[PATCH] ntfs3: fix out-of-bounds read in ntfs_dir_emit() and hdr_find_e()
From: Alessandro Schino
Date: Mon May 11 2026 - 14:16:32 EST
The bounds check in ntfs_dir_emit() compares fname->name_len (a
character count) against e->size (a byte count) without accounting
for the 2-byte-per-character UTF-16LE encoding or the ATTR_FILE_NAME
header size:
if (fname->name_len + sizeof(struct NTFS_DE) > le16_to_cpu(e->size))
This computes: name_len + 16 > e_size
The correct check must account for the ATTR_FILE_NAME header (66 bytes
before the name) and the UTF-16LE character size (2 bytes each):
sizeof(NTFS_DE) + offsetof(ATTR_FILE_NAME, name) +
name_len * sizeof(short) > e_size
Which computes: 16 + 66 + name_len * 2 > e_size
The correct calculation already exists as fname_full_size() in ntfs.h
and is used in cmp_fnames(), namei.c, and fslog.c, but was not used
in the readdir path.
A crafted NTFS image with an index entry containing a small e->size
but large fname->name_len bypasses the current check, causing
ntfs_utf16_to_nls() to read past the entry boundary.
Additionally, add a key_size validation in hdr_find_e() to ensure the
declared key_size does not exceed the available entry data, preventing
comparison functions from reading past entry boundaries on the lookup
path.
Signed-off-by: Alessandro Schino <7991aleschino@xxxxxxxxx>
---
fs/ntfs3/dir.c | 4 +++-
fs/ntfs3/index.c | 4 ++++
2 files changed, 7 insertions(+), 1 deletion(-)
diff --git a/fs/ntfs3/dir.c b/fs/ntfs3/dir.c
index d99ab086..6cd66ce0 100644
--- a/fs/ntfs3/dir.c
+++ b/fs/ntfs3/dir.c
@@ -305,7 +305,9 @@ static inline bool ntfs_dir_emit(struct ntfs_sb_info *sbi,
if (sbi->options->nohidden && (fname->dup.fa & FILE_ATTRIBUTE_HIDDEN))
return true;
- if (fname->name_len + sizeof(struct NTFS_DE) > le16_to_cpu(e->size))
+ if (sizeof(struct NTFS_DE) +
+ offsetof(struct ATTR_FILE_NAME, name) +
+ fname->name_len * sizeof(short) > le16_to_cpu(e->size))
return true;
name_len = ntfs_utf16_to_nls(sbi, fname->name, fname->name_len, name,
diff --git a/fs/ntfs3/index.c b/fs/ntfs3/index.c
index 5344b29b..46dc7642 100644
--- a/fs/ntfs3/index.c
+++ b/fs/ntfs3/index.c
@@ -754,6 +754,10 @@ static struct NTFS_DE *hdr_find_e(const struct ntfs_index *indx,
binary_search:
e_key_len = le16_to_cpu(e->key_size);
+ /* Validate key_size fits within the entry data area. */
+ if (e_key_len > le16_to_cpu(e->size) - sizeof(struct NTFS_DE))
+ return NULL;
+
diff2 = (*cmp)(key, key_len, e + 1, e_key_len, ctx);
if (diff2 > 0) {
if (found) {
--
2.43.0