GitLabApplication
CVE-2023-6386
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 · uneditedA denial of service vulnerability was identified in GitLab CE/EE, affecting all versions from 15.11 prior to 16.6.7, 16.7 prior to 16.7.5 and 16.8 prior to 16.8.2 which allows an attacker to spike the GitLab instance resource usage resulting in service degradation.
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 confidenceA denial of service vulnerability in GitLab CE/EE allows an attacker to spike instance resource usage by triggering excessive resource consumption, leading to service degradation. The vulnerability exists in versions 15.11 through 16.8.1 and stems from insufficient controls on resource-intensive operations.
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
GitLabApplication
>= 15.11.0, < 16.6.7>= 16.7.0, < 16.7.5>= 16.8.0, < 16.8.2CVSS 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
- None
- Integrity
- None
- Availability
- High
CVSS:3.1/AV:N/AC:L/PR:N/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 checksWork through these to decide whether this CVE applies to you.
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Identify installed GitLab versionRun `sudo gitlab-rake gitlab:version` or check the Admin Area > Settings > General page under 'GitLab version'Affected if The command fails or returns a version number
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Compare version against affected rangesCheck if your version falls into: 15.11.0 - 16.6.6, 16.7.0 - 16.7.4, or 16.8.0 - 16.8.1Affected if Your version matches any of these ranges (e.g., 16.5.0, 16.7.2, 16.8.1)
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Verify GitLab is exposed to networkConfirm the GitLab instance is accessible over the network or has user-facing features enabledAffected if The instance accepts external connections or has user accounts
You are affected if your GitLab version is 15.11.0 through 16.6.6, 16.7.0 through 16.7.4, or 16.8.0 through 16.8.1 and the instance is accessible to attackers.
Generated from the published advisory. Verify against your own configuration.
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 · scoped16.6.716.7.516.8.2
Upgrade GitLab to version 16.6.7, 16.7.5, 16.8.2 or later to patch the vulnerability. During the upgrade, schedule a maintenance window and ensure backups are available.
Upgrade to GitLab 16.6.7, 16.7.5, or 16.8.2 (or later stable release)
- Identify your current GitLab version using `gitlab-rake gitlab:env:info`
- Back up your GitLab instance database and repositories
- For Omnibus installations: run `sudo gitlab-ctl upgrade` or download the appropriate package from gitlab.com/installers
- For source installations: follow the standard upgrade procedure in the GitLab documentation for your installation method
- Verify the upgrade was successful by checking `gitlab-rake gitlab:env:info` shows version 16.6.7, 16.7.5, or 16.8.2 or later
- Restart GitLab services if not done automatically: `sudo gitlab-ctl restart`
Generated from the published advisory — verify against the referenced sources before acting.
Fix this in GitLab
Scoped from the published advisory
- Consultation2.0 h
- Implementation3.0 h
- Testing2.0 h
- Review / QA1.0 h
An estimate, not a bill — we confirm scope with you before any work starts. Need it this week? Rush from $2,272.
Scan for this in your stack
Free · runs locallyCheck whether your project pulls in CVE-2023-6386 — or any other known-vulnerable package — straight from your lock files. Free and open source; it runs locally and uploads nothing.
References Go to the primary sourcePrimary sources — vendor advisories, patches and trackers. Where our summary and a reference disagree, the reference wins.
Primary sourcesPractitioner notes
ContributedPeer-ranked notes from engineers who’ve handled CVE-2023-6386 in production — separate from our analysis above.
The advisory tells you what broke. It rarely tells you what actually worked. If you’ve dealt with this one, that detail is what the next engineer is searching for.
- The version that genuinely resolved it — not the one the vendor claimed
- A config change or rule that shut the vector down
- A gotcha in the upgrade path that cost you an afternoon
No notes yet
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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.
- 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
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