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Linux Kernel XFS EUVDEUVD-2026-27719

| CVE-2026-43158 HIGH
Out-of-bounds Write (CWE-787)
2026-05-06 Linux GHSA-j4pf-wvpf-rv38
8.8
CVSS 3.1 · NVD
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Severity by source

NVD PRIMARY
8.8 HIGH
AV:N/AC:L/PR:L/UI:N/S:U/C:H/I:H/A:H
SUSE
HIGH
qualitative
Red Hat
7.0 HIGH
qualitative

Primary rating from NVD.

CVSS VectorNVD

CVSS:3.1/AV:N/AC:L/PR:L/UI:N/S:U/C:H/I:H/A:H
Attack Vector
Network
Attack Complexity
Low
Privileges Required
Low
User Interaction
None
Scope
Unchanged
Confidentiality
High
Integrity
High
Availability
High

Lifecycle Timeline

4
Analysis Generated
May 08, 2026 - 13:32 vuln.today
CVSS changed
May 08, 2026 - 13:22 NVD
8.8 (HIGH)
Patch available
May 06, 2026 - 13:32 EUVD
CVE Published
May 06, 2026 - 11:27 nvd
HIGH 8.8

DescriptionCVE.org

In the Linux kernel, the following vulnerability has been resolved:

xfs: fix freemap adjustments when adding xattrs to leaf blocks

xfs/592 and xfs/794 both trip this assertion in the leaf block freemap adjustment code after ~20 minutes of running on my test VMs:

ASSERT(ichdr->firstused >= ichdr->count * sizeof(xfs_attr_leaf_entry_t) + xfs_attr3_leaf_hdr_size(leaf));

Upon enabling quite a lot more debugging code, I narrowed this down to fsstress trying to set a local extended attribute with namelen=3 and valuelen=71. This results in an entry size of 80 bytes.

At the start of xfs_attr3_leaf_add_work, the freemap looks like this:

i 0 base 448 size 0 rhs 448 count 46 i 1 base 388 size 132 rhs 448 count 46 i 2 base 2120 size 4 rhs 448 count 46 firstused = 520

where "rhs" is the first byte past the end of the leaf entry array. This is inconsistent -- the entries array ends at byte 448, but freemap[1] says there's free space starting at byte 388!

By the end of the function, the freemap is in worse shape:

i 0 base 456 size 0 rhs 456 count 47 i 1 base 388 size 52 rhs 456 count 47 i 2 base 2120 size 4 rhs 456 count 47 firstused = 440

Important note: 388 is not aligned with the entries array element size of 8 bytes.

Based on the incorrect freemap, the name area starts at byte 440, which is below the end of the entries array! That's why the assertion triggers and the filesystem shuts down.

How did we end up here? First, recall from the previous patch that the freemap array in an xattr leaf block is not intended to be a comprehensive map of all free space in the leaf block. In other words, it's perfectly legal to have a leaf block with:

  • 376 bytes in use by the entries array
  • freemap[0] has [base = 376, size = 8]
  • freemap[1] has [base = 388, size = 1500]
  • the space between 376 and 388 is free, but the freemap stopped

tracking that some time ago

If we add one xattr, the entries array grows to 384 bytes, and freemap[0] becomes [base = 384, size = 0]. So far, so good. But if we add a second xattr, the entries array grows to 392 bytes, and freemap[0] gets pushed up to [base = 392, size = 0]. This is bad, because freemap[1] hasn't been updated, and now the entries array and the free space claim the same space.

The fix here is to adjust all freemap entries so that none of them collide with the entries array. Note that this fix relies on commit 2a2b5932db6758 ("xfs: fix attr leaf header freemap.size underflow") and the previous patch that resets zero length freemap entries to have base = 0.

AnalysisAI

Memory corruption in Linux kernel XFS filesystem allows authenticated users with write access to trigger kernel assertion failures and system shutdowns via crafted extended attribute operations. The vulnerability stems from incorrect freemap adjustment logic when adding xattrs to leaf blocks, causing the entries array and free space tracking to claim overlapping memory regions. This results in firstused pointer corruption where the name area starts below the end of the entries array. Vendor-released patches are available across multiple stable kernel branches (5.10.252, 5.15.202, 6.1.165, 6.6.128, 6.12.75, 6.18.16, 6.19.6, 7.0). Low EPSS score (0.02%, 7th percentile) and no CISA KEV listing indicate no widespread exploitation observed, though the high CVSS 8.8 reflects severe impact on availability and potential for data corruption in XFS filesystems.

Technical ContextAI

The vulnerability resides in the XFS filesystem's extended attribute (xattr) management code, specifically in the xfs_attr3_leaf_add_work function that handles adding attributes to leaf blocks. XFS maintains a freemap array to track available space in leaf blocks, but this freemap is not a comprehensive map of all free space. The bug occurs during freemap adjustment when the entries array grows: when adding xattrs that expand the entries array beyond the boundaries tracked by existing freemap entries, the code fails to adjust all freemap entries to prevent collisions. This creates a state where freemap[1] claims free space starting at an unaligned offset (e.g., byte 388) that overlaps with the expanded entries array. The freemap's base value becomes misaligned with the 8-byte entry size, causing the firstused pointer to be set below the entries array boundary. This violates the kernel's internal consistency checks (ASSERT statement) and can lead to memory corruption in the XFS metadata structures. The fix depends on commit 2a2b5932db6758 which addresses freemap.size underflow issues. Affected code paths are triggered by extended attribute operations with specific name/value length combinations (discovered via namelen=3, valuelen=71 producing 80-byte entries).

RemediationAI

Apply vendor-released patches immediately for systems running XFS filesystems. Upgrade to patched kernel versions: 5.10.252+, 5.15.202+, 6.1.165+, 6.6.128+, 6.12.75+, 6.18.16+, 6.19.6+, or 7.0+ depending on your stable branch. Patches available via standard distribution update mechanisms (apt, yum, dnf) or from upstream git.kernel.org stable trees (commits d08976725355, a396b3d73d51, ef42a8766ff3, 3eefc0c2b784, 24ce71852f2c, 43f3b1867961, 6a8737afbccc, 38613c01f69e). For systems that cannot immediately patch, consider temporary risk reduction by limiting extended attribute usage on XFS filesystems through filesystem mount options or SELinux/AppArmor policies that restrict setxattr operations to trusted processes only - note this may break applications relying on xattrs (ACLs, security labels, user attributes). Monitor kernel logs for XFS assertion failures or shutdowns. For containerized environments, restrict untrusted container access to XFS-backed volumes. No workaround fully mitigates the issue; patching is the definitive solution. Reboot required after kernel update to load patched code.

Vendor StatusVendor

SUSE

Severity: High
Product Status
SUSE Linux Enterprise Desktop 15 SP7 Fixed
SUSE Linux Enterprise Desktop 15 SP7 Fixed
SUSE Linux Enterprise High Availability Extension 15 SP7 Fixed
SUSE Linux Enterprise High Availability Extension 15 SP7 Fixed
SUSE Linux Enterprise High Performance Computing 15 SP7 Fixed

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EUVD-2026-27719 vulnerability details – vuln.today

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