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Powersystem CenterApplication · Subnet

CVE-2023-6631

HIGH · 7.8 CVSS v3.1 Published 2024-01-08
Mitigation only
No fix yet — a mitigation exists. There is no fixed release. A documented workaround reduces exposure in the meantime.
See remediation →
80/100
Remediation priority · High
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
PowerSYSTEM Center versions 2020 Update 16 and prior contain a vulnerability that may allow an authorized local user to insert arbitrary code into the unquoted service path and escalate privileges.

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

PowerSYSTEM Center versions 2020 Update 16 and prior contain an unquoted service path vulnerability. An authorized local user can place a malicious executable in an unquoted path (e.g., C:\Program Files\Vendor\App\bin\service.exe) that Windows will execute when the service starts, allowing privilege escalation from authorized local user to SYSTEM.

MitigationApply vendor-provided patch or remediate by adding quotes to the service binary path in the Windows registry (e.g., change C:\Program Files\App\service.exe to "C:\Program Files\App\service.exe"). Verify service functionality after changes.

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
Powersystem CenterApplication
Affected:= 2020

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
High
Integrity
High
Availability
High

CVSS:3.1/AV:L/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 PowerSYSTEM Center installation and version
    Check the Windows registry under HKLM\SOFTWARE\Microsoft\Windows\CurrentVersion\Uninstall for an entry named 'Subnet PowerSYSTEM Center' or look for the application in C:\Program Files\Subnet. Inspect the DisplayVersion value to determine if it is 2020 Update 16 or prior.
    Affected if PowerSYSTEM Center version 2020 Update 16 or prior is installed.
  2. Locate PowerSYSTEM Center Windows services
    Open Services (services.msc) and search for services with names containing 'PowerSYSTEM', 'PSC', or 'Subnet'. Alternatively, query from an elevated command prompt: sc query type= service state= all | findstr /i 'power system psc subnet'
    Affected if A PowerSYSTEM Center service is found on the system.
  3. Check service binary path for unquoted paths
    For each identified service, run: sc qc <service_name> (e.g., sc qc PowerSYSTEMCenterService). In the output, examine the BINARY_PATH_NAME field. Look for paths that contain spaces but are not enclosed in double quotes, such as C:\Program Files\Subnet\PowerSYSTEM Center\bin\service.exe
    Affected if The BINARY_PATH_NAME contains a space-separated path without surrounding quotes.
  4. Verify service path location is writable
    Parse the unquoted path (e.g., C:\Program Files\Subnet\PowerSYSTEM Center\bin\). Check if a low-privileged authorized local user can write to any directory component of that path usingicacls <directory_path> or by attempting to create a file in that location.
    Affected if A subdirectory in the unquoted service path is writable by the local user.

A user is affected if PowerSYSTEM Center 2020 Update 16 or prior is installed, a service associated with it exists, the service binary path is unquoted and contains spaces, and a subdirectory in that path is writable by the local user.

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

Apply vendor-provided patch or remediate by adding quotes to the service binary path in the Windows registry (e.g., change C:\Program Files\App\service.exe to "C:\Program Files\App\service.exe"). Verify service functionality after changes.

Recommended fix Moderate confidence

PowerSYSTEM Center 2020 Update 17 or later

  1. 1. Identify all PowerSYSTEM Center services running on the system using 'sc query' or 'Get-Service' command
  2. 2. For each service, check the binPath using 'sc qc <serviceName>' to identify unquoted paths with spaces
  3. 3. Contact Schneider Electric support or refer to official documentation to obtain PowerSYSTEM Center 2020 Update 17 or later which contains the security fix
  4. 4. Before upgrading, backup all configuration data and databases according to Schneider Electric backup procedures
  5. 5. Apply the upgrade following the official Schneider Electric upgrade guide for PowerSYSTEM Center 2020
  6. 6. After upgrade, verify services are properly quoted by re-running 'sc qc' on each service
  7. 7. Verify the fix by confirming the service executable paths now include quotes (e.g., "C:\Program Files\...")
Caveat Review Schneider Electric release notes for any configuration or feature changes between Update 16 and the target update

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

Fix this in Powersystem Center Scoped from the published advisory
  • Consultation2.0 h
  • Implementation2.0 h
  • Testing1.0 h
  • Review / QA1.0 h
6.0 hours of engineering $1,090
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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-2023-6631 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