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Linux KernelOperating system · Linux

CVE-2024-42104

HIGH · 7.8 CVSS v3.1 Published 2024-07-30
Fix available
A fix is available. Upgrade to 4.19.318 / 5.4.280 or later.
See remediation →
80/100
Remediation priority · High
Zero-click Patch available

Official description Straight from the sourceThe vendor's or NVD's own wording, published unedited. Authoritative, but often terse — it says what broke, rarely what to do.

NVD · unedited
In the Linux kernel, the following vulnerability has been resolved: nilfs2: add missing check for inode numbers on directory entries Syzbot reported that mounting and unmounting a specific pattern of corrupted nilfs2 filesystem images causes a use-after-free of metadata file inodes, which triggers a kernel bug in lru_add_fn(). As Jan Kara pointed out, this is because the link count of a metadata file gets corrupted to 0, and nilfs_evict_inode(), which is called from iput(), tries to delete that inode (ifile inode in this case). The inconsistency occurs because directories containing the inode numbers of these metadata files that should not be visible in the namespace are read without checking. Fix this issue by treating the inode numbers of these internal files as errors in the sanity check helper when reading directory folios/pages. Also thanks to Hillf Danton and Matthew Wilcox for their initial mm-layer analysis.

Technical summary Written by usOur analysis, written from the advisory, the CVSS vector and the affected-version data. It adds context the advisory leaves out, and never invents facts that are not in the source.

dbcve analysis
How this class of weakness works · CWE-416

Memory is used after it has been freed, so its contents — now potentially attacker-controlled — drive the program's behaviour. With careful heap grooming this becomes code execution. The fix requires disciplined ownership of memory and often a targeted rework of the object lifecycle.

General guidance for the use after free class — the official description and references above are authoritative for this specific CVE. Want a bespoke review and a reviewed fix? Ask our team →

Affected products & versions What the vendor confirmedThe version ranges the vendor confirmed as vulnerable. If your version sits inside a range here, treat yourself as exposed until you have upgraded.

NVD · CPE data
Linux KernelOperating system
Affected:< 4.19.318>= 4.20, < 5.4.280>= 5.5, < 5.10.222>= 5.11, < 5.15.163>= 5.16, < 6.1.98>= 6.2, < 6.6.39>= 6.7, < 6.9.9

CVSS breakdown How the score is builtThe industry scoring standard. It rates how the flaw is reached, what it takes to exploit, and what an attacker gains — the score is derived from those, not the other way round.

From the vector
Attack vector
Local
Complexity
Low
Privileges
Low
User interaction
None
Scope
Unchanged
Confidentiality
High
Integrity
High
Availability
High

CVSS:3.1/AV:L/AC:L/PR:L/UI:N/S:U/C:H/I:H/A:H

Remediation Closing itWhat it takes to close this. Where a vendor fix exists we point at it; where none exists we say so plainly, and can build one. Effort estimates are scoped from the advisory, not from your codebase.

dbcve · scoped
Upgrade available Upgrade to 4.19.318 / 5.4.280 / 5.10.222 or later
Fixed in 4.19.3185.4.2805.10.222
Vendor patch git.kernel.org →
Recommended fix High confidence

Linux kernel >= 4.19.318, >= 5.4.280, >= 5.10.222, or >= 5.15.163 depending on the branch in use

  1. Identify the current running kernel version using `uname -r`
  2. Check if the system uses nilfs2 filesystem by reviewing `/proc/filesystems` or attempting `modprobe nilfs2`
  3. Upgrade the Linux kernel to version 4.19.318 or later (for 4.19.x branches), 5.4.280 or later (for 5.4.x branches), 5.10.222 or later (for 5.10.x branches), or 5.15.163 or later (for 5.15.x branches)
  4. For Debian/Ubuntu: Run `apt-get update && apt-get dist-upgrade` or install specific kernel package via `apt-get install linux-image-<version>`
  5. For RHEL/CentOS: Run `yum update kernel` or `dnf update kernel`
  6. For Arch Linux: Run `pacman -Syu linux`
  7. Reboot the system to load the new kernel
  8. Verify the fix is applied by checking the kernel version matches or exceeds the fixed releases and confirming nilfs2 functionality
Caveat Kernel upgrades may require system reboot and could have compatibility impacts with proprietary kernel modules or specific hardware drivers; ensure backups and test in staging environment first

Generated from the published advisory — verify against the referenced sources before acting.

We can perform the upgrade in your staging environment and verify nothing breaks — typical engagement from $3,200. Get the upgrade done

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References Go to the primary sourcePrimary sources — vendor advisories, patches and trackers. Where our summary and a reference disagree, the reference wins.

Primary sources

Practitioner notes

Contributed

Peer-ranked notes from engineers who’ve handled CVE-2024-42104 in production — separate from our analysis above.

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What this is

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  • Version or environment caveats, and links to real fixes
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