Linux Kernel 6.18.6 released
Linux Kernel 6.18.6 has been released, incorporating various bug fixes and improvements from the kernel community. One thing that got fixed is in the Cadence Quasi-SPI driver. They sorted out a race condition between the read loop and the IRQ complete() function, preventing potential lost completion signals during indirect reads.
Over on the SCSI side, specifically with the sg subsystem, there was an issue. The sg_proc_debug_helper() function sometimes reported bogus elapsed times that could blow past the configured timeout. These issues turned out to be caused by two separate race conditions in the code. A fix involving locking down the hp->duration variable under a specific lock (sfp->rq_list_lock) has patched things up.
The sound stack also saw some action. The ALSA driver now enables woofer speakers on Medion NM14LNL systems, and added quirks for devices that natively handle DSD format, which is good for keeping them working smoothly.
Then there's the block driver area. A bug fix ensures invalid PI tuple offset values don't slip through anymore. It checks that pi_offset + pi_tuple_size <= metadata_size to keep everything clean.
The CAN network stack got a touch-up too. The j1939_session_activate() function now fails properly if the device isn't registered, helping avoid soft lock-ups flagged by syzbot testing.
Beyond these main points, several other drivers were dealt with: the ATA driver disabled low-power mode on specific ST2000DM008 hard drives due to past issues, and the netfilter nf_tables module improved its chain re-validation logic to prevent unneeded CPU soft lock-ups. Plus, powercap got a fix for inconsistent sscanf() error handling checks and smoothed out a race condition in register_control_type(). The SFP driver also grew slightly by including support for more variants of the Potron XGSPON ONU stick's EEPROM.
Linux kernel 6.18.6 released
Linux kernel version 6.18.6 is now available:
Full source: https://cdn.kernel.org/pub/linux/kernel/v6.x/linux-6.18.6.tar.xz
Patch: https://cdn.kernel.org/pub/linux/kernel/v6.x/patch-6.18.6.xz
PGP Signature: https://cdn.kernel.org/pub/linux/kernel/v6.x/linux-6.18.6.tar.sign
You can view the summary of the changes at the following URL:
https://git.kernel.org/stable/ds/v6.18.6/v6.18.5
