UBUNTU-CVE-2026-98269: Medium severity ubuntu/linux vulnerability
In the Linux kernel, the following vulnerability has been resolved: btrfs: abort transaction on failure to update inode for hole punching and reflinking If we fail to update the inode we error out without aborting the transaction, which can result in a persistent inconsistency if after the failure the transaction is committed, as we have dropped file extent items from a range and either punched a hole or insert a new file extent item for that range (for reflinks). So add the missing transaction abort.
Affected Software
Remediation
Recommended actions to resolve this vulnerability, in priority order.
- Upgrade
Upgrade
ubuntu/linux-hwe-7.0to a version that resolves this vulnerability.Fixed in 7.0.0-42.42~24.04.1 - Upgrade
Upgrade
ubuntu/linux-riscv-7.0to a version that resolves this vulnerability.Fixed in 7.0.0-42.42.1~24.04.1 - Upgrade
Upgrade
ubuntu/linuxto a version that resolves this vulnerability.Fixed in 7.0.0-42.42 - Upgrade
Upgrade
ubuntu/linux-awsto a version that resolves this vulnerability.Fixed in 7.0.0-1016.17 - Upgrade
Upgrade
ubuntu/linux-gcpto a version that resolves this vulnerability.Fixed in 7.0.0-1016.18 - Upgrade
Upgrade
ubuntu/linux-ibmto a version that resolves this vulnerability.Fixed in 7.0.0-1017.17 - Upgrade
Upgrade
ubuntu/linux-oem-7.0to a version that resolves this vulnerability.Fixed in 7.0.0-1017.17 - Upgrade
Upgrade
ubuntu/linux-oracleto a version that resolves this vulnerability.Fixed in 7.0.0-1015.16 - Upgrade
Upgrade
ubuntu/linux-riscvto a version that resolves this vulnerability.Fixed in 7.0.0-42.42.1
Event History
Frequently Asked Questions
Who is exposed to this issue?
Systems running one of the listed Ubuntu kernel packages are potentially exposed when they use the Btrfs filesystem and perform hole-punching or reflink operations. Exploitation requires local access with low privileges and a precondition reflected in the CVSS vector.
What must occur for the filesystem inconsistency to happen?
An inode update must fail during a hole-punch or reflink operation. If the transaction is then committed without being aborted, dropped file extent items can leave persistent Btrfs metadata inconsistency.
What is the impact?
The issue affects integrity and availability: a committed transaction after the failure can create a persistent filesystem inconsistency. The supplied CVSS vector indicates no confidentiality impact.
What mitigation is available if an updated kernel cannot be deployed immediately?
The provided information does not identify a configuration-only mitigation. Reducing or avoiding hole-punching and reflink operations on affected Btrfs filesystems may avoid the described failure path.