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Epyc 7203 FirmwareOperating system · Amd

CVE-2024-21978

HIGH · 7.9 CVSS v3.1 Published 2024-08-05
Mitigation only
No fix yet — a mitigation exists. There is no fixed release. A documented workaround reduces exposure in the meantime.
See remediation →
81/100
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
Improper input validation in SEV-SNP could allow a malicious hypervisor to read or overwrite guest memory potentially leading to data leakage or data corruption.

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

This is a vulnerability in AMD's SEV-SNP (Secure Encrypted Virtualization with Secure Nested Paging) technology. Improper input validation in the SEV-SNP hypervisor interface allows a malicious or compromised hypervisor to potentially read or write guest memory, bypassing the memory encryption protections that SEV-SNP is designed to enforce. This undermines the threat model of SEV-SNP, which assumes the hypervisor is a trusted component.

MitigationApply AMD-provided microcode/firmware updates and ensure cloud service providers have patched their hypervisors. Guests should verify their SEV-SNP environment is running on patched infrastructure and consider additional isolation measures until patches are 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
Epyc 7203 FirmwareOperating system
Affected:< milanpi_1.0.0.d
Epyc 7203p FirmwareOperating system
Affected:< milanpi_1.0.0.d
Epyc 72f3 FirmwareOperating system
Affected:< milanpi_1.0.0.d
Epyc 7303 FirmwareOperating system
Affected:< milanpi_1.0.0.d
Epyc 7303p FirmwareOperating system
Affected:< milanpi_1.0.0.d
Epyc 7313 FirmwareOperating system
Affected:< milanpi_1.0.0.d
Epyc 7313p FirmwareOperating system
Affected:< milanpi_1.0.0.d
Epyc 7343 FirmwareOperating system
Affected:< milanpi_1.0.0.d

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

CVSS:3.1/AV:L/AC:L/PR:H/UI:N/S:C/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. Identify the installed AMD EPYC CPU model
    Run 'lscpu' or check /proc/cpuinfo to identify the processor model name (e.g., EPYC 7203, EPYC 7303, etc.)
    Affected if The CPU model matches one of the affected models: EPYC 7203, 7203p, 72f3, 7303, 7303p, 7313, 7313p, or 7343
  2. Verify SEV-SNP is enabled in the system
    Check system boot parameters or hypervisor configuration for SEV-SNP enablement. On Linux, inspect /sys/kernel/debug/sev- status or use 'dmesg | grep -i sev' to see if SEV-SNP is active
    Affected if SEV-SNP is currently enabled or has been enabled on this system, indicating the vulnerable interface is in use
  3. Determine the SEV-SNP firmware version
    On the host, query the AMD SEV firmware version through the hypervisor or use 'cat /sys/firmware/amd/sev/firmware_version' if available. Alternatively, use 'cpuid' to retrieve CPU information that may expose the SNP microcode version
    Affected if The firmware version is present and is earlier than milanpi_1.0.0.d (e.g., milanpi versions prior to 1.0.0.d)
  4. Confirm the hypervisor platform
    Identify the cloud provider or hypervisor in use (e.g., AMD SEV-SNP is typically deployed in cloud environments). Use 'virt-what' or check hypervisor documentation to determine the platform hosting SEV-SNP VMs
    Affected if Running on an unpatched cloud or hypervisor infrastructure that has not applied the AMD-provided firmware update

A user is affected if they are running SEV-SNP on one of the listed AMD EPYC processors with firmware versions earlier than milanpi_1.0.0.d, particularly in cloud environments where the hypervisor controls the SEV-SNP interface.

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 AMD-provided microcode/firmware updates and ensure cloud service providers have patched their hypervisors. Guests should verify their SEV-SNP environment is running on patched infrastructure and consider additional isolation measures until patches are applied.

Recommended fix High confidence

milanpi_1.0.0.d or later

  1. Obtain the updated firmware version milanpi_1.0.0.d or later from AMD's official support website or your system vendor
  2. Locate the firmware update utility or BIOS/UEFI update process specific to your server hardware
  3. Follow the vendor's standard procedure to apply the SEV-SNP firmware update, which typically involves either: a) Updating via the BMC/IPMI web interface, or b) Using the vendor's firmware update tool from a management host
  4. After applying the firmware update, verify that the SEV-SNP feature is now properly validating inputs and the version reflects milanpi_1.0.0.d or later
  5. Ensure that any guests using SEV-SNP are restarted to benefit from the fixed firmware
Caveat Firmware updates may require system downtime and should be tested in a non-production environment first; verify guest compatibility with SEV-SNP after update

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

Fix this in Epyc 7203 Firmware Scoped from the published advisory
  • Consultation6.0 h
  • Implementation4.0 h
  • Testing4.0 h
  • Review / QA2.0 h
16.0 hours of engineering $2,880
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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-2024-21978 in production — separate from our analysis above.

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What this is

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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