dm-integrity-recovery-mode · shipping · also dm-integrity R mode

dm-integrity recovery mode

dm-integrity recovery mode is a Linux device-mapper access mode that bypasses integrity checks and journal replay while disallowing writes through the mapping.

Related Observatory article: dm-integrity recovery mode on hesela.com

Linux v6.12 documents this mode for recovery when ordinary activation fails; obtaining bytes does not authenticate them. [1] The v6.12 sync_rw_sb implementation also skips superblock MAC checking in this mode. [2] It is distinct from normal verified read-only access and from recalculation, which generates replacement tags. [3]

Relations

related

dm-integrity, block-device-read-only, read-only-mount, authenticated-encryption

Limitations

• The mode does not establish freshness, repair content or prove that all other paths to the underlying storage are write-blocked. [3]

Citations

1. Linux v6.12 documentation: dm-integrity, integrity-tag ownership and journal/direct modes (accessed 2026-10-15)
2. Linux v6.12 dm-integrity.c: dm_integrity_disable_recalculate and sync_rw_sb (accessed 2026-10-15)
3. Hesela: Recovery can stop checking the evidence (accessed 2026-10-15)

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