CVE-2011-0461
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/etc/init.d/boot.localfs in the aaa_base package before 11.2-43.48.1 in SUSE openSUSE 11.2, and before 11.3-8.7.1 in openSUSE 11.3, allows local users to overwrite arbitrary files via a symlink attack on /dev/shm/mtab.
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 confidenceThe /etc/init.d/boot.localfs init script in the aaa_base package writes to /dev/shm/mtab without checking if it is a symlink. A local user can create a malicious symlink at /dev/shm/mtab pointing to any target file before the script runs, causing arbitrary file overwrite when the script executes.
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= 11.2= 11.3CVSS 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
- M
- Authentication
- None
- Confidentiality
- None
- Integrity
- Complete
- Availability
- Complete
AV:L/AC:M/Au:N/C:N/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 checksWork through these to decide whether this CVE applies to you.
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Check if /dev/shm/mtab is a symlinkRun `ls -la /dev/shm/mtab` and look at the first character - if it starts with 'l', it is a symlink.Affected if The file is a symlink pointing to a target outside /dev/shm/ (the first character is 'l' and the symlink target is not within /dev/shm/)
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Identify the target of /dev/shm/mtab symlinkIf /dev/shm/mtab is a symlink, run `readlink -f /dev/shm/mtab` to see the absolute target path.Affected if The symlink target points to a sensitive system file such as /etc/mtab, /etc/passwd, or other critical configuration files
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Check aaa_base package version on openSUSE 11.2Run `rpm -q aaa_base` to get the installed version, then compare to 11.2-43.48.1Affected if The installed version is older than 11.2-43.48.1 (for example, 11.2-43.48 or earlier)
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Check aaa_base package version on openSUSE 11.3Run `rpm -q aaa_base` to get the installed version, then compare to 11.3-8.7.1Affected if The installed version is older than 11.3-8.7.1 (for example, 11.3-8.6 or earlier)
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Inspect the boot.localfs script for symlink vulnerabilityExamine /etc/init.d/boot.localfs and search for code that writes to /dev/shm/mtab without first checking if it is a symlink. Look for file operations on /dev/shm/mtab that occur before any symlink validation.Affected if The script contains direct write operations to /dev/shm/mtab without first verifying that it is not a symlink (no 'test -L' or similar check before file creation/writing)
You are affected if /dev/shm/mtab exists as a symlink (especially one pointing outside /dev/shm/) AND your aaa_base package version is below 11.2-43.48.1 (for 11.2) or 11.3-8.7.1 (for 11.3), or if the boot.localfs script lacks symlink checks before writing.
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 dataEither upgrade the aaa_base package to the patched versions (11.2-43.48.1+ or 11.3-8.7.1+), or remove/replace /dev/shm/mtab with a regular file and set restrictive permissions to prevent symlink attacks.
- Consultation2.0 h
- Implementation2.0 h
- Testing1.0 h
- Review / QA1.0 h
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Scan for this in your stack
Free · runs locallyCheck whether your project pulls in CVE-2011-0461 — 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-2011-0461 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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