From: Mateusz Guzik <mjguzik@gmail.com>
To: brauner@kernel.org
Cc: viro@zeniv.linux.org.uk, jack@suse.cz,
linux-kernel@vger.kernel.org, linux-fsdevel@vger.kernel.org,
Mateusz Guzik <mjguzik@gmail.com>
Subject: [PATCH v4 3/4] fs: handle potential filesystems which use I_DONTCACHE and drop the lock in ->drop_inode
Date: Mon, 30 Mar 2026 14:26:01 +0200 [thread overview]
Message-ID: <20260330122602.3659417-4-mjguzik@gmail.com> (raw)
In-Reply-To: <20260330122602.3659417-1-mjguzik@gmail.com>
f2fs and ntfs play games where they transitioning the refcount 0->1 and release
the inode spinlock, allowing other threads to grab a ref of their own.
They also return 0 in that case, making this problem harmless.
However, should they start using the I_DONTCACHE machinery down the road
while retaining the above, iput_final() will get a race where it can
proceed to teardown an inode with references.
The easiest way out for the time being is to future-proof it by
predicating caching on the count.
Developing better ->drop_inode semantics and sanitizing all users is
left as en exercise for the reader.
Signed-off-by: Mateusz Guzik <mjguzik@gmail.com>
---
fs/inode.c | 27 ++++++++++++++++++---------
1 file changed, 18 insertions(+), 9 deletions(-)
diff --git a/fs/inode.c b/fs/inode.c
index e397a4b56671..a06edd557e84 100644
--- a/fs/inode.c
+++ b/fs/inode.c
@@ -1935,20 +1935,29 @@ static void iput_final(struct inode *inode)
else
drop = inode_generic_drop(inode);
- if (!drop &&
- !(inode_state_read(inode) & I_DONTCACHE) &&
- (sb->s_flags & SB_ACTIVE)) {
+ /*
+ * XXXCRAP: there are ->drop_inode hooks playing nasty games releasing the
+ * spinlock and temporarily grabbing refs. This opens a possibility someone
+ * else will sneak in and grab a ref while it happens.
+ *
+ * If such a hook returns 0 (== don't drop) this happens to be harmless as long
+ * as the inode is not marked with I_DONTCACHE. Otherwise we are proceeding with
+ * teardown despite references being present.
+ *
+ * Damage-control the problem by including the count in the decision. However,
+ * assert no refs showed up if the hook decided to drop the inode.
+ */
+ if (drop)
+ VFS_BUG_ON_INODE(icount_read(inode) != 0, inode);
+
+ if (icount_read(inode) > 0 ||
+ (!drop && !(inode_state_read(inode) & I_DONTCACHE) &&
+ (sb->s_flags & SB_ACTIVE))) {
__inode_lru_list_add(inode, true);
spin_unlock(&inode->i_lock);
return;
}
- /*
- * Re-check ->i_count in case the ->drop_inode() hooks played games.
- * Note we only execute this if the verdict was to drop the inode.
- */
- VFS_BUG_ON_INODE(icount_read(inode) != 0, inode);
-
if (drop) {
inode_state_set(inode, I_FREEING);
} else {
--
2.48.1
next prev parent reply other threads:[~2026-03-30 12:26 UTC|newest]
Thread overview: 5+ messages / expand[flat|nested] mbox.gz Atom feed top
2026-03-30 12:25 [PATCH v4 0/4] assorted ->i_count changes + extension of lockless handling Mateusz Guzik
2026-03-30 12:25 ` [PATCH v4 1/4] fs: add icount_read_once() and stop open-coding ->i_count loads Mateusz Guzik
2026-03-30 12:26 ` [PATCH v4 2/4] fs: relocate and tidy up ihold() Mateusz Guzik
2026-03-30 12:26 ` Mateusz Guzik [this message]
2026-03-30 12:26 ` [PATCH v4 4/4] fs: allow lockless ->i_count bumps as long as it does not transition 0->1 Mateusz Guzik
Reply instructions:
You may reply publicly to this message via plain-text email
using any one of the following methods:
* Save the following mbox file, import it into your mail client,
and reply-to-all from there: mbox
Avoid top-posting and favor interleaved quoting:
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Posting_style#Interleaved_style
* Reply using the --to, --cc, and --in-reply-to
switches of git-send-email(1):
git send-email \
--in-reply-to=20260330122602.3659417-4-mjguzik@gmail.com \
--to=mjguzik@gmail.com \
--cc=brauner@kernel.org \
--cc=jack@suse.cz \
--cc=linux-fsdevel@vger.kernel.org \
--cc=linux-kernel@vger.kernel.org \
--cc=viro@zeniv.linux.org.uk \
/path/to/YOUR_REPLY
https://kernel.org/pub/software/scm/git/docs/git-send-email.html
* If your mail client supports setting the In-Reply-To header
via mailto: links, try the mailto: link
Be sure your reply has a Subject: header at the top and a blank line
before the message body.
This is a public inbox, see mirroring instructions
for how to clone and mirror all data and code used for this inbox