Unauthorized removal, connection and modification of devices must be prevented on the virtual machine.

Overview

Finding ID	Version	Rule ID	IA Controls	Severity
V-94629	VMCH-65-000037	SV-104459r1_rule		Medium

Description
In a virtual machine, users and processes without root or administrator privileges can connect or disconnect devices, such as network adaptors and CD-ROM drives, and can modify device settings. Use the virtual machine settings editor or configuration editor to remove unneeded or unused hardware devices. If you want to use the device again, you can prevent a user or running process in the virtual machine from connecting, disconnecting, or modifying a device from within the guest operating system. By default, a rogue user with nonadministrator privileges in a virtual machine can: 1. Connect a disconnected CD-ROM drive and access sensitive information on the media left in the drive 2. Disconnect a network adaptor to isolate the virtual machine from its network, which is a denial of service 3. Modify settings on a device

Description

In a virtual machine, users and processes without root or administrator privileges can connect or disconnect devices, such as network adaptors and CD-ROM drives, and can modify device settings. Use the virtual machine settings editor or configuration editor to remove unneeded or unused hardware devices. If you want to use the device again, you can prevent a user or running process in the virtual machine from connecting, disconnecting, or modifying a device from within the guest operating system. By default, a rogue user with nonadministrator privileges in a virtual machine can: 1. Connect a disconnected CD-ROM drive and access sensitive information on the media left in the drive 2. Disconnect a network adaptor to isolate the virtual machine from its network, which is a denial of service 3. Modify settings on a device

STIG	Date
VMware vSphere 6.5 Virtual Machine Security Technical Implementation Guide	2019-10-01

Details

Check Text ( C-93819r1_chk )
From the vSphere Web Client right-click the Virtual Machine and go to Edit Settings >> VM Options >> Advanced >> Configuration Parameters >> Edit Configuration. Verify the isolation.device.connectable.disable value is set to true. or From a PowerCLI command prompt while connected to the ESXi host or vCenter server, run the following command: Get-VM "VM Name" \| Get-AdvancedSetting -Name isolation.device.connectable.disable If the virtual machine advanced setting isolation.device.connectable.disable does not exist or is not set to true, this is a finding.

Check Text ( C-93819r1_chk )

From the vSphere Web Client right-click the Virtual Machine and go to Edit Settings >> VM Options >> Advanced >> Configuration Parameters >> Edit Configuration. Verify the isolation.device.connectable.disable value is set to true.

or

From a PowerCLI command prompt while connected to the ESXi host or vCenter server, run the following command:

Get-VM "VM Name" | Get-AdvancedSetting -Name isolation.device.connectable.disable

If the virtual machine advanced setting isolation.device.connectable.disable does not exist or is not set to true, this is a finding.

Fix Text (F-100747r1_fix)
From the vSphere Web Client right-click the Virtual Machine and go to Edit Settings >> VM Options >> Advanced >> Configuration Parameters >> Edit Configuration. Find the isolation.device.connectable.disable value and set it to true. If the setting does not exist, add the Name and Value setting at the bottom of screen. Note: The VM must be powered off to configure the advanced settings through the vSphere Web Client so it is recommended to configure these settings with PowerCLI as it can be done while the VM is powered on. Settings do not take effect via either method until the virtual machine is cold started, not rebooted. or From a PowerCLI command prompt while connected to the ESXi host or vCenter server, run the following command: If the setting does not exist, run: Get-VM "VM Name" \| New-AdvancedSetting -Name isolation.device.connectable.disable -Value true If the setting exists, run: Get-VM "VM Name" \| Get-AdvancedSetting -Name isolation.device.connectable.disable \| Set-AdvancedSetting -Value true

Fix Text (F-100747r1_fix)

From the vSphere Web Client right-click the Virtual Machine and go to Edit Settings >> VM Options >> Advanced >> Configuration Parameters >> Edit Configuration. Find the isolation.device.connectable.disable value and set it to true. If the setting does not exist, add the Name and Value setting at the bottom of screen.

Note: The VM must be powered off to configure the advanced settings through the vSphere Web Client so it is recommended to configure these settings with PowerCLI as it can be done while the VM is powered on. Settings do not take effect via either method until the virtual machine is cold started, not rebooted.

or

From a PowerCLI command prompt while connected to the ESXi host or vCenter server, run the following command:

If the setting does not exist, run:

Get-VM "VM Name" | New-AdvancedSetting -Name isolation.device.connectable.disable -Value true

If the setting exists, run:

Get-VM "VM Name" | Get-AdvancedSetting -Name isolation.device.connectable.disable | Set-AdvancedSetting -Value true