Linux KernelOperating system · Linux

CVE-2025-37858

MEDIUM · 5.5 CVSS v3.1 Published 2025-05-09
Fix available
A fix is available. Upgrade to 5.4.293 / 5.10.237 or later.
See remediation →
57/100
Remediation priority · Elevated
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: fs/jfs: Prevent integer overflow in AG size calculation The JFS filesystem calculates allocation group (AG) size using 1 << l2agsize in dbExtendFS(). When l2agsize exceeds 31 (possible with >2TB aggregates on 32-bit systems), this 32-bit shift operation causes undefined behavior and improper AG sizing. On 32-bit architectures: - Left-shifting 1 by 32+ bits results in 0 due to integer overflow - This creates invalid AG sizes (0 or garbage values) in sbi->bmap->db_agsize - Subsequent block allocations would reference invalid AG structures - Could lead to: - Filesystem corruption during extend operations - Kernel crashes due to invalid memory accesses - Security vulnerabilities via malformed on-disk structures Fix by casting to s64 before shifting: bmp->db_agsize = (s64)1 << l2agsize; This ensures 64-bit arithmetic even on 32-bit architectures. The cast matches the data type of db_agsize (s64) and follows similar patterns in JFS block calculation code. Found by Linux Verification Center (linuxtesting.org) with SVACE.

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-190

An arithmetic operation produces a value too large for its type and wraps around to an unexpected — often tiny or negative — number. That miscalculated value then drives a memory allocation or a bounds check, opening the door to corruption. The fix is checked arithmetic and validating sizes before they're used.

General guidance for the integer overflow 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:< 5.4.293>= 5.5, < 5.10.237>= 5.11, < 5.15.181>= 5.16, < 6.1.135>= 6.2, < 6.6.88>= 6.7, < 6.12.24>= 6.13, < 6.13.12>= 6.14, < 6.14.3
Debian LinuxOperating system
Affected:= 11.0

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
None
Integrity
None
Availability
High

CVSS:3.1/AV:L/AC:L/PR:L/UI:N/S:U/C:N/I:N/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 5.4.293 / 5.10.237 / 5.15.181 or later
Fixed in 5.4.2935.10.2375.15.181
Vendor patch git.kernel.org →
Recommended fix High confidence

Upgrade to kernel version 5.4.293, 5.10.237, 5.15.181, or 6.1.135 or later (choose the appropriate branch for your deployment)

  1. 1. Identify the affected kernel version running on the system using `uname -r`
  2. 2. Download the kernel source code for the currently running version from https://www.kernel.org/
  3. 3. Locate the file `fs/jfs/jfs_imap.c` (or `fs/jfs/dbmount.c` depending on the kernel version)
  4. 4. Find the function `dbExtendFS()` and locate the line that calculates AG size: typically `bmp->db_agsize = 1 << l2agsize;`
  5. 5. Apply the fix by modifying the line to cast to s64 before shifting: `bmp->db_agsize = (s64)1 << l2agsize;`
  6. 6. Alternatively, if the distribution provides security patches, apply the vendor patch from https://git.kernel.org/stable/c/211ed8f5e39e61f9e4d18edd64ce8005a67a1b2a
  7. 7. Recompile the kernel or rebuild the affected kernel package
  8. 8. Reboot into the patched kernel
Caveat Kernel upgrades may require system downtime and could introduce regressions in drivers or filesystem support; ensure backups exist and test in staging 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 $2,850. Get the upgrade done

Scan for this in your stack

Free · runs locally
dbcve dependency scanner

Check whether your project pulls in CVE-2025-37858 — or any other known-vulnerable package — straight from your lock files. Free and open source; it runs locally and uploads nothing.

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-2025-37858 in production — separate from our analysis above.

No notes yet

Be the first to add a field note for this CVE — a mitigation you’ve verified, a version caveat, or a link to a working fix. Sign in above to contribute.

What this is

A place for practitioners to share what actually worked: a mitigation you’ve tested, a configuration change, a version- or environment-specific caveat, or a link to a verified patch. The most useful notes rise to the top as peers upvote them, so the signal stays high.

What belongs here
  • Verified mitigations, workarounds, and config changes
  • Version or environment caveats, and links to real fixes
  • No weaponised exploit code, or anything meant to cause harm
  • No spam, self-promotion, credentials, or personal data