sysv: don't call sb_bread() with pointers_lock held
Key facts
- Attack vector
- Network
- Privileges required
- None
- User interaction
- None
- Attack complexity
- Low
- Impact type
- —
- Confidentiality · integrity · availability
- None · None · Low
- Fix status
- Partial Red Hat: 1 without a fix
Attack profile from CVSS 3.1 · CISA ADP. Fix status from CNA and Red Hat.
Summary
In the Linux kernel, the following vulnerability has been resolved: sysv: don't call sb_bread() with pointers_lock held syzbot is reporting sleep in atomic context in SysV filesystem [1], for sb_bread() is called with rw_spinlock held. A "write_lock(&pointers_lock) => read_lock(&pointers_lock) deadlock" bug and a "sb_bread() with write_lock(&pointers_lock)" bug were introduced by "Replace BKL for chain locking with sysvfs-private rwlock" in Linux 2.5.12. Then, "[PATCH] err1-40: sysvfs locking fix" in Linux 2.6.8 fixed the former bug by moving pointers_lock lock to the callers, but instead introduced a "sb_bread() with read_lock(&pointers_lock)" bug (which made this problem easier to hit). Al Viro suggested that why not to do like get_branch()/get_block()/ find_shared() in Minix filesystem does. And doing like that is almost a revert of "[PATCH] err1-40: sysvfs locking fix" except that get_branch() from with find_shared() is called without write_lock(&pointers_lock).
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
| Vendor | Product | Affected versions | Fixed in | Status | Source |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Linux | Linux | 2.6.12 and later | 4.19.312, 5.4.274, 5.10.215, 5.15.155, 6.1.86, 6.6.27, 6.8.6, 6.9 | Patch available | CNA |
- Linux VendorLinux Affected 2.6.12 and later Fixed in 4.19.312, 5.4.274, 5.10.215, 5.15.155, 6.1.86, 6.6.27, 6.8.6, 6.9 Patch available CNA
CPE configurations NVD · 2
| CPE | Versions | Role | Vendor |
|---|---|---|---|
| cpe:2.3:o:linux:linux_kernel:*:*:*:*:*:*:*:* | before 4.19.312; 4.20 to before 5.4.274; 5.5 to before 5.10.215; 5.11 to before 5.15.155; 5.16 to before 6.1.86; 6.2 to before 6.6.27; 6.7 to before 6.8.6 | Vulnerable | Linux |
| cpe:2.3:o:debian:debian_linux:10.0:*:*:*:*:*:*:* | 10.0 | Vulnerable | Debian |
- cpe:2.3:o:linux:linux_kernel:*:*:*:*:*:*:*:* Versions before 4.19.312; 4.20 to before 5.4.274; 5.5 to before 5.10.215; 5.11 to before 5.15.155; 5.16 to before 6.1.86; 6.2 to before 6.6.27; 6.7 to before 6.8.6 Vulnerable ·Linux
- cpe:2.3:o:debian:debian_linux:10.0:*:*:*:*:*:*:* Versions 10.0 Vulnerable ·Debian
Remediation
- Fix · CNA Linux (Linux) Fixed in 4.19.312, 5.4.274, 5.10.215, 5.15.155, 6.1.86, 6.6.27, 6.8.6, 6.9
Vendor assessments
Red Hat
Red Hat rating: Moderate. 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 |
Not affected: 3 products
- Red Hat Enterprise Linux 7
- Red Hat Enterprise Linux 8
- Red Hat Enterprise Linux 9
Timeline
- 2026-10-02 Threatist record created from CVE-2023-52699
- 2026-10-03 Alias added: GHSA-29pq-gr25-8674
References
Patch 8
- https://git.kernel.org/stable/c/13b33feb2ebddc2b1aa607f553566b18a4af1d76
- https://git.kernel.org/stable/c/1b4fe801b5bedec2b622ddb18e5c9bf26c63d79f
- https://git.kernel.org/stable/c/674c1c4229e743070e09db63a23442950ff000d1
- https://git.kernel.org/stable/c/fd203d2c671bdee9ab77090ff394d3b71b627927
- https://git.kernel.org/stable/c/53cb1e52c9db618c08335984d1ca80db220ccf09
- https://git.kernel.org/stable/c/89e8524135a3902e7563a5a59b7b5ec1bf4904ac
- https://git.kernel.org/stable/c/a69224223746ab96d43e5db9d22d136827b7e2d3
- https://git.kernel.org/stable/c/f123dc86388cb669c3d6322702dc441abc35c31e
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Sources
- CVE-2023-52699 · CVE Program
- CVE-2023-52699 · NVD
- FIRST EPSS
- GHSA-29pq-gr25-8674 · GitHub Advisory Database · CC BY 4.0
- CVE-2023-52699 · Red Hat security data · CC BY 4.0
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