CVE-2026-89723: nilfs2: fix slab-out-of-bounds in nilfs_direct_propagate after truncation

Published Sep 11, 2026
·
Updated

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

nilfs2: fix slab-out-of-bounds in nilfsdirectpropagate after truncation

Shuangpeng Bai reported that KASAN detected a slab-out-of-bounds error in nilfsdirectpropagate() during testing.

Analysis revealed that after truncating a file, a node block immediately below the B-tree root was not deleted. Instead, it remained in the B-tree node cache in a dirty state. The log writer subsequently detected this block and incorrectly invoked nilfsdirectpropagate() on it, which is designed to handle only data blocks in direct mapping.

B-tree nodes in the cache are managed by virtual block numbers, and their logical keys typically exceed the range expected by direct mapping. Consequently, processing such a node as a direct mapping entry triggers a slab-out-of-bounds access.

The root cause is that when a B-tree mapping collapses into a direct mapping during truncation, an intermediate node block pointed to by the root node is left behind as garbage instead of being explicitly deleted.

This resolves the issue by adding a nilfsbtreediscard() operation to delete the remaining intermediate node block during the conversion. A 'deform' flag is added to the bopdelete interface to explicitly signal that the deletion is part of a mapping transformation. This allows the B-tree mapping implementation to perform the necessary cleanup and discarding of the residual node structure that would be otherwise be left orphaned after the transition.

Affected Software

1 affected component
Linux Kernel

Remediation

Recommended actions to resolve this vulnerability, in priority order.

  1. Upgrade

    Upgrade nilfs2 to a version that resolves this vulnerability.

    Patch nilfs2: fix slab-out-of-bounds in nilfs_direct_propagate after truncation
  2. Compensating control

    Ensure the nilfs2 B-tree mapping conversion after truncation explicitly deletes the residual intermediate node block left behind (i.e., that the deletion is part of the mapping transformation), instead of treating the node as a direct mapping block that is passed to nilfs_direct_propagate().

Event History

Sep 11, 2026
CVE Published
via MITRE·07:46 PM
Data Sourced
via MITRE·07:46 PM
Description

Frequently Asked Questions

1

Which systems are exposed to this issue?

Systems using the Linux kernel's NILFS2 filesystem are relevant. The fault is triggered when truncation causes a B-tree mapping to collapse into direct mapping while an intermediate B-tree node remains cached and dirty.

2

How can an affected condition be identified?

KASAN can detect the resulting slab-out-of-bounds access in nilfs_direct_propagate(). The condition involves a dirty intermediate B-tree node block remaining in the node cache after file truncation and later being processed by the log writer.

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