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Boris Burkov 5131fa077f btrfs: set BTRFS_ROOT_ORPHAN_CLEANUP during subvol create
We have recently observed a number of subvolumes with broken dentries.
ls-ing the parent dir looks like:

drwxrwxrwt 1 root root 16 Jan 23 16:49 .
drwxr-xr-x 1 root root 24 Jan 23 16:48 ..
d????????? ? ?    ?     ?            ? broken_subvol

and similarly stat-ing the file fails.

In this state, deleting the subvol fails with ENOENT, but attempting to
create a new file or subvol over it errors out with EEXIST and even
aborts the fs. Which leaves us a bit stuck.

dmesg contains a single notable error message reading:
"could not do orphan cleanup -2"

2 is ENOENT and the error comes from the failure handling path of
btrfs_orphan_cleanup(), with the stack leading back up to
btrfs_lookup().

btrfs_lookup
btrfs_lookup_dentry
btrfs_orphan_cleanup // prints that message and returns -ENOENT

After some detailed inspection of the internal state, it became clear
that:
- there are no orphan items for the subvol
- the subvol is otherwise healthy looking, it is not half-deleted or
  anything, there is no drop progress, etc.
- the subvol was created a while ago and does the meaningful first
  btrfs_orphan_cleanup() call that sets BTRFS_ROOT_ORPHAN_CLEANUP much
  later.
- after btrfs_orphan_cleanup() fails, btrfs_lookup_dentry() returns -ENOENT,
  which results in a negative dentry for the subvolume via
  d_splice_alias(NULL, dentry), leading to the observed behavior. The
  bug can be mitigated by dropping the dentry cache, at which point we
  can successfully delete the subvolume if we want.

i.e.,
btrfs_lookup()
  btrfs_lookup_dentry()
    if (!sb_rdonly(inode->vfs_inode)->vfs_inode)
    btrfs_orphan_cleanup(sub_root)
      test_and_set_bit(BTRFS_ROOT_ORPHAN_CLEANUP)
      btrfs_search_slot() // finds orphan item for inode N
      ...
      prints "could not do orphan cleanup -2"
  if (inode == ERR_PTR(-ENOENT))
    inode = NULL;
  return d_splice_alias(NULL, dentry) // NEGATIVE DENTRY for valid subvolume

btrfs_orphan_cleanup() does test_and_set_bit(BTRFS_ROOT_ORPHAN_CLEANUP)
on the root when it runs, so it cannot run more than once on a given
root, so something else must run concurrently. However, the obvious
routes to deleting an orphan when nlinks goes to 0 should not be able to
run without first doing a lookup into the subvolume, which should run
btrfs_orphan_cleanup() and set the bit.

The final important observation is that create_subvol() calls
d_instantiate_new() but does not set BTRFS_ROOT_ORPHAN_CLEANUP, so if
the dentry cache gets dropped, the next lookup into the subvolume will
make a real call into btrfs_orphan_cleanup() for the first time. This
opens up the possibility of concurrently deleting the inode/orphan items
but most typical evict() paths will be holding a reference on the parent
dentry (child dentry holds parent->d_lockref.count via dget in
d_alloc(), released in __dentry_kill()) and prevent the parent from
being removed from the dentry cache.

The one exception is delayed iputs. Ordered extent creation calls
igrab() on the inode. If the file is unlinked and closed while those
refs are held, iput() in __dentry_kill() decrements i_count but does
not trigger eviction (i_count > 0). The child dentry is freed and the
subvol dentry's d_lockref.count drops to 0, making it evictable while
the inode is still alive.

Since there are two races (the race between writeback and unlink and
the race between lookup and delayed iputs), and there are too many moving
parts, the following three diagrams show the complete picture.
(Only the second and third are races)

Phase 1:
Create Subvol in dentry cache without BTRFS_ROOT_ORPHAN_CLEANUP set

btrfs_mksubvol()
  lookup_one_len()
    __lookup_slow()
      d_alloc_parallel()
        __d_alloc() // d_lockref.count = 1
  create_subvol(dentry)
    // doesn't touch the bit..
    d_instantiate_new(dentry, inode) // dentry in cache with d_lockref.count == 1

