Bug 2492371 (CVE-2026-53017)

Summary: CVE-2026-53017 kernel: f2fs: fix data loss caused by incorrect use of nat_entry flag
Product: [Other] Security Response Reporter: OSIDB Bzimport <bzimport>
Component: vulnerabilityAssignee: Product Security <prodsec-ir-bot>
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Version: unspecifiedCC: rhel-process-autobot, watson-tool-maintainers
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Hardware: All   
OS: Linux   
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A flaw was found in the Linux kernel's f2fs filesystem. This vulnerability can lead to data loss when a file synchronization (fsync) operation on a newly created file occurs at the same time as a checkpoint operation. The system incorrectly assumes that a checkpoint has completed, which can result in the loss of newly written file data.
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Description OSIDB Bzimport 2026-06-24 18:08:24 UTC
In the Linux kernel, the following vulnerability has been resolved:

f2fs: fix data loss caused by incorrect use of nat_entry flag

Data loss can occur when fsync is performed on a newly created file
(before any checkpoint has been written) concurrently with a checkpoint
operation. The scenario is as follows:

create & write & fsync 'file A'                 write checkpoint
- f2fs_do_sync_file // inline inode
 - f2fs_write_inode // inode folio is dirty
                                                - f2fs_write_checkpoint
                                                 - f2fs_flush_merged_writes
                                                 - f2fs_sync_node_pages
                                                 - f2fs_flush_nat_entries
 - f2fs_fsync_node_pages // no dirty node
 - f2fs_need_inode_block_update // return false
 SPO and lost 'file A'

f2fs_flush_nat_entries() sets the IS_CHECKPOINTED and HAS_LAST_FSYNC
flags for the nat_entry, but this does not mean that the checkpoint has
actually completed successfully. However, f2fs_need_inode_block_update()
checks these flags and incorrectly assumes that the checkpoint has
finished.

The root cause is that the semantics of IS_CHECKPOINTED and
HAS_LAST_FSYNC are only guaranteed after the checkpoint write fully
completes.

This patch modifies f2fs_need_inode_block_update() to acquire the
sbi->node_write lock before reading the nat_entry flags, ensuring that
once IS_CHECKPOINTED and HAS_LAST_FSYNC are observed to be set, the
checkpoint operation has already completed.

Comment 1 Mauro Matteo Cascella 2026-06-26 16:10:48 UTC
Upstream advisory:
https://lore.kernel.org/linux-cve-announce/2026062451-CVE-2026-53017-645d@gregkh/T