CVE-2026-98959 (GCVE-0-2026-98959)
Vulnerability from cvelistv5
Published
2026-10-23 12:19
Modified
2026-10-24 14:09
Severity ?
VLAI Severity ?
EPSS score ?
Summary
In the Linux kernel, the following vulnerability has been resolved:
btrfs: fix xattr replace when multiple xattrs are packed in the same item
If we have a btrfs_dir_item item that packs multiple xattrs and then we
replace the value of one of them (with the setxattr(2) family of syscalls)
with another value of a different size, we end up not having a fully
initialized btrfs_dir_item, resulting in a corruption that the tree
checker will detect at extent buffer writeback time.
This is because in btrfs_setxattr() when we find a btrfs_dir_item with
multiple xattrs (due to the crc32c hash of their name being the same)
we delete one of the xattr items (btrfs_dir_item) and then insert a new
one, but the deletion and insertion results in shifting existing data in
the leaf and therefore when the new value of a xattr has a different size,
the new btrfs_dir_item is placed in a leaf section that was not
initialized and we only copy the value's data and set the value's length
in the new btrfs_dir_item, without setting the name, the name's length,
the key (which must be all zeroes for xattrs), flags (BTRFS_FT_XATTR) and
transaction ID.
The following script reproduces the issue:
$ cat test.sh
#!/bin/bash
DEV=/dev/sdi
MNT=/mnt/sdi
mkfs.btrfs -f $DEV
mount $DEV $MNT
touch $MNT/testfile
# Add two xattrs that, on btrfs, have the same hash (crc32c) for their
# name and therefore are packed into the same btrfs_dir_item.
setfattr -n user.foobar -v 123 $MNT/testfile
setfattr -n user.WvG1c1Td -v qwerty $MNT/testfile
# Verify the xattrs are present.
echo "xattrs before:"
getfattr --absolute-names --dump $MNT/testfile
# Now replace the value of the foobar xattr with a significantly larger
# value.
setfattr -n user.foobar -v abcdefghijklmnopqrstuvwxyz $MNT/testfile
# Check the xattrs have the expected values.
echo "xattrs after:"
getfattr --absolute-names --dump $MNT/testfile
umount $MNT
Running it:
$ ./test.sh
(...)
xattrs before:
# file: /mnt/sdi/testfile
user.WvG1c1Td="qwerty"
user.foobar="123"
xattrs after:
# file: /mnt/sdi/testfile
user.WvG1c1Td="qwerty"
So the "user.foobar" xattr is missing and there was a transaction abort
when unmounting the fs with the following traces in dmesg:
$ dmesg
[869800.159271] BTRFS warning (device sdi): access to eb bytenr 30474240 len 16384 out of range start 16015 len 25964
[869800.159293] ------------[ cut here ]------------
[869800.159296] WARNING: fs/btrfs/extent_io.c:4408 at report_eb_range+0x44/0x60 [btrfs], CPU#8: getfattr/2605179
[869800.168961] Modules linked in: btrfs dm_thin_pool (...)
[869800.190527] CPU: 8 UID: 0 PID: 2605179 Comm: getfattr Tainted: G W 7.3.0-rc3-btrfs-next-244+ #1 PREEMPT(full)
[869800.193726] Tainted: [W]=WARN
[869800.194502] Hardware name: QEMU Standard PC (i440FX + PIIX, 1996), BIOS rel-1.16.2-0-gea1b7a073390-prebuilt.qemu.org 04/01/2014
[869800.197576] RIP: 0010:report_eb_range+0x44/0x60 [btrfs]
[869800.198985] Code: 48 8b 7b 18 (...)
