# CVE-2017-8797: Null dereference in n/a

> A remote attacker can cause a system-wide denial of service by sending malformed NFSv4 packets that trigger an uninitialized array index dereference.

- **Severity:** High 7.5 (`CVSS:3.1/AV:N/AC:L/PR:N/UI:N/S:U/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:** 2 Jul 2017
- **Updated:** 5 Aug 2024
- **Also known as:** DEBIAN-CVE-2017-8797, GHSA-c5mc-v7p9-x5g6, UBUNTU-CVE-2017-8797

## What is CVE-2017-8797?

CVE-2017-8797 is a high-severity vulnerability in Linux kernel, published on 2 Jul 2017. An attacker can exploit it over the internet without logging in, with no action from the victim.

### Official description

The NFSv4 server in the Linux kernel before 4.11.3 does not properly validate the layout type when processing the NFSv4 pNFS GETDEVICEINFO or LAYOUTGET operand in a UDP packet from a remote attacker. This type value is uninitialized upon encountering certain error conditions. This value is used as an array index for dereferencing, which leads to an OOPS and eventually a DoS of knfsd and a soft-lockup of the whole system.

Weakness: CWE-129 (Improper Validation of Array Index)

## Which versions are affected by CVE-2017-8797?

It affects 1 product.


Products: Linux kernel.

## How do I fix CVE-2017-8797?

Apply the vendor's patch.

## Is CVE-2017-8797 being exploited?

There is no known exploitation of CVE-2017-8797 in the wild and no public exploit code.

## Other vulnerabilities in Linux kernel

- [CVE-2026-53266](https://insights.sbomify.com/CVE-2026-53266/): Linux Kernel Out-of-Bounds Write (high 8.8, exploited in the wild)
- [CVE-2013-6282](https://insights.sbomify.com/CVE-2013-6282/): Linux Kernel Improper Input Validation (high 8.8, exploited in the wild)
- [CVE-2022-0185](https://insights.sbomify.com/CVE-2022-0185/): Linux Kernel Heap-Based Buffer Overflow (high 8.4, exploited in the wild)
- [CVE-2013-2094](https://insights.sbomify.com/CVE-2013-2094/): Linux Kernel Privilege Escalation (high 8.4, exploited in the wild)
- [CVE-2026-53362](https://insights.sbomify.com/CVE-2026-53362/): Linux Kernel Unspecified (high 7.8, exploited in the wild)

## Fix prompt for AI coding agents

```text
Check this codebase for CVE-2017-8797 and fix it if it is affected.

What it is: CVE-2017-8797 is a high-severity vulnerability in Linux kernel, published on 2 Jul 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-2017-8797 in the wild and no public exploit code.

Affected product: Linux kernel. No package-level version data is available, so check the vendor advisory linked from the reference page.

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-2017-8797/ (Markdown: https://insights.sbomify.com/CVE-2017-8797/index.md)
```

## Sources

- CVE record: https://www.cve.org/CVERecord?id=CVE-2017-8797
- NVD: https://nvd.nist.gov/vuln/detail/CVE-2017-8797
- OSV: https://osv.dev/vulnerability/CVE-2017-8797

---
From sbomify Insights: https://insights.sbomify.com/CVE-2017-8797/
Summaries are generated and may contain mistakes; the official description above is the record.