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General Parallel File SystemApplication · Ibm

CVE-2015-0198

HIGH · 10.0 CVSS v2.0 Published 2015-03-24
Patch available
A vendor patch is available. No clean upgrade release — apply the published patch.
See remediation →
100/100
Remediation priority · Urgent
Remotely reachable No privileges Zero-click Patch available

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
IBM General Parallel File System (GPFS) 3.4 before 3.4.0.32, 3.5 before 3.5.0.24, and 4.1 before 4.1.0.7 in certain cipherList configurations allows remote attackers to bypass authentication and execute arbitrary programs as root via unspecified vectors.

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

IBM GPFS versions 3.4 before 3.4.0.32, 3.5 before 3.5.0.24, and 4.1 before 4.1.0.7 contains a flaw in certain cipherList configurations that allows remote attackers to bypass authentication mechanisms and execute arbitrary code with root privileges on affected systems.

MitigationUpgrade to GPFS version 3.4.0.32, 3.5.0.24, or 4.1.0.7 or later. Additionally, review and secure the cipherList configuration to remove weak or vulnerable cipher settings, and restrict network access to GPFS management interfaces.

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
General Parallel File SystemApplication
Affected:= 3.4= 3.5= 4.1

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 installed GPFS version
    Run the GPFS version command (e.g., mmlsver GPFS or check /usr/lpp/mmfs/bin directory) to determine the exact version number
    Affected if Version is 3.4.x before 3.4.0.32, 3.5.x before 3.5.0.24, or 4.1.x before 4.1.0.7
  2. Confirm GPFS version family
    Determine whether the installation is running GPFS version 3.4, 3.5, or 4.1 branch
    Affected if Running any of the three affected version branches (3.4, 3.5, or 4.1)
  3. Locate and inspect cipherList configuration
    Find the GPFS cipherList configuration file or setting (typically in GPFS configuration or mmfs.cfg) and examine which ciphers are enabled
    Affected if cipherList contains weak or vulnerable cipher settings that allow authentication bypass
  4. Assess network exposure of GPFS management interfaces
    Review network access controls and firewall rules for GPFS management ports and interfaces to determine if they are reachable from untrusted networks
    Affected if GPFS management interfaces are accessible from remote or untrusted networks (the flaw allows remote attackers to bypass authentication)

You are affected if running a vulnerable GPFS version (3.4.x < 3.4.0.32, 3.5.x < 3.5.0.24, or 4.1.x < 4.1.0.7) AND the cipherList is configured with weak/vulnerable ciphers AND the GPFS management interface is network-accessible to untrusted users.

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
Patch available Apply the vendor patch
Vendor patch www-01.ibm.com →
Interim mitigation

Upgrade to GPFS version 3.4.0.32, 3.5.0.24, or 4.1.0.7 or later. Additionally, review and secure the cipherList configuration to remove weak or vulnerable cipher settings, and restrict network access to GPFS management interfaces.

Recommended fix High confidence

GPFS 3.4.0.32+ (for 3.4.x), 3.5.0.24+ (for 3.5.x), or 4.1.0.7+ (for 4.1.x)

  1. Identify the currently installed GPFS version using 'mmfsadm dump version' or 'lsgpfs -V'
  2. Determine which affected branch (3.4.x, 3.5.x, or 4.1.x) is currently in use
  3. For GPFS 3.4.x: Upgrade to version 3.4.0.32 or later
  4. For GPFS 3.5.x: Upgrade to version 3.5.0.24 or later
  5. For GPFS 4.1.x: Upgrade to version 4.1.0.7 or later
  6. Obtain the appropriate fix pack from IBM Fix Central or IBM Entitled Systems
  7. Test the upgrade in a non-production environment before applying to production
  8. Apply the upgrade following IBM GPFS upgrade documentation, typically using 'mmupgrader' or standard installation procedures
Caveat Major GPFS upgrades may require cluster downtime and should be tested for compatibility with existing applications and configurations

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

Fix this in General Parallel File System Scoped from the published advisory
  • Consultation4.0 h
  • Implementation8.0 h
  • Testing6.0 h
  • Review / QA4.0 h
22.0 hours of engineering $3,860
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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-2015-0198 in production — separate from our analysis above.

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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