{"cve":"CVE-2026-72170","nvd":{"published":"2026-08-15T06:21:35.100","modified":"2026-10-16T19:17:12.777","status":"Received","description":"In the Linux kernel, the following vulnerability has been resolved:\n\n9p: skip nlink update in cacheless mode to fix WARN_ON\n\nv9fs_dec_count() unconditionally calls drop_nlink() on regular files,\neven when the inode's nlink is already zero. In cacheless mode the\nclient refetches inode metadata from the server (the source of truth)\non every operation, so by the time v9fs_remove() returns, the locally\ncached nlink may already reflect the post-unlink value:\n\n  1. Client initiates unlink, server processes it and sets nlink to 0\n  2. Client refetches inode metadata (nlink=0) before unlink returns\n  3. Client's v9fs_remove() completes successfully\n  4. Client calls v9fs_dec_count() which calls drop_nlink() on nlink=0\n\nThis race is easily triggered under heavy unlink workloads, such as\nstress-ng's unlink stressor, producing the following warning:\n\n  WARNING: fs/inode.c:417 at drop_nlink+0x4c/0xc8\n  Call trace:\n   drop_nlink+0x4c/0xc8\n   v9fs_remove+0x1e0/0x250 [9p]\n   v9fs_vfs_unlink+0x20/0x38 [9p]\n   vfs_unlink+0x13c/0x258\n   ...\n\nIn cacheless mode the server is authoritative and the inode is on its\nway out, so locally adjusting nlink buys nothing. Skip v9fs_dec_count()\nentirely when neither CACHE_META nor CACHE_LOOSE is set, which both\navoids the warning and removes a class of nlink races (two concurrent\nunlinkers observing nlink > 0 and both calling drop_nlink()) that an\nnlink == 0 guard alone would only narrow rather than close.","cvss_v4":null,"cvss_v3":{"version":"3.1","vector":"CVSS:3.1/AV:L/AC:L/PR:L/UI:N/S:U/C:H/I:H/A:H","score":7.8},"cwes":[],"references":["https://git.kernel.org/stable/c/4ec4ebe40c82cb4c60756732f6593055d010c59c","https://git.kernel.org/stable/c/574aa0b4799470ac814479f1138d19efe6262255","https://git.kernel.org/stable/c/6086469f7d469549bfd070348b717a6e43736200","https://git.kernel.org/stable/c/8d610017c992de705b304d3d727a6e3a86af6149","https://git.kernel.org/stable/c/8faccac11e1369adddf5d80f4a45af93f13b2e1a"],"products":[],"source":"nvd","synced_at":"2026-10-19T22:48:17.459049833+00:00"},"epss":{"cve":"CVE-2026-72170","score":0.00169,"percentile":0.06183,"date":"2026-10-25"},"kev":null,"osv":[],"attribution":["This product uses the NVD API but is not endorsed or certified by the NVD.","EPSS scores: FIRST Exploit Prediction Scoring System, https://www.first.org/epss","Known exploited vulnerabilities: CISA Known Exploited Vulnerabilities Catalog, https://www.cisa.gov/known-exploited-vulnerabilities-catalog","Package advisories: OSV (https://osv.dev), from the GitHub Advisory Database, PyPA, Go, RustSec and other ecosystem databases, under CC-BY 4.0 or CC0","CVE records: the CVE Program's CVE List (https://www.cve.org), under its terms of use (https://www.cve.org/Legal/TermsOfUse). CVE is a registered trademark of The MITRE Corporation; this product is not affiliated with the CVE Program."]}