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Unified Computing SystemApplication · Cisco

CVE-2019-1879

MEDIUM · 6.7 CVSS v3.0 Published 2019-06-20
Mitigation only
No fix yet — a mitigation exists. There is no fixed release. A documented workaround reduces exposure in the meantime.
See remediation →
69/100
Remediation priority · Elevated
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
A vulnerability in the CLI of Cisco Integrated Management Controller (IMC) could allow an authenticated, local attacker to inject arbitrary commands that are executed with root privileges. The vulnerability is due to insufficient validation of user-supplied input at the CLI. An attacker could exploit this vulnerability by authenticating with the administrator password via the CLI of an affected device and submitting crafted input to the affected commands. A successful exploit could allow the attacker to execute arbitrary commands on the device with root privileges.

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

Command injection vulnerability in Cisco IMC CLI where authenticated attackers with administrator credentials can inject arbitrary OS commands through insufficiently validated user input, achieving root-level code execution.

MitigationApply Cisco's patch/upgrade to fixed IMC version; restrict CLI access to trusted administrators and enforce strong administrator passwords.

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
Unified Computing SystemApplication
Affected:= 4.0\(1c\)hs3
Integrated Management ControllerApplication
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
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 checks

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

  1. Identify Cisco IMC version
    Access the IMC web interface or CLI and retrieve the firmware/software version. In the IMC CLI, use 'show version' or check through the web UI under Admin > Firmware Management.
    Affected if The installed version is 4.0(1c)hs3 for Cisco UCS, or any version for Cisco Integrated Management Controller.
  2. Confirm product is Cisco IMC or Cisco UCS
    Verify the system is running Cisco Integrated Management Controller or Cisco Unified Computing System. Check the system GUI login page or CLI prompt for 'Cisco IMC' or 'Cisco UCS' branding.
    Affected if The system is either Cisco IMC or Cisco UCS running the affected IMC component.
  3. Determine if CLI access is enabled
    Check IMC configuration settings for CLI/SSH access. In the web UI, navigate to Admin > User Management > IPMI Settings, or check CLI access via 'ipmi' or 'ssh' configuration commands.
    Affected if CLI access via SSH or local console is enabled and reachable from the network.
  4. Check for administrator accounts
    Review configured IMC user accounts with administrator privileges. In the web UI, go to Admin > User Management > Local Users to list accounts with admin or root-level roles.
    Affected if There are administrator-level IMC accounts configured, as the attacker needs valid admin credentials to exploit this vulnerability.
  5. Audit IMC CLI command execution logs
    Review IMC audit logs or system logs for suspicious CLI commands that may indicate exploitation. Look for unexpected shell commands or unusual patterns in command history.
    Affected if Logs show unexpected OS-level commands executed through the IMC CLI that were not initiated by legitimate administrators.

The environment is affected if it runs Cisco IMC or Cisco UCS with IMC on version 4.0(1c)hs3 (UCS) or any version, has CLI access enabled, and has administrator accounts configured.

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

Apply Cisco's patch/upgrade to fixed IMC version; restrict CLI access to trusted administrators and enforce strong administrator passwords.

Fix this in Unified Computing System Scoped from the published advisory
  • Consultation3.0 h
  • Implementation2.0 h
  • Testing4.0 h
  • Review / QA2.0 h
11.0 hours of engineering $1,920
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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-2019-1879 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