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ToolsApplication · VMware

CVE-2022-31693

MEDIUM · 5.5 CVSS v3.1 Published 2023-06-07
Fix available
A fix is available. Upgrade to 12.1.5 or later.
See remediation →
57/100
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
VMware Tools for Windows (12.x.y prior to 12.1.5, 11.x.y and 10.x.y) contains a denial-of-service vulnerability in the VM3DMP driver. A malicious actor with local user privileges in the Windows guest OS, where VMware Tools is installed, can trigger a PANIC in the VM3DMP driver leading to a denial-of-service condition in the Windows guest OS.

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

VMware Tools for Windows (12.x.y prior to 12.1.5, 11.x.y, and 10.x.y) contains a denial-of-service vulnerability in the VM3DMP driver. A malicious actor with local user privileges in the Windows guest OS can trigger a PANIC in the VM3DMP driver, causing a denial-of-service condition in the Windows guest OS.

MitigationUpgrade VMware Tools to version 12.1.5 or later to remediate this vulnerability. As a defensive measure, restrict local user privileges in guest operating systems where feasible.

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
ToolsApplication
Affected:>= 10.0.0, < 12.1.5

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

CVSS:3.1/AV:L/AC:L/PR:L/UI:N/S:U/C:N/I:N/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. Check if VMware Tools is installed on the Windows guest
    Open Control Panel > Programs and Features, or run 'Get-WmiObject -Class Win32_Product' in PowerShell, and look for 'VMware Tools' in the installed programs list.
    Affected if VMware Tools is not listed in installed programs (not vulnerable - not installed)
  2. Identify the VMware Tools version number
    In Programs and Features, right-click VMware Tools and select Properties, or run 'C:\Program Files\VMware\VMware Tools\vmware-toolbox-cmd.exe -v' in Command Prompt/PowerShell to retrieve the exact version.
    Affected if The displayed version shows a number less than 12.1.5 (for example, 12.0.0, 11.x.x, or 10.x.x) indicating a vulnerable version
  3. Confirm the version range falls within the affected list
    Compare the installed version against the vulnerable range: versions 10.0.0 through 12.1.4 (inclusive) are affected. Any version starting with 10., 11., or 12.0.x/12.1.x prior to 12.1.5 is in the vulnerable range.
    Affected if The installed version begins with 10., 11., or falls between 12.0.0 and 12.1.4 inclusive
  4. Verify the VM3DMP driver presence (optional confirmation)
    Open Device Manager, expand 'System devices', and look for 'VM3DMP' driver, or run 'driverquery /fo list | findstr VM3DMP' in Command Prompt.
    Affected if The VM3DMP driver is present and loaded in the Windows guest OS

If VMware Tools is installed on the Windows guest and its version is 10.0.0 or higher but lower than 12.1.5, the environment is affected by this CVE.

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 12.1.5 or later
Fixed in 12.1.5
Interim mitigation

Upgrade VMware Tools to version 12.1.5 or later to remediate this vulnerability. As a defensive measure, restrict local user privileges in guest operating systems where feasible.

Recommended fix Moderate confidence

VMware Tools 12.1.5 or later

  1. Identify all Windows virtual machines running VMware Tools versions 10.x.y, 11.x.y, or 12.x.y prior to 12.1.5
  2. Download VMware Tools version 12.1.5 or later from VMware (www.vmware.com)
  3. Install the updated VMware Tools on each affected Windows guest virtual machine
  4. Restart the virtual machine if prompted or required after the update
  5. Verify the installed VMware Tools version is 12.1.5 or later using 'vmware-toolbox-cmd --version' or the Programs and Features applet
Caveat Review VMware Tools release notes for any compatibility considerations or known issues before upgrading

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

Fix this in Tools Scoped from the published advisory
  • Consultation2.0 h
  • Implementation1.0 h
  • Testing2.0 h
  • Review / QA1.0 h
6.0 hours of engineering $1,060
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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-2022-31693 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