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ESX Server 3.0.2, Patch ESX-1008421: Host code execution vulnerability from a guest operating system

Details

Release Date: 04/10/09

Document Last Updated: 04/10/09

Download Size:
40.3 MB
Download Filename:
ESX-1008421.tgz
md5sum:

377d94ae3a756e627e7a6c9330d4369e

Product Versions	ESX Server 3.0.2
Patch Classification	Security
Supersedes	ESX-1008405
Virtual Machine Migration or Reboot Required	Yes
ESX Server Host Reboot Required	Yes
PRs Fixed	377697
Affected Hardware	None
Affected Software	None
RPMs Included	VMware-esx-apps, VMware-esx-vmkernel, VMware-esx-vmx
Related CVE numbers	CVE-2009-1244

Summary

A critical vulnerability in the virtual machine display function might allow a guest operating system to run code on the host. The Common Vulnerabilities and Exposures project (cve.mitre.org) has assigned the name CVE-2009-1244 to this issue.

Solution

Symptoms

None

Deployment Considerations

None

Download Instructions

Download and verify the patch bundle as follows:

Download patch ESX-1008421 from http://www.vmware.com/download/vi/vi3_patches.html.
Log in to the ESX Server service console as root.
Create a local depot directory.

# mkdir -p /var/updatesNote: VMware recommends that you use the updates directory.
Change your working directory to /var/updates.

# cd /var/updates
Download the tar file into the /var/updates directory.
Verify the integrity of the downloaded tar file:

# md5sum ESX-1008421.tgz

The md5 checksum output should match the following:

377d94ae3a756e627e7a6c9330d4369e ESX-1008421.tgz
Extract the compressed tar archive:

# tar -xvzf ESX-1008421.tgz
Change to the newly created directory, /var/updates/ESX-1008421:

# cd ESX-1008421

Installation Instructions

Note: All virtual machines on the host must be either shut down or migrated using VMotion before applying the patch. A reboot of the ESX Server host is required after applying this patch.

After you download and extract the archive, and if you are in the directory that you previously created, use the following command to install the update:

# esxupdate update

To run esxupdate from a different directory, you must specify the bundle path in the command:

# esxupdate -r file://<directory>/ESX-1008421 update

For example, if the host is called depot:

# esxupdate -r file:///depot/var/updates/ESX-1008421 update

During the update process, logs appear on the terminal. You can specify the verbosity of esxupdate logs by using the -v option as shown, below.

# esxupdate -v 10 file://<directory>/ESX-1008421 update

For more information on how to use esxupdate, see the Patch Management for ESX Server 3 tech note at http://www.vmware.com/pdf/esx3_esxupdate.pdf.

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KB Article: 1008421
Updated: Aug 14, 2009

Products:
VMware ESX
Product Versions:
VMware ESX 3.0.x

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