Http File ServerApplication · Hfs

CVE-2008-0406

MEDIUM · 5.0 CVSS v2.0 Published 2008-01-29
Fix available
A fix is available. Upgrade to after 2.2b or later.
See remediation →
59/100
Remediation priority · Elevated
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
HTTP File Server (HFS) before 2.2c, when account names are used as log filenames, allows remote attackers to cause a denial of service (daemon crash) via a long account name.

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 · moderate confidence

HTTP File Server (HFS) versions before 2.2c contain a denial of service vulnerability triggered by long account names when account names are used as log filenames. A remote attacker can crash the HFS daemon by submitting an excessively long account name, likely due to improper bounds checking in the logging functionality.

MitigationUpdate HFS to version 2.2c or later. As a workaround, avoid using account names as log filenames until the update can be applied.

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
Http File ServerApplication
Affected:<= 2.2b

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
None
Integrity
None
Availability
Partial

AV:N/AC:L/Au:N/C:N/I:N/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. Locate HFS and determine its version
    Check the HFS executable file name (often 'hfs.exe') or view version info via right-click properties in Windows Explorer. Common installation paths include the directory where HFS was originally run or installed.
    Affected if The version number displayed is 2.2b or lower (for example, 2.2, 2.2a, 2.2b)
  2. Verify HFS accounts are configured
    Open the HFS web interface and navigate to the account management section, or check the HFS configuration file (typically 'hfs.ini' or 'vfs.ini' in the HFS directory) for any [account] sections or user definitions.
    Affected if One or more user accounts are defined in HFS
  3. Confirm account names are used as log filenames
    In the HFS interface, go to the logging or file logging settings. Look for an option that uses account names as part of the log file naming scheme, or check the configuration file for log filename patterns that include account-related variables.
    Affected if The log filename configuration references or incorporates account names (for example, a log file path that includes the account username)
  4. Check for existing crash events
    Review HFS log files or Windows Event Viewer for recent HFS crashes or service disruptions that coincide with periods when new accounts may have been added or modified.
    Affected if HFS has recently crashed or become unresponsive, and the crash timing aligns with account creation or modification events

You are affected if running HFS version 2.2b or earlier with account names configured as part of the log filename setting.

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
Upgrade available Upgrade to a release after 2.2b
Interim mitigation

Update HFS to version 2.2c or later. As a workaround, avoid using account names as log filenames until the update can be applied.

Fix this in Http File Server Scoped from the published advisory
  • Consultation2.0 h
  • Implementation2.0 h
  • Testing2.0 h
  • Review / QA1.0 h
7.0 hours of engineering $1,240
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Scan for this in your stack

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dbcve dependency scanner

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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-2008-0406 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
  • No spam, self-promotion, credentials, or personal data