The identified fault triggers a classic buffer overflow within the dhcp-server’s print_hw_addr routine when a lease creation request is processed over the OMAPI interface. The request contains an excessively long InfiniBand MAC address, which causes the internal buffer to be overwritten. Once the overflow occurs, the dhcpd process terminates without a graceful restart and cannot recover automatically, resulting in a persistent denial of service for DHCP clients. This vulnerability pertains to CWE-120, the classic buffer overflow weakness.

Red Hat Enterprise Linux 6, 7, 8, and 9 systems running the default dhcp-server package are affected. The flaw resides in the dhcpd component that listens on the OMAPI port 7911 for management commands.

The CVSS score of 4.9 signifies a moderate severity, with no EPSS data available and the vulnerability not listed in the CISA KEV catalog. An attacker only needs network reachability to the OMAPI port and must circumvent any TSIG key authentication. By sending a crafted lease request with a long InfiniBand MAC string, the attacker can force the dhcpd process to crash. The exploit requires no elevated privileges and does not provide code execution; it merely disrupts service until an administrator manually restarts the daemon.