Cisco Security Advisory
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CVSS:3.0/AV:A/AC:L/PR:N/UI:N/S:C/C:N/I:N/A:H/E:X/RL:X/RC:X
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A vulnerability in the implementation of Cisco Discovery Protocol functionality in Cisco IOS Software and Cisco IOS XE Software could allow an unauthenticated, adjacent attacker to exhaust memory on an affected device, resulting in a denial of service (DoS) condition.
The vulnerability is due to improper memory handling by the affected software when the software processes high rates of Cisco Discovery Protocol packets that are sent to a device. An attacker could exploit this vulnerability by sending a high rate of Cisco Discovery Protocol packets to an affected device. A successful exploit could allow the attacker to exhaust memory on the affected device, resulting in a DoS condition.
There are no workarounds that address this vulnerability.
This advisory is available at the following link:
https://sec.cloudapps.cisco.com/security/center/content/CiscoSecurityAdvisory/cisco-sa-20180926-cdp-dos
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Vulnerable Products
This vulnerability affects Cisco devices that are running a vulnerable release of Cisco IOS Software or Cisco IOS XE Software and are configured to use the Cisco Discovery Protocol.
For information about which Cisco IOS and IOS XE Software releases are vulnerable, see the Fixed Software section of this advisory.
Assessing the Cisco Discovery Protocol Configuration
To determine whether a device is configured to use the Cisco Discovery Protocol, administrators can log in to the device and use the show cdp global command in the CLI. If the device is configured to use the protocol, the output of the command will be similar to the following example:
CLI(config)# show cdp global Global CDP information: CDP enabled globally Refresh time is 60 seconds Hold time is 180 seconds CDPv2 advertisements is enabled DeviceID TLV in System-Name(Default) Format
To determine whether specific interfaces of a device are configured to use the Cisco Discovery Protocol and to display information about those interfaces, administrators can use the show cdp interface command in the CLI. If any interfaces of the device are configured to use the protocol, the output of the command will show the protocol status and other information for each interface that is configured to use the protocol.
Determining the Cisco IOS Software Release
To determine which Cisco IOS Software release is running on a device, administrators can log in to the device, use the show version command in the CLI, and then refer to the system banner that appears. If the device is running Cisco IOS Software, the system banner displays text similar to Cisco Internetwork Operating System Software or Cisco IOS Software. The banner also displays the installed image name in parentheses, followed by the Cisco IOS Software release number and release name. Some Cisco devices do not support the show version command or may provide different output.
The following example shows the output of the command for a device that is running Cisco IOS Software Release 15.5(2)T1 and has an installed image name of C2951-UNIVERSALK9-M:
Router> show version Cisco IOS Software, C2951 Software (C2951-UNIVERSALK9-M), Version 15.5(2)T1, RELEASE SOFTWARE (fc1) Technical Support: http://www.cisco.com/techsupport Copyright (c) 1986-2015 by Cisco Systems, Inc. Compiled Mon 22-Jun-15 09:32 by prod_rel_team . . .For information about the naming and numbering conventions for Cisco IOS Software releases, see the Cisco IOS and NX-OS Software Reference Guide.
Determining the Cisco IOS XE Software Release
To determine which Cisco IOS XE Software release is running on a device, administrators can log in to the device, use the show version command in the CLI, and then refer to the system banner that appears. If the device is running Cisco IOS XE Software, the system banner displays Cisco IOS Software, Cisco IOS XE Software, or similar text.
The following example shows the output of the command for a device that is running Cisco IOS XE Software Release 16.2.1 and has an installed image name of CAT3K_CAA-UNIVERSALK9-M:
ios-xe-device# show version Cisco IOS Software, Catalyst L3 Switch Software (CAT3K_CAA-UNIVERSALK9-M), Version Denali 16.2.1, RELEASE SOFTWARE (fc1) Technical Support: http://www.cisco.com/techsupport Copyright (c) 1986-2016 by Cisco Systems, Inc. Compiled Sun 27-Mar-16 21:47 by mcpre . . .For information about the naming and numbering conventions for Cisco IOS XE Software releases, see the Cisco IOS and NX-OS Software Reference Guide.
