Description
In the Linux kernel, the following vulnerability has been resolved:
unicode: free the map after a grace period
generic_ci_d_hash() and generic_ci_d_compare() read sb->s_encoding and
dereference the unicode map while a pathwalk in rcu mode holds nothing
but rcu_read_lock(). The filesystems that use them, ext4, f2fs and
tmpfs, drop the map with utf8_unload() from ->put_super(), which runs
when the last reference to the mount goes away. A lookup that is still
inside such a filesystem at that point reads a freed map.
With a pathwalk held up in utf8_casefold_hash() while the last reference
to a casefolded tmpfs goes away:
BUG: KASAN: slab-use-after-free in utf8nlookup+0x74c/0x950
Read of size 8 at addr ff110001030fe658 by task walker/98
Call Trace:
<TASK>
utf8nlookup+0x74c/0x950
utf8byte+0x160/0x1560
utf8_casefold_hash+0x167/0x230
generic_ci_d_hash+0xdd/0x1c0
link_path_walk+0x11ad/0x1d30
path_lookupat+0x63/0xb00
filename_lookup+0x1f1/0x5b0
vfs_statx+0xd7/0x3b0
[...]
Allocated by task 94:
__kmalloc_cache_noprof+0x249/0x560
utf8_load+0x4e/0x570
shmem_parse_opt_casefold.isra.0+0x92/0x270
[...]
Freed by task 97:
kfree+0x1db/0x5b0
shmem_put_super+0x72/0x170
generic_shutdown_super+0x14c/0x530
kill_anon_super+0x3a/0x60
deactivate_locked_super+0x9c/0xf0
cleanup_mnt+0x9f/0x130
So far that has been hard to hit. umount(2) waits for a grace period
in namespace_unlock() before it drops the mount, so only a mount whose
last reference goes away elsewhere, like the close of a file or a chdir
out of a lazily unmounted directory, can race a walker. So it is
reachable.
Delay the free until a grace period has passed. The map and the data
table it holds a reference to then outlive any pathwalk that found the
superblock before the mount went away. The reference on the data table
module is dropped from the rcu callback as well. utf8-core is built in
whenever CONFIG_UNICODE is set, so there is no module exit that would
have to wait for the callbacks.
Overlayfs points the s_encoding of an overlay at the map of its first
layer without taking a reference of its own. That stays correct. The
layer is held by the overlay, so its map is dropped only after the
overlay is gone.
unicode: free the map after a grace period
generic_ci_d_hash() and generic_ci_d_compare() read sb->s_encoding and
dereference the unicode map while a pathwalk in rcu mode holds nothing
but rcu_read_lock(). The filesystems that use them, ext4, f2fs and
tmpfs, drop the map with utf8_unload() from ->put_super(), which runs
when the last reference to the mount goes away. A lookup that is still
inside such a filesystem at that point reads a freed map.
With a pathwalk held up in utf8_casefold_hash() while the last reference
to a casefolded tmpfs goes away:
BUG: KASAN: slab-use-after-free in utf8nlookup+0x74c/0x950
Read of size 8 at addr ff110001030fe658 by task walker/98
Call Trace:
<TASK>
utf8nlookup+0x74c/0x950
utf8byte+0x160/0x1560
utf8_casefold_hash+0x167/0x230
generic_ci_d_hash+0xdd/0x1c0
link_path_walk+0x11ad/0x1d30
path_lookupat+0x63/0xb00
filename_lookup+0x1f1/0x5b0
vfs_statx+0xd7/0x3b0
[...]
Allocated by task 94:
__kmalloc_cache_noprof+0x249/0x560
utf8_load+0x4e/0x570
shmem_parse_opt_casefold.isra.0+0x92/0x270
[...]
Freed by task 97:
kfree+0x1db/0x5b0
shmem_put_super+0x72/0x170
generic_shutdown_super+0x14c/0x530
kill_anon_super+0x3a/0x60
deactivate_locked_super+0x9c/0xf0
cleanup_mnt+0x9f/0x130
So far that has been hard to hit. umount(2) waits for a grace period
in namespace_unlock() before it drops the mount, so only a mount whose
last reference goes away elsewhere, like the close of a file or a chdir
out of a lazily unmounted directory, can race a walker. So it is
reachable.
