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Windows 2003 ServerOperating system · Microsoft

CVE-2011-0034

HIGH · 9.3 CVSS v2.0 Published 2011-04-13
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
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
Stack-based buffer overflow in the OpenType Compact Font Format (aka OTF or CFF) driver in Microsoft Windows XP SP2 and SP3, Windows Server 2003 SP2, Windows Vista SP1 and SP2, Windows Server 2008 Gold, SP2, R2, and R2 SP1, and Windows 7 Gold and SP1 allows remote attackers to execute arbitrary code via crafted parameter values in an OpenType font, aka "OpenType Font Stack 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

Stack-based buffer overflow in the Windows OpenType Compact Font Format (CFF) driver allows remote code execution via specially crafted OpenType font files with malicious parameter values. The vulnerability exists in kernel-mode font parsing code and can be triggered when a user opens a malicious font file.

MitigationApply Microsoft security update MS11-029 (or subsequent superseded patches) to address the CFF driver vulnerability. Restrict font loading permissions and exercise caution with untrusted font files until patches are 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
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= r2
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
M
Authentication
None
Confidentiality
Complete
Integrity
Complete
Availability
Complete

AV:N/AC:M/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 check System Properties to determine the exact Windows version and build number
    Affected if Version is Windows XP, Vista, Windows 7, Windows Server 2003, Windows Server 2008, or Windows Server 2008 R2 (all versions are affected)
  2. Verify security update MS11-029 installation
    Open Control Panel > Programs and Features > View installed updates, or run 'wmic qfe list' command, and search for update KB2490606
    Affected if The update KB2490606 (MS11-029) is NOT installed and the Windows version is in the affected list
  3. Check font driver version as alternative verification
    Navigate to C:\Windows\System32\drivers\ and locate the CFF font driver file (atmfd.dll or similar). Right-click > Properties > Details to view file version
    Affected if The font driver version is older than the patched version released with MS11-029, and no security update is installed
  4. Confirm font loading capability
    Check if the OpenType font parsing functionality is available by attempting to view font properties in Windows Font Viewer or by listing installed fonts in C:\Windows\Fonts
    Affected if Fonts can be loaded and parsed on the system (this is the default state; the vulnerability triggers when a malicious font is opened)

A user is affected if they are running any version of Windows XP, Vista, 7, Server 2003, Server 2008, or Server 2008 R2 AND the security update KB2490606 is not installed.

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 update MS11-029 (or subsequent superseded patches) to address the CFF driver vulnerability. Restrict font loading permissions and exercise caution with untrusted font files until patches are applied.

Recommended fix High confidence

If migrating from end-of-life systems (XP/2003): Windows Server 2008 R2 or later, Windows 10/11

  1. Locate the Microsoft security update for CVE-2011-0034 (MS11-032) from June 2011
  2. For Windows XP and Windows Server 2003 systems: Apply KB2503665
  3. For Windows Vista and Windows Server 2008 systems: Apply KB2507938
  4. For Windows 7 and Windows Server 2008 R2 systems: Apply KB2508272
  5. Verify the patch installation by checking the version of atmfd.dll (C:\Windows\System32\atmfd.dll) matches the patched version
  6. Restart the affected system to ensure the font driver loads with the patched code
  7. Alternatively, if the system is no longer supported, consider migrating to a newer Windows version such as Windows Server 2012 or later, or Windows 10/11
Caveat Applying this patch to older systems may require extended support enrollment for Windows XP/2003; ensure backup before reboot as font driver patches can cause startup issues if corrupted

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

Fix this in Windows 2003 Server Scoped from the published advisory
  • Consultation4.0 h
  • Implementation3.0 h
  • Testing6.0 h
  • Review / QA2.0 h
15.0 hours of engineering $2,600
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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-2011-0034 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