[REGRESSION] VirtualBox VM crashes (BSOD) during Windows installation on btrfs with kernels 6.18+ (works on 6.12 LTS)

From: jollycar

Date: Sun Jan 11 2026 - 05:09:51 EST


#regzbot introduced: v6.12..v6.18

[1.] One line summary of the problem:
VirtualBox VM crashes with BSOD during Windows installation on kernels 6.18+ (works fine on 6.12 LTS)

[2.] Full description of the problem:
Windows 10 and Windows 11 installation inside VirtualBox consistently crashes with BSOD within 1-3 minutes on Linux kernels 6.18.3 and 6.19-rc3. The same VirtualBox configuration and VM image work perfectly on kernel 6.12 LTS. The BSOD errors vary each time (most recent: 0x80070470 - "file may be corrupt or missing"). The host system remains completely stable with no logged errors.

[3] Kernel & Hardware:
   - Kernel versions tested:
     * Working: 6.12.63-1
     * Broken: 6.18.3-2, 6.19.0-rc3-1
   - Distribution: Manjaro Linux
   - Architecture: x86_64
   - VirtualBox: 7.2.4 r170995 (vboxdrv vermagic: 6.18.3-2-MANJARO SMP preempt mod_unload)

[4.] Filesystem and storage:
   - Root filesystem: btrfs on LUKS encryption
   - Mount options: zstd compression level 3, SSD optimizations, async discard, free space tree
   - VM storage: separate btrfs subvolume
   - btrfs device stats: all zeros (no errors)

[5.] Reproduction:
- Boot kernel 6.18.3-2 or 6.19.0-rc3
- Start VirtualBox 7.2.4 r170995
- Create new Windows 10 or Windows 11 VM
- Begin OS installation
- BSOD occurs within 1-3 minutes with varying errors (latest: 0x80070470)
- Issue is 100% reproducible on 6.18+, never occurs on 6.12

Additional context:
- Host system remains completely stable during VM crashes
- No btrfs errors in dmesg or device stats (all zero)
- Issue persists across multiple 6.18/6.19 releases over one month
- VirtualBox 7.2.4 modules load successfully on all kernel versions

Regards,
Jollycar