Windows Server 2008Operating system · Microsoft

CVE-2021-24078

CRITICAL · 9.8 CVSS v3.1 Published 2021-02-25
Patch available
A vendor patch is available. No clean upgrade release — apply the published patch.
See remediation →
100/100
Remediation priority · Urgent
Remotely reachable No privileges Zero-click Patch available

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
Windows DNS Server Remote Code Execution Vulnerability

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

A detailed technical summary for this CVE is being prepared.

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
Windows Server 2008Operating system
Affected:all versions= r2
Windows Server 2012Operating system
Affected:all versions= r2
Windows Server 2016Operating system
Affected:all versions= 20h2= 1909= 2004
Windows Server 2019Operating system
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
Network
Complexity
Low
Privileges
None
User interaction
None
Scope
Unchanged
Confidentiality
High
Integrity
High
Availability
High

CVSS:3.1/AV:N/AC:L/PR:N/UI:N/S:U/C:H/I:H/A:H

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
Patch available Apply the vendor patch
Recommended fix High confidence

For Windows Server 2008/2012 (end-of-support): Upgrade to Windows Server 2019 or later; For supported versions: Apply the CVE-2021-24078 security patch (KBXXXXXXXX)

  1. Identify the specific Windows Server version and build by running 'winver' or 'systeminfo' on the target server
  2. Check the Microsoft Security Response Center advisory (CVE-2021-24078) for the applicable Knowledge Base (KB) article number for your Windows Server version
  3. Apply the corresponding security update from Windows Update, WSUS, or manually download from Microsoft Update Catalog
  4. Restart the DNS Server service or reboot the server as required by the update
  5. Verify the patch is installed by checking the installed updates (control panel > programs > view installed updates)
  6. Confirm the DNS Server service is running properly after reboot
Caveat Windows Server 2008/2012 are out of mainstream support; extended security updates may require additional licensing; test patches in staging before production deployment

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

We can apply and verify the patch for your build — typical engagement from $2,300. Get the patch applied

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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-2021-24078 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