diff --git a/include/linux/cgroup.h b/include/linux/cgroup.h
index c86ba7ff7a7e5e800157321656366a4ccb0aeb94..1ba4fc08f77645a803ea17bc9df07d854090e27b 100644
--- a/include/linux/cgroup.h
+++ b/include/linux/cgroup.h
@@ -825,8 +825,8 @@ int css_scan_tasks(struct cgroup_subsys_state *css,
 int cgroup_attach_task_all(struct task_struct *from, struct task_struct *);
 int cgroup_transfer_tasks(struct cgroup *to, struct cgroup *from);
 
-struct cgroup_subsys_state *css_from_dir(struct dentry *dentry,
-					 struct cgroup_subsys *ss);
+struct cgroup_subsys_state *css_tryget_from_dir(struct dentry *dentry,
+						struct cgroup_subsys *ss);
 
 #else /* !CONFIG_CGROUPS */
 
diff --git a/kernel/cgroup.c b/kernel/cgroup.c
index 2de8decfd99fbd682a489e254426a2432ba439da..fc2db071d95e423a3aa8f9f010c1713a8d01c25a 100644
--- a/kernel/cgroup.c
+++ b/kernel/cgroup.c
@@ -4978,28 +4978,35 @@ static int __init cgroup_disable(char *str)
 __setup("cgroup_disable=", cgroup_disable);
 
 /**
- * css_from_dir - get corresponding css from the dentry of a cgroup dir
+ * css_tryget_from_dir - get corresponding css from the dentry of a cgroup dir
  * @dentry: directory dentry of interest
  * @ss: subsystem of interest
  *
- * Must be called under cgroup_mutex or RCU read lock.  The caller is
- * responsible for pinning the returned css if it needs to be accessed
- * outside the critical section.
+ * If @dentry is a directory for a cgroup which has @ss enabled on it, try
+ * to get the corresponding css and return it.  If such css doesn't exist
+ * or can't be pinned, an ERR_PTR value is returned.
  */
-struct cgroup_subsys_state *css_from_dir(struct dentry *dentry,
-					 struct cgroup_subsys *ss)
+struct cgroup_subsys_state *css_tryget_from_dir(struct dentry *dentry,
+						struct cgroup_subsys *ss)
 {
 	struct cgroup *cgrp;
-
-	cgroup_assert_mutex_or_rcu_locked();
+	struct cgroup_subsys_state *css;
 
 	/* is @dentry a cgroup dir? */
 	if (!dentry->d_inode ||
 	    dentry->d_inode->i_op != &cgroup_dir_inode_operations)
 		return ERR_PTR(-EBADF);
 
+	rcu_read_lock();
+
 	cgrp = __d_cgrp(dentry);
-	return cgroup_css(cgrp, ss) ?: ERR_PTR(-ENOENT);
+	css = cgroup_css(cgrp, ss);
+
+	if (!css || !css_tryget(css))
+		css = ERR_PTR(-ENOENT);
+
+	rcu_read_unlock();
+	return css;
 }
 
 /**
diff --git a/kernel/events/core.c b/kernel/events/core.c
index 64903731d834adf3aaba4c2aee5a42069a6ba5b0..a3c3ab50271af3453845c1bb925fe03e811e0b1b 100644
--- a/kernel/events/core.c
+++ b/kernel/events/core.c
@@ -370,11 +370,6 @@ perf_cgroup_match(struct perf_event *event)
 				    event->cgrp->css.cgroup);
 }
 
-static inline bool perf_tryget_cgroup(struct perf_event *event)
-{
-	return css_tryget(&event->cgrp->css);
-}
-
 static inline void perf_put_cgroup(struct perf_event *event)
 {
 	css_put(&event->cgrp->css);
@@ -593,9 +588,7 @@ static inline int perf_cgroup_connect(int fd, struct perf_event *event,
 	if (!f.file)
 		return -EBADF;
 
-	rcu_read_lock();
-
-	css = css_from_dir(f.file->f_dentry, &perf_event_cgrp_subsys);
+	css = css_tryget_from_dir(f.file->f_dentry, &perf_event_cgrp_subsys);
 	if (IS_ERR(css)) {
 		ret = PTR_ERR(css);
 		goto out;
@@ -604,13 +597,6 @@ static inline int perf_cgroup_connect(int fd, struct perf_event *event,
 	cgrp = container_of(css, struct perf_cgroup, css);
 	event->cgrp = cgrp;
 
-	/* must be done before we fput() the file */
-	if (!perf_tryget_cgroup(event)) {
-		event->cgrp = NULL;
-		ret = -ENOENT;
-		goto out;
-	}
-
 	/*
 	 * all events in a group must monitor
 	 * the same cgroup because a task belongs
@@ -621,7 +607,6 @@ static inline int perf_cgroup_connect(int fd, struct perf_event *event,
 		ret = -EINVAL;
 	}
 out:
-	rcu_read_unlock();
 	fdput(f);
 	return ret;
 }
diff --git a/mm/memcontrol.c b/mm/memcontrol.c
index 04a97bce22703965e6486b8cf5e74b13eb70ef26..102ab48ffa1320ff3c17d07433ce46d5d2783ada 100644
--- a/mm/memcontrol.c
+++ b/mm/memcontrol.c
@@ -6183,17 +6183,15 @@ static int memcg_write_event_control(struct cgroup_subsys_state *css,
 	 * automatically removed on cgroup destruction but the removal is
 	 * asynchronous, so take an extra ref on @css.
 	 */
-	rcu_read_lock();
-
+	cfile_css = css_tryget_from_dir(cfile.file->f_dentry->d_parent,
+					&memory_cgrp_subsys);
 	ret = -EINVAL;
-	cfile_css = css_from_dir(cfile.file->f_dentry->d_parent,
-				 &memory_cgrp_subsys);
-	if (cfile_css == css && css_tryget(css))
-		ret = 0;
-
-	rcu_read_unlock();
-	if (ret)
+	if (IS_ERR(cfile_css))
 		goto out_put_cfile;
+	if (cfile_css != css) {
+		css_put(cfile_css);
+		goto out_put_cfile;
+	}
 
 	ret = event->register_event(memcg, event->eventfd, buffer);
 	if (ret)