Description
In the Linux kernel, the following vulnerability has been resolved:
btrfs: fix assertion of exclop condition when starting balance
Balance as exclusive state is compatible with paused balance and device
add, which makes some things more complicated. The assertion of valid
states when starting from paused balance needs to take into account two
more states, the combinations can be hit when there are several threads
racing to start balance and device add. This won't typically happen when
the commands are started from command line.
Scenario 1: With exclusive_operation state == BTRFS_EXCLOP_NONE.
Concurrently adding multiple devices to the same mount point and
btrfs_exclop_finish executed finishes before assertion in
btrfs_exclop_balance, exclusive_operation will changed to
BTRFS_EXCLOP_NONE state which lead to assertion failed:
fs_info->exclusive_operation == BTRFS_EXCLOP_BALANCE ||
fs_info->exclusive_operation == BTRFS_EXCLOP_DEV_ADD,
in fs/btrfs/ioctl.c:456
Call Trace:
<TASK>
btrfs_exclop_balance+0x13c/0x310
? memdup_user+0xab/0xc0
? PTR_ERR+0x17/0x20
btrfs_ioctl_add_dev+0x2ee/0x320
btrfs_ioctl+0x9d5/0x10d0
? btrfs_ioctl_encoded_write+0xb80/0xb80
__x64_sys_ioctl+0x197/0x210
do_syscall_64+0x3c/0xb0
entry_SYSCALL_64_after_hwframe+0x63/0xcd
Scenario 2: With exclusive_operation state == BTRFS_EXCLOP_BALANCE_PAUSED.
Concurrently adding multiple devices to the same mount point and
btrfs_exclop_balance executed finish before the latter thread execute
assertion in btrfs_exclop_balance, exclusive_operation will changed to
BTRFS_EXCLOP_BALANCE_PAUSED state which lead to assertion failed:
fs_info->exclusive_operation == BTRFS_EXCLOP_BALANCE ||
fs_info->exclusive_operation == BTRFS_EXCLOP_DEV_ADD ||
fs_info->exclusive_operation == BTRFS_EXCLOP_NONE,
fs/btrfs/ioctl.c:458
Call Trace:
<TASK>
btrfs_exclop_balance+0x240/0x410
? memdup_user+0xab/0xc0
? PTR_ERR+0x17/0x20
btrfs_ioctl_add_dev+0x2ee/0x320
btrfs_ioctl+0x9d5/0x10d0
? btrfs_ioctl_encoded_write+0xb80/0xb80
__x64_sys_ioctl+0x197/0x210
do_syscall_64+0x3c/0xb0
entry_SYSCALL_64_after_hwframe+0x63/0xcd
An example of the failed assertion is below, which shows that the
paused balance is also needed to be checked.
root@syzkaller:/home/xsk# ./repro
Failed to add device /dev/vda, errno 14
Failed to add device /dev/vda, errno 14
Failed to add device /dev/vda, errno 14
Failed to add device /dev/vda, errno 14
Failed to add device /dev/vda, errno 14
Failed to add device /dev/vda, errno 14
Failed to add device /dev/vda, errno 14
Failed to add device /dev/vda, errno 14
Failed to add device /dev/vda, errno 14
[ 416.611428][ T7970] BTRFS info (device loop0): fs_info exclusive_operation: 0
Failed to add device /dev/vda, errno 14
[ 416.613973][ T7971] BTRFS info (device loop0): fs_info exclusive_operation: 3
Failed to add device /dev/vda, errno 14
[ 416.615456][ T7972] BTRFS info (device loop0): fs_info exclusive_operation: 3
Failed to add device /dev/vda, errno 14
[ 416.617528][ T7973] BTRFS info (device loop0): fs_info exclusive_operation: 3
Failed to add device /dev/vda, errno 14
[ 416.618359][ T7974] BTRFS info (device loop0): fs_info exclusive_operation: 3
Failed to add device /dev/vda, errno 14
[ 416.622589][ T7975] BTRFS info (device loop0): fs_info exclusive_operation: 3
Failed to add device /dev/vda, errno 14
[ 416.624034][ T7976] BTRFS info (device loop0): fs_info exclusive_operation: 3
Failed to add device /dev/vda, errno 14
[ 416.626420][ T7977] BTRFS info (device loop0): fs_info exclusive_operation: 3
Failed to add device /dev/vda, errno 14
[ 416.627643][ T7978] BTRFS info (device loop0): fs_info exclusive_operation: 3
Failed to add device /dev/vda, errno 14
[ 416.629006][ T7979] BTRFS info (device loop0): fs_info exclusive_operation: 3
[ 416.630298][ T7980] BTRFS info (device loop0): fs_info exclusive_operation: 3
Fai
---truncated---
Affected products
| Vendor | Product | Affected | Fixed |
|---|---|---|---|
| Linux | Linux | 5.17 | 6.1.29 |
Fixed in Linux distributions
Distributions backport fixes, so the version that fixes this vulnerability differs per release — upgrade to at least the version shown. From the distributions' security trackers and advisories.
Debian
Security tracker ↗| Release | Package | Fixed in | Advisory |
|---|---|---|---|
| Debian 14 | linux | 6.3.7-1 | — |
| Debian 13 | linux | 6.3.7-1 | — |
| Debian 12 | linux | 6.1.37-1 | — |
Ubuntu
Security tracker ↗| Release | Package | Fixed in | Advisory |
|---|---|---|---|
| Ubuntu 24.04 LTS | linux-riscv +10 | No fix yet | — |
| Ubuntu 22.04 LTS | linux-riscv +32 | No fix yet | — |
| Ubuntu 20.04 LTS | linux-gke +28 | No fix yet | — |
| Ubuntu 18.04 LTS | linux-gcp +14 | No fix yet | — |
| Ubuntu 16.04 LTS | linux-hwe-edge | No fix yet | — |
Amazon Linux
| Release | Package | Fixed in | Advisory |
|---|---|---|---|
| Amazon Linux 2023 | kernel-livepatch-6.1.29-47.49 | 1.0-0.amzn2023 | ALAS2023-2023-184 |
| Amazon Linux 2023 | perf +12 | 6.1.29-47.49.amzn2023 | ALAS2023-2023-184 |
Advisories 2
- WID-SEC-2025-2920 Linux Kernel: Mehrere Schwachstellen BSI CERT-Bund (WID) · Nov 12, 2026
- ALAS2023-2023-184 Important: kernel security update (Amazon Linux 2023) Amazon Linux Security Center (ALAS) · Feb 11, 2026