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Adaptive Security Appliance SoftwareOperating system · Cisco

CVE-2011-3301

HIGH · 7.8 CVSS v2.0 Published 2011-10-06
Mitigation only
No fix yet — a mitigation exists. There is no fixed release. A documented workaround reduces exposure in the meantime.
See remediation →
87/100
Remediation priority · High
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
Cisco Adaptive Security Appliances (ASA) 5500 series devices, and the ASA Services module in Cisco Catalyst 6500 series devices, with software 7.0 before 7.0(8.13), 7.1 and 7.2 before 7.2(5.4), 8.0 before 8.0(5.25), 8.1 and 8.2 before 8.2(5.11), 8.3 before 8.3(2.23), 8.4 before 8.4(2.6), and 8.5 before 8.5(1.1) and Cisco Firewall Services Module (aka FWSM) 3.1 before 3.1(21), 3.2 before 3.2(22), 4.0 before 4.0(16), and 4.1 before 4.1(7) allow remote attackers to cause a denial of service (device reload) via crafted SunRPC traffic, aka Bug IDs CSCtq06062 and CSCtq09986.

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

Cisco Adaptive Security Appliances (ASA) 5500 series and ASA Services modules in Catalyst 6500 switches, along with Cisco Firewall Services Module (FWSM), contain a vulnerability in the SunRPC inspection handling code. Remote attackers can send crafted SunRPC packets to cause the device to reload, resulting in denial of service. The vulnerability affects multiple software branches from 7.x through 8.5.x.

MitigationUpgrade Cisco ASA software to version 7.0(8.13), 7.2(5.4), 8.0(5.25), 8.2(5.11), 8.3(2.23), 8.4(2.6), or 8.5(1.1) or later; upgrade FWSM to 3.1(21), 3.2(22), 4.0(16), or 4.1(7) or later. Consider blocking SunRPC traffic at network perimeter as an interim measure.

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
Adaptive Security Appliance SoftwareOperating system
Affected:= 7.0= 7.0\(0\)= 7.0\(1\)= 7.0\(2\)= 7.0\(4\)= 7.0\(5\)= 7.0\(5.2\)= 7.0\(6\)= 7.0\(6.7\)= 7.0\(7\)= 7.0\(8\)= 7.0.1
5500 Series Adaptive Security ApplianceHardware / appliance
Affected:all versions
Asa 5500Hardware / appliance
Affected:all versions
Firewall Services Module SoftwarePlugin / extension
Affected:= 3.1= 3.1\(2\)= 3.1\(3\)= 3.1\(4\)= 3.1\(5\)= 3.1\(6\)= 3.1\(7\)= 3.1\(8\)= 3.1\(9\)= 3.1\(10\)= 3.1\(11\)= 3.1\(12\)
Catalyst 6500Hardware / appliance
Affected:all versions
Catalyst 7600Hardware / appliance
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
None
Integrity
None
Availability
Complete

AV:N/AC:L/Au:N/C:N/I:N/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 ASA device model and software version
    Run 'show version' on the ASA CLI or check the device management interface. Look for the Cisco Adaptive Security Appliance Software version number.
    Affected if The software version falls within 7.0 through 8.5.x (any of the 7.x or 8.x versions prior to the fixed releases)
  2. Identify FWSM module version if deployed
    Run 'show module' on the Catalyst 6500/7600 switch or 'show version' on the FWSM. Note the Firewall Services Module software version.
    Affected if The FWSM software version is 3.1.x series (any version from 3.1 through 3.1(12))
  3. Verify if SunRPC inspection is enabled
    Run 'show service-policy | include sunrpc' or 'show running-config | include inspection sunrpc' on the ASA/FWSM CLI. Also check inspection maps with 'show inspection map' if defined.
    Affected if SunRPC inspection is enabled in the service policy or inspection map configuration (this is the attack vector - the vulnerability triggers when SunRPC traffic is being inspected)

The environment is affected if the device runs ASA software version 7.x through 8.5.x or FWSM 3.1.x, AND SunRPC inspection is enabled in the active configuration, allowing crafted SunRPC packets to trigger a denial of service via device reload.

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
Mitigation available No clean upgrade yet — mitigate in the meantime
Mitigation

Upgrade Cisco ASA software to version 7.0(8.13), 7.2(5.4), 8.0(5.25), 8.2(5.11), 8.3(2.23), 8.4(2.6), or 8.5(1.1) or later; upgrade FWSM to 3.1(21), 3.2(22), 4.0(16), or 4.1(7) or later. Consider blocking SunRPC traffic at network perimeter as an interim measure.

Fix this in Adaptive Security Appliance Software Scoped from the published advisory
  • Consultation4.0 h
  • Implementation4.0 h
  • Testing2.0 h
  • Review / QA2.0 h
12.0 hours of engineering $2,180
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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-2011-3301 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
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