Phase 2:
Create a delayed iput for a file in the subvol but leave the subvol in
state where its dentry can be evicted (d_lockref.count == 0)

T1 (task)                    T2 (writeback)                   T3 (OE workqueue)

write() // dirty pages
                              btrfs_writepages()
                                btrfs_run_delalloc_range()
                                  cow_file_range()
                                    btrfs_alloc_ordered_extent()
                                      igrab() // i_count: 1 -> 2
btrfs_unlink_inode()
  btrfs_orphan_add()
close()
  __fput()
    dput()
      finish_dput()
        __dentry_kill()
          dentry_unlink_inode()
            iput() // 2 -> 1
          --parent->d_lockref.count // 1 -> 0; evictable
                                                                finish_ordered_fn()
                                                                  btrfs_finish_ordered_io()
                                                                    btrfs_put_ordered_extent()
                                                                      btrfs_add_delayed_iput()

Phase 3:
Once the delayed iput is pending and the subvol dentry is evictable,
the shrinker can free it, causing the next lookup to go through
btrfs_lookup() and call btrfs_orphan_cleanup() for the first time.
If the cleaner kthread processes the delayed iput concurrently, the
two race:

  T1 (shrinker)              T2 (cleaner kthread)                          T3 (lookup)

  super_cache_scan()
    prune_dcache_sb()
      __dentry_kill()
      // subvol dentry freed
                              btrfs_run_delayed_iputs()
                                iput()  // i_count -> 0
                                  evict()  // sets I_FREEING
                                    btrfs_evict_inode()
                                      // truncation loop
                                                                            btrfs_lookup()
                                                                              btrfs_lookup_dentry()
                                                                                btrfs_orphan_cleanup()
                                                                                  // first call (bit never set)
                                                                                  btrfs_iget()
                                                                                    // blocks on I_FREEING

                                      btrfs_orphan_del()
                                      // inode freed
                                                                                    // returns -ENOENT
                                                                                  btrfs_del_orphan_item()
                                                                                    // -ENOENT
                                                                                // "could not do orphan cleanup -2"
                                                                            d_splice_alias(NULL, dentry)
                                                                            // negative dentry for valid subvol

The most straightforward fix is to ensure the invariant that a dentry
for a subvolume can exist if and only if that subvolume has
BTRFS_ROOT_ORPHAN_CLEANUP set on its root (and is known to have no
orphans or ran btrfs_orphan_cleanup()).

