CVE-2011-1984
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 · uneditedWINS in Microsoft Windows Server 2003 SP2 and Server 2008 SP2, R2, and R2 SP1 allows local users to gain privileges by sending crafted packets over the loopback interface, aka "WINS Local Elevation of Privilege 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 confidenceWINS (Windows Internet Name Service) contains a vulnerability that allows local authenticated users to elevate privileges by sending specially crafted packets to the service over the loopback interface (127.0.0.1). The vulnerability exists in Windows Server 2003 SP2 and Server 2008 SP2/R2/R2 SP1, where the WINS service fails to properly handle certain packet contents, enabling a local attacker to execute arbitrary code with elevated privileges.
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 versionsall versionsall versions= r2CVSS 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
- Low
- Authentication
- None
- Confidentiality
- Complete
- Integrity
- Complete
- Availability
- Complete
AV:L/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 checksWork through these to decide whether this CVE applies to you.
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Check Windows versionRun 'winver' or 'systeminfo | findstr /B /C:"OS Name" /C:"OS Version"' to determine if the system is Windows Server 2003 or Windows Server 2008/2008 R2Affected if The system is Windows Server 2003 any version or Windows Server 2008/2008 R2 any version (including SP2 and R2 SP1)
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Verify WINS service is presentOpen Services console (services.msc) and look for 'Windows Internet Name Service (WINS)' or run 'sc query WINS' from command promptAffected if The WINS service is installed on the system
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Check if WINS service is runningRun 'sc query WINS' or check the Status column in services.msc for the WINS serviceAffected if The WINS service status shows as RUNNING
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Verify security update KB2571621 is installedRun 'wmic qfe list' or check Windows Update history for security update KB2571621Affected if The update KB2571621 is NOT listed as installed (meaning the vulnerability is unpatched)
A system is affected if it runs Windows Server 2003 or Server 2008/2008 R2 with the WINS service installed and running, and lacks security update KB2571621.
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 Microsoft security update KB2571621 (released August 2011) or migrate off affected end-of-life Windows Server versions. If WINS is not required, disable the service.
- Consultation2.0 h
- Implementation4.0 h
- Testing3.0 h
- Review / QA1.0 h
An estimate, not a bill — we confirm scope with you before any work starts. Need it this week? Rush from $2,800.
Scan for this in your stack
Free · runs locallyCheck whether your project pulls in CVE-2011-1984 — 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-2011-1984 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
- No weaponised exploit code, or anything meant to cause harm
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