CVE-2022-48733: btrfs: fix use-after-free after failure to create a snapshot

Published Jun 20, 2024
·
Updated

In the Linux kernel, the following vulnerability has been resolved:

btrfs: fix use-after-free after failure to create a snapshot

At ioctl.c:createsnapshot(), we allocate a pending snapshot structure and then attach it to the transaction's list of pending snapshots. After that we call btrfscommittransaction(), and if that returns an error we jump to 'fail' label, where we kfree() the pending snapshot structure. This can result in a later use-after-free of the pending snapshot:

1) We allocated the pending snapshot and added it to the transaction's list of pending snapshots;

2) We call btrfscommittransaction(), and it fails either at the first call to btrfsrundelayedrefs() or btrfsstartdirtyblockgroups(). In both cases, we don't abort the transaction and we release our transaction handle. We jump to the 'fail' label and free the pending snapshot structure. We return with the pending snapshot still in the transaction's list;

3) Another task commits the transaction. This time there's no error at all, and then during the transaction commit it accesses a pointer to the pending snapshot structure that the snapshot creation task has already freed, resulting in a user-after-free.

This issue could actually be detected by smatch, which produced the following warning:

fs/btrfs/ioctl.c:843 createsnapshot() warn: '&pendingsnapshot->list' not removed from list

So fix this by not having the snapshot creation ioctl directly add the pending snapshot to the transaction's list. Instead add the pending snapshot to the transaction handle, and then at btrfscommittransaction() we add the snapshot to the list only when we can guarantee that any error returned after that point will result in a transaction abort, in which case the ioctl code can safely free the pending snapshot and no one can access it anymore.

Affected Software

7 affected componentsFixes available
Linux Linux kernel<5.15.22
Linux Linux kernel>=5.16<5.16.8
debian/linux<=5.10.223-1
5.10.234-16.1.129-16.1.135-16.12.25-16.12.27-1
Linux Linux kernel<5.10.226
Linux Linux kernel>=5.11<5.15.22
Linux Linux kernel=5.17-rc1
Linux Linux kernel=5.17-rc2

Remediation

Recommended actions to resolve this vulnerability, in priority order.

  1. Upgrade

    Upgrade debian/linux to a version that resolves this vulnerability.

    Fixed in 5.10.234-1Fixed in 6.1.129-1Fixed in 6.1.135-1Fixed in 6.12.25-1Fixed in 6.12.27-1

Event History

Jun 20, 2024
CVE Published
via MITRE·11:13 AM
Data Sourced
via MITRE·11:13 AM
DescriptionSeverity
Data Sourced
via NVD·12:15 PM
RemedyDescriptionSeverityWeaknessAffected Software
Nov 24, 2024
Data Sourced
via Launchpad·12:23 AM
Description
Apr 30, 2025
Data Sourced
via Ubuntu·11:50 PM
RemedyDescriptionSeverityAffected Software

Frequently Asked Questions

1

What is the severity of CVE-2022-48733?

CVE-2022-48733 has been classified with a high severity due to its use-after-free vulnerability in the Linux kernel.

2

How do I fix CVE-2022-48733?

To fix CVE-2022-48733, upgrade to kernel versions 5.15.22 or greater, or install one of the patched versions such as 5.10.226-1 or 6.1.128-1.

3

Which versions of the Linux kernel are affected by CVE-2022-48733?

CVE-2022-48733 affects Linux kernel versions prior to 5.16.8 and between 5.15.22 and 5.16.

4

Is there a specific patch for CVE-2022-48733?

Yes, the patch for CVE-2022-48733 is included in subsequent kernel releases following 5.15.22.

5

What are the potential impacts of CVE-2022-48733?

The potential impacts of CVE-2022-48733 include susceptibility to denial of service and exploitation that could lead to arbitrary code execution.

Contact

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