dbcve.org
Improper Access ControlWeakness · CWE-284

CVE-2023-51786

CRITICAL · 9.1 CVSS v3.1 Published 2024-03-07
Mitigation only
No fix yet — a mitigation exists. There is no fixed release. A documented workaround reduces exposure in the meantime.
See remediation →
100/100
Remediation priority · Urgent
Remotely reachable No privileges 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
An issue was discovered in Lustre versions 2.13.x, 2.14.x, and 2.15.x before 2.15.4, allows attackers to escalate privileges and obtain sensitive information via Incorrect Access Control.

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

This is an access control vulnerability in the Lustre distributed filesystem affecting versions 2.13.x through 2.15.x before 2.15.4. The flaw allows attackers to bypass incorrect access controls to escalate privileges and obtain sensitive information. The critical CVSS score of 9.1 indicates severe impact due to the fundamental nature of access control in a distributed filesystem environment.

MitigationUpdate Lustre to version 2.15.4 or later to patch the access control vulnerability. Prioritize systems with direct network exposure and implement least-privilege access controls as a compensating measure until patching is complete.

Verify against the referenced sources before acting — the references below are authoritative for this CVE, this summary is not.

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

CVSS:3.1/AV:N/AC:L/PR:N/UI:N/S:U/C:H/I:H/A:N

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 Lustre installation
    Run `lsmod | grep lustre` to check for loaded Lustre kernel modules, or run `which lctl` and `which lfs` to verify Lustre client utilities are installed.
    Affected if Lustre modules or commands are present on the system.
  2. Determine Lustre version
    Run `lctl --version` or check `/proc/fs/lustre/version` to obtain the installed Lustre version number.
    Affected if The version returned is between 2.13.0 and 2.15.3 inclusive.
  3. Identify Lustre server roles
    Check if this system runs MDS (Metadata Server) or OSS (Object Storage Server) by examining `/proc/fs/lustre/mds/` or `/proc/fs/lustre/oss/` directories, or by reviewing the Lustre configuration in `/etc/ldev.conf` or via `lctl list_nids`.
    Affected if The system operates as an MDS or OSS node and is exposed to the network.
  4. Verify network exposure
    Run `lctl list_nids` to list network addresses that Lustre servers bind to. Check if these are accessible from untrusted networks or the internet.
    Affected if Lustre server NIDs are reachable from non-trusted network segments.
  5. Review access control configuration
    Examine Lustre ACL and permission settings using `lfs getfacl <path>` on mounted filesystems or check `/proc/fs/lustre/*/exports/*` for exported filesystem configurations.
    Affected if The Lustre filesystem has exports or shares configured without strict access restrictions.

If Lustre is installed and the version falls within 2.13.0 to 2.15.3, and the system exposes MDS or OSS services to the network, the environment is affected by this access control bypass vulnerability.

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
Mitigation available No clean upgrade yet — mitigate in the meantime
Mitigation

Update Lustre to version 2.15.4 or later to patch the access control vulnerability. Prioritize systems with direct network exposure and implement least-privilege access controls as a compensating measure until patching is complete.

Recommended fix High confidence

2.15.4

  1. 1. Back up all Lustre configuration files and data before beginning the upgrade process.
  2. 2. Review the official Lustre upgrade documentation for your current version.
  3. 3. Upgrade Lustre from your current affected version (2.13.x, 2.14.x, or 2.15.x before 2.15.4) to version 2.15.4 or later.
  4. 4. After upgrading, verify the Lustre services start correctly and the version is reported as 2.15.4 or higher.
  5. 5. Test that normal filesystem operations work and access controls are functioning properly.

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

Have this fixed Scoped from the published advisory
  • Consultation8.0 h
  • Implementation16.0 h
  • Testing12.0 h
  • Review / QA4.0 h
40.0 hours of engineering $7,000
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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-2023-51786 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
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  • Version or environment caveats, and links to real fixes
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