Re: [PATCH v5] ext4: validate EA inode i_nlink in ext4_xattr_inode_iget
Jan Kara <[email protected]> Tue, 28 Jul 2026 16:01:28 +0200
| Newsgroups | org.kernel.vger.linux-ext4,org.kernel.vger.linux-kernel |
|---|---|
| Message-ID | <vcplbpvf4tpxg5khdu7wwmxyqlo4tb7wji43yhbvfzjsdblumn@hooso27hekio> |
On Fri 24-07-26 18:02:55, Yun Zhou wrote: > Validate EA inode state in ext4_xattr_inode_iget() to reject corrupted > EA inodes early, before they trigger WARN_ONCE in > ext4_xattr_inode_update_ref(). > > When a corrupted ext4 image has an EA inode with inconsistent i_nlink > and ref_count values (e.g. i_nlink=65535), the code currently allows it > through and later hits WARN_ONCE when ref_count transitions cross the > 0/1 boundary. This is better handled as an early sanity check that > returns -EFSCORRUPTED, consistent with how ext4 treats other on-disk > corruption. > > Since ext4_xattr_inode_iget() resolves references from active xattr > entries, the target EA inode must be in active state (i_nlink=1, > ref_count>0). Reject any inode that does not satisfy this. > > Reported-by: [email protected] > Closes: https://syzkaller.appspot.com/bug?extid=76916a45d2294b551fd9 > Fixes: dec214d00e0d ("ext4: xattr inode deduplication") > Signed-off-by: Yun Zhou <[email protected]> Looks good. Feel free to add: Reviewed-by: Jan Kara <[email protected]> Honza > --- > v5: > - Use ext4_put_ea_inode() instead of make_bad_inode() + iput() to > safely release the rejected inode regardless of jbd2 handle or > SB_ACTIVE state. > > v4: > - Take I_MUTEX_XATTR before checking orphan state to safely decide > whether to call make_bad_inode(), avoiding orphan list corruption > if another thread is concurrently freeing the EA inode > > v3: > - Move check after Lustre branch to avoid false positives on Lustre EA inodes > - Merge into single condition: i_nlink != 1 || !ref_count > - Add make_bad_inode() before iput() to avoid truncation in active txn > > v2: > - Add ref_count validation to also catch i_nlink=1, ref_count=0 case > > fs/ext4/xattr.c | 15 +++++++++++++++ > 1 file changed, 15 insertions(+) > > diff --git a/fs/ext4/xattr.c b/fs/ext4/xattr.c > index 4ae6ce111566..1eee25955107 100644 > --- a/fs/ext4/xattr.c > +++ b/fs/ext4/xattr.c > @@ -460,6 +460,21 @@ static int ext4_xattr_inode_iget(struct inode *parent, unsigned long ea_ino, > inode_unlock(inode); > } > > + /* > + * Since this function resolves references from active xattr entries, > + * the EA inode must be in active state (i_nlink=1, ref_count>0). > + * i_nlink > 1, i_nlink == 0 (dangling reference), or ref_count == 0 > + * (inconsistent with an active entry) all indicate on-disk corruption. > + */ > + if (inode->i_nlink != 1 || !ext4_xattr_inode_get_ref(inode)) { > + ext4_error(parent->i_sb, > + "EA inode %lu has unexpected i_nlink=%u ref_count=%llu", > + ea_ino, inode->i_nlink, > + ext4_xattr_inode_get_ref(inode)); > + ext4_put_ea_inode(inode); > + return -EFSCORRUPTED; > + } > + > *ea_inode = inode; > return 0; > } > -- > 2.43.0 > -- Jan Kara <[email protected]> SUSE Labs, CR