CVE-2026-89618: eventfs: Initialize ei->children and ei->list in init_ei()
In the Linux kernel, the following vulnerability has been resolved:
eventfs: Initialize ei->children and ei->list in initei()
eventfscreatedir() allocates the eventfsinode and initializes it with initei(). But this does not initialize the eventfsinode listheads. If the eventfscreatedir() fails due to memory pressure, it will call freeei() before it initialized the lists, and that checks to make sure the eventfsinode has no children. But because the list wasn't initialized, it will give a false warning.
Fix it by moving the list initialization into initei().
[ Rewrote change log ]
Affected Software
Remediation
Recommended actions to resolve this vulnerability, in priority order.
- Upgrade
Upgrade
Linux kernel eventfsto a version that resolves this vulnerability.Patch eventfs: Initialize ei->children and ei->list in init_ei()
Event History
Frequently Asked Questions
Under what condition can this occur?
It occurs when eventfs_create_dir() fails because of memory pressure after allocating an eventfs_inode, causing free_ei() to run before the inode list heads have been initialized.
What observable symptom indicates the issue?
free_ei() can emit a false warning while checking whether the eventfs_inode has children, because its list fields were not initialized.
What is the remediation?
Apply a Linux kernel update containing the eventfs change that initializes ei->children and ei->list in init_ei(). The provided references identify stable kernel commits containing the fix.