CVE-2025-29957
📋 TL;DR
This vulnerability in Windows Deployment Services allows an unauthorized attacker to cause a denial of service through uncontrolled resource consumption. Attackers can exhaust system resources locally, disrupting deployment services. Organizations using Windows Deployment Services for network-based OS installations are affected.
💻 Affected Systems
- Windows Deployment Services
📦 What is this software?
Windows 10 1507 by Microsoft
Windows 10 1507 by Microsoft
Windows 10 1607 by Microsoft
Windows 10 1607 by Microsoft
Windows 10 1809 by Microsoft
Windows 10 1809 by Microsoft
Windows 10 21h2 by Microsoft
Windows 10 21h2 by Microsoft
Windows 10 21h2 by Microsoft
Windows 10 22h2 by Microsoft
Windows 10 22h2 by Microsoft
Windows 10 22h2 by Microsoft
Windows 11 22h2 by Microsoft
Windows 11 22h2 by Microsoft
Windows 11 23h2 by Microsoft
Windows 11 23h2 by Microsoft
Windows 11 24h2 by Microsoft
Windows 11 24h2 by Microsoft
⚠️ Risk & Real-World Impact
Worst Case
Complete disruption of Windows Deployment Services preventing network-based OS installations and deployments across the organization.
Likely Case
Temporary service degradation or unavailability of Windows Deployment Services affecting deployment workflows.
If Mitigated
Minimal impact with proper network segmentation and resource monitoring in place.
🎯 Exploit Status
Unauthenticated local exploitation suggests relatively simple attack vectors.
🛠️ Fix & Mitigation
✅ Official Fix
Patch Version: Check Microsoft Security Update Guide for specific KB numbers
Vendor Advisory: https://msrc.microsoft.com/update-guide/vulnerability/CVE-2025-29957
Restart Required: Yes
Instructions:
1. Apply latest Windows Server security updates from Microsoft
2. Install the specific KB patch referenced in the advisory
3. Restart the Windows Deployment Services server
🔧 Temporary Workarounds
Network Segmentation
windowsRestrict access to Windows Deployment Services to only authorized management networks
Configure Windows Firewall to restrict WDS ports (67, 68, 69, 4011) to trusted IP ranges
Resource Monitoring
windowsImplement monitoring for unusual resource consumption on WDS servers
Configure Performance Monitor alerts for high CPU/memory usage on WDS processes
🧯 If You Can't Patch
- Isolate Windows Deployment Services servers from general network access
- Implement strict network access controls and monitor for abnormal connection patterns
🔍 How to Verify
Check if Vulnerable:
Check if Windows Deployment Services role is installed and if system has unpatched Windows Server versionCheck Version:
wmic qfe list brief | findstr /i KBVerify Fix Applied:
Verify latest Windows updates are installed and check WDS service functionality📡 Detection & Monitoring
Log Indicators:
- Unusual number of connection attempts to WDS
- High resource utilization alerts on WDS servers
- WDS service crash or restart events
Network Indicators:
- Abnormal traffic patterns to WDS ports (67, 68, 69, 4011)
- Multiple rapid connection attempts from single sources
SIEM Query:
source="WDS-Server" AND (event_id=7034 OR event_id=1000) OR (process_name="svchost.exe" AND service_name="WDSServer")