CVE-2005-2150
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 · uneditedWindows NT 4.0 and Windows 2000 before URP1 for Windows 2000 SP4 does not properly prevent NULL sessions from accessing certain alternate named pipes, which allows remote attackers to (1) list Windows services via svcctl or (2) read eventlogs via eventlog.
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 confidenceWindows NT 4.0 and Windows 2000 before the Update Rollup Package 1 for SP4 fail to properly restrict NULL sessions (unauthenticated remote connections) from accessing certain named pipes, specifically svcctl (Service Control Manager) and eventlog. This allows remote attackers to enumerate Windows services and read event log contents without any authentication.
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 dataall versions= 4.0CVSS 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
- None
- Availability
- None
AV:N/AC:L/Au:N/C:P/I:N/A:N
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 checksWork through these to decide whether this CVE applies to you.
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Identify the Windows versionRun 'winver' or check System Properties to confirm if the system is Windows 2000 (any version) or Windows NT 4.0.Affected if The version is Windows 2000 or Windows NT 4.0.
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Check if Update Rollup Package 1 for SP4 is installedOpen Add/Remove Programs in Control Panel and look for 'Update Rollup Package 1 for SP4' in the list, or check the registry key HKLM\Software\Microsoft\Windows\CurrentVersion\Setup\SP3\Uptodate for Windows 2000 SP4 systems.Affected if The system is Windows 2000 without Update Rollup Package 1 for SP4 installed, or is Windows NT 4.0.
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Verify NULL session restrictions on the LanmanServerRun 'reg query HKLM\System\CurrentControlSet\Services\LanmanServer\Parameters /v RestrictNullSessAccess' and check if the value is set to 1. If the value is missing or set to 0, NULL sessions are not restricted.Affected if The RestrictNullSessAccess registry value is missing or set to 0 (NULL sessions allowed).
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Check for NULL session access to the svcctl named pipeFrom a remote system or locally, attempt to connect using a NULL session: 'net use \\\\targetname\ipc$ "" /user:""' then verify if the Service Control Manager pipe (\pipe\svcctl) is accessible. This can be checked by examining share access or using tools that enumerate named pipe access.Affected if A NULL session can connect and access the svcctl named pipe to enumerate Windows services.
The system is affected if it runs Windows 2000 without Update Rollup Package 1 for SP4 or Windows NT 4.0, and NULL session access to svcctl or eventlog named pipes is not restricted.
Generated from the published advisory. Verify against your own configuration.
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 dataApply the Windows 2000 Update Rollup Package 1 (URP1) for SP4, or for systems where patching is not possible, configure registry restrictions to block NULL session access to named pipes.
- Consultation2.0 h
- Implementation2.0 h
- Testing1.0 h
- Review / QA1.0 h
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Free · runs locallyCheck whether your project pulls in CVE-2005-2150 — or any other known-vulnerable package — straight from your lock files. Free and open source; it runs locally and uploads nothing.
References Go to the primary sourcePrimary sources — vendor advisories, patches and trackers. Where our summary and a reference disagree, the reference wins.
Primary sourcesPractitioner notes
ContributedPeer-ranked notes from engineers who’ve handled CVE-2005-2150 in production — separate from our analysis above.
The advisory tells you what broke. It rarely tells you what actually worked. If you’ve dealt with this one, that detail is what the next engineer is searching for.
- The version that genuinely resolved it — not the one the vendor claimed
- A config change or rule that shut the vector down
- A gotcha in the upgrade path that cost you an afternoon
No notes yet
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- Verified mitigations, workarounds, and config changes
- Version or environment caveats, and links to real fixes
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