diff --git a/Documentation/admin-guide/kernel-parameters.txt b/Documentation/admin-guide/kernel-parameters.txt
index d93fbc1c1917..7866cc1bd4a9 100644
--- a/Documentation/admin-guide/kernel-parameters.txt
+++ b/Documentation/admin-guide/kernel-parameters.txt
@@ -1833,6 +1833,18 @@
 			initcall functions.  Useful for debugging built-in
 			modules and initcalls.
 
+	initramfs_async= [KNL]
+			Format: <bool>
+			Default: 1
+			This parameter controls whether the initramfs
+			image is unpacked asynchronously, concurrently
+			with devices being probed and
+			initialized. This should normally just work,
+			but as a debugging aid, one can get the
+			historical behaviour of the initramfs
+			unpacking being completed before device_ and
+			late_ initcalls.
+
 	initrd=		[BOOT] Specify the location of the initial ramdisk
 
 	initrdmem=	[KNL] Specify a physical address and size from which to
diff --git a/drivers/base/firmware_loader/main.c b/drivers/base/firmware_loader/main.c
index 78355095e00d..4fdb8219cd08 100644
--- a/drivers/base/firmware_loader/main.c
+++ b/drivers/base/firmware_loader/main.c
@@ -15,6 +15,7 @@
 #include <linux/kernel_read_file.h>
 #include <linux/module.h>
 #include <linux/init.h>
+#include <linux/initrd.h>
 #include <linux/timer.h>
 #include <linux/vmalloc.h>
 #include <linux/interrupt.h>
@@ -504,6 +505,7 @@ fw_get_filesystem_firmware(struct device *device, struct fw_priv *fw_priv,
 	if (!path)
 		return -ENOMEM;
 
+	wait_for_initramfs();
 	for (i = 0; i < ARRAY_SIZE(fw_path); i++) {
 		size_t file_size = 0;
 		size_t *file_size_ptr = NULL;
diff --git a/include/linux/initrd.h b/include/linux/initrd.h
index 85c15717af34..1bbe9af48dc3 100644
--- a/include/linux/initrd.h
+++ b/include/linux/initrd.h
@@ -20,8 +20,10 @@ extern void free_initrd_mem(unsigned long, unsigned long);
 
 #ifdef CONFIG_BLK_DEV_INITRD
 extern void __init reserve_initrd_mem(void);
+extern void wait_for_initramfs(void);
 #else
 static inline void __init reserve_initrd_mem(void) {}
+static inline void wait_for_initramfs(void) {}
 #endif
 
 extern phys_addr_t phys_initrd_start;
diff --git a/init/initramfs.c b/init/initramfs.c
index d677e8e717f1..af27abc59643 100644
--- a/init/initramfs.c
+++ b/init/initramfs.c
@@ -1,5 +1,6 @@
 // SPDX-License-Identifier: GPL-2.0
 #include <linux/init.h>
+#include <linux/async.h>
 #include <linux/fs.h>
 #include <linux/slab.h>
 #include <linux/types.h>
@@ -541,6 +542,14 @@ static int __init keepinitrd_setup(char *__unused)
 __setup("keepinitrd", keepinitrd_setup);
 #endif
 
+static bool __initdata initramfs_async = true;
+static int __init initramfs_async_setup(char *str)
+{
+	strtobool(str, &initramfs_async);
+	return 1;
+}
+__setup("initramfs_async=", initramfs_async_setup);
+
 extern char __initramfs_start[];
 extern unsigned long __initramfs_size;
 #include <linux/initrd.h>
@@ -658,7 +667,7 @@ static void __init populate_initrd_image(char *err)
 }
 #endif /* CONFIG_BLK_DEV_RAM */
 
-static int __init populate_rootfs(void)
+static void __init do_populate_rootfs(void *unused, async_cookie_t cookie)
 {
 	/* Load the built in initramfs */
 	char *err = unpack_to_rootfs(__initramfs_start, __initramfs_size);
@@ -693,6 +702,33 @@ done:
 	initrd_end = 0;
 
 	flush_delayed_fput();
+}
+
+static ASYNC_DOMAIN_EXCLUSIVE(initramfs_domain);
+static async_cookie_t initramfs_cookie;
+
+void wait_for_initramfs(void)
+{
+	if (!initramfs_cookie) {
+		/*
+		 * Something before rootfs_initcall wants to access
+		 * the filesystem/initramfs. Probably a bug. Make a
+		 * note, avoid deadlocking the machine, and let the
+		 * caller's access fail as it used to.
+		 */
+		pr_warn_once("wait_for_initramfs() called before rootfs_initcalls\n");
+		return;
+	}
+	async_synchronize_cookie_domain(initramfs_cookie + 1, &initramfs_domain);
+}
+EXPORT_SYMBOL_GPL(wait_for_initramfs);
+
+static int __init populate_rootfs(void)
+{
+	initramfs_cookie = async_schedule_domain(do_populate_rootfs, NULL,
+						 &initramfs_domain);
+	if (!initramfs_async)
+		wait_for_initramfs();
 	return 0;
 }
 rootfs_initcall(populate_rootfs);
diff --git a/init/main.c b/init/main.c
index dd11bfd10ead..11d34ccf5786 100644
--- a/init/main.c
+++ b/init/main.c
@@ -1561,6 +1561,7 @@ static noinline void __init kernel_init_freeable(void)
 
 	kunit_run_all_tests();
 
+	wait_for_initramfs();
 	console_on_rootfs();
 
 	/*
diff --git a/kernel/umh.c b/kernel/umh.c
index 3f646613a9d3..61f6b82c354b 100644
--- a/kernel/umh.c
+++ b/kernel/umh.c
@@ -27,6 +27,7 @@
 #include <linux/ptrace.h>
 #include <linux/async.h>
 #include <linux/uaccess.h>
+#include <linux/initrd.h>
 
 #include <trace/events/module.h>
 
@@ -107,6 +108,7 @@ static int call_usermodehelper_exec_async(void *data)
 
 	commit_creds(new);
 
+	wait_for_initramfs();
 	retval = kernel_execve(sub_info->path,
 			       (const char *const *)sub_info->argv,
 			       (const char *const *)sub_info->envp);