Products Confirmed Not Vulnerable
Only products listed in the Vulnerable Products section of this advisory are known to be affected by this vulnerability.
Cisco has confirmed that this vulnerability does not affect Cisco IOS XR Software or Cisco NX-OS Software.
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Exploitation of this vulnerability will cause an increase in the amount of memory that is used by the CDP process on a device, as shown in the following example:
Switch# show memory allocating totals | in CDP 0x7FF0A845688D 1045248800 806519 CDP Protocol (allocator: fh_fd_nd_cdp_add_notification_event) 0x7FF0A8456ADF 277598120 806519 CDP Protocol (allocator: fh_fd_nd_cdp_add_notification_event)The memory will be released if exploitation stops.
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There are no workarounds that address this vulnerability. However, administrators may disable use of the Cisco Discovery Protocol by a device. To disable use of the protocol globally for a device, use the no cdp run command in the CLI. To disable use of the protocol for a specific interface of a device, use the no cdp enable command in the CLI.
To first determine whether use of the Cisco Discovery Protocol is enabled for a device, administrators can use the show cdp neighbors command in the device CLI. The output of the command displays detailed information about neighboring devices that were discovered by using the Cisco Discovery Protocol or, if use of the protocol is disabled, indicates that use of the protocol is not enabled, as shown in the following example:
Router# show cdp neighbors % CDP is not enabled Router#
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For detailed information about affected and fixed software releases, consult the Cisco IOS Software Checker.
When considering software upgrades, customers are advised to regularly consult the advisories for Cisco products, which are available from the Cisco Security Advisories and Alerts page, to determine exposure and a complete upgrade solution.
In all cases, customers should ensure that the devices to be upgraded contain sufficient memory and confirm that current hardware and software configurations will continue to be supported properly by the new release. If the information is not clear, customers are advised to contact the Cisco Technical Assistance Center (TAC) or their contracted maintenance providers.
Cisco IOS and IOS XE Software
To help customers determine their exposure to vulnerabilities in Cisco IOS and IOS XE Software, Cisco provides a tool, the Cisco IOS Software Checker, that identifies any Cisco Security Advisories that impact a specific software release and the earliest release that fixes the vulnerabilities described in each advisory (“First Fixed”). If applicable, the tool also returns the earliest release that fixes all the vulnerabilities described in all the advisories identified (“Combined First Fixed”).
Customers can use this tool to perform the following tasks:
- Initiate a search by choosing one or more releases from a drop-down list or uploading a file from a local system for the tool to parse
- Enter the output of the show version command for the tool to parse
- Create a custom search by including all previously published Cisco Security Advisories, a specific advisory, or all advisories in the most recent bundled publication
To determine whether a release is affected by any published Cisco Security Advisory, use the Cisco IOS Software Checker on Cisco.com or enter a Cisco IOS Software or Cisco IOS XE Software release—for example, 15.1(4)M2 or 3.13.8S—in the following field:
By default, the Cisco IOS Software Checker includes results only for vulnerabilities that have a Critical or High Security Impact Rating (SIR). To include results for Medium SIR vulnerabilities, use the Cisco IOS Software Checker on Cisco.com and check the Medium check box in the Impact Rating drop-down list.
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The Cisco Product Security Incident Response Team (PSIRT) is not aware of any public announcements or malicious use of the vulnerability that is described in this advisory.
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This vulnerability was found during the resolution of a Cisco TAC support case.
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To learn about Cisco security vulnerability disclosure policies and publications, see the Security Vulnerability Policy. This document also contains instructions for obtaining fixed software and receiving security vulnerability information from Cisco.
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Show LessVersion Description Section Status Date 1.0 Initial public release. — Final 2018-September-26
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