Servers can be backdoored by exploiting buggy motherboard controll

(arstechnica.com)

23 points | by joozio a day ago ago

7 comments

  • sillywalk a day ago ago

    *controllers

    Too bad Oxide's non-BMC[0] service processor or something similar isn't available on all servers.

    [0] https://oxide.computer/faq-friday/is-the-oxide-service-proce...

    • inigyou a day ago ago

      If you just don't plug in the BMC network port, you effectively have this. But people do plug in the BMC network port because it's extremely useful.

      • LargoLasskhyfv 18 hours ago ago

        And then you have firmwares which switch to 'in-band-management' for convenience, if they detect that.

        If you don't disable that, and sometimes even then.

        Making that shit available on your general uplink.

  • burnt-resistor a day ago ago

    Reasonable environments don't allow BMC access from the normal LAN, and instead have a protected LAN segment for the BMC's NIC, so the risk typically minimal as it requires breaching a secure control network. It's bad to have insecure hardware, but defense-in-depth and proper network design makes compromise from it much more unlikely.

    • inigyou a day ago ago

      There is a a server I have whose host provides a VPN for customers onto the BMC network. I don't know if they are checking which IP address I access through the VPN, and I don't really want to find out lest I get terminated.

      There's another one from a host that just has it open to the internet. I bet you'd find a bunch by scanning the internet.

    • hollow-moe a day ago ago

      > defense-in-depth and proper network design Damn, we're all doomed then

  • preisschild a day ago ago

    Thats why I just want upstream OpenBMC support and redfish