CVE-2026-79619 OpenZFS Vulnerability in StarWind Products
Title: CVE-2026-79619 OpenZFS Vulnerability in StarWind Products
Note: StarWind will continue to update this vulnerability as new information becomes available.
Vulnerability ID: SW-20260921-0003
Version: 1.0
Date: 2026-09-21
Status: Interim
CVEs: CVE-2026-79619
- Overview
- Affected Products
- Remediation
- Revision History
Summary
It was discovered that OpenZFS on Linux incorrectly handled authorization checks for several ioctl operations. Several policy checks evaluate the CAP_SYS_ADMIN capability relative to the caller’s user namespace rather than the host, so a process holding that capability only inside a nested, unprivileged user namespace can satisfy checks intended to require real host privilege.
Impact
A local, unprivileged user with access to /dev/zfs could use this issue to perform pool-administrative operations (create, import, export, destroy, scrub, checkpoint, trim, and vdev operations), read pool event logs (zpool events), and perform fault injection (zinject) without holding genuine host-level privilege. Exploitation requires only that the kernel permits unprivileged user namespace creation and that the local user can open /dev/zfs; no prior access to the target pool or its underlying devices is required.
Vulnerability Scoring
| CVE | CVSS 3.x Score | Vector | CVSS 4.0 Score | Vector |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| CVE-2026-79619 | 7.3 High | Full vector not independently confirmed in this pass | N/A | N/A |
References
| Resource | Hyperlink |
|---|---|
| Ubuntu Security Notice USN-8705-1 | https://ubuntu.com/security/notices/USN-8705-1 |
| OpenCVE – CVE-2026-79619 | https://app.opencve.io/cve/CVE-2026-79619 |
| Debian Security Tracker – zfs-linux | https://security-tracker.debian.org/tracker/source-package/zfs-linux |
| NIST NVD – CVE-2026-79619 | https://nvd.nist.gov/vuln/detail/CVE-2026-79619 |
Affected Products:
StarWind VSAN CVM Version 20260918 Version V8 (build 20104)
Software Versions and Fixes
None
Workaround
Where feasible, restrict which local accounts and processes can open /dev/zfs, and restrict or disable unprivileged user namespace creation on the CVM (e.g. via kernel.unprivileged_userns_clone or equivalent sysctl) if this does not conflict with other CVM functionality.
This section will be updated as patches are released
Obtaining Software Fixes
Software updates will be available in StarWind release notes – https://www.starwindsoftware.com/release-notes-build. To update the software, perform the steps described at the following link – https://knowledgebase.starwindsoftware.com/guidance/upgrading-from-any-starwind-version-to-any-starwind-version/ or contact support to perform an update. You can submit a support request using the following link https://www.starwindsoftware.com/support-form or contact Support directly via email support@starwind.com or via phone +1 617 829 4499.
Status of Notice
Interim
StarWind will continue to update information regarding this vulnerability as new details become available. This vulnerability article should be considered as the single source of current, up-to-date, authorized and accurate information posted by StarWind Software.
Revision History
| Revision # | Date | Comments |
|---|---|---|
| 1.0 | 2026-09-21 | Initial Public Release |