anymore and won't find the logs of.

/var/log/pacman.log

Arch Linux

#1 2025-07-02 21:39:32

Kernel Panic after linux-firmware-intel update

#2 2025-07-03 06:28:16

Re: Kernel Panic after linux-firmware-intel update

#3 2025-07-03 07:27:44

Re: Kernel Panic after linux-firmware-intel update

#4 2025-07-03 15:47:01

Re: Kernel Panic after linux-firmware-intel update

#5 2025-07-03 16:50:10

Re: Kernel Panic after linux-firmware-intel update

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