Due to the impact of a recent Linux kernel patch on extended Berkeley Packet Filter (eBPF) programs, clusters using the Container Network Interface (CNI) plugin Terway with the eBPF-based DataPath V2 feature enabled (including NetworkPolicy) may experience intermittent CPU utilization spikes on nodes.
Impact scope
Nodes are affected if they meet all of the following conditions:
Operating system: The node is running Alibaba Cloud Linux 3 or ContainerOS.
Kernel version: The kernel version is between 5.10.134-15 and 5.10.134-19.1 (inclusive).
Network configuration: The cluster uses the Terway CNI plugin with DataPath V2 mode enabled (this mode is automatically enabled when NetworkPolicy is enabled).
Solution
Step 1: Check if your nodes are affected
Run the following script on your cluster nodes using Cloud Assistant to determine if a fix is required:
Interpreting the results
Action is required if the following output is returned:
Alibaba Cloud Linux 3
Detected /sys/fs/bpf/tc/globals/cilium_ct4_global, proceeding with kernel version check...
Current kernel release: 5.10.134-18.al8.x86_64
Detected kernel type: al8
Kernel version 5.10.134-18 is within range 5.10.134-15~5.10.134-19.1.
kpatch_22519882 module is not loaded. Hotfix package 'kernel-hotfix-22519882-5.10.134-18' needs to be installed.
Running in dry-run mode. Use -y to install the hotfix.ContainerOS
Detected /sys/fs/bpf/tc/globals/cilium_ct4_global, proceeding with kernel version check...
Current kernel release: 5.10.134-18.0.1.lifsea8.x86_64
Detected kernel type: lifsea8
Kernel version 5.10.134-18.0 is within range 5.10.134-15 ~ 5.10.134-19.1.
WARNING: This is a lifsea8 kernel (5.10.134-18.0.1.lifsea8.x86_64).
The issue cannot be fixed by hotpatch. You must upgrade to ContainerOS 3.5.1 or later.
See official documentation or contact support for upgrade instructions.If one of the following outputs is returned, no action required:
The Terway eBPF feature is not enabled on the node. The patch installation is skipped.
Path /sys/fs/bpf/tc/globals/cilium_ct4_global does not exist, skipping check.The patch is already installed.
... kpatch_22519882 module is already loaded, no actions needed.
Step 2: Apply the fix
The fix varies depending on your operating system.
ContainerOS nodes
This issue will be resolved in ContainerOS version 3.5.1. Monitor the Release notes for ContainerOS images for updates. Once version 3.5.1 is released, update your nodes. For upgrade instructions, see Change the operating system.
Alibaba Cloud Linux 3 nodes
For new nodes
To ensure newly created nodes are automatically patched, add the following script to the Pre-defined Custom Data field when creating or editing a node pool.

For existing nodes
Run the diagnostic script via ECS Cloud Assistant on nodes to be fixed:
Expected output, indicating that the patch is installed:
......
Total 1.0 MB/s | 52 kB 00:00
Running transaction check
Transaction check succeeded.
Running transaction test
Transaction test succeeded.
Running transaction
Preparing : 1/1
Installing : kpatch-dnf-0.9.7_0.4-2.0.1.al8.noarch 1/3
Running scriptlet: kpatch-dnf-0.9.7_0.4-2.0.1.al8.noarch 1/3
To enable automatic kpatch-patch subscription, run:
$ dnf kpatch auto
Installing : kpatch-0.9.7-2.0.1.al8.noarch 2/3
Running scriptlet: kernel-hotfix-22519882-5.10.134-18-1.0-20250804154834.al8.x86_64 3/3
Installing : kernel-hotfix-22519882-5.10.134-18-1.0-20250804154834.al8.x86_64 3/3
Running scriptlet: kernel-hotfix-22519882-5.10.134-18-1.0-20250804154834.al8.x86_64 3/3
Created symlink /etc/systemd/system/multi-user.target.wants/kpatch.service → /usr/lib/systemd/system/kpatch.service.
installing /var/khotfix/5.10.134-18.al8.x86_64/22519882/kpatch-22519882.ko (5.10.134-18.al8.x86_64)
loading patch module: /var/khotfix/5.10.134-18.al8.x86_64/22519882/kpatch-22519882.ko
Verifying : kpatch-0.9.7-2.0.1.al8.noarch 1/3
Verifying : kpatch-dnf-0.9.7_0.4-2.0.1.al8.noarch 2/3
Verifying : kernel-hotfix-22519882-5.10.134-18-1.0-20250804154834.al8.x86_64 3/3
Installed:
kernel-hotfix-22519882-5.10.134-18-1.0-20250804154834.al8.x86_64 kpatch-0.9.7-2.0.1.al8.noarch kpatch-dnf-0.9.7_0.4-2.0.1.al8.noarch
Complete!
Installation successful.Reference
Troubleshoot high CPU utilization caused by the LRU hash in Alibaba Cloud Linux 3 eBPF programs