dbcve.org
Windows 2003 ServerOperating system · Microsoft

CVE-2010-2550

HIGH · 10.0 CVSS v2.0 Published 2010-08-11
Mitigation only
No fix yet — a mitigation exists. There is no fixed release. A documented workaround reduces exposure in the meantime.
See remediation →
100/100
Remediation priority · Urgent
High EPSS 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
The SMB Server in Microsoft Windows XP SP2 and SP3, Windows Server 2003 SP2, Windows Vista SP1 and SP2, Windows Server 2008 Gold, SP2, and R2, and Windows 7 does not properly validate fields in an SMB request, which allows remote attackers to execute arbitrary code via a crafted SMB packet, aka "SMB Pool Overflow Vulnerability."

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

The SMB Server in multiple Windows versions (XP SP2/SP3, Server 2003 SP2, Vista SP1/SP2, Server 2008 Gold/SP2/R2, Windows 7) fails to properly validate fields in SMB requests, enabling remote attackers to execute arbitrary code via a crafted SMB packet through a pool overflow vulnerability.

MitigationApply Microsoft security patches for this vulnerability; as a defensive measure, block SMB ports (445/139) at network perimeter or disable SMB if not required.

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
Windows 2003 ServerOperating system
Affected:all versions
Windows 7Operating system
Affected:all versions
Windows Server 2003Operating system
Affected:all versions
Windows Server 2008Operating system
Affected:all versions
Windows VistaOperating system
Affected:all versions
Windows XpOperating system
Affected:all versions

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
Complete
Integrity
Complete
Availability
Complete

AV:N/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 Windows version
    Run 'winver' or 'systeminfo | findstr /B /C:"OS Name" /C:"OS Version"' to retrieve the installed Windows version
    Affected if The version is Windows XP, Windows Server 2003, Windows Vista, Windows Server 2008, or Windows 7 (all versions of these products)
  2. Verify SMB Server service is running
    Run 'services.msc' and locate 'Server' service (SMB 1.0) or run 'sc query' and 'netstat -an | findstr "445\|139"' to check if SMB ports are listening
    Affected if The SMB Server service is running and listening on TCP ports 445 or 139, making the service exposed to network requests
  3. Confirm SMB is bound to network interfaces
    Run 'netstat -ano | findstr ":445"' or check adapter bindings in network connection properties for Server service
    Affected if SMB is bound to accessible network adapters, indicating the system can receive remote SMB requests
  4. Determine patch level
    Run 'wmic qfe list' or check Windows Update history for installed security updates related to MS10-054 (the patch for this CVE)
    Affected if The system lacks the security update MS10-054 or subsequent SMB security patches, and the version matches the affected product list

The system is affected if it runs an unpatched Windows XP, Server 2003, Vista, Server 2008, or Windows 7 version with the SMB Server service enabled and accessible on the network.

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.

dbcve · scoped
Mitigation available No clean upgrade yet — mitigate in the meantime
Mitigation

Apply Microsoft security patches for this vulnerability; as a defensive measure, block SMB ports (445/139) at network perimeter or disable SMB if not required.

Recommended fix High confidence

N/A - this is a patch for existing systems; for long-term security, upgrade to a supported Windows version (Windows 10/11 or Windows Server 2016+)

  1. Apply Microsoft Security Update MS10-054, which addresses this vulnerability
  2. Deploy the update through your organization's patch management system or manually via Windows Update
  3. After patching, verify the SMB service is running correctly and test SMB functionality
Caveat Windows XP and Windows Server 2003 are end-of-life; consider migration to supported platforms

Generated from the published advisory — verify against the referenced sources before acting.

Fix this in Windows 2003 Server Scoped from the published advisory
  • Consultation2.0 h
  • Implementation4.0 h
  • Testing2.0 h
  • Review / QA1.0 h
9.0 hours of engineering $1,600
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An estimate, not a bill — we confirm scope with you before any work starts. Need it this week? Rush from $2,560.

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-2010-2550 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