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Sql ServerApplication · Microsoft

CVE-2001-0344

HIGH · 7.2 CVSS v2.0 Published 2001-07-21
Mitigation only
No fix yet — a mitigation exists. There is no fixed release. A documented workaround reduces exposure in the meantime.
See remediation →
77/100
Remediation priority · High
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
An SQL query method in Microsoft SQL Server 2000 Gold and 7.0 using Mixed Mode allows local database users to gain privileges by reusing a cached connection of the sa administrator account.

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

In Microsoft SQL Server 2000 and 7.0 with Mixed Mode authentication enabled, a local database user can elevate privileges to system administrator (sa) level by exploiting how the server caches and reuses connections from the sa account. This allows an authenticated but unprivileged database user to gain full administrative control over the SQL Server instance.

MitigationDisable Mixed Mode authentication and use Windows Authentication mode instead. If Mixed Mode is required, ensure strict least-privilege access controls for local database users and monitor for unauthorized connection reuse.

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
Sql ServerApplication
Affected:= 7.0= 2000

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
Local
Complexity
Low
Authentication
None
Confidentiality
Complete
Integrity
Complete
Availability
Complete

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

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. Identify SQL Server version
    Run 'SELECT @@VERSION' in SQL Server Management Studio or execute 'sqlcmd -S <server> -Q "SELECT @@VERSION"' from command line. Look for version numbers 7.0 or 2000 in the output.
    Affected if Version shown is exactly 7.0 or 2000 (not later versions like 2005 or above)
  2. Determine authentication mode
    Open SQL Server Enterprise Manager (SQL 2000) or SQL Server Management Studio (if connecting to SQL 2000), right-click the server instance, go to Properties, and check the Security page. Alternatively, query: 'SELECT serverproperty('AuthenticationMode')' - a value of 0 indicates Windows-only, 1 or 2 indicates Mixed Mode.
    Affected if Authentication mode is set to Mixed Mode or SQL Server and Windows (not Windows-only)
  3. Identify local SQL users
    Run 'SELECT name, is_disabled, login_type FROM sys.server_principals WHERE login_type = ''SQL_USER''' in SQL Server. Also check 'SELECT name, principal_id, type_desc FROM sys.database_principals WHERE type = ''S''' in each user database.
    Affected if There exist local SQL Server users (not Windows-authenticated users) who are not members of the sysadmin server role

You are affected if you run SQL Server 7.0 or 2000 with Mixed Mode authentication enabled and have any local SQL users present who are not sysadmin.

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 Mixed Mode authentication and use Windows Authentication mode instead. If Mixed Mode is required, ensure strict least-privilege access controls for local database users and monitor for unauthorized connection reuse.

Fix this in Sql Server Scoped from the published advisory
  • Consultation4.0 h
  • Implementation4.0 h
  • Testing4.0 h
  • Review / QA2.0 h
14.0 hours of engineering $2,480
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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-2001-0344 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
  • No weaponised exploit code, or anything meant to cause harm
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