Kernel state corruption via XFS unmount race
Published Apr 22, 2026 · Updated Apr 22, 2026
Race condition in the XFS unmount path in Linux Kernel allows local users with CAP_SYS_ADMIN to corrupt kernel state during unmount. xfs_unmount_flush_inodes() pushes the active item list before inodegc and background reclaim stop, allowing inodegc to add dirty inodes while reclaim aborts and frees them. Exploitation requires CAP_SYS_ADMIN in the initial user namespace and control of an XFS mount; no remote path or unprivileged user-namespace path is reported.
Summary
What happened
Race condition in the XFS unmount path in Linux Kernel allows local users with CAP_SYS_ADMIN to corrupt kernel state during unmount. xfs_unmount_flush_inodes() pushes the active item list before inodegc and background reclaim stop, allowing inodegc to add dirty inodes while reclaim aborts and frees them. Exploitation requires CAP_SYS_ADMIN in the initial user namespace and control of an XFS mount; no remote path or unprivileged user-namespace path is reported.
The record
- CVE
- CVE-2026-31455
- Published
- Apr 22, 2026
- Updated
- Apr 22, 2026
- Vendor
- The Linux Kernel Organization
- Product
- Linux Kernel
- Classifications
- CWE-416
- Attack vector
- local
- Privileges
- admin
Timeline
How it unfolded
- Apr 22, 2026CVE publishedPublication date reported by the CVE source.
- Apr 22, 2026Record updatedLatest update available in the CVE record.
Exploitability
Present is not the same as exploitable
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Is a vulnerable build present?
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- Affected versionversion=5.9
- Affected versionversion=90c60e16401248a4900f3f9387f563d0178dcf34 <239d734c00644072862fa833805c4471573b1445
- Affected versionversion=90c60e16401248a4900f3f9387f563d0178dcf34 <4f24a767e3d64a5f58c595b5c29b6063a201f1e3
- Affected versionversion=90c60e16401248a4900f3f9387f563d0178dcf34 <558e3275d8a3b101be18a7fe7d1634053e9d9b07
- Affected versionversion=90c60e16401248a4900f3f9387f563d0178dcf34 <8147e304d7d32fd5c3e943babc296ce2873dc279
- Affected versionversion=90c60e16401248a4900f3f9387f563d0178dcf34 <a89434a6188d8430ea31120da96e3e4cefb58686
- Affected versionversion=90c60e16401248a4900f3f9387f563d0178dcf34 <bda27fc0b4eb3a425d9a18475c4cb94fbe862c60
- Affected versionversion=90c60e16401248a4900f3f9387f563d0178dcf34 <d38135af04a3ad8a585c899d176efc8e97853115
- Affected versionversion=90c60e16401248a4900f3f9387f563d0178dcf34 <e6cc490048f78b009259a5f032acead9f789c34c
What conditions does exploitation require?
What is affected?
Published CVSS scores
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Attacks
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Technologies
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