Dell iDRAC Service Module: code injection lets a local privileged user escalate on the host

Impact

iSM is the in-band agent that bridges the host OS to iDRAC, so it sits on the boundary between a server's operating system and its out-of-band management controller. A code-injection flaw in versions before 6.1.1.0 lets an attacker who already holds high privileges on the host run code in the agent's context and raise privileges further. On a GPU node that matters because iSM is the path by which host-side agents talk to the BMC: the interesting consequence is a foothold that straddles OS and management plane rather than anything a tenant can reach. The record describes it as local, high-privilege-required, with low confidentiality, integrity and availability impact, so this is a defense-in-depth fix, not an emergency.

Who can reach it

Local, already-privileged account on the host OS running iSM (Windows, Linux or ESXi). No remote or tenant path described, and no unauthenticated access. Not reachable from a GPU pod.

What to do

Update iDRAC Service Module to 6.1.1.0 or later on every Dell host running it, per DSA-2026-458. iSM is a host-resident agent, so this is an in-band package update and service restart on each node - not a BMC firmware flash and not a BIOS change. Expect the agent to restart during the update; whether the node needs a reboot depends on the platform's iSM packaging, which the advisory should confirm. Plan it as routine fleet patching alongside other host agents.

References

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