kernfs: Relax constraint in draining guard
Key facts
- Attack vector
- Local
- Privileges required
- Low
- User interaction
- None
- Attack complexity
- Low
- Impact type
- —
- 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.
Summary
In the Linux kernel, the following vulnerability has been resolved: kernfs: Relax constraint in draining guard The active reference lifecycle provides the break/unbreak mechanism but the active reference is not truly active after unbreak -- callers don't use it afterwards but it's important for proper pairing of kn->active counting. Assuming this mechanism is in place, the WARN check in kernfs_should_drain_open_files() is too sensitive -- it may transiently catch those (rightful) callers between kernfs_unbreak_active_protection() and kernfs_put_active() as found out by Chen Ridong: kernfs_remove_by_name_ns kernfs_get_active // active=1 __kernfs_remove // active=0x80000002 kernfs_drain ... wait_event //waiting (active == 0x80000001) kernfs_break_active_protection // active = 0x80000001 // continue kernfs_unbreak_active_protection // active = 0x80000002 ... kernfs_should_drain_open_files // warning occurs kernfs_put_active To avoid the false positives (mind panic_on_warn) remove the check altogether. (This is meant as quick fix, I think active reference break/unbreak may be simplified with larger rework.)
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 | 6.1 and later | 6.1.142, 6.6.94, 6.12.34, 6.15.3, 6.16 | Patch available | CNA |
- Linux VendorLinux Affected 6.1 and later Fixed in 6.1.142, 6.6.94, 6.12.34, 6.15.3, 6.16 Patch available CNA
Remediation
- Fix · CNA Linux (Linux) Fixed in 6.1.142, 6.6.94, 6.12.34, 6.15.3, 6.16
Vendor assessments
Red Hat
Red Hat rating: Moderate. Red Hat's page for this CVE →
| Product | Status | Plan or fix |
|---|---|---|
| Red Hat Enterprise Linux 10 | Affected | No fix yet: Fix deferred |
| Red Hat Enterprise Linux 9 | Affected | No fix yet: Fix deferred |
Not affected: 4 products
- Red Hat Enterprise Linux 6
- Red Hat Enterprise Linux 7
- Red Hat Enterprise Linux 8
- Red Hat Enterprise Linux 9
Timeline
- 2026-10-02 Threatist record created from CVE-2025-38282
- 2026-10-03 Alias added: GHSA-546w-ffx9-gj3g
- 2026-10-29 Affected versions changed · Red Hat
- 2026-11-05 CISA SSVC decision points changed
References
Patch 5
- https://git.kernel.org/stable/c/2d6a67c2b3b87808a347dc1047b520a9dd177a4f
- https://git.kernel.org/stable/c/6c81f1c7812c61f187bed1b938f1d2e391d503ab
- https://git.kernel.org/stable/c/6bfb154f95d5f0ab7ed056f23aba8c1a94cb3927
- https://git.kernel.org/stable/c/72275c888f8962b406ee9c6885c79bf68cca5a63
- https://git.kernel.org/stable/c/071d8e4c2a3b0999a9b822e2eb8854784a350f8a
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-2025-38282 · CVE Program
- CVE-2025-38282 · NVD
- FIRST EPSS
- GHSA-546w-ffx9-gj3g · GitHub Advisory Database · CC BY 4.0
- CVE-2025-38282 · Red Hat security data · CC BY 4.0
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