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TI-2023-30097 Aliases CVE-2023-53813GHSA-q9qx-6p6c-fw88

ext4: fix rbtree traversal bug in ext4_mb_use_preallocated

Priority LOW 22Published · Updated

Key facts

Attack vector
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Privileges required
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User interaction
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Attack complexity
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Impact type
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Confidentiality · integrity · availability
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Fix status
Partial Red Hat: 5 fixed, 2 without a fix

No CVSS vector from any source. Fix status from CNA and Red Hat.

Summary

In the Linux kernel, the following vulnerability has been resolved: ext4: fix rbtree traversal bug in ext4_mb_use_preallocated During allocations, while looking for preallocations(PA) in the per inode rbtree, we can't do a direct traversal of the tree because ext4_mb_discard_group_preallocation() can paralelly mark the pa deleted and that can cause direct traversal to skip some entries. This was leading to a BUG_ON() being hit [1] when we missed a PA that could satisfy our request and ultimately tried to create a new PA that would overlap with the missed one. To makes sure we handle that case while still keeping the performance of the rbtree, we make use of the fact that the only pa that could possibly overlap the original goal start is the one that satisfies the below conditions: 1. It must have it's logical start immediately to the left of (ie less than) original logical start. 2. It must not be deleted To find this pa we use the following traversal method: 1. Descend into the rbtree normally to find the immediate neighboring PA. Here we keep descending irrespective of if the PA is deleted or if it overlaps with our request etc. The goal is to find an immediately adjacent PA. 2. If the found PA is on right of original goal, use rb_prev() to find the left adjacent PA. 3. Check if this PA is deleted and keep moving left with rb_prev() until a non deleted PA is found. 4. This is the PA we are looking for. Now we can check if it can satisfy the original request and proceed accordingly. This approach also takes care of having deleted PAs in the tree. (While we are at it, also fix a possible overflow bug in calculating the end of a PA) [1] https://lore.kernel.org/linux-ext4/CA+G9fYv2FRpLqBZf34ZinR8bU2_ZRAUOjKAD3+tKRFaEQHtt8Q@mail.gmail.com/

Why it matters now

EPSS 0.00191 8th percentileScored 2026-11-07
Fix Partial Linux (Linux): 6.4.8, 6.5Red Hat: 1 advisoryRed Hat: 5 fixed, 2 without a fix

SSVC decision points

Not available: CISA has not published SSVC decision points for this record.

Affected products

VendorProductAffected versionsFixed inStatusSource
LinuxLinux6.4 and later6.4.8, 6.5Patch availableCNA
  • Linux VendorLinux Affected 6.4 and later Fixed in 6.4.8, 6.5 Patch available CNA

CPE names Threatist (inferred) · 1

Inferred from how NVD named this product before; not given by a source.

CPEVersionsRoleVendor
cpe:2.3:o:linux:linux_kernel:*:*:*:*:*:*:*:*——Linux
  • cpe:2.3:o:linux:linux_kernel:*:*:*:*:*:*:*:* Versions — — ·Linux

Remediation

  • Fix · CNA Linux (Linux) Fixed in 6.4.8, 6.5

Red Hat 1 advisory

  • RHSA-2024:2394 Released 2024-04-30 · Red Hat rating Important
    kernel security, bug fix, and enhancement update
    • Red Hat Enterprise Linux AppStream (v. 9) kernel-64k-debug-devel-5.14.0-427.13.1.el9_4, kernel-64k-debug-devel-matched-5.14.0-427.13.1.el9_4, kernel-64k-devel-5.14.0-427.13.1.el9_4 +11
    • Red Hat Enterprise Linux BaseOS (v. 9) bpftool-7.3.0-427.13.1.el9_4, kernel-5.14.0-427.13.1.el9_4, kernel-64k-5.14.0-427.13.1.el9_4 +29
    • Red Hat Enterprise Linux CRB (v. 9) kernel-tools-libs-devel-5.14.0-427.13.1.el9_4, libperf-5.14.0-427.13.1.el9_4
    • Red Hat Enterprise Linux NFV (v. 9) kernel-rt-5.14.0-427.13.1.el9_4, kernel-rt-core-5.14.0-427.13.1.el9_4, kernel-rt-debug-5.14.0-427.13.1.el9_4 +11
    • Red Hat Enterprise Linux RT (v. 9) kernel-rt-5.14.0-427.13.1.el9_4, kernel-rt-core-5.14.0-427.13.1.el9_4, kernel-rt-debug-5.14.0-427.13.1.el9_4 +9

Vendor assessments

Red Hat

Red Hat rating: Moderate. Red Hat's page for this CVE →

ProductStatusPlan or fix
Red Hat Enterprise Linux 6AffectedNo fix planned: Out of support scope
Red Hat Enterprise Linux 9AffectedNo fix yet
Red Hat Enterprise Linux AppStream (v. 9)Fixed RHSA-2024:2394
Red Hat Enterprise Linux BaseOS (v. 9)Fixed RHSA-2024:2394
Red Hat Enterprise Linux CRB (v. 9)Fixed RHSA-2024:2394
Red Hat Enterprise Linux NFV (v. 9)Fixed RHSA-2024:2394
Red Hat Enterprise Linux RT (v. 9)Fixed RHSA-2024:2394
Not affected: 3 products
  • Red Hat Enterprise Linux 10
  • Red Hat Enterprise Linux 7
  • Red Hat Enterprise Linux 8

Timeline

  1. 2026-10-02 Threatist record created from CVE-2023-53813
  2. 2026-10-03 Alias added: GHSA-q9qx-6p6c-fw88

References

  • 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-2021-02452 Incorrect authorization in Ubuntu linux kernel 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
See all 21741 →

Sources