# CVE-2026-74572: btrfs: zoned: fix deadlock between metadata writeback and transaction commit

> A deadlock in the Linux kernel's btrfs zoned filesystem can cause a denial of service during metadata writeback and transaction commits.

- **Severity:** High 7.5 (`CVSS:3.1/AV:N/AC:L/PR:N/UI:N/S:U/C:N/I:N/A:H`)
- **Exploited in the wild:** Not known
- **Login needed:** Not needed
- **Attackable:** Over the internet
- **Victim action needed:** Not needed
- **Fix available:** Yes
- **Published:** 15 Aug 2026
- **Updated:** 16 Oct 2026
- **Also known as:** AZL-96141, BELL-CVE-2026-74572, DEBIAN-CVE-2026-74572, GHSA-623q-h292-q6ff, UBUNTU-CVE-2026-74572

## What is CVE-2026-74572?

CVE-2026-74572 is a high-severity vulnerability in Linux, published on 15 Aug 2026. An attacker can exploit it over the internet without logging in, with no action from the victim.

### Official description

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

btrfs: zoned: fix deadlock between metadata writeback and transaction commit

When writing out metadata extent buffers in a zoned filesystem,
btree_writepages() holds fs_info->zoned_meta_io_lock across the whole
writeback loop, including the call to btrfs_check_meta_write_pointer() ->
check_bg_is_active().

For the tree-log block group, check_bg_is_active() may fail to activate
the zone and fall back to btrfs_zone_finish_one_bg() to free an active
zone. That path waits for the running transaction to commit while still
holding zoned_meta_io_lock, but the committer needs that same lock to
write out the tree extents, so the two tasks deadlock:

  Task A (kworker, metadata writeback)      Task B (fsstress, transaction commit)
  ------------------------------------      -------------------------------------
  wb_workfn()                               btrfs_commit_transaction(T)
   btree_writepages()                        btrfs_write_and_wait_transaction()
    btrfs_zoned_meta_io_lock()                btrfs_write_marked_extents()
    btrfs_check_meta_write_pointer()           btree_writepages()
     check_bg_is_active() [treelog_bg]          btrfs_zoned_meta_io_lock()
      btrfs_zone_finish_one_bg()               <blocks on zoned_meta_io_lock,
       btrfs_zone_finish()                      held by Task A>
        do_zone_finish()
         btrfs_inc_block_group_ro()
          btrfs_wait_for_commit()
           <blocks waiting for commit
            of transaction T, done by
            Task B>

The sibling branch in check_bg_is_active() already drops zoned_meta_io_lock
around do_zone_finish() for this exact reason. Do the same in the tree-log
branch: release the lock around btrfs_zone_finish_one_bg() and re-acquire
it afterwards. The lock only protects fs_info->active_{meta,system}_bg,
which this branch does not touch, and ctx->zoned_bg keeps a reference to
the block group across the unlock, so nothing is lost while the lock
is dropped.

This hang occasionally reproduces with fstests generic/475 on a zoned
btrfs filesystem.

## Which versions are affected by CVE-2026-74572?


## How do I fix CVE-2026-74572?

Apply the vendor's patch.

## Is CVE-2026-74572 being exploited?

There is no known exploitation of CVE-2026-74572 in the wild and no public exploit code.

## Fix prompt for AI coding agents

```text
Check this codebase for CVE-2026-74572 and fix it if it is affected.

What it is: CVE-2026-74572 is a high-severity vulnerability in Linux, published on 15 Aug 2026. An attacker can exploit it over the internet without logging in, with no action from the victim.
Exploitation: There is no known exploitation of CVE-2026-74572 in the wild and no public exploit code.

Affected product: Linux. 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-2026-74572/ (Markdown: https://insights.sbomify.com/CVE-2026-74572/index.md)
```

## Sources

- CVE record: https://www.cve.org/CVERecord?id=CVE-2026-74572
- NVD: https://nvd.nist.gov/vuln/detail/CVE-2026-74572
- OSV: https://osv.dev/vulnerability/CVE-2026-74572

---
From sbomify Insights: https://insights.sbomify.com/CVE-2026-74572/
Summaries are generated and may contain mistakes; the official description above is the record.