# CVE-2017-17051: OpenStack Nova DoS by rebuilding the same instance with a new image multiple times

> An authenticated user can cause denial of service on hypervisor hosts by repeatedly rebuilding instances, consuming untracked resources in OpenStack Nova.

- **Severity:** High 8.6 (`CVSS:3.0/AV:N/AC:L/PR:N/UI:N/S:C/C:N/I:N/A:H`)
- **Exploited in the wild:** Not known
- **Login needed:** Not needed
- **Attackable:** Over the internet
- **Victim action needed:** Not needed
- **Fix available:** Yes
- **Published:** 5 Dec 2017
- **Updated:** 5 Aug 2024
- **Also known as:** DEBIAN-CVE-2017-17051, GHSA-vq76-rxx3-4r4r, PYSEC-2026-692

## What is CVE-2017-17051?

CVE-2017-17051 is a high-severity denial of service vulnerability in n/a, published on 5 Dec 2017. An attacker can exploit it over the internet without logging in, with no action from the victim.

### Official description

An issue was discovered in the default FilterScheduler in OpenStack Nova 16.0.3. By repeatedly rebuilding an instance with new images, an authenticated user may consume untracked resources on a hypervisor host leading to a denial of service, aka doubled resource allocations. This regression was introduced with the fix for OSSA-2017-005 (CVE-2017-16239); however, only Nova stable/pike or later deployments with that fix applied and relying on the default FilterScheduler are affected.

Weakness: CWE-400 (Uncontrolled Resource Consumption)

## Which versions are affected by CVE-2017-17051?

3 open source packages ship an affected version, including nova. It affects 1 product.


| Package | Ecosystem | Affected | Fixed in |
| --- | --- | --- | --- |
| `nova` | PyPI | All versions | 16.0.4 |
| `nova` | PyPI | All versions | 16.0.4 |
| `nova` | PyPI | All versions | 16.0.4 |

Products: Openstack Nova.

## How do I fix CVE-2017-17051?

Upgrade nova to 16.0.4 or later.

## Is CVE-2017-17051 being exploited?

There is no known exploitation of CVE-2017-17051 in the wild and no public exploit code.

## Other vulnerabilities in n/a

- [CVE-2017-7214](https://insights.sbomify.com/CVE-2017-7214/): OpenStack Nova logs sensitive context from notification exceptions (critical 9.8)
- [CVE-2020-17376](https://insights.sbomify.com/CVE-2020-17376/): OpenStack Nova Live migration fails to update persistent domain XML (high 8.3)
- [CVE-2017-18191](https://insights.sbomify.com/CVE-2017-18191/): OpenStack Nova Denial of service attack on the compute host (high 7.5)
- [CVE-2015-3280](https://insights.sbomify.com/CVE-2015-3280/): OpenStack Compute (nova) allows remote authenticated users to cause a denial of service (medium 6.8)
- [CVE-2015-3241](https://insights.sbomify.com/CVE-2015-3241/): OpenStack Nova instance migration process does not stop when instance is deleted (medium 6.8)

## Fix prompt for AI coding agents

```text
Check this codebase for CVE-2017-17051 and fix it if it is affected.

What it is: CVE-2017-17051 is a high-severity denial of service vulnerability in n/a, published on 5 Dec 2017. An attacker can exploit it over the internet without logging in, with no action from the victim.
Exploitation: There is no known exploitation of CVE-2017-17051 in the wild and no public exploit code.

Affected packages and fixed versions:
- nova (PyPI): affected all versions; fixed in 16.0.4
- nova (PyPI): affected all versions; fixed in 16.0.4
- nova (PyPI): affected all versions; fixed in 16.0.4

Task:
1. Search the dependency manifests and lockfiles (for example package.json, package-lock.json, requirements.txt, poetry.lock, uv.lock, pom.xml, build.gradle, go.mod, Cargo.lock, Gemfile.lock) and any Dockerfiles for the affected packages, including transitive dependencies.
2. If an affected version is in use, upgrade it to the fixed version for its release line with the project's package manager, so the lockfile is regenerated. Prefer the smallest upgrade that fixes it.
3. If there is no fix, or the upgrade would break the build, do not guess: explain the risk and the safest workaround instead.
4. Run the tests and summarise what changed and why.
5. If nothing in the project is affected, say so and change nothing.

Reference: https://insights.sbomify.com/CVE-2017-17051/ (Markdown: https://insights.sbomify.com/CVE-2017-17051/index.md)
```

## Sources

- CVE record: https://www.cve.org/CVERecord?id=CVE-2017-17051
- NVD: https://nvd.nist.gov/vuln/detail/CVE-2017-17051
- OSV: https://osv.dev/vulnerability/CVE-2017-17051

---
From sbomify Insights: https://insights.sbomify.com/CVE-2017-17051/
Summaries are generated and may contain mistakes; the official description above is the record.