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NetbackupApplication · Veritas

CVE-2022-45461

HIGH · 8.8 CVSS v3.1 Published 2022-11-17
Fix available
A fix is available. Upgrade to after 10.1 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
The Java Admin Console in Veritas NetBackup through 10.1 and related Veritas products on Linux and UNIX allows authenticated non-root users (that have been explicitly added to the auth.conf file) to execute arbitrary commands as root.

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

The Java Admin Console in Veritas NetBackup through 10.1 on Linux and UNIX platforms contains a privilege escalation vulnerability. Authenticated users who have been explicitly added to the auth.conf file (non-root users) can execute arbitrary commands with root privileges through the admin console.

MitigationApply the vendor patch from Veritas for CVE-2022-45461. Review and restrict the auth.conf file to limit which users can access the admin console, following the principle of least privilege until patches can be applied.

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
NetbackupApplication
Affected:<= 10.1

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. Identify NetBackup version
    Run the command 'nbkmutil -version' or check the NetBackup version file typically located in /usr/openv/netbackup/version on the NetBackup server
    Affected if The installed version is 10.1 or lower (any version <= 10.1)
  2. Locate the auth.conf file
    The auth.conf file is typically found in /usr/openv/netbackup/db/authorizations on Linux and UNIX systems. Use 'find /usr/openv -name auth.conf 2>/dev/null' to locate it if the standard path does not exist
    Affected if The auth.conf file exists and contains any user entries beyond root or system accounts
  3. Review user entries in auth.conf
    Open the auth.conf file and examine its contents. Look for lines containing usernames that are not root or system-level accounts. Each non-root user listed represents a potential privilege escalation vector
    Affected if The auth.conf file contains any explicitly added non-root users (authenticated users) who can access the admin console
  4. Confirm Java Admin Console access
    Verify that the Java Admin Console service (nbjconsole) is running or accessible. Check if port 1556 (default admin console port) is listening using 'netstat -an | grep 1556' or equivalent
    Affected if The Java Admin Console is enabled and accessible to the users listed in auth.conf
  5. Assess user privileges
    For each non-root user identified in auth.conf, verify they are standard (non-privileged) system accounts. These users, if they have NetBackup console access, can execute commands as root through the vulnerability
    Affected if Any non-root, non-system account exists in auth.conf with admin console access

You are affected if NetBackup version is 10.1 or lower AND the auth.conf file contains explicitly added non-root users who can access the Java Admin Console.

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 a release after 10.1
Interim mitigation

Apply the vendor patch from Veritas for CVE-2022-45461. Review and restrict the auth.conf file to limit which users can access the admin console, following the principle of least privilege until patches can be applied.

Recommended fix Moderate confidence

NetBackup 10.2 or later

  1. 1. Verify current NetBackup version by running: /usr/openv/bin/nbversion -version
  2. 2. Schedule a maintenance window for the upgrade process
  3. 3. Back up the NetBackup configuration, catalog, and auth.conf file before proceeding
  4. 4. Download NetBackup 10.2 or later from Veritas Support portal (www.veritas.com)
  5. 5. Apply the upgrade following Veritas installation documentation for your platform
  6. 6. After upgrade, verify the auth.conf file permissions are correctly set (should be readable only by root)
  7. 7. Confirm the upgrade was successful by checking the NetBackup version again
  8. 8. Test that the Java Admin Console functions correctly and command execution is properly restricted
Caveat Review Veritas compatibility lists and release notes for 10.2 for any deprecated features or configuration changes before upgrading production systems

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

Fix this in Netbackup Scoped from the published advisory
  • Consultation4.0 h
  • Implementation4.0 h
  • Testing3.0 h
  • Review / QA2.0 h
13.0 hours of engineering $2,330
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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-2022-45461 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