dbcve.org
TomcatWeb server / proxy · Apache

CVE-2024-38286

HIGH · 7.5 CVSS v3.1 Published 2024-11-07
Fix available
A fix is available. Upgrade to 9.0.90 / 10.1.25 or later.
See remediation →
84/100
Remediation priority · High
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
Allocation of Resources Without Limits or Throttling vulnerability in Apache Tomcat. This issue affects Apache Tomcat: from 11.0.0-M1 through 11.0.0-M20, from 10.1.0-M1 through 10.1.24, from 9.0.13 through 9.0.89. The following versions were EOL at the time the CVE was created but are known to be affected: 8.5.35 through 8.5.100 and 7.0.92 through 7.0.109. Other EOL versions may also be affected. Users are recommended to upgrade to version 11.0.0-M21, 10.1.25, or 9.0.90, which fixes the issue. Apache Tomcat, under certain configurations on any platform, allows an attacker to cause an OutOfMemoryError by abusing the TLS handshake process.

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

Apache Tomcat contains an allocation of resources without limits vulnerability in its TLS handshake processing. Under certain configurations, an attacker can abuse the TLS handshake process to cause excessive memory allocation, resulting in an OutOfMemoryError and denial of service.

MitigationUpgrade to Apache Tomcat 11.0.0-M21, 10.1.25, or 9.0.90 (or later stable versions) to patch the resource exhaustion vulnerability in TLS handshake handling.

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
TomcatWeb server / proxy
Affected:>= 9.0.13, < 9.0.90>= 10.1.1, < 10.1.25= 10.1.0= 11.0.0
Ontap ToolsApplication
Affected:= 9= 10

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
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 checks

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

  1. Identify Apache Tomcat version
    Locate the VERSION file in the Tomcat installation directory, or check the server info via the manager web application, or run: catalina.sh version 2>/dev/null | grep 'Server version'
    Affected if The installed version falls within these ranges: 9.0.13 to 9.0.89, 10.1.0 to 10.1.24, or exactly 11.0.0
  2. Verify TLS connector is configured
    Examine the server.xml configuration file in the Tomcat conf directory. Look for a <Connector> element with the 'SSLEnabled' attribute set to 'true' or with keyStore/keyStorePass attributes defined
    Affected if A TLS-enabled connector is present, enabling the vulnerable TLS handshake code path
  3. Confirm Java SSL configuration
    Check server.xml for SSL configuration elements such as <SSLHostConfig> with certificate verification settings, or check for jsseEnabled attributes indicating Java SSL is in use
    Affected if Java SSL (JSSE) is enabled, which is the affected TLS implementation in these Tomcat versions

You are affected if Apache Tomcat is running a version between 9.0.13 and 9.0.89, between 10.1.0 and 10.1.24, or exactly 11.0.0, and TLS/SSL is enabled in the configuration.

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
Upgrade available Upgrade to 9.0.90 / 10.1.25 or later
Fixed in 9.0.9010.1.25
Interim mitigation

Upgrade to Apache Tomcat 11.0.0-M21, 10.1.25, or 9.0.90 (or later stable versions) to patch the resource exhaustion vulnerability in TLS handshake handling.

Recommended fix High confidence

Upgrade to Tomcat 9.0.90, 10.1.25, or 11.0.0-M21 (depending on your current version line)

  1. 1. Identify the currently running Tomcat version by checking the $CATALINA_HOME/README or running 'catalina.sh version'
  2. 2. Determine which major version line you are on: 9.0.x, 10.1.x, or 11.0.x
  3. 3. Stop the Tomcat service or process
  4. 4. Create a complete backup of the current Tomcat installation directory
  5. 5. Download the appropriate fixed version: 9.0.90 for 9.0.x line, 10.1.25 for 10.1.x line, or 11.0.0-M21 for 11.0.x line from https://tomcat.apache.org/download-90.cgi, https://tomcat.apache.org/download-101.cgi, or https://tomcat.apache.org/download-110.cgi respectively
  6. 6. Extract the new version to a temporary location
  7. 7. Replace the old Tomcat files with the new version, preserving configuration files (server.xml, web.xml, context.xml) and any custom applications
  8. 8. Review and apply any necessary configuration changes from the release notes
Caveat Review Apache Tomcat migration guides for your version line; minor version upgrades typically have minimal breaking changes but review release notes for any configuration or feature changes

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

Fix this in Tomcat Scoped from the published advisory
  • Consultation2.0 h
  • Implementation3.0 h
  • Testing4.0 h
  • Review / QA2.0 h
11.0 hours of engineering $1,900
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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-2024-38286 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