In the Linux kernel, the following vulnerability has been resolved:
VFS: fix possible failure to unlock in nfsd4_create_file()
atomic_create() in fs/namei.c drops the reference to the dentry
when it returns an error.
This behaviour was imported into dentry_create() so that it
will drop the reference if an error is returned from atomic_create(),
though not if vfs_create() returns an error (in the case where
->atomic_create is not supported).
The caller - nfsd4_create_file() - is made aware of this by checking
path->dentry, which will either be a counted reference to a dentry, or
an error pointer.
However the change to use start_creating()/end_creating() (which landed
shortly before the dentry_create() change landed, though was likely
developed around the same time) means that nfsd4_create_file() *needs* a
valid dentry so that it can unlock the parent.
The net result is that if NFSD exports a filesystem which uses
->atomic_create, and if a call to ->atomic_create returns an error, then
nfsd4_create_file() will pass an error pointer to end_creating()
and the parent will not be unlocked.
Fix this by changing dentry_create() to make sure path->dentry is always
a valid dentry, never an error-pointer. The actual error is already
returned a different way.
Note that if ->atomic_create() returns a different dentry (which may not
be possible in practice) we are guaranteed (because it is only ever
provided by d_spliace_alias()) that it will have the same d_parent and
so it will have the same effect when passed to end_creating().
VFS: fix possible failure to unlock in nfsd4_create_file()
atomic_create() in fs/namei.c drops the reference to the dentry
when it returns an error.
This behaviour was imported into dentry_create() so that it
will drop the reference if an error is returned from atomic_create(),
though not if vfs_create() returns an error (in the case where
->atomic_create is not supported).
The caller - nfsd4_create_file() - is made aware of this by checking
path->dentry, which will either be a counted reference to a dentry, or
an error pointer.
However the change to use start_creating()/end_creating() (which landed
shortly before the dentry_create() change landed, though was likely
developed around the same time) means that nfsd4_create_file() *needs* a
valid dentry so that it can unlock the parent.
The net result is that if NFSD exports a filesystem which uses
->atomic_create, and if a call to ->atomic_create returns an error, then
nfsd4_create_file() will pass an error pointer to end_creating()
and the parent will not be unlocked.
Fix this by changing dentry_create() to make sure path->dentry is always
a valid dentry, never an error-pointer. The actual error is already
returned a different way.
Note that if ->atomic_create() returns a different dentry (which may not
be possible in practice) we are guaranteed (because it is only ever
provided by d_spliace_alias()) that it will have the same d_parent and
so it will have the same effect when passed to end_creating().
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.
OpenCVE Enrichment is a feature of OpenCVE that uses AI to automatically link vendors and products to CVEs. Learn more on GitHub.
No data.
Advisories
No advisories yet.
Fixes
Solution
No solution given by the vendor.
Workaround
No workaround given by the vendor.
References
History
Thu, 25 Jun 2026 12:30:00 +0000
| Type | Values Removed | Values Added |
|---|---|---|
| Weaknesses | CWE-547 CWE-773 |
Thu, 25 Jun 2026 09:15:00 +0000
| Type | Values Removed | Values Added |
|---|---|---|
| Description | In the Linux kernel, the following vulnerability has been resolved: VFS: fix possible failure to unlock in nfsd4_create_file() atomic_create() in fs/namei.c drops the reference to the dentry when it returns an error. This behaviour was imported into dentry_create() so that it will drop the reference if an error is returned from atomic_create(), though not if vfs_create() returns an error (in the case where ->atomic_create is not supported). The caller - nfsd4_create_file() - is made aware of this by checking path->dentry, which will either be a counted reference to a dentry, or an error pointer. However the change to use start_creating()/end_creating() (which landed shortly before the dentry_create() change landed, though was likely developed around the same time) means that nfsd4_create_file() *needs* a valid dentry so that it can unlock the parent. The net result is that if NFSD exports a filesystem which uses ->atomic_create, and if a call to ->atomic_create returns an error, then nfsd4_create_file() will pass an error pointer to end_creating() and the parent will not be unlocked. Fix this by changing dentry_create() to make sure path->dentry is always a valid dentry, never an error-pointer. The actual error is already returned a different way. Note that if ->atomic_create() returns a different dentry (which may not be possible in practice) we are guaranteed (because it is only ever provided by d_spliace_alias()) that it will have the same d_parent and so it will have the same effect when passed to end_creating(). | |
| Title | VFS: fix possible failure to unlock in nfsd4_create_file() | |
| First Time appeared |
Linux
Linux linux Kernel |
|
| CPEs | cpe:2.3:o:linux:linux_kernel:*:*:*:*:*:*:*:* | |
| Vendors & Products |
Linux
Linux linux Kernel |
|
| References |
|
Projects
Sign in to view the affected projects.
MITRE
Status: PUBLISHED
Assigner: Linux
Published:
Updated: 2026-06-25T08:39:38.468Z
Reserved: 2026-06-09T07:44:35.393Z
Link: CVE-2026-53244
Vulnrichment
No data.
NVD
No data.
Redhat
No data.
OpenCVE Enrichment
Updated: 2026-06-25T12:15:03Z