btrfs: fix memory leak in __add_inode_ref()
Key facts
- Attack vector
- Local
- Privileges required
- Low
- User interaction
- None
- Attack complexity
- Low
- Impact type
- Denial of service
- Confidentiality · integrity · availability
- None · None · High
- Fix status
- Partial Red Hat: 2 without a fix
Attack profile from CVSS 3.1 · NVD. Fix status from CNA and Red Hat. Impact type from CWE-401.
Summary
In the Linux kernel, the following vulnerability has been resolved: btrfs: fix memory leak in __add_inode_ref() Line 1169 (#3) allocates a memory chunk for victim_name by kmalloc(), but when the function returns in line 1184 (#4) victim_name allocated by line 1169 (#3) is not freed, which will lead to a memory leak. There is a similar snippet of code in this function as allocating a memory chunk for victim_name in line 1104 (#1) as well as releasing the memory in line 1116 (#2). We should kfree() victim_name when the return value of backref_in_log() is less than zero and before the function returns in line 1184 (#4). 1057 static inline int __add_inode_ref(struct btrfs_trans_handle *trans, 1058 struct btrfs_root *root, 1059 struct btrfs_path *path, 1060 struct btrfs_root *log_root, 1061 struct btrfs_inode *dir, 1062 struct btrfs_inode *inode, 1063 u64 inode_objectid, u64 parent_objectid, 1064 u64 ref_index, char *name, int namelen, 1065 int *search_done) 1066 { 1104 victim_name = kmalloc(victim_name_len, GFP_NOFS); // #1: kmalloc (victim_name-1) 1105 if (!victim_name) 1106 return -ENOMEM; 1112 ret = backref_in_log(log_root, &search_key, 1113 parent_objectid, victim_name, 1114 victim_name_len); 1115 if (ret < 0) { 1116 kfree(victim_name); // #2: kfree (victim_name-1) 1117 return ret; 1118 } else if (!ret) { 1169 victim_name = kmalloc(victim_name_len, GFP_NOFS); // #3: kmalloc (victim_name-2) 1170 if (!victim_name) 1171 return -ENOMEM; 1180 ret = backref_in_log(log_root, &search_key, 1181 parent_objectid, victim_name, 1182 victim_name_len); 1183 if (ret < 0) { 1184 return ret; // #4: missing kfree (victim_name-2) 1185 } else if (!ret) { 1241 return 0; 1242 }
Why it matters now
SSVC decision points
CISA ADP · SSVC 2.0.3
- Exploitation
- None
- Automatable
- No
- Technical impact
- Partial
The decision (Track, Attend, Act) also depends on your mission and well-being impact; see CISA's SSVC guide.
Affected products
Remediation
- Fix · CNA Linux (Linux) Fixed in 5.10.88, 5.15.11, 5.16
Vendor assessments
Red Hat
Red Hat rating: Low. Red Hat's page for this CVE →
| Product | Status | Plan or fix |
|---|---|---|
| Red Hat Enterprise Linux 6 | Affected | No fix planned: Out of support scope |
| Red Hat Enterprise Linux 7 | Affected | No fix planned: Out of support scope |
Not affected: 2 products
- Red Hat Enterprise Linux 8
- Red Hat Enterprise Linux 9
Timeline
- 2026-10-02 Threatist record created from CVE-2021-47585
- 2026-10-03 Alias added: GHSA-5mvf-mw2h-9f35
References
More Linux Kernel vulnerabilities
- TI-2025-26358 tls: fix handling of zero-length records on the rx_list KEVCVSS 3.1CRITICAL 9.8
- TI-2026-38352 netfilter: bridge: make ebt_snat ARP rewrite writable KEVCVSS 3.1HIGH 8.8
- TI-2013-05264 The (1) get_user and (2) put_user API functions in the Linux kernel before 3.5.5 on the… KEVCVSS 3.1HIGH 8.8
- TI-2022-00125 Integer overflow in kernel KEVCVSS 3.1HIGH 8.4
- TI-2013-01864 The perf_swevent_init function in kernel/events/core.c in the Linux kernel before 3.8.9… KEVCVSS 3.1HIGH 8.4
- TI-2021-05514 Heap Out-Of-Bounds Write in Netfilter IP6T_SO_SET_REPLACE KEVCVSS 3.1HIGH 8.3
Sources
- CVE-2021-47585 · CVE Program
- CVE-2021-47585 · NVD
- FIRST EPSS
- GHSA-5mvf-mw2h-9f35 · GitHub Advisory Database · CC BY 4.0
- CVE-2021-47585 · Red Hat security data · CC BY 4.0
This product uses the NVD API but is not endorsed or certified by the NVD. Sources and licences