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Nexus DashboardApplication · Cisco

CVE-2022-20906

MEDIUM · 6.7 CVSS v3.1 Published 2022-07-22
Fix available
A fix is available. Upgrade to 2.2 or later.
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
Multiple vulnerabilities in Cisco Nexus Dashboard could allow an authenticated, local attacker to elevate privileges on an affected device. These vulnerabilities are due to insufficient input validation during CLI command execution on an affected device. An attacker could exploit these vulnerabilities by authenticating as the rescue-user and executing vulnerable CLI commands using a malicious payload. A successful exploit could allow the attacker to elevate privileges to root on an affected device.

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

The vulnerabilities in Cisco Nexus Dashboard stem from insufficient input validation in CLI command execution. An attacker with valid rescue-user credentials can inject malicious payloads through CLI commands to escape the restricted shell and obtain root privileges.

MitigationApply Cisco's patches for CVE-2022-20906 immediately. Restrict and monitor rescue-user account access. Implement least-privilege access controls and audit CLI command execution logs.

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
Nexus DashboardApplication
Affected:>= 2.0, < 2.2\(1e\)

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:3.1/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 checks

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

  1. Identify Cisco Nexus Dashboard installation
    Check for Cisco Nexus Dashboard by reviewing installed software packages, looking for 'cisco-nexus-dashboard' or 'nd' processes, or checking /opt/nd or similar installation directories if known
    Affected if Cisco Nexus Dashboard software is present on the system
  2. Determine installed Nexus Dashboard version
    Run command: 'show version' or 'cat /etc/version' in the Nexus Dashboard CLI, or check the admin UI for the version information under System > Management > Updates or similar
    Affected if The installed version is 2.0 or higher but lower than 2.2(1e)
  3. Verify rescue-user account configuration
    Check for rescue-user account existence by attempting to list users in the CLI or by reviewing /etc/passwd or user configuration files if accessible, or check admin user settings in the Nexus Dashboard UI
    Affected if The rescue-user account is created or enabled on the system
  4. Confirm CLI access method availability
    Verify that CLI access is enabled by checking if SSH or console access to the Nexus Dashboard is permitted, and review whether the rescue-user can log in via 'ssh rescue-user@<ip>'
    Affected if The rescue-user can access the CLI via SSH or console

The environment is affected if Cisco Nexus Dashboard version 2.0 through 2.2(1e) is installed and the rescue-user account exists and can access the CLI.

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 2.2 or later
Fixed in 2.2
Interim mitigation

Apply Cisco's patches for CVE-2022-20906 immediately. Restrict and monitor rescue-user account access. Implement least-privilege access controls and audit CLI command execution logs.

Recommended fix Moderate confidence

Nexus Dashboard 2.2(1e) or later

  1. Verify current Nexus Dashboard version using the CLI command 'show version' or via the GUI dashboard
  2. Download Nexus Dashboard version 2.2(1e) or later from Cisco.com (requires valid Cisco service contract)
  3. Schedule a maintenance window as the upgrade may cause brief service interruption
  4. Back up current configuration using 'backup' command or GUI backup feature
  5. Initiate upgrade via CLI using 'install abort' or via GUI System > Upgrade
  6. Monitor upgrade progress and verify completion
  7. After upgrade, confirm vulnerability is resolved by verifying the version and reviewing release notes
  8. Verify all services are operational post-upgrade
Caveat Review release notes for any configuration or compatibility changes between your current version and 2.2(1e); some legacy integrations may require reconfiguration

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

Fix this in Nexus Dashboard Scoped from the published advisory
  • Consultation3.0 h
  • Implementation3.0 h
  • Testing4.0 h
  • Review / QA2.0 h
12.0 hours of engineering $2,100
Get the upgrade done

An estimate, not a bill — we confirm scope with you before any work starts. Need it this week? Rush from $3,360.

Scan for this in your stack

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dbcve dependency scanner

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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-2022-20906 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