VMware ESX Privilege Escalation (VMSA-2010-0017) (remote check)
High Nessus Plugin ID 89743
Synopsis
The remote VMware ESX host is missing a security-related patch.
Description
The remote VMware ESX host is missing a security-related patch. It is, therefore, affected by a memory allocation issue in the Linux 64-bit kernel due to a failure by the compat_alloc_user_space() function to properly allocate the user space memory required for the 32-bit compatibility layer. A local attacker can exploit this to gain elevated privileges by leveraging the ability of the compat_mc_getsockopt() function to control a certain length value.
Solution
Apply the appropriate patch as referenced in the vendor advisory that pertains to ESX version 4.0 / 4.1.