[869800.203531] RSP: 0018:ffffce4541937d58 EFLAGS: 00010246
[869800.204609] RAX: 0000000000000000 RBX: ffff8dde054b8738 RCX: 0000000000000000
[869800.206137] RDX: 0000000000000000 RSI: 0000000000000001 RDI: ffffffffc04c92a0
[869800.207645] RBP: 0000000000003e8f R08: 0000000000000000 R09: 3fffffffffefffff
[869800.226175] R10: ffffce4541937a88 R11: 0000000000000003 R12: 000000000000656c
[869800.227594] R13: ffff8dde14be800f R14: 000000000000656c R15: 0000000000000069
[869800.229097] FS: 00007f59023bb780(0000) GS:ffff8de5788ed000(0000) knlGS:0000000000000000
[869800.231137] CS: 0010 DS: 0000 ES: 0000 CR0: 0000000080050033
[869800.232321] CR2: 0000558dc45e6a78 CR3: 0000000765b16004 CR4: 0000000000370ef0
[869800.233783] Call Trace:
[869800.234330] <TASK>
[869800.234791] read_extent_buffer+0x4d/0x100 [btrfs]
[869800.235898] btrfs_listxattr+0x199/0x240 [btrfs]
[869800.236912] vfs_listxattr+0x51/0
---truncated---
References
Impacted products
| Vendor | Product | Version | ||
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Linux | Linux |
Version: 5f5bc6b1e2d5a6f827bc860ef2dc5b6f365d1339 Version: 5f5bc6b1e2d5a6f827bc860ef2dc5b6f365d1339 Version: 5f5bc6b1e2d5a6f827bc860ef2dc5b6f365d1339 Version: 5f5bc6b1e2d5a6f827bc860ef2dc5b6f365d1339 Version: 5f5bc6b1e2d5a6f827bc860ef2dc5b6f365d1339 Version: 43f2e3615d181a7028ab797114c5960977669b2a Version: a873146ce4fb025c0b5c1322af5a6bad042f5363 Version: 02590fd855d1690568b2fa439c942e933221b57a Version: 55e97f654cbbbef70f9714f0e113604dd931e360 Version: 3.10.83 ≤ Version: 3.12.45 ≤ Version: 3.14.47 ≤ Version: 3.18.19 ≤ |
||
{
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},
{
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{
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}
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}
],
"cpeApplicability": [
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"negate": false,
"operator": "OR"
}
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],
"descriptions": [
{
"lang": "en",
"value": "In the Linux kernel, the following vulnerability has been resolved:\n\nbtrfs: fix xattr replace when multiple xattrs are packed in the same item\n\nIf we have a btrfs_dir_item item that packs multiple xattrs and then we\nreplace the value of one of them (with the setxattr(2) family of syscalls)\nwith another value of a different size, we end up not having a fully\ninitialized btrfs_dir_item, resulting in a corruption that the tree\nchecker will detect at extent buffer writeback time.\n\nThis is because in btrfs_setxattr() when we find a btrfs_dir_item with\nmultiple xattrs (due to the crc32c hash of their name being the same)\nwe delete one of the xattr items (btrfs_dir_item) and then insert a new\none, but the deletion and insertion results in shifting existing data in\nthe leaf and therefore when the new value of a xattr has a different size,\nthe new btrfs_dir_item is placed in a leaf section that was not\ninitialized and we only copy the value\u0027s data and set the value\u0027s length\nin the new btrfs_dir_item, without setting the name, the name\u0027s length,\nthe key (which must be all zeroes for xattrs), flags (BTRFS_FT_XATTR) and\ntransaction ID.\n\nThe following script reproduces the issue:\n\n $ cat test.sh\n #!/bin/bash\n\n DEV=/dev/sdi\n MNT=/mnt/sdi\n\n mkfs.btrfs -f $DEV\n mount $DEV $MNT\n\n touch $MNT/testfile\n\n # Add two xattrs that, on btrfs, have the same hash (crc32c) for their\n # name and therefore are packed into the same btrfs_dir_item.