From: Kaixuan Li <kaixuanli0131@gmail.com>
To: "Theodore Ts'o" <tytso@mit.edu>,
Andreas Dilger <adilger.kernel@dilger.ca>
Cc: Baokun Li <libaokun@linux.alibaba.com>, Jan Kara <jack@suse.cz>,
Ojaswin Mujoo <ojaswin@linux.ibm.com>,
Ritesh Harjani <ritesh.list@gmail.com>,
Zhang Yi <yi.zhang@huawei.com>,
Kaixuan Li <kaixuanli0131@gmail.com>,
linux-ext4@vger.kernel.org, linux-kernel@vger.kernel.org
Subject: [PATCH] ext4: stop verify_reserved_gdb() one entry short of the block
Date: Sat, 19 Sep 2026 19:39:40 +0800 [thread overview]
Message-ID: <20260919113940.1823559-1-kaixuanli0131@gmail.com> (raw)
verify_reserved_gdb() walks the backup group list, reading one __le32 from
the reserved GDT block per iteration, and bounds the walk after the read:
if (le32_to_cpu(*p++) !=
grp * EXT4_BLOCKS_PER_GROUP(sb) + blk){
...
return -EINVAL;
}
if (++gdbackups > EXT4_ADDR_PER_BLOCK(sb))
return -EFBIG;
The block holds exactly EXT4_ADDR_PER_BLOCK(sb) entries, so when gdbackups
reaches that value the test is false, the loop runs once more, and *p++
reads one entry past the block before -EFBIG is returned. The same value is
also the largest gdbackups the function can return, and
reserve_backup_gdb() then uses it as an index into a block of exactly that
many entries:
data = (__le32 *)primary[i]->b_data;
data[gdbackups] = cpu_to_le32(blk + primary[i]->b_blocknr);
which writes one entry past. Comparing with >= stops the walk before the
read and caps the return value one lower, which closes both.
The walk enumerates the groups ext4_list_backups() produces -- the powers
of 3, 5 and 7 below the group being added -- so EXT4_ADDR_PER_BLOCK of
them, 256 at a 1K block size and 1024 at 4K, cannot occur within a 32-bit
group number. The entry the old bound went on to read was therefore never a
real backup.
Signed-off-by: Kaixuan Li <kaixuanli0131@gmail.com>
---
Reproduced on v7.2.4 x86_64 with KASAN enabled, and on v6.12.9 before that.
Three images, one reproducer, the resize target passed on the kernel
command line:
case stock patched
A plain, 8 -> 32 groups 0, 65537 -> 262145 0, 65537 -> 262145
B group 257 (APB + 1) 0, 2105345 -> 2113537 -EFBIG, no growth
C ^sparse_super walk -EINVAL -EFBIG
(APB is EXT4_ADDR_PER_BLOCK, 256 at the 1K block size used here.)
B is the write, and the thing to notice is that the resize SUCCEEDS on the
stock kernel -- this is not an operation that aborts after the access:
BUG: KASAN: slab-use-after-free in ext4_flex_group_add+0x50f0/0x5680
C is the read:
BUG: KASAN: slab-use-after-free in verify_reserved_gdb.isra.0+0x270/0x290
A is the control that matters for a one-character change: an ordinary
online resize goes through reserve_backup_gdb() -> verify_reserved_gdb()
and is unchanged by the patch, same return value and same resulting block
count.
Building B needs the group being added to be exactly EXT4_ADDR_PER_BLOCK+1:
below that the index is in bounds, above it the read defect trips -EFBIG
first and the call aborts before the write. At a 1K block size that is
group 257, so the image is built with groups 0..256 already present and the
resize adds only 257. sparse_super is cleared with debugfs so the walk runs
end-1 times rather than skipping most groups.
Mounting a crafted image is not a Linux kernel vulnerability
(Documentation/process/threat-model.rst), and I am not reporting it as one.
I have not attached a Fixes: tag: the bound reads the same in v2.6.32, so
it predates the git history I can bisect over.
---
fs/ext4/resize.c | 2 +-
1 file changed, 1 insertion(+), 1 deletion(-)
--- a/fs/ext4/resize.c
+++ b/fs/ext4/resize.c
@@ -794,11 +794,11 @@ static int verify_reserved_gdb(struct super_block *sb,
grp *
(ext4_fsblk_t)EXT4_BLOCKS_PER_GROUP(sb) +
blk);
return -EINVAL;
}
- if (++gdbackups > EXT4_ADDR_PER_BLOCK(sb))
+ if (++gdbackups >= EXT4_ADDR_PER_BLOCK(sb))
return -EFBIG;
}
return gdbackups;
}
next reply other threads:[~2026-09-19 11:40 UTC|newest]
Thread overview: 2+ messages / expand[flat|nested] mbox.gz Atom feed top
2026-09-19 11:39 Kaixuan Li [this message]
2026-09-19 11:46 ` [PATCH] ext4: stop verify_reserved_gdb() one entry short of the block sashiko-bot
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