CVE-2025-21722·Kernel vulnerability
In the Linux kernel, the following vulnerability has been resolved: nilfs2: do not force clear folio if buffer is referenced Patch series "nilfs2: protect busy buffer heads from being force-cleared". This series fixes the buffer head state inconsistency issues reported by syzbot that occurs when the filesystem is corrupted and falls back to read-only, and the associated buffer head use-after-free issue. This patch (of 2): Syzbot has reported that after nilfs2 detects filesystem corruption and falls back to read-only, inconsistencies in the buffer state may occur. One of the inconsistencies is that when nilfs2 calls mark_buffer_dirty() to set a data or metadata buffer as dirty, but it detects that the buffer is not in the uptodate state: WARNING: CPU: 0 PID: 6049 at fs/buffer.c:1177 mark_buffer_dirty+0x2e5/0x520 fs/buffer.c:1177 ... Call Trace: <TASK> nilfs_palloc_commit_alloc_entry+0x4b/0x160 fs/nilfs2/alloc.c:598 nilfs_ifile_create_inode+0x1dd/0x3a0 fs/nilfs2/ifile.c:73 nilfs_new_inode+0x254/0x830 fs/nilfs2/inode.c:344 nilfs_mkdir+0x10d/0x340 fs/nilfs2/namei.c:218 vfs_mkdir+0x2f9/0x4f0 fs/namei.c:4257 do_mkdirat+0x264/0x3a0 fs/namei.c:4280 __do_sys_mkdirat fs/namei.c:4295 [inline] __se_sys_mkdirat fs/namei.c:4293 [inline] __x64_sys_mkdirat+0x87/0xa0 fs/namei.c:4293 do_syscall_x64 arch/x86/entry/common.c:52 [inline] do_syscall_64+0xf3/0x230 arch/x86/entry/common.c:83 entry_SYSCALL_64_after_hwframe+0x77/0x7f The other is when nilfs_btree_propagate(), which propagates the dirty state to the ancestor nodes of a b-tree that point to a dirty buffer, detects that the origin buffer is not dirty, even though it should be: WARNING: CPU: 0 PID: 5245 at fs/nilfs2/btree.c:2089 nilfs_btree_propagate+0xc79/0xdf0 fs/nilfs2/btree.c:2089 ... Call Trace: <TASK> nilfs_bmap_propagate+0x75/0x120 fs/nilfs2/bmap.c:345 nilfs_collect_file_data+0x4d/0xd0 fs/nilfs2/segment.c:587 nilfs_segctor_apply_buffers+0x184/0x340 fs/nilfs2/segment.c:1006 nilfs_segctor_scan_file+0x28c/0xa50 fs/nilfs2/segment.c:1045 nilfs_segctor_collect_blocks fs/nilfs2/segment.c:1216 [inline] nilfs_segctor_collect fs/nilfs2/segment.c:1540 [inline] nilfs_segctor_do_construct+0x1c28/0x6b90 fs/nilfs2/segment.c:2115 nilfs_segctor_construct+0x181/0x6b0 fs/nilfs2/segment.c:2479 nilfs_segctor_thread_construct fs/nilfs2/segment.c:2587 [inline] nilfs_segctor_thread+0x69e/0xe80 fs/nilfs2/segment.c:2701 kthread+0x2f0/0x390 kernel/kthread.c:389 ret_from_fork+0x4b/0x80 arch/x86/kernel/process.c:147 ret_from_fork_asm+0x1a/0x30 arch/x86/entry/entry_64.S:244 </TASK> Both of these issues are caused by the callbacks that handle the page/folio write requests, forcibly clear various states, including the working state of the buffers they hold, at unexpected times when they detect read-only fallback. Fix these issues by checking if the buffer is referenced before clearing the page/folio state, and skipping the clear if it is.
- Severity
- high
- Software
- Kernel
- Fixed in
- 6.13.2
- Published
- 2025-02-27
Affected versions
From: 6.13
Until: 6.13.2
Fixed in: 6.13.2
How to fix this CVE
Update your Linux kernel to version 6.13.2 or later to resolve this nilfs2 filesystem vulnerability that causes buffer state corruption during read-only fallback. Systems running kernel versions 6.13 through 6.13.1 should prioritize this update to prevent use-after-free conditions and filesystem consistency issues.
sudo dnf update kernel kernel-headers kernel-develDefensia detects this vulnerability
How to check if you are affected
- Step 1: Check your current kernel version with: uname -r
- Step 2: Verify if nilfs2 filesystem is in use with: mount | grep nilfs2 or lsblk -f | grep nilfs2
- Step 3: Search system logs for nilfs2 corruption warnings: grep -i 'nilfs2\|read-only\|filesystem' /var/log/kern.log /var/log/messages
- Step 4: Confirm kernel update by running uname -r again and verifying it shows 6.13.2 or later
FAQ
What is CVE-2025-21722?
CVE-2025-21722 is a kernel vulnerability in the nilfs2 filesystem driver where forced page/folio state clearing during read-only fallback causes buffer head state inconsistencies and potential use-after-free conditions, leading to filesystem corruption warnings.
Is CVE-2025-21722 being actively exploited?
No, CVE-2025-21722 is not currently being actively exploited in the wild according to CISA KEV data, and no public exploits are available.
What versions of Kernel are affected by CVE-2025-21722?
Kernel versions 6.13, 6.13.1, and 6.13.2-rc are affected. The vulnerability was patched starting with stable release 6.13.2.
How do I check if my server is vulnerable to CVE-2025-21722?
Run uname -r to display your kernel version; if it shows 6.13.0, 6.13.1, or earlier 6.13.x versions, and you use nilfs2 filesystems (check with mount | grep nilfs2), your system is vulnerable.
Does Defensia detect CVE-2025-21722?
Yes — Defensia's CVE advisory scanner compares installed package versions against the NVD database. If Kernel is installed on a monitored server, CVE-2025-21722 will appear in your dashboard with remediation steps.
Related Kernel CVEs
References
- https://git.kernel.org/stable/c/1098bb8d52419d262a3358d099a1598a920b730f
- https://git.kernel.org/stable/c/19296737024cd220a1d6590bf4c092bca8c99497
- https://git.kernel.org/stable/c/4d042811c72f71be7c14726db2c72b67025a7cb5
- https://git.kernel.org/stable/c/557ccf5e49f1fb848a29698585bcab2e50a597ef
- https://git.kernel.org/stable/c/7d0544bacc11d6aa26ecd7debf9353193c7a3328
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