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Christian Brauner e08f57a7dc readdir: take no inode lock on an immutable directory
iterate_dir() takes the directory's i_rwsem shared and holds it across
->iterate_shared(). For a directory that never has an entry and is
never removed the lock keeps nothing still, it only orders every reader
and every writer of that inode behind each other.

For the directory of a nullfs instance that matters. The instance of
the initial mount namespace is the root of every empty mount namespace
and the private instance is the root of every kernel thread, so one
inode is shared across users who have nothing else in common. And a
reader can hold the lock for as long as it likes: back the getdents()
buffer with a mapping of a file on a FUSE mount of your own, let the
copy of "." and ".." fault and let the server wait. Queue an exclusive
taker behind it, a mkdir() in that directory goes through start_dirop()
before the read-only mount is reported, and from then on every lookup
that misses the dcache in that directory, every create and every mount
on it waits until the server answers. One user of an empty mount
namespace stalls all the others.

Add FOP_IMMUTABLE for the file operations of a directory that never
changes and is never removed and let iterate_dir() skip the lock for
it. The flag never changes for a file, ->f_pos is protected by
f_pos_lock since directories are FMODE_ATOMIC_POS, IS_DEADDIR can't be
set on such a directory and neither touch_atime() nor fsnotify take
i_rwsem. Set it on the nullfs directory. The placeholder directories of
libfs never have an entry either but their owners remove them, so they
keep the lock.

Fixes: 9d4e752a24 ("namespace: allow creating empty mount namespaces")
Cc: stable@vger.kernel.org # v7.1+
Link: https://patch.msgid.link/20261002-work-mount-fixes-4-v1-19-dd44b89d44ce@kernel.org
Signed-off-by: Christian Brauner (Amutable) <brauner@kernel.org>
History 2026-10-04 12:36:13 +02:00
arch * AMD device topology and machine check fixes 2026-09-08 12:54:56 -07:00
block block: save page offset gaps in cloned bio 2026-09-01 08:42:34 -06:00
certs treewide: fix indentation and whitespace in Kconfig files 2026-05-28 21:24:42 -07:00
crypto This push fixes a memory allocation overrun in crypto acomp. 2026-08-28 09:28:40 -07:00
Documentation docs: update the unmount propagation rule 2026-09-25 17:20:33 +02:00
drivers vduse: return compat ioctl results directly 2026-09-08 03:58:27 -04:00
fs readdir: take no inode lock on an immutable directory 2026-10-04 12:36:13 +02:00
include readdir: take no inode lock on an immutable directory 2026-10-04 12:36:13 +02:00
init vfs-7.3-rc3.fixes 2026-09-09 09:38:03 -07:00
io_uring treewide: refresh kmalloc_obj() conversions 2026-09-04 21:37:00 -07:00
ipc mm.git review status for master..mm-nonmm-stable 2026-08-23 08:07:11 -07:00
kernel unshare: don't drop active namespace references that were never taken 2026-10-01 14:20:07 +02:00
lib block: Fix start and length check added to iov_iter_extract_bvecs() 2026-09-10 09:20:39 +02:00
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 treewide: refresh kmalloc_obj() conversions 2026-09-04 21:37:00 -07:00
net kmalloc_obj conversions for v7.3-rc2 2026-09-05 20:45:18 -07:00
rust rust: pci: reject IRQ vector indices that do not fit in u32 2026-09-01 18:21:01 +02:00
samples tracing fixes for v7.3: 2026-08-30 09:22:00 -07:00
scripts Coccinelle patches for Linux v7.3 2026-08-30 10:42:40 -07:00
security landlock: Test trace path output boundaries 2026-09-08 11:49:39 +02:00
sound treewide: refresh kmalloc_obj() conversions 2026-09-04 21:37:00 -07:00
tools selftests/filesystems: check that an automount below an overlay layer is refused 2026-10-04 12:31:40 +02:00
usr usr: Correct a spelling by changing a letter 2026-08-05 14:51:58 +02:00
virt Arm: 2026-08-25 11:48:04 -07:00
.clang-format drm/bridge: rename drm_for_each_bridge_in_chain_scoped() to drm_for_each_bridge_in_chain() 2026-07-14 17:55:51 +02:00
.clippy.toml rust: bump Clippy's MSRV and clean incompatible_msrv allows 2026-04-07 09:51:39 +02:00
.cocciconfig scripts: add Linux .cocciconfig for coccinelle 2016-07-22 12:13:39 +02:00
.editorconfig editorconfig: add rst extension 2026-01-26 19:07:09 -08:00
.get_maintainer.ignore .get_maintainer.ignore: add Nathan Chancellor 2026-08-03 21:10:12 -07:00
.gitattributes .gitattributes: set diff driver for Rust source code files 2023-05-31 17:48:25 +02:00
.gitignore SPDX patches for 7.2-rc1 2026-06-22 12:06:22 -07:00
.mailmap drm fixes for 7.3-rc2 2026-09-04 13:42:16 -07:00
.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 Driver core fixes for 7.3-rc2 2026-09-05 11:59:05 -07:00
Kbuild checksyscalls: move instance functionality into generic code 2026-04-05 09:21:32 +02:00
Kconfig io_uring: Rename KConfig to Kconfig 2025-02-19 14:53:27 -07:00
MAINTAINERS vhost,vdpa,virtio: fixes 2026-09-09 08:50:05 -07:00
Makefile Linux 7.3-rc2 2026-09-06 15:07:20 -07:00
README README: remove out of place emdashes 2026-07-15 10:51:29 -06:00

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
* AI Coding Assistant: LLMs and AI-powered development tools


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

AI Coding Assistant
-------------------

CRITICAL: If you are an LLM or AI-powered coding assistant, you MUST read and
follow the AI coding assistants documentation before contributing to the Linux
kernel:

* Documentation/process/coding-assistants.rst

This documentation contains essential requirements about licensing, attribution,
and the Developer Certificate of Origin that all AI tools must comply with.


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