Reviewed-by: Filipe Manana <fdmanana@suse.com>
Signed-off-by: Boris Burkov <boris@bur.io>
Signed-off-by: David Sterba <dsterba@suse.com>
History 2026-03-03 16:25:59 +01:00
arch RISC-V updates for v6.19-rc8 2026-01-30 16:57:36 -08:00
block block-6.19-20260122 2026-01-23 12:53:56 -08:00
certs sign-file,extract-cert: use pkcs11 provider for OPENSSL MAJOR >= 3 2024-09-20 19:52:48 +03:00
crypto crypto: authencesn - reject too-short AAD (assoclen<8) to match ESP/ESN spec 2026-01-20 14:38:48 +08:00
Documentation sound fixes for 6.19-rc8 2026-01-31 08:52:41 -08:00
drivers SCSI fixes on 20260201 2026-02-01 11:24:53 -08:00
fs btrfs: set BTRFS_ROOT_ORPHAN_CLEANUP during subvol create 2026-03-03 16:25:59 +01:00
include btrfs: allow mounting filesystems with remap-tree incompat flag 2026-02-03 07:54:35 +01:00
init Significant patch series in this pull request: 2025-12-06 14:01:20 -08:00
io_uring io_uring-6.19-20260122 2026-01-23 12:51:00 -08:00
ipc Significant patch series in this pull request: 2025-12-06 14:01:20 -08:00
kernel Fix a race in the user-callchains code. 2026-02-01 10:47:21 -08:00
lib mm/zone_device: reinitialize large zone device private folios 2026-01-26 19:03:48 -08:00
LICENSES LICENSES: Add modern form of the LGPL-2.1 tags to the usage guide section 2025-10-22 07:58:19 +02:00
mm 16 hotfixes. 9 are cc:stable, 12 are for MM. 2026-01-29 11:09:13 -08:00
net net: fix segmentation of forwarding fraglist GRO 2026-01-29 14:40:12 +01:00
rust Rust fixes for v6.19 2026-01-30 16:15:59 -08:00
samples samples/ftrace: Adjust LoongArch register restore order in direct calls 2025-12-31 15:19:25 +08:00
scripts Miscellaneous objtool fixes: 2026-02-01 10:27:43 -08:00
security keys/trusted_keys: fix handle passed to tpm_buf_append_name during unseal 2026-01-25 19:03:45 +02:00
sound ASoC: Fixes for v6.19 2026-01-29 13:58:06 +01:00
tools Miscellaneous objtool fixes: 2026-02-01 10:27:43 -08:00
usr initramfs: add gen_init_cpio to hostprogs unconditionally 2025-11-26 21:55:40 +01:00
virt KVM fixes for 6.19-rc1 2025-12-18 18:38:45 +01:00
.clang-format s390/pci: Fix cyclic dead-lock in zpci_zdev_put() and zpci_scan_devices() 2025-12-14 11:03:58 +01:00
.clippy.toml rust: clean Rust 1.88.0's warning about clippy::disallowed_macros configuration 2025-05-07 00:11:47 +02:00
.cocciconfig scripts: add Linux .cocciconfig for coccinelle 2016-07-22 12:13:39 +02:00
.editorconfig .editorconfig: remove trim_trailing_whitespace option 2024-06-13 16:47:52 +02:00
.get_maintainer.ignore MAINTAINERS: remove Alyssa Rosenzweig 2025-09-18 21:17:31 +02:00
.gitattributes .gitattributes: set diff driver for Rust source code files 2023-05-31 17:48:25 +02:00
.gitignore rust: kbuild: add proc macro library support 2025-11-24 17:15:36 +01:00
.mailmap 16 hotfixes. 9 are cc:stable, 12 are for MM. 2026-01-29 11:09:13 -08:00
.pylintrc docs: Move the python libraries to tools/lib/python 2025-11-18 09:22:40 -07:00
.rustfmt.toml rust: add .rustfmt.toml 2022-09-28 09:02:20 +02:00
COPYING COPYING: state that all contributions really are covered by this file 2020-02-10 13:32:20 -08:00
CREDITS nfc: MAINTAINERS: Orphan the NFC and look for new maintainers 2026-01-20 16:05:38 -08:00
Kbuild sched: Make migrate_{en,dis}able() inline 2025-09-25 09:57:16 +02:00
Kconfig io_uring: Rename KConfig to Kconfig 2025-02-19 14:53:27 -07:00
MAINTAINERS Including fixes from bluetooth, CAN and wireless. 2026-01-29 10:21:52 -08:00
Makefile Linux 6.19-rc8 2026-02-01 14:01:13 -08:00
README README: restructure with role-based documentation and guidelines 2025-11-29 08:40:33 -07:00

Linux kernel
============

The Linux kernel is the core of any Linux operating system. It manages hardware,
system resources, and provides the fundamental services for all other software.

Quick Start
-----------

* Report a bug: See Documentation/admin-guide/reporting-issues.rst
* Get the latest kernel: https://kernel.org
* Build the kernel: See Documentation/admin-guide/quickly-build-trimmed-linux.rst
* Join the community: https://lore.kernel.org/

Essential Documentation
-----------------------

All users should be familiar with:

* Building requirements: Documentation/process/changes.rst
* Code of Conduct: Documentation/process/code-of-conduct.rst
* License: See COPYING

Documentation can be built with make htmldocs or viewed online at:
https://www.kernel.org/doc/html/latest/


Who Are You?
============

Find your role below:

* New Kernel Developer - Getting started with kernel development
* Academic Researcher - Studying kernel internals and architecture
* Security Expert - Hardening and vulnerability analysis
* Backport/Maintenance Engineer - Maintaining stable kernels
* System Administrator - Configuring and troubleshooting
* Maintainer - Leading subsystems and reviewing patches
* Hardware Vendor - Writing drivers for new hardware
* Distribution Maintainer - Packaging kernels for distros


For Specific Users
==================

New Kernel Developer
--------------------

Welcome! Start your kernel development journey here:

