[PATCH] fs/ntfs3: use d_instantiate_new() in ntfs_create_inode() and murder syzbot's "WARNING in do_new_mount" saga

From: Christian Brauner

Date: Wed Sep 09 2026 - 05:10:48 EST


ntfs_create_inode() creates a new inode via ntfs_new_inode(). It hashes
it with insert_inode_locked() and so it's marked as I_NEW until
unlock_new_inode().

ntfs 3 calls d_instantiate() in between though... Since the dentry was
already hashed by the lookup before the create any path walk finds it
without touching the parent's i_rwsem and so can lock the inode.

If the inode is a directory unlock_new_inode() calls
lockdep_annotate_inode_mutex_key() and marks i_rwsem with the
i_mutex_dir_key class.

That resets the count and the owner of a lock somebody else may already
hold by now...

syzbot has been spamming us with the same godforsaken bug

"WARNING in do_new_mount"

since 2023. I can't take it anymore so I went looking. Afaict, syzbot's
executor chdirs into a freshly mounted ntfs3 image, creates a
directory and then mounts some pseudofs on it. Everytime the mkdir()
takes longer than syzbot waits mount() runs concurrently:

mkdir("./sys") mount(NULL, "./sys", "sysfs")
ntfs_create_inode()
d_instantiate()
user_path_at() finds the dentry
do_lock_mount()
inode_lock(inode)
namespace_lock()
unlock_new_inode()
lockdep_annotate_inode_mutex_key()
init_rwsem(&inode->i_rwsem)
unlock_mount()
inode_unlock(inode)

The mount side then releases a lock that according to the rwsem nobody
holds:

DEBUG_RWSEMS_WARN_ON((rwsem_owner(sem) != current) && ...):
count = 0x0, magic = 0xffff888043a854e8, owner = 0x0,
curr 0xffff888000244880, list empty
WARNING: CPU: 0 PID: 5346 at kernel/locking/rwsem.c:1368 __up_write
Call Trace:
inode_unlock include/linux/fs.h:877 [inline]
unlock_mount fs/namespace.c:2892 [inline]
do_new_mount_fc fs/namespace.c:3828 [inline]
do_new_mount+0x777/0xa40 fs/namespace.c:3887

On PREEMPT_RT the same thing shows up as

DEBUG_LOCKS_WARN_ON(rt_mutex_owner(lock) != current)
WARNING: kernel/locking/rtmutex_common.h:193 at rt_mutex_slowunlock

The up_write() underflows the reset count. A following inode_lock() on
that directory then never returns. A path walk into the new directory
racing with the mkdir() corrupts the lock the same way via
inode_lock_shared() in lookup_slow().

Switch to d_instantiate_new() and drop the trailing unlock_new_inode().
All error paths bail out before that point with I_NEW still set and
keep using discard_new_inode().

May we never see this fscking bug report again.

Fixes: 82cae269cfa9 ("fs/ntfs3: Add initialization of super block")
Cc: stable@xxxxxxxxxxxxxxx # v5.15+
Reported-by: syzbot+2a13ad6914e6fcec716c@xxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxx
Closes: https://lore.kernel.org/6a9beced.a5e650b3.26d8a.000b.GAE@xxxxxxxxxx
Signed-off-by: Christian Brauner (Amutable) <brauner@xxxxxxxxxx>
---
fs/ntfs3/inode.c | 7 ++-----
1 file changed, 2 insertions(+), 5 deletions(-)

diff --git a/fs/ntfs3/inode.c b/fs/ntfs3/inode.c
index 56b4f6469a28..4ac26c80bd34 100644
--- a/fs/ntfs3/inode.c
+++ b/fs/ntfs3/inode.c
@@ -1866,10 +1866,10 @@ int ntfs_create_inode(struct mnt_idmap *idmap, struct inode *dir,
goto out6;

/*
- * Call 'd_instantiate' after inode->i_op is set
+ * Call 'd_instantiate_new' after inode->i_op is set
* but before finish_open.
*/
- d_instantiate(dentry, inode);
+ d_instantiate_new(dentry, inode);

/* Set original time. inode times (i_ctime) may be changed in ntfs_init_acl. */
inode_set_atime_to_ts(inode, ni->i_crtime);
@@ -1917,9 +1917,6 @@ int ntfs_create_inode(struct mnt_idmap *idmap, struct inode *dir,
if (!fnd)
ni_unlock(dir_ni);

- if (!err)
- unlock_new_inode(inode);
-
return err;
}


---
base-commit: 893e11787f78e43b534e252249ac3fff4d1333f8
change-id: 20260909-work-ntfs3-d_instantiate_new-814ad31dea82