dbcve.org
JmeterApplication · Apache

CVE-2019-0187

CRITICAL · 9.8 CVSS v3.0 Published 2019-03-06
Mitigation only
No fix yet — a mitigation exists. There is no fixed release. A documented workaround reduces exposure in the meantime.
See remediation →
100/100
Remediation priority · Urgent
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
Unauthenticated RCE is possible when JMeter is used in distributed mode (-r or -R command line options). Attacker can establish a RMI connection to a jmeter-server using RemoteJMeterEngine and proceed with an attack using untrusted data deserialization. This only affect tests running in Distributed mode. Note that versions before 4.0 are not able to encrypt traffic between the nodes, nor authenticate the participating nodes so upgrade to JMeter 5.1 is also advised.

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

Unauthenticated remote code execution is possible when Apache JMeter operates in distributed testing mode (-r or -R flags). Attackers can establish a malicious RMI connection to the jmeter-server and exploit unsafe deserialization through RemoteJMeterEngine to execute arbitrary code. This vulnerability only affects distributed mode deployments where jmeter-server instances communicate over RMI.

MitigationIf distributed mode is not required, disable it. If required, upgrade to JMeter 5.1+ and restrict network access to jmeter-server RMI ports using firewall rules or network segmentation to prevent unauthenticated connections.

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
JmeterApplication
Affected:= 4.0= 5.0

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
Privileges
None
User interaction
None
Scope
Unchanged
Confidentiality
High
Integrity
High
Availability
High

CVSS:3.0/AV:N/AC:L/PR:N/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 checks

Work through these to decide whether this CVE applies to you.

  1. Identify installed JMeter version
    Run 'jmeter --version' or check the lib folder for the ApacheJMeter.jar version. On Linux/Mac: cat bin/jmeter 2>/dev/null | grep -i version or check the downloaded archive filename. On Windows: check the JMeter installation directory or Control Panel programs list.
    Affected if Version is exactly 4.0 or 5.0 (as shown by the version output)
  2. Check if distributed/remote testing is configured
    Search for 'remote_hosts' in jmeter.properties (bin/ folder) or user.properties. Also check for 'server.rmi.localport' setting. Look for any remoteHosts entries. Command: grep -r 'remote_hosts\|server.rmi' bin/*.properties 2>/dev/null
    Affected if remote_hosts is defined (non-empty) or server.rmi.* properties are present and configured
  3. Verify if jmeter-server is run or exposed
    Check for running jmeter-server processes: 'ps aux | grep jmeter-server' on Linux/Mac or check Task Manager on Windows. Also check for scripts that invoke jmeter-server directly, particularly with -r or -R flags.
    Affected if jmeter-server is running as a daemon/service or scripts invoke jmeter with -r or -R flags
  4. Inspect RMI port exposure
    Check jmeter.properties for 'server.rmi.port' and 'server.rmi.localport' settings. Default RMI port is 1099. Determine if the host is listening on RMI ports: 'netstat -an | grep 1099' or 'ss -tlnp | grep 1099'
    Affected if RMI ports (typically 1099 or configured custom port) are open and listening

You are affected if you run JMeter version 4.0 or 5.0 AND have distributed mode (remote testing) enabled with jmeter-server exposed, making RMI connections accessible to untrusted networks.

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

If distributed mode is not required, disable it. If required, upgrade to JMeter 5.1+ and restrict network access to jmeter-server RMI ports using firewall rules or network segmentation to prevent unauthenticated connections.

Recommended fix High confidence

JMeter 5.1 or later

  1. 1. Back up your existing JMeter test plans and configurations
  2. 2. Download Apache JMeter 5.1 or later from the official Apache JMeter website (https://jmeter.apache.org/)
  3. 3. Install JMeter 5.1+ on all nodes in your distributed test environment
  4. 4. Ensure all client and server nodes run the same version
  5. 5. For additional security, configure SSL/TLS for RMI communication in jmeter.properties or system.properties
  6. 6. Test your distributed setup with the new version before production use
Caveat Minor: Test plans should be compatible; verify any custom plugins work with the new version

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

Fix this in Jmeter Scoped from the published advisory
  • Consultation3.0 h
  • Implementation4.0 h
  • Testing2.0 h
  • Review / QA2.0 h
11.0 hours of engineering $1,980
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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-2019-0187 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
  • No weaponised exploit code, or anything meant to cause harm
  • No spam, self-promotion, credentials, or personal data