JunosOperating system · Juniper

CVE-2024-21613

MEDIUM · 6.5 CVSS v3.1 Published 2024-01-12

Mitigation only

No fix yet — a mitigation exists. There is no fixed release. A documented workaround reduces exposure in the meantime.

See remediation →

70/100

Remediation priority · Elevated

No privileges Zero-click

Official description

NVD · unedited

A Missing Release of Memory after Effective Lifetime vulnerability in Routing Protocol Daemon (RPD) of Juniper Networks Junos OS and Junos OS Evolved allows an unauthenticated, adjacent attacker to cause an rpd crash, leading to Denial of Service (DoS). On all Junos OS and Junos OS Evolved platforms, when traffic engineering is enabled for OSPF or ISIS, and a link flaps, a patroot memory leak is observed. This memory leak, over time, will lead to an rpd crash and restart. The memory usage can be monitored using the below command. user@host> show task memory detail | match patroot This issue affects: Juniper Networks Junos OS * All versions earlier than 21.2R3-S3; * 21.3 versions earlier than 21.3R3-S5; * 21.4 versions earlier than 21.4R3-S3; * 22.1 versions earlier than 22.1R3; * 22.2 versions earlier than 22.2R3. Juniper Networks Junos OS Evolved * All versions earlier than 21.3R3-S5-EVO; * 21.4 versions earlier than 21.4R3-EVO; * 22.1 versions earlier than 22.1R3-EVO; * 22.2 versions earlier than 22.2R3-EVO.

Technical summary

dbcve analysis · high confidence

A memory leak in the Routing Protocol Daemon (RPD) in Juniper Junos OS and Junos OS Evolved occurs when traffic engineering is enabled for OSPF or ISIS and a link flaps. The leak is in a 'patroot' memory pool, which gradually accumulates until rpd crashes and restarts, causing denial of service.

MitigationUpgrade to a fixed version of Junos OS or Junos OS Evolved as specified in the advisory. Monitor memory using 'show task memory detail | match patroot' to detect the leak.

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

Affected products & versions

NVD · CPE data

JunosOperating system

Affected:= 21.2= 21.3= 21.4= 22.1= 22.2

Junos Os EvolvedOperating system

Affected:= 21.3= 21.4= 22.1= 22.2

CVSS breakdown

From the vector

Attack vector: Adjacent
Complexity: Low
Privileges: None
User interaction: None
Scope: Unchanged
Confidentiality: None
Integrity: None
Availability: High

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

Am I affected?

dbcve checks

Work through these to decide whether this CVE applies to you.

Identify Junos version

Run 'show version' or 'show system information' on the device and note the exact software version

Affected if The installed version matches 21.2, 21.3, 21.4, 22.1, or 22.2 for Junos OS, or 21.3, 21.4, 22.1, or 22.2 for Junos OS Evolved
Verify OSPF traffic engineering configuration

Run 'show configuration protocols ospf' and look for 'traffic-engineering' under the OSPF configuration hierarchy

Affected if OSPF is configured with traffic-engineering enabled
Verify ISIS traffic engineering configuration

Run 'show configuration protocols isis' and look for 'traffic-engineering' under the ISIS configuration hierarchy

Affected if ISIS is configured with traffic-engineering enabled
Inspect patroot memory pool

Run 'show task memory detail | match patroot' and observe the memory usage in the patroot pool over time

Affected if Memory usage in the patroot pool is steadily increasing or remains at elevated levels indicating a leak
Check rpd process stability

Monitor 'show system processes rpd' or check system logs for rpd crash/restart events

Affected if Rpd has crashed and restarted repeatedly due to memory exhaustion

A device is affected if it runs an affected Junos version AND has either OSPF or ISIS with traffic engineering enabled, with observable memory growth in the patroot pool leading to rpd crashes.

Generated from the published advisory. Verify against your own configuration.

Remediation

dbcve · scoped

Mitigation available No clean upgrade yet — mitigate in the meantime

Mitigation

Upgrade to a fixed version of Junos OS or Junos OS Evolved as specified in the advisory. Monitor memory using 'show task memory detail | match patroot' to detect the leak.

Recommended fix High confidence

Junos OS: 21.2R3-S3 or later, 21.3R3-S5 or later, 21.4R3-S3 or later, 22.1R3 or later, 22.2R3 or later; Junos OS Evolved: 21.3R3-S5-EVO or later, 21.4R3-EVO or later, 22.1R3-EVO or later, 22.2R3-EVO or later

1. Identify the current Junos OS or Junos OS Evolved version running on the device using 'show version'
2. For Junos OS: Determine if your version is affected - any version before 21.2R3-S3, 21.3 before 21.3R3-S5, 21.4 before 21.4R3-S3, 22.1 before 22.1R3, or 22.2 before 22.2R3
3. For Junos OS Evolved: Determine if your version is affected - any version before 21.3R3-S5-EVO, 21.4 before 21.4R3-EVO, 22.1 before 22.1R3-EVO, or 22.2 before 22.2R3-EVO
4. Plan a maintenance window for the upgrade - this will cause a routing disruption
5. Download the appropriate fixed Junos OS or Junos OS Evolved release from the Juniper Networks support portal
6. Upload the Junos upgrade image to the device and install using 'request system software add <package-name>' command
7. Reboot the device using 'request system reboot' command to complete the upgrade
8. After reboot, verify the new version is installed using 'show version'

Caveat Standard Junos upgrade may cause brief routing disruption; ensure proper change management and maintenance window are followed

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

Fix this in Junos Scoped from the published advisory

Consultation3.0 h
Implementation4.0 h
Testing2.0 h
Review / QA1.0 h

10.0 hours of engineering $1,800

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References

Primary sources

supportportal.juniper.netVendor Advisory
www.first.orgThird Party Advisory
nvd.nist.govNVD record

Practitioner notes

Contributed

Peer-ranked notes from engineers who’ve handled CVE-2024-21613 in production — separate from our analysis above.

Notes0 Guidelines

Know something about CVE-2024-21613?

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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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

At a glance

A fix existsA vendor remedy is published

Severity 6.5 Medium

Exploit likelihood EPSS, next 30 days 0.3%

Affects: Junos

Remediation

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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.

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.

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.

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.

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.

Check your environment

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.

Scan for this in your stack

References Go to the primary sourcePrimary sources — vendor advisories, patches and trackers. Where our summary and a reference disagree, the reference wins.

Practitioner notes

No notes yet

Official description

Technical summary

Affected products & versions

CVSS breakdown

Am I affected?

Remediation

References