# CVE-2021-47117: ext4: fix bug on in ext4_es_cache_extent as ext4_split_extent_at failed

> A local attacker can trigger a kernel bug in the ext4 filesystem, causing a system crash and denial of service.

- **Severity:** Medium 5.5 (`CVSS:3.1/AV:L/AC:L/PR:L/UI:N/S:U/C:N/I:N/A:H`)
- **Exploited in the wild:** Not known
- **Login needed:** Any signed-in user
- **Attackable:** Local or same network only
- **Victim action needed:** Not needed
- **Fix available:** Yes
- **Published:** 15 Mar 2024
- **Updated:** 11 May 2026
- **Also known as:** DEBIAN-CVE-2021-47117, GHSA-2cqh-cfpq-83ph, UBUNTU-CVE-2021-47117

## What is CVE-2021-47117?

CVE-2021-47117 is a medium-severity denial of service vulnerability in Linux kernel, published on 15 Mar 2024. It can only be exploited from the same machine or local network, with no action from the victim.

### Official description

In the Linux kernel, the following vulnerability has been resolved:

ext4: fix bug on in ext4_es_cache_extent as ext4_split_extent_at failed

We got follow bug_on when run fsstress with injecting IO fault:
[130747.323114] kernel BUG at fs/ext4/extents_status.c:762!
[130747.323117] Internal error: Oops - BUG: 0 [#1] SMP
......
[130747.334329] Call trace:
[130747.334553]  ext4_es_cache_extent+0x150/0x168 [ext4]
[130747.334975]  ext4_cache_extents+0x64/0xe8 [ext4]
[130747.335368]  ext4_find_extent+0x300/0x330 [ext4]
[130747.335759]  ext4_ext_map_blocks+0x74/0x1178 [ext4]
[130747.336179]  ext4_map_blocks+0x2f4/0x5f0 [ext4]
[130747.336567]  ext4_mpage_readpages+0x4a8/0x7a8 [ext4]
[130747.336995]  ext4_readpage+0x54/0x100 [ext4]
[130747.337359]  generic_file_buffered_read+0x410/0xae8
[130747.337767]  generic_file_read_iter+0x114/0x190
[130747.338152]  ext4_file_read_iter+0x5c/0x140 [ext4]
[130747.338556]  __vfs_read+0x11c/0x188
[130747.338851]  vfs_read+0x94/0x150
[130747.339110]  ksys_read+0x74/0xf0

This patch's modification is according to Jan Kara's suggestion in:
https://patchwork.ozlabs.org/project/linux-ext4/patch/20210428085158.3728201-1-yebin10@huawei.com/
"I see. Now I understand your patch. Honestly, seeing how fragile is trying
to fix extent tree after split has failed in the middle, I would probably
go even further and make sure we fix the tree properly in case of ENOSPC
and EDQUOT (those are easily user triggerable).  Anything else indicates a
HW problem or fs corruption so I'd rather leave the extent tree as is and
don't try to fix it (which also means we will not create overlapping
extents)."

## Which versions are affected by CVE-2021-47117?

It affects 1 product.


Products: Linux kernel.

## How do I fix CVE-2021-47117?

Apply the vendor's patch.

## Is CVE-2021-47117 being exploited?

There is no known exploitation of CVE-2021-47117 in the wild and no public exploit code.

## Other vulnerabilities in Linux kernel

- [CVE-2026-53266](https://insights.sbomify.com/CVE-2026-53266/): Linux Kernel Out-of-Bounds Write (high 8.8, exploited in the wild)
- [CVE-2013-6282](https://insights.sbomify.com/CVE-2013-6282/): Linux Kernel Improper Input Validation (high 8.8, exploited in the wild)
- [CVE-2022-0185](https://insights.sbomify.com/CVE-2022-0185/): Linux Kernel Heap-Based Buffer Overflow (high 8.4, exploited in the wild)
- [CVE-2013-2094](https://insights.sbomify.com/CVE-2013-2094/): Linux Kernel Privilege Escalation (high 8.4, exploited in the wild)
- [CVE-2026-53362](https://insights.sbomify.com/CVE-2026-53362/): Linux Kernel Unspecified (high 7.8, exploited in the wild)

## Fix prompt for AI coding agents

```text
Check this codebase for CVE-2021-47117 and fix it if it is affected.

What it is: CVE-2021-47117 is a medium-severity denial of service vulnerability in Linux kernel, published on 15 Mar 2024. It can only be exploited from the same machine or local network, with no action from the victim.
Exploitation: There is no known exploitation of CVE-2021-47117 in the wild and no public exploit code.

Affected product: Linux kernel. No package-level version data is available, so check the vendor advisory linked from the reference page.

Task:
1. Search the dependency manifests and lockfiles (for example package.json, package-lock.json, requirements.txt, poetry.lock, uv.lock, pom.xml, build.gradle, go.mod, Cargo.lock, Gemfile.lock) and any Dockerfiles for the affected packages, including transitive dependencies.
2. If an affected version is in use, upgrade it to the fixed version for its release line with the project's package manager, so the lockfile is regenerated. Prefer the smallest upgrade that fixes it.
3. If there is no fix, or the upgrade would break the build, do not guess: explain the risk and the safest workaround instead.
4. Run the tests and summarise what changed and why.
5. If nothing in the project is affected, say so and change nothing.

Reference: https://insights.sbomify.com/CVE-2021-47117/ (Markdown: https://insights.sbomify.com/CVE-2021-47117/index.md)
```

## Sources

- CVE record: https://www.cve.org/CVERecord?id=CVE-2021-47117
- NVD: https://nvd.nist.gov/vuln/detail/CVE-2021-47117
- OSV: https://osv.dev/vulnerability/CVE-2021-47117

---
From sbomify Insights: https://insights.sbomify.com/CVE-2021-47117/
Summaries are generated and may contain mistakes; the official description above is the record.