CRITICAL Introduced in 6.6
ceph FName Vmalloc Panic
CVE-2026-90042
CVSS:3.1/AV:N/AC:L/PR:N/UI:N/S:U/C:H/I:H/A:H
KernelScan AI9.8CRITICAL
01Description
In the Linux kernel, the following vulnerability has been resolved: ceph: properly decrypt filenames in vmalloc() buffers The fscrypt subsystem uses the scatterlist crypto API, inheriting its requirement that any buffers are in the linear mapping region. However, the messenger client uses kvmalloc() to create buffers for messages, which will occasionally place those buffers in the vmalloc() region when physical memory fragmentation doesn't permit a large enough kmalloc(). The various callers of ceph_fname_to_usr() directly pass (slices of) raw messages from the MDS without considering that the messages may be in vmalloc() buffers, resulting in oopses especially on non-x86 platforms (see 'Closes:' for more details and a reproducer). Make ceph_fname_to_usr() explicitly tolerant of vmalloc()-allocated fname->ctext, fname->name, and/or oname->name buffers, using `tname` (which, when non-null, must be a linear address; when null, is briefly allocated as necessary) as a bounce buffer to avoid passing any inappropriate addresses to fscrypt_fname_disk_to_usr(). Additionally change parse_reply_info_readdir() -- the only function to supply its own `tname` -- to follow the new "tname must never come from vmalloc()" rule by passing NULL when the message is not in the linear region. Though this causes a per-dentry kmalloc()+kfree(), this overhead exists only when processing the minority of messages that spill into vmalloc(). My (crude) testing puts this at only about 1 in 8,000 readdir messages. Still, if the overhead proves unreasonable in the future, it is easy enough to mitigate: a future change could allocate a bounce buffer in parse_reply_info_readdir() and use that as `tname` instead.
02KernelScan AI Analysis
Risk summary
The Ceph filesystem client can crash the kernel when processing encrypted directory entries from a Metadata Server if the response buffer is allocated in the vmalloc region, which occurs under memory fragmentation. This affects any system mounting a Ceph filesystem with fscrypt enabled, especially on non-x86 architectures. A compromised or malicious MDS server could trigger the crash more reliably by sending large responses that force vmalloc allocation.
Vulnerability analysis
When the Ceph filesystem client receives directory listing responses from a Metadata Server, it allocates message buffers using a function that may place them in the vmalloc memory region when physical memory is fragmented. The client then attempts to decrypt filenames in these buffers by passing them to the fscrypt subsystem, which uses a crypto API that requires buffers to reside in the linear memory mapping region. Supplying vmalloc addresses to this API causes an invalid memory access and kernel crash, particularly on non-x86 architectures. The fix adds bounce buffers in the linear mapping region whenever vmalloc-allocated buffers are detected, copying data to and from the bounce buffer around the decryption step so the crypto API always receives valid linear addresses. The vulnerability is reachable from a Ceph MDS server over the network, or by any local user performing directory operations on a mounted Ceph filesystem with encryption enabled.
Lifecycle
03Fix Versions
| Branch | Introduced | Fixed in | Patch commit |
|---|---|---|---|
| 6.18 | 6.6 | 6.18.51 | 110747ff535e |
| 7.2 | 6.6 | 7.2.5 | 3b467c68803d |
| 6.12 | 6.6 | 6.12.111 | 93729594af50 |
| mainline | 6.6 | 7.3-rc1 | e939fc6a7bd9 |
| cip/6.12 | 6.6 | 6.12.111-cip32 | 93729594af50 |