\n setfattr -n user.foobar -v 123 $MNT/testfile\n setfattr -n user.WvG1c1Td -v qwerty $MNT/testfile\n\n # Verify the xattrs are present.\n echo \"xattrs before:\"\n getfattr --absolute-names --dump $MNT/testfile\n\n # Now replace the value of the foobar xattr with a significantly larger\n # value.\n setfattr -n user.foobar -v abcdefghijklmnopqrstuvwxyz $MNT/testfile\n\n # Check the xattrs have the expected values.\n echo \"xattrs after:\"\n getfattr --absolute-names --dump $MNT/testfile\n\n umount $MNT\n\nRunning it:\n\n $ ./test.sh\n (...)\n xattrs before:\n # file: /mnt/sdi/testfile\n user.WvG1c1Td=\"qwerty\"\n user.foobar=\"123\"\n\n xattrs after:\n # file: /mnt/sdi/testfile\n user.WvG1c1Td=\"qwerty\"\n\nSo the \"user.foobar\" xattr is missing and there was a transaction abort\nwhen unmounting the fs with the following traces in dmesg:\n\n $ dmesg\n [869800.159271] BTRFS warning (device sdi): access to eb bytenr 30474240 len 16384 out of range start 16015 len 25964\n [869800.159293] ------------[ cut here ]------------\n [869800.159296] WARNING: fs/btrfs/extent_io.c:4408 at report_eb_range+0x44/0x60 [btrfs], CPU#8: getfattr/2605179\n [869800.168961] Modules linked in: btrfs dm_thin_pool (...)\n [869800.190527] CPU: 8 UID: 0 PID: 2605179 Comm: getfattr Tainted: G W 7.3.0-rc3-btrfs-next-244+ #1 PREEMPT(full)\n [869800.193726] Tainted: [W]=WARN\n [869800.194502] Hardware name: QEMU Standard PC (i440FX + PIIX, 1996), BIOS rel-1.16.2-0-gea1b7a073390-prebuilt.qemu.org 04/01/2014\n [869800.197576] RIP: 0010:report_eb_range+0x44/0x60 [btrfs]\n [869800.198985] Code: 48 8b 7b 18 (...)\n [869800.203531] RSP: 0018:ffffce4541937d58 EFLAGS: 00010246\n [869800.204609] RAX: 0000000000000000 RBX: ffff8dde054b8738 RCX: 0000000000000000\n [869800.206137] RDX: 0000000000000000 RSI: 0000000000000001 RDI: ffffffffc04c92a0\n [869800.207645] RBP: 0000000000003e8f R08: 0000000000000000 R09: 3fffffffffefffff\n [869800.226175] R10: ffffce4541937a88 R11: 0000000000000003 R12: 000000000000656c\n [869800.227594] R13: ffff8dde14be800f R14: 000000000000656c R15: 0000000000000069\n [869800.229097] FS: 00007f59023bb780(0000) GS:ffff8de5788ed000(0000) knlGS:0000000000000000\n [869800.231137] CS: 0010 DS: 0000 ES: 0000 CR0: 0000000080050033\n [869800.232321] CR2: 0000558dc45e6a78 CR3: 0000000765b16004 CR4: 0000000000370ef0\n [869800.233783] Call Trace:\n [869800.234330] \u003cTASK\u003e\n [869800.234791] read_extent_buffer+0x4d/0x100 [btrfs]\n [869800.235898] btrfs_listxattr+0x199/0x240 [btrfs]\n [869800.236912] vfs_listxattr+0x51/0\n---truncated---"
}
],
"metrics": [
{
"cvssV3_1": {
"baseScore": 9.8,
"baseSeverity": "CRITICAL",
"vectorString": "CVSS:3.1/AV:N/AC:L/PR:N/UI:N/S:U/C:H/I:H/A:H",
"version": "3.1"
},
"scenarios": [
{
"lang": "en",
"value": "AV:N - An NFSv4.2 OP_SETXATTR carries each attacker-chosen name and value; nfsd4_decode_xattr_name() prepends user. and nfsd_setxattr() reaches the patched btrfs_setxattr(). One client can send two CRC32C-colliding names followed by a different-sized replacement.\nAC:L - btrfs_name_hash() uses unkeyed CRC32C, permitting deterministic chosen-target, non-NUL collisions; the commit also supplies a fixed collision. Sequential OP_SETXATTR operations fully control packing and replacement without a race or external precondition.