dbcve.org
Manageengine Desktop CentralApplication · Zohocorp

CVE-2021-46164

HIGH · 8.8 CVSS v3.1 Published 2022-01-10
Fix available
A fix is available. Upgrade to 10.0.662 or later.
See remediation →
94/100
Remediation priority · Urgent
Remotely reachable 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
Zoho ManageEngine Desktop Central before 10.0.662 allows remote code execution by an authenticated user who has complete access to the Reports module.

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

Zoho ManageEngine Desktop Central before version 10.0.662 contains a vulnerability in the Reports module that allows an authenticated user with complete access to execute arbitrary code remotely. This is likely due to improper input validation or command injection in the reporting functionality, enabling the attacker to leverage their authenticated session to execute OS-level commands.

MitigationUpgrade to Desktop Central version 10.0.662 or later. Additionally, apply least-privilege principles to the Reports module and restrict user access to only what is necessary for business functions.

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
Manageengine Desktop CentralApplication
Affected:< 10.0.662

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

CVSS:3.1/AV:N/AC:L/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. Confirm ManageEngine Desktop Central installation
    Locate the Desktop Central installation directory (typically C:\Program Files\ManageEngine\DesktopCentral or /opt/ManageEngine/DesktopCentral on Linux) or check for the Desktop Central Windows service or Linux daemon running.
    Affected if Desktop Central is installed and running.
  2. Determine installed version
    Access the Desktop Central web UI, navigate to the About or Support page to view the version number, or check the version file in the installation directory.
    Affected if The version number is lower than 10.0.662.
  3. Verify Reports module is accessible
    Log into the Desktop Central admin console and navigate to the Reports module to confirm it is enabled and accessible to users.
    Affected if The Reports module is present and enabled.
  4. Identify users with complete access to Reports
    In the admin console, go to Admin -> User Management or Roles/Permissions and check which users or roles have 'Full Access' or 'Complete Access' permissions to the Reports module.
    Affected if Any user account has 'Complete Access' or equivalent elevated permissions to the Reports module.

The environment is affected if Desktop Central is installed with a version lower than 10.0.662, the Reports module is enabled, and a user with complete access to that module exists.

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
Upgrade available Upgrade to 10.0.662 or later
Fixed in 10.0.662
Interim mitigation

Upgrade to Desktop Central version 10.0.662 or later. Additionally, apply least-privilege principles to the Reports module and restrict user access to only what is necessary for business functions.

Recommended fix High confidence

ManageEngine Desktop Central 10.0.662

  1. 1. Identify the current version of ManageEngine Desktop Central by accessing the admin console or checking the installation
  2. 2. Download ManageEngine Desktop Central version 10.0.662 or later from the official ManageEngine download portal
  3. 3. Review the official upgrade documentation from ManageEngine before proceeding
  4. 4. Perform a full backup of the current installation including the database and configuration files
  5. 5. Apply the upgrade following the documented upgrade procedure for your deployment type
  6. 6. Verify the upgrade was successful by checking the version number in the admin console
  7. 7. Confirm that the Reports module functions correctly post-upgrade

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

Fix this in Manageengine Desktop Central Scoped from the published advisory
  • Consultation3.0 h
  • Implementation2.0 h
  • Testing3.0 h
  • Review / QA2.0 h
10.0 hours of engineering $1,770
Get the upgrade done

An estimate, not a bill — we confirm scope with you before any work starts. Need it this week? Rush from $2,832.

Scan for this in your stack

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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-2021-46164 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