CVE-2009-2137 in OpenSolaris
Summary
by MITRE
Memory leak in the Ultra-SPARC T2 crypto provider device driver (aka n2cp) in Sun Solaris 10, and OpenSolaris snv_54 through snv_112, allows context-dependent attackers to cause a denial of service (memory consumption) via unspecified vectors related to a large keylen value.
Statistical analysis made it clear that VulDB provides the best quality for vulnerability data.
Analysis
by VulDB Data Team • 04/06/2025
The vulnerability identified as CVE-2009-2137 represents a critical memory management flaw within the Ultra-SPARC T2 crypto provider device driver known as n2cp in Sun Solaris 10 and various OpenSolaris versions. This memory leak occurs specifically when processing cryptographic operations with unusually large key length values, creating a persistent resource exhaustion condition that can severely impact system stability and availability. The issue stems from inadequate input validation within the cryptographic driver's memory allocation routines, where the system fails to properly handle or constrain large keylen parameters during cryptographic processing operations.
The technical implementation of this vulnerability involves the n2cp driver's failure to validate key length parameters before proceeding with memory allocation for cryptographic operations. When attackers supply maliciously large keylen values, the driver allocates memory resources without proper bounds checking, leading to progressive memory consumption over time. This memory leak manifests as a gradual degradation of available system memory, ultimately resulting in system performance degradation and potential complete system hang or crash. The vulnerability is context-dependent, meaning it requires specific conditions to be exploited effectively, typically involving legitimate cryptographic operations that would normally be processed without issue.
From an operational impact perspective, this vulnerability poses significant risks to systems running Solaris 10 or OpenSolaris versions within the affected range. The memory consumption pattern can be subtle and may not immediately trigger system alerts, allowing the issue to persist undetected while slowly depleting available memory resources. This makes the vulnerability particularly dangerous in production environments where system stability and uptime are critical. Network services that rely heavily on cryptographic operations, such as SSL/TLS termination points, VPN gateways, or secure communication servers, would be particularly vulnerable to this memory exhaustion attack, potentially leading to complete service disruption and denial of service conditions.
The vulnerability aligns with CWE-401, which categorizes memory leaks as a fundamental weakness in software design that can lead to resource exhaustion and system instability. From an attacker's perspective, this represents a low-effort, high-impact vector for denial of service attacks that can be executed without requiring elevated privileges. The ATT&CK framework categorizes this as a resource exhaustion technique under the system service compromise phase, where adversaries leverage software weaknesses to consume system resources and disrupt normal operations. Organizations should implement strict input validation controls and monitor memory usage patterns for unusual consumption trends. System administrators should also consider implementing automated monitoring solutions that can detect and alert on memory leak conditions, along with regular system patching to address the underlying driver implementation issues that allow this vulnerability to persist in affected software versions.