* Getting Started: Documentation/process/development-process.rst
* Your First Patch: Documentation/process/submitting-patches.rst
* Coding Style: Documentation/process/coding-style.rst
* Build System: Documentation/kbuild/index.rst
* Development Tools: Documentation/dev-tools/index.rst
* Kernel Hacking Guide: Documentation/kernel-hacking/hacking.rst
* Core APIs: Documentation/core-api/index.rst

Academic Researcher
-------------------

Explore the kernel's architecture and internals:

* Researcher Guidelines: Documentation/process/researcher-guidelines.rst
* Memory Management: Documentation/mm/index.rst
* Scheduler: Documentation/scheduler/index.rst
* Networking Stack: Documentation/networking/index.rst
* Filesystems: Documentation/filesystems/index.rst
* RCU (Read-Copy Update): Documentation/RCU/index.rst
* Locking Primitives: Documentation/locking/index.rst
* Power Management: Documentation/power/index.rst

Security Expert
---------------

Security documentation and hardening guides:

* Security Documentation: Documentation/security/index.rst
* LSM Development: Documentation/security/lsm-development.rst
* Self Protection: Documentation/security/self-protection.rst
* Reporting Vulnerabilities: Documentation/process/security-bugs.rst
* CVE Procedures: Documentation/process/cve.rst
* Embargoed Hardware Issues: Documentation/process/embargoed-hardware-issues.rst
* Security Features: Documentation/userspace-api/seccomp_filter.rst

Backport/Maintenance Engineer
-----------------------------

Maintain and stabilize kernel versions:

* Stable Kernel Rules: Documentation/process/stable-kernel-rules.rst
* Backporting Guide: Documentation/process/backporting.rst
* Applying Patches: Documentation/process/applying-patches.rst
* Subsystem Profile: Documentation/maintainer/maintainer-entry-profile.rst
* Git for Maintainers: Documentation/maintainer/configure-git.rst

System Administrator
--------------------

Configure, tune, and troubleshoot Linux systems:

* Admin Guide: Documentation/admin-guide/index.rst
* Kernel Parameters: Documentation/admin-guide/kernel-parameters.rst
* Sysctl Tuning: Documentation/admin-guide/sysctl/index.rst
* Tracing/Debugging: Documentation/trace/index.rst
* Performance Security: Documentation/admin-guide/perf-security.rst
* Hardware Monitoring: Documentation/hwmon/index.rst

Maintainer
----------

Lead kernel subsystems and manage contributions:

* Maintainer Handbook: Documentation/maintainer/index.rst
* Pull Requests: Documentation/maintainer/pull-requests.rst
* Managing Patches: Documentation/maintainer/modifying-patches.rst
* Rebasing and Merging: Documentation/maintainer/rebasing-and-merging.rst
* Development Process: Documentation/process/maintainer-handbooks.rst
* Maintainer Entry Profile: Documentation/maintainer/maintainer-entry-profile.rst
* Git Configuration: Documentation/maintainer/configure-git.rst

Hardware Vendor
---------------

Write drivers and support new hardware:

* Driver API Guide: Documentation/driver-api/index.rst
* Driver Model: Documentation/driver-api/driver-model/driver.rst
* Device Drivers: Documentation/driver-api/infrastructure.rst
* Bus Types: Documentation/driver-api/driver-model/bus.rst
* Device Tree Bindings: Documentation/devicetree/bindings/
* Power Management: Documentation/driver-api/pm/index.rst
* DMA API: Documentation/core-api/dma-api.rst

Distribution Maintainer
-----------------------

Package and distribute the kernel:

* Stable Kernel Rules: Documentation/process/stable-kernel-rules.rst
* ABI Documentation: Documentation/ABI/README
* Kernel Configuration: Documentation/kbuild/kconfig.rst
* Module Signing: Documentation/admin-guide/module-signing.rst
* Kernel Parameters: Documentation/admin-guide/kernel-parameters.rst
* Tainted Kernels: Documentation/admin-guide/tainted-kernels.rst



Communication and Support
=========================

* Mailing Lists: https://lore.kernel.org/
* IRC: #kernelnewbies on irc.oftc.net
* Bugzilla: https://bugzilla.kernel.org/
* MAINTAINERS file: Lists subsystem maintainers and mailing lists
* Email Clients: Documentation/process/email-clients.rst