Systems Management ServerApplication · Microsoft

CVE-2000-0885

HIGH · 7.5 CVSS v2.0 Published 2000-12-19
Mitigation only
No fix yet — a mitigation exists. There is no fixed release. A documented workaround reduces exposure in the meantime.
See remediation →
84/100
Remediation priority · High
Remotely reachable No privileges Zero-click

Official description Straight from the sourceThe vendor's or NVD's own wording, published unedited. Authoritative, but often terse — it says what broke, rarely what to do.

NVD · unedited
Buffer overflows in Microsoft Network Monitor (Netmon) allow remote attackers to execute arbitrary commands via a long Browser Name in a CIFS Browse Frame, a long SNMP community name, or a long username or filename in an SMB session, aka the "Netmon Protocol Parsing" vulnerability. NOTE: It is highly likely that this candidate will be split into multiple candidates.

Technical summary Written by usOur analysis, written from the advisory, the CVSS vector and the affected-version data. It adds context the advisory leaves out, and never invents facts that are not in the source.

dbcve analysis · high confidence

Buffer overflow vulnerability in Microsoft Network Monitor's protocol parsing functionality allows remote attackers to execute arbitrary commands via specially crafted network packets containing excessively long Browser Names (CIFS Browse Frame), SNMP community names, or SMB session usernames/filenames.

MitigationDisable or uninstall Microsoft Network Monitor on affected systems if not required; if required, apply historical Microsoft patches from circa 2000 and implement network segmentation to limit exposure to untrusted network segments.

Verify against the referenced sources before acting — the references below are authoritative for this CVE, this summary is not.

Affected products & versions What the vendor confirmedThe version ranges the vendor confirmed as vulnerable. If your version sits inside a range here, treat yourself as exposed until you have upgraded.

NVD · CPE data
Systems Management ServerApplication
Affected:= 1.2= 2.0
Windows 2000Operating system
Affected:all versions
Windows NtOperating system
Affected:= 4.0

CVSS breakdown How the score is builtThe industry scoring standard. It rates how the flaw is reached, what it takes to exploit, and what an attacker gains — the score is derived from those, not the other way round.

From the vector
Attack vector
Network
Complexity
Low
Authentication
None
Confidentiality
Partial
Integrity
Partial
Availability
Partial

AV:N/AC:L/Au:N/C:P/I:P/A:P

Am I affected? How to checkSteps we derive from the advisory and the affected-version data, so you can decide whether this CVE reaches your setup. They are a guide, not a scan — your own configuration is the authority.

dbcve checks

Work through these to decide whether this CVE applies to you.

  1. Determine if Microsoft Network Monitor is installed
    Check Program Files for Network Monitor directory or check Add/Remove Programs for Network Monitor component. On Windows NT/2000, also check for Network Monitor in Services or as a installed component.
    Affected if Network Monitor is installed on the system - this is the primary requirement for the vulnerability to be exploitable
  2. Identify the Windows version
    Run 'winver' command or check System Properties to confirm if the system is Windows 2000 (any version) or Windows NT 4.0.
    Affected if System is Windows 2000 any version OR Windows NT 4.0 - both are explicitly listed as affected
  3. Identify Systems Management Server version if applicable
    Check installed programs or SMS administrative tools for version number if SMS is deployed in the environment.
    Affected if Microsoft Systems Management Server version 1.2 or 2.0 is installed regardless of Windows version
  4. Verify Network Monitor service status
    Check if Network Monitor service is running or set to start, as the vulnerability requires the parsing component to be active.
    Affected if Network Monitor service is installed and enabled - the vulnerability exists in the protocol parsing functionality of this component

System is affected if Network Monitor is installed AND the Windows version is 2000 (any) or NT 4.0, OR if Systems Management Server 1.2 or 2.0 is installed regardless of Windows version.

Generated from the published advisory. Verify against your own configuration.

Check your environment

Paste your version and any relevant configuration and it will be compared against the affected criteria above. Do not include secrets or credentials.

AI-assisted, checked against the advisory. Informational, not a guarantee.

Remediation Closing itWhat it takes to close this. Where a vendor fix exists we point at it; where none exists we say so plainly, and can build one. Effort estimates are scoped from the advisory, not from your codebase.

From vendor data
Mitigation available No clean upgrade yet — mitigate in the meantime
Mitigation

Disable or uninstall Microsoft Network Monitor on affected systems if not required; if required, apply historical Microsoft patches from circa 2000 and implement network segmentation to limit exposure to untrusted network segments.

Fix this in Systems Management Server Scoped from the published advisory
  • Consultation4.0 h
  • Implementation2.0 h
  • Testing1.0 h
  • Review / QA1.0 h
8.0 hours of engineering $1,490
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Scan for this in your stack

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References Go to the primary sourcePrimary sources — vendor advisories, patches and trackers. Where our summary and a reference disagree, the reference wins.

Primary sources

Practitioner notes

Contributed

Peer-ranked notes from engineers who’ve handled CVE-2000-0885 in production — separate from our analysis above.

No notes yet

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What this is

A place for practitioners to share what actually worked: a mitigation you’ve tested, a configuration change, a version- or environment-specific caveat, or a link to a verified patch. The most useful notes rise to the top as peers upvote them, so the signal stays high.

What belongs here
  • Verified mitigations, workarounds, and config changes
  • Version or environment caveats, and links to real fixes
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