Nx OsOperating system · Cisco
CVE-2019-1836
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 the system shell for Cisco Nexus 9000 Series Fabric Switches in Application Centric Infrastructure (ACI) mode could allow an authenticated, local attacker to use symbolic links to overwrite system files. These system files may be sensitive and should not be overwritable by non-root users. The attacker would need valid device credentials. The vulnerability is due to incorrect symbolic link verification of directory paths when they are used in the system shell. An attacker could exploit this vulnerability by authenticating to the device and providing crafted user input to specific symbolic link CLI commands. Successful exploitation could allow the attacker to overwrite system files that should be restricted. This vulnerability has been fixed in software version 14.1(1i).
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 confidenceA symlink verification flaw in the system shell for Cisco Nexus 9000 Series Fabric Switches in ACI mode allows an authenticated local attacker with valid device credentials to use symbolic links to overwrite restricted system files. The vulnerability stems from incorrect validation of symbolic link directory paths when processed by the system shell.
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
= 14.0\(3d\)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
- Low
- User interaction
- None
- Scope
- Unchanged
- Confidentiality
- None
- Integrity
- High
- Availability
- High
CVSS:3.1/AV:L/AC:L/PR:L/UI:N/S:U/C:N/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 the device modelRun 'show version' or 'show module' command and confirm the hardware is a Cisco Nexus 9000 Series Fabric SwitchAffected if Device is NOT a Cisco Nexus 9000 Series Fabric Switch (not affected)
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Verify ACI mode operationRun 'show system mode' or check the ACI fabric membership statusAffected if Device is NOT running in ACI mode (not affected)
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Check the installed NX-OS versionRun 'show version' and locate the NX-OS software version number in the outputAffected if Version is 14.0(3d) exactly - this is the affected version
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Confirm system shell accessVerify you have local access to the device shell with valid device credentialsAffected if An authenticated local attacker with valid device credentials must have shell access for this vulnerability to be exploitable
A user is affected only if they are running a Cisco Nexus 9000 Series Fabric Switch in ACI mode with NX-OS version exactly 14.0(3d) and the attacker has authenticated local shell access.
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 software version 14.1(1i) or later to remediate this vulnerability; for production environments, schedule the upgrade during a planned maintenance window following standard change management procedures.
Fix this in Nx Os
Scoped from the published advisory
- Consultation3.0 h
- Implementation4.0 h
- Testing3.0 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 $3,408.
Scan for this in your stack
Free · runs locallyCheck whether your project pulls in CVE-2019-1836 — 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-2019-1836 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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- Version or environment caveats, and links to real fixes
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