CVE-2021-36293
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 · uneditedDell VNX2 for File version 8.1.21.266 and earlier, contain a privilege escalation vulnerability. A local malicious admin may potentially exploit vulnerability and gain elevated 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 · moderate confidenceDell VNX2 for File versions 8.1.21.266 and earlier contain a privilege escalation vulnerability where a local authenticated administrator could potentially elevate their privileges beyond the admin role. The specific technical details of the vulnerability mechanism are not provided in the advisory.
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<= 8.1.21.266CVSS 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:3.1/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 checksWork through these to decide whether this CVE applies to you.
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Identify if Dell VNX2 or Unity OE is deployedLocate and list any Dell storage systems or virtual appliances running VNX2 for File or Unity Operating Environment in your environment inventory or network.Affected if Dell VNX2 for File or Dell EMC Unity Operating Environment software is present
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Check installed version numberAccess the system management interface or use the command line to retrieve the installed version (typically via 'uname -a', 'version', or the management GUI system info page). Compare the version to 8.1.21.266.Affected if Installed version is 8.1.21.266 or earlier
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Review administrative user accountsList all accounts with administrative privileges using the system management interface or 'user'/'usermgmt' commands. Compare against documented expected admin accounts.Affected if Unexpected or additional admin-level accounts exist beyond the known baseline
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Audit recent privilege changesReview system logs, audit trails, or security event logs for any recent modifications to user roles, permissions, or group memberships that grant elevated access.Affected if Recent unauthorized modifications to admin roles or permissions are found
A user is affected if Dell VNX2 for File or Dell EMC Unity Operating Environment version 8.1.21.266 or earlier is running and an authenticated administrator account has been able to elevate privileges beyond the admin role.
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 the vendor-supplied patch or upgrade to a fixed version beyond 8.1.21.266. Since this requires admin-level access to exploit, ensure administrative accounts are properly monitored and follow least-privilege principles.
- Consultation4.0 h
- Implementation8.0 h
- Testing6.0 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 $5,600.
Scan for this in your stack
Free · runs locallyCheck whether your project pulls in CVE-2021-36293 — 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-2021-36293 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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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.
- 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