\nPR:N - With an AUTH_SYS NFS export, the client merely asserts a uid; nfsd_setxattr() gates the operation with fh_verify(..., NFSD_MAY_WRITE) before __vfs_setxattr_locked(). An unauthenticated client can assert the writable file\u0027s owner uid.\nUI:N - The attacker alone can issue PUTFH, the setup and replacement OP_SETXATTR operations, and subsequent GETXATTR operations. No victim must mount attacker-supplied media, open a file, or take another action.\nS:U - The malformed btrfs_dir_item, forged xattrs, leaf disclosure, and transaction abort all affect the same host kernel and filesystem security authority; no VM, IOMMU, or other isolation boundary is crossed.\nC:H - Crafted lengths make btrfs_match_dir_item_name() parse a fake user.* dir_item embedded in the replacement value. Its chosen data_len makes btrfs_getxattr()/read_extent_buffer() copy adjacent leaf contents, including potentially inline data, which NFSv4.2 GETXATTR returns.\nI:H - The same controlled parse can embed a complete security.capability dir_item whose CRC32C matches the item key. btrfs_getxattr() can then supply attacker-chosen V2 capabilities to get_vfs_caps_from_disk(), bypassing CAP_SETFCAP and permitting root code execution.\nA:H - check_dir_item() rejects the malformed entry when btrfs_check_leaf() runs from btree_csum_one_bio(); the resulting writeback failure aborts the transaction and forces the Btrfs filesystem read-only."
}
]
}
],
"providerMetadata": {
"dateUpdated": "2026-10-24T14:09:39.735Z",
"orgId": "416baaa9-dc9f-4396-8d5f-8c081fb06d67",
"shortName": "Linux"
},
"references": [
{
"url": "https://git.kernel.org/stable/c/7a53bb4668b319fc6c8a3ce2c21635125c7d2712"
},
{
"url": "https://git.kernel.org/stable/c/5877d7138cc4359d26fd7b010eedfd1b3162348f"
},
{
"url": "https://git.kernel.org/stable/c/a97114b9b00ed3d05156f3b2ddbf797296260389"
},
{
"url": "https://git.kernel.org/stable/c/c1803697a60f22743aa28ad522f805e92d45e3f0"
},
{
"url": "https://git.kernel.org/stable/c/858bee1c77857aabcc2327cd32dd8266332de332"
}
],
"title": "btrfs: fix xattr replace when multiple xattrs are packed in the same item",
"x_generator": {
"engine": "bippy-1.2.0"
}
}
},
"cveMetadata": {
"assignerOrgId": "416baaa9-dc9f-4396-8d5f-8c081fb06d67",
"assignerShortName": "Linux",
"cveId": "CVE-2026-98959",
"datePublished": "2026-10-23T12:19:27.679Z",
"dateReserved": "2026-09-25T10:25:14.382Z",
"dateUpdated": "2026-10-24T14:09:39.735Z",
"state": "PUBLISHED"
},
"dataType": "CVE_RECORD",
"dataVersion": "5.2"
}
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Sightings
| Author | Source | Type | Date |
|---|
Nomenclature
- Seen: The vulnerability was mentioned, discussed, or seen somewhere by the user.
- Confirmed: The vulnerability is confirmed from an analyst perspective.
- Published Proof of Concept: A public proof of concept is available for this vulnerability.
- Exploited: This vulnerability was exploited and seen by the user reporting the sighting.
- Patched: This vulnerability was successfully patched by the user reporting the sighting.
- Not exploited: This vulnerability was not exploited or seen by the user reporting the sighting.
- Not confirmed: The user expresses doubt about the veracity of the vulnerability.
- Not patched: This vulnerability was not successfully patched by the user reporting the sighting.
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