Delay the free until a grace period has passed. The map and the data
table it holds a reference to then outlive any pathwalk that found the
superblock before the mount went away. The reference on the data table
module is dropped from the rcu callback as well. utf8-core is built in
whenever CONFIG_UNICODE is set, so there is no module exit that would
have to wait for the callbacks.
Overlayfs points the s_encoding of an overlay at the map of its first
layer without taking a reference of its own. That stays correct. The
layer is held by the overlay, so its map is dropped only after the
overlay is gone.
Published:
2026-10-28
Score:
n/a
EPSS:
n/a
KEV:
No
Analysis
Analysis and contextual insights are available on OpenCVE Cloud.
Default status is the baseline for the product, each version can override it (e.g. patched versions marked unaffected).
| Vendor | Product | Default status | Versions | ||||||||||||||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Linux | Linux | unaffected |
|
||||||||||||||||||
| Linux | Linux | affected |
|
No data.
No data.
No data available yet.
Remediation
No solution or workaround provided in the CVE record.
Additional remediation guidance may be available on OpenCVE Cloud.
Tracking
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Advisories
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References
History
Wed, 28 Oct 2026 10:45:00 +0000
| Type | Values Removed | Values Added |
|---|---|---|
| Description | In the Linux kernel, the following vulnerability has been resolved: unicode: free the map after a grace period generic_ci_d_hash() and generic_ci_d_compare() read sb->s_encoding and dereference the unicode map while a pathwalk in rcu mode holds nothing but rcu_read_lock(). The filesystems that use them, ext4, f2fs and tmpfs, drop the map with utf8_unload() from ->put_super(), which runs when the last reference to the mount goes away. A lookup that is still inside such a filesystem at that point reads a freed map. With a pathwalk held up in utf8_casefold_hash() while the last reference to a casefolded tmpfs goes away: BUG: KASAN: slab-use-after-free in utf8nlookup+0x74c/0x950 Read of size 8 at addr ff110001030fe658 by task walker/98 Call Trace: <TASK> utf8nlookup+0x74c/0x950 utf8byte+0x160/0x1560 utf8_casefold_hash+0x167/0x230 generic_ci_d_hash+0xdd/0x1c0 link_path_walk+0x11ad/0x1d30 path_lookupat+0x63/0xb00 filename_lookup+0x1f1/0x5b0 vfs_statx+0xd7/0x3b0 [...] Allocated by task 94: __kmalloc_cache_noprof+0x249/0x560 utf8_load+0x4e/0x570 shmem_parse_opt_casefold.isra.0+0x92/0x270 [...] Freed by task 97: kfree+0x1db/0x5b0 shmem_put_super+0x72/0x170 generic_shutdown_super+0x14c/0x530 kill_anon_super+0x3a/0x60 deactivate_locked_super+0x9c/0xf0 cleanup_mnt+0x9f/0x130 So far that has been hard to hit. umount(2) waits for a grace period in namespace_unlock() before it drops the mount, so only a mount whose last reference goes away elsewhere, like the close of a file or a chdir out of a lazily unmounted directory, can race a walker. So it is reachable. Delay the free until a grace period has passed. The map and the data table it holds a reference to then outlive any pathwalk that found the superblock before the mount went away. The reference on the data table module is dropped from the rcu callback as well. utf8-core is built in whenever CONFIG_UNICODE is set, so there is no module exit that would have to wait for the callbacks. Overlayfs points the s_encoding of an overlay at the map of its first layer without taking a reference of its own. That stays correct. The layer is held by the overlay, so its map is dropped only after the overlay is gone. | |
| Title | unicode: free the map after a grace period | |
| First Time appeared |
Linux
Linux linux Kernel |
|
| CPEs | cpe:2.3:o:linux:linux_kernel:*:*:*:*:*:*:*:* | |
| Vendors & Products |
Linux
Linux linux Kernel |
|
| References |
|
MITRE
Status: PUBLISHED
Assigner: Linux
Published:
Updated: 2026-10-28T10:35:33.578Z
Reserved: 2026-09-25T10:25:14.399Z
Link: CVE-2026-99180
Vulnrichment
No data.
NVD
No data.
Redhat
No data.
OpenCVE Enrichment
No data.
Weaknesses
No weakness.