[PATCH v2 3/3] ntfs: validate attribute name bounds before returning it

From: DaeMyung Kang

Date: Sat May 09 2026 - 02:14:55 EST


ntfs_attr_find() validates a named attribute before comparing it with the
requested name, but that check is currently after the AT_UNUSED handling.
When callers enumerate attributes with AT_UNUSED, ntfs_attr_find() can
return a malformed named attribute before checking whether name_offset
and name_length stay within the attribute record.

Some enumeration callers use the returned attribute name pointer
directly. For example, one path passes (attr + name_offset, name_length)
to ntfs_attr_iget(), where the name can later be copied according to
name_length. A malformed on-disk name_offset/name_length pair should not
be exposed to those callers.

Move the existing name bounds validation before returning attributes
during AT_UNUSED enumeration, and write it as an offset/remaining-size
check so the subtraction cannot underflow. Extract the converted values
into local variables (name_offset, attr_len, name_size) to make the
intent explicit and avoid repeating the endian conversions inside the
bounds check. This keeps matching attributes on the same checked path
while also covering attribute enumeration.

A small userspace ASAN model with attr length=32, name_offset=124 and
name_length=8 reproduces a heap-buffer-overflow read in the old
enumeration path. With this change the same malformed attribute is
rejected before the name pointer is returned to the caller.

Fixes: 1da177e4c3f4 ("Linux-2.6.12-rc2")
Signed-off-by: DaeMyung Kang <charsyam@xxxxxxxxx>
---
fs/ntfs/attrib.c | 25 +++++++++++++++++--------
1 file changed, 17 insertions(+), 8 deletions(-)

diff --git a/fs/ntfs/attrib.c b/fs/ntfs/attrib.c
index 97b660eaa00c..1a0e1f9e0853 100644
--- a/fs/ntfs/attrib.c
+++ b/fs/ntfs/attrib.c
@@ -672,6 +672,9 @@ static int ntfs_attr_find(const __le32 type, const __le16 *name,
__le16 *upcase = vol->upcase;
u32 upcase_len = vol->upcase_len;
unsigned int space;
+ u16 name_offset;
+ u32 attr_len;
+ u32 name_size;

/*
* Iterate over attributes in mft record starting at @ctx->attr, or the
@@ -699,6 +702,20 @@ static int ntfs_attr_find(const __le32 type, const __le16 *name,
return -ENOENT;
if (unlikely(!a->length))
break;
+ if (a->name_length) {
+ name_offset = le16_to_cpu(a->name_offset);
+ attr_len = le32_to_cpu(a->length);
+ name_size = a->name_length * sizeof(__le16);
+
+ if (name_offset > attr_len ||
+ attr_len - name_offset < name_size) {
+ ntfs_error(vol->sb,
+ "Corrupt attribute name in MFT record %llu\n",
+ ctx->ntfs_ino->mft_no);
+ break;
+ }
+ }
+
if (type == AT_UNUSED)
return 0;
if (a->type != type)
@@ -712,14 +729,6 @@ static int ntfs_attr_find(const __le32 type, const __le16 *name,
if (a->name_length)
return -ENOENT;
} else {
- if (a->name_length && ((le16_to_cpu(a->name_offset) +
- a->name_length * sizeof(__le16)) >
- le32_to_cpu(a->length))) {
- ntfs_error(vol->sb, "Corrupt attribute name in MFT record %llu\n",
- ctx->ntfs_ino->mft_no);
- break;
- }
-
if (!ntfs_are_names_equal(name, name_len,
(__le16 *)((u8 *)a + le16_to_cpu(a->name_offset)),
a->name_length, ic, upcase, upcase_len)) {
--
2.43.0