Nx OsOperating system · Cisco
CVE-2017-12333
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 · uneditedA vulnerability in Cisco NX-OS System Software could allow an authenticated, local attacker to bypass signature verification when loading a software image. The vulnerability is due to insufficient NX-OS signature verification for software images. An authenticated, local attacker could exploit this vulnerability to bypass signature verification and load a crafted, unsigned software image on a targeted device. The attacker would need valid administrator credentials to perform this exploit. This vulnerability affects the following products running Cisco NX-OS System Software: Multilayer Director Switches, Nexus 7000 Series Switches, Nexus 7700 Series Switches, Unified Computing System Manager. Cisco Bug IDs: CSCvf25045, CSCvf31495.
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 confidenceInsufficient signature verification in Cisco NX-OS allows an authenticated local attacker with administrator credentials to bypass integrity checks and load unsigned, crafted software images onto affected Multilayer Director Switches, Nexus 7000/7700 Series Switches, and Unified Computing System Manager devices.
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
Nx OsOperating system
= 8.1\(1\)
Unified Computing SystemApplication
= 7.0\(0\)hsk\(0.357\)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
- Local
- Complexity
- Low
- Privileges
- High
- User interaction
- None
- Scope
- Unchanged
- Confidentiality
- High
- Integrity
- High
- Availability
- High
CVSS:3.0/AV:L/AC:L/PR:H/UI:N/S:U/C:H/I:H/A:H
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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Identify device model and software platformRun 'show version' or check the device model to confirm if it is an MDS switch, Nexus 7000/7700 series switch, or Unified Computing System ManagerAffected if Device is not one of these affected product families, then not vulnerable to this specific CVE
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Check NX-OS version on Nexus switchesRun 'show version' command and locate the NX-OS software version lineAffected if The NX-OS version is exactly 8.1(1)
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Check UCS Manager versionRun 'show version' in UCS Manager CLI and locate the software versionAffected if The UCS version is exactly 7.0(0)hsk(0.357)
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Review administrator account configurationCheck local user accounts with 'show user-account' or review AAA configuration to confirm administrator-level accounts existAffected if Local administrator accounts are present, providing the credential condition required for exploitation
The environment is affected only if the device is an MDS, Nexus 7000/7700, or UCS Manager running exactly version 8.1(1) for NX-OS or exactly 7.0(0)hsk(0.357) for UCS, and local administrator credentials exist.
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 Cisco patches for CSCvf25045 and CSCvf31495 once available; restrict local administrative access and monitor for unauthorized image loads.
Fix this in Nx Os
Scoped from the published advisory
- Consultation4.0 h
- Implementation8.0 h
- Testing4.0 h
- Review / QA2.0 h
An estimate, not a bill — we confirm scope with you before any work starts. Need it this week? Rush from $5,120.
Scan for this in your stack
Free · runs locallyCheck whether your project pulls in CVE-2017-12333 — 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-2017-12333 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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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.
- 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