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Epyc 7003 FirmwareOperating system · Amd

CVE-2020-12951

HIGH · 7.0 CVSS v3.1 Published 2021-11-16
Mitigation only
No fix yet — a mitigation exists. There is no fixed release. A documented workaround reduces exposure in the meantime.
See remediation →
72/100
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
Race condition in ASP firmware could allow less privileged x86 code to perform ASP SMM (System Management Mode) operations.

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 · moderate confidence

A race condition in AMD ASP (Application Service Provider) firmware enables lower-privileged x86 code to execute System Management Mode (SMM) operations, violating the security boundary between user/kernel mode and the highest-privilege SMM. This represents a privilege escalation vulnerability allowing code to escape its privilege level and perform SMM-level operations.

MitigationApply AMD firmware updates addressing the ASP race condition; verify that systems require appropriate privilege levels for SMM access after patching.

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
Epyc 7003 FirmwareOperating system
Affected:< milanpi-sp3_1.0.0.4
Epyc 7002 FirmwareOperating system
Affected:< romepi-sp3_1.0.0.c
Epyc 7001 FirmwareOperating system
Affected:< naplespi-sp3_1.0.0.g
Epyc 72f3 FirmwareOperating system
Affected:< milanpi-sp3_1.0.0.4
Epyc 7313 FirmwareOperating system
Affected:< milanpi-sp3_1.0.0.4
Epyc 7313p FirmwareOperating system
Affected:< milanpi-sp3_1.0.0.4
Epyc 7343 FirmwareOperating system
Affected:< milanpi-sp3_1.0.0.4
Epyc 73f3 FirmwareOperating system
Affected:< milanpi-sp3_1.0.0.4

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

CVSS:3.1/AV:L/AC:H/PR:L/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 AMD Epyc processor model
    Run `dmidecode -t processor` or check `/proc/cpuinfo` to identify the exact AMD Epyc processor variant (7003, 7002, 7001, 72f3, 7313, 7313p, 7343, or 73f3)
    Affected if The processor is any AMD Epyc model listed in the affected products (7003, 7002, 7001, 72f3, 7313, 7313p, 7343, or 73f3)
  2. Retrieve current ASP firmware version
    Run `dmidecode -s bios-version` or access the system firmware/BIOS setup to locate the ASP firmware version string (may appear as milanpi-sp3, romepi-sp3, or naplespi-sp3 variant)
    Affected if The firmware version cannot be determined or the installed version is unknown
  3. Compare firmware version against affected ranges
    Match your identified Epyc model and firmware version to the affected version thresholds
    Affected if For Epyc 7003, 72f3, 7313, 7313p, 7343, or 73f3: version < milanpi-sp3_1.0.0.4; For Epyc 7002: version < romepi-sp3_1.0.0.c; For Epyc 7001: version < naplespi-sp3_1.0.0.g
  4. Verify ASP feature is enabled
    Check system configuration or firmware settings for the Application Service Provider (ASP) module status; this is typically a firmware-level feature that may be listed in BIOS/UEFI settings or system management interfaces
    Affected if ASP feature is enabled on a system with vulnerable firmware version, as the race condition only applies when ASP is active

The system is affected if it uses an AMD Epyc 7003/7002/7001/72f3/7313/7313p/7343/73f3 processor with ASP firmware below the specified version thresholds and has the ASP feature enabled.

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

Apply AMD firmware updates addressing the ASP race condition; verify that systems require appropriate privilege levels for SMM access after patching.

Recommended fix Moderate confidence

Upgrade to firmware version milanpi-sp3_1.0.0.4 (Epyc 7003), romepi-sp3_1.0.0.c (Epyc 7002), or naplespi-sp3_1.0.0.g (Epyc 7001) or later as appropriate for your processor

  1. 1. Identify the exact Epyc processor model (7003, 7002, 7001, or specific variant like 72f3, 7313, 7313p, 7343, 73f3) in the affected system
  2. 2. Determine the current firmware version installed on the system
  3. 3. Download the corresponding BIOS/firmware update from the AMD support website for the specific Epyc model
  4. 4. For Epyc 7003 (Milan): Update to firmware version milanpi-sp3_1.0.0.4 or later
  5. 5. For Epyc 7002 (Rome): Update to firmware version romepi-sp3_1.0.0.c or later
  6. 6. For Epyc 7001 (Naples): Update to firmware version naplespi-sp3_1.0.0.g or later
  7. 7. Apply the firmware update following the server manufacturer's documented firmware update procedure
  8. 8. Verify the firmware version has been successfully applied after the update
Caveat Firmware updates may require server downtime and should be tested in a staging environment before production deployment; verify compatibility with existing system configuration

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

Fix this in Epyc 7003 Firmware Scoped from the published advisory
  • Consultation8.0 h
  • Implementation16.0 h
  • Testing12.0 h
  • Review / QA4.0 h
40.0 hours of engineering $7,000
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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-2020-12951 in production — separate from our analysis above.

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What this is

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What belongs here
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  • Version or environment caveats, and links to real fixes
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