📖 ~4 min read • Source: FreeBSD VuXML
VuXML topic: dokuwiki — Local File Inclusion with register_globals on
Related CVEs: CVE-2006-4674 CVE-2006-4675 CVE-2006-4679 CVE-2006-5098 CVE-2006-5099 CVE-2007-3930 CVE-2009-1960
Upstream summary: DokuWiki reports: A security hole was discovered which allows an attacker to include arbitrary files located on the attacked DokuWiki installation. The included file is executed in the PHP context. This can be escalated by introducing malicious code through uploading file via the media manager or placing PHP code in editable pages.
Table of contents
Symptom & Impact
Exploitation of dokuwiki-devel is user-driven: the danger arrives when someone opens a hostile page, message or attachment, so exposure sits on each FreeBSD 13 workstation rather than on any serving path. Desktop sessions run for weeks, and the package manager only replaces files on disk — a dokuwiki-devel process started before the update keeps the old code mapped until the user quits and relaunches it. Consequences are local: theft of saved credentials and session cookies, access to the user’s profile data under $HOME, and code execution as the logged-in account. dokuwiki-devel is a graphical application launched by a user from their desktop session, not a system service: there is no service to restart, and service(8) or /var/log/messages will report nothing for it.
Environment & Reproduction
Reproduction targets FreeBSD 13. Confirm release, installed package, and capture baseline state:
freebsd-version -kru
uname -a
pkg info dokuwiki-devel
pkg query "%n-%v" dokuwiki-devel
pkg audit -F
service -e
Exercise the workload that uses dokuwiki-devel while collecting:
tail -200 /var/log/messages
dmesg -a | tail -200
tail -200 /var/log/pkg.log
Root Cause Analysis
Root cause is tracked at FreeBSD VuXML. The FreeBSD ports security team shipped a corrective dokuwiki-devel port revision; hosts on an outdated build remain exposed. Correlate package logs with system logs and kernel state to isolate the change that triggered the failure mode:
tail -500 /var/log/pkg.log
tail -500 /var/log/messages
sysctl kern.lastpid
sysctl kern.osreldate # numeric __FreeBSD_version, e.g. 1400097
Quick Triage
Run these checks on FreeBSD 13 to confirm the failure mode and current state of dokuwiki-devel:
pkg version -v dokuwiki-devel # installed vs available version
pkg audit dokuwiki-devel # advisory match for this package
tail -100 /var/log/messages
dmesg -a | tail -100
kldstat # kernel module state (for kernel/driver pkgs)
pfctl -sr 2>/dev/null || ipfw list # only if pf/ipfw is enabled
# e.g. bind918→named, php83→php-fpm), check it:
pkg query '%Fp' dokuwiki-devel | sed -n 's|.*/etc/rc\.d/||p' # FreeBSD: the REAL service name(s) = basename of the rc.d script (bind918 -> named, postgresql16-server -> postgresql, apache24 -> apache24)
pkg query '%b' dokuwiki-devel # FreeBSD: shared libraries PROVIDED by dokuwiki-devel. Non-empty here + no rc.d script = it is a library: patch it, then restart its consumers
Step-by-Step Diagnosis
-
List enabled services (only relevant if the package provides one).
service -e -
Follow live logs.
tail -F /var/log/messages dmesg -
Validate firewall rules (skip if neither pf nor ipfw is enabled).
pfctl -sr -v 2>/dev/null || ipfw show -
Check package integrity for
dokuwiki-devel.pkg check -B dokuwiki-devel pkg check -d dokuwiki-devel # verify shared-library deps -
Reinstall
dokuwiki-develif integrity check fails.pkg install -fy dokuwiki-devel -
Correlate findings with
/var/log/pkg.logand FreeBSD VuXML to pin the commit that introduced the regression.
Solution – Primary Fix
Install the corrective dokuwiki-devel port revision referenced by FreeBSD VuXML:
sudo pkg update
sudo pkg upgrade dokuwiki-devel # or: sudo pkg upgrade -y for the whole system
pkg audit dokuwiki-devel # confirm no remaining advisory for this package
For ports-tree builders (FreeBSD 13.x and earlier used portsnap; on FreeBSD 14+ the ports tree is fetched with Git):
# FreeBSD 14+ (portsnap was removed):
sudo pkg install -y git-lite
sudo git clone --depth 1 https://git.FreeBSD.org/ports.git /usr/ports
# FreeBSD 13.x and earlier:
# sudo portsnap fetch update
cd /usr/ports/<category>/dokuwiki-devel
sudo make deinstall reinstall clean
Reboot only if the package ships a kernel module or replaces a shared library used by long-running daemons.
Need help rolling this patch across a FreeBSD fleet? Our IT Solutions & Services team manages FreeBSD jail/bhyve patch windows. Get in touch for a free consultation.
Solution – Alternative Approaches
If the primary fix is not viable, choose from these alternatives:
-
Lock the package until the fix is vetted:
sudo pkg lock dokuwiki-devel -
Downgrade to a known-good revision.
pkg install pkgname-VERSIONis not a real downgrade syntax — fetch a specific build instead:# 1. Discover available versions across configured repos: pkg search -e dokuwiki-devel pkg rquery -r FreeBSD-quarterly '%n-%v' dokuwiki-devel # 2. Install from a specific saved .pkg file: sudo pkg add -f /path/to/dokuwiki-devel-<older-version>.pkg # 3. Or switch the host repo to the quarterly branch (see snippet below) and: sudo pkg upgrade -fr FreeBSD-quarterly dokuwiki-devel -
Switch the pkg repository between
quarterlyandlatestby editing/usr/local/etc/pkg/repos/FreeBSD.conf:FreeBSD: { url: "pkg+https://pkg.FreeBSD.org/${ABI}/quarterly", mirror_type: "srv", signature_type: "fingerprints", fingerprints: "/usr/share/keys/pkg", enabled: yes } -
Isolate the affected service in a jail with stricter firewall rules:
iocage create -n dokuwiki-devel-jail -r 13.4-RELEASE iocage set allow_raw_sockets=0 dokuwiki-devel-jail # or with Bastille: bastille create dokuwiki-devel-jail 13.4-RELEASE 10.0.0.10 -
Replace the service with a vendored static build for the period between exposure detection and full rollout.
Verification & Acceptance Criteria
All of these should pass after the fix:
pkg info dokuwiki-devel # shows the expected fixed version
pkg audit dokuwiki-devel # no advisory for this package (exit code 0)
tail -50 /var/log/messages # no new errors after upgrade
# If dokuwiki-devel ships a service, confirm it is running under its rc.d name:
The conditions described in the advisory must no longer be reported for dokuwiki-devel across two consecutive runs.
Rollback Plan
Capture state before any change (only ZFS root has boot environments — UFS hosts skip bectl):
pkg query "%n-%v" > /root/pkg-pre.txt
# ZFS-on-root only:
sudo bectl create pre-dokuwiki-devel-patch
To revert if the upgrade is bad, reinstall the previously saved .pkg file:
sudo pkg add -f /var/cache/pkg/dokuwiki-devel-<previous-version>.pkg
# Or activate the pre-patch boot environment and reboot (ZFS-on-root only):
sudo bectl activate pre-dokuwiki-devel-patch
sudo shutdown -r now
For kernel/loader changes on a UFS host, boot the previous kernel from the loader prompt (press 3 at the menu, then boot kernel.old).
Prevention & Hardening
Prevent recurrence on FreeBSD 13 hosts running dokuwiki-devel:
-
Enable the daily security pkg audit in
/etc/periodic.conf:daily_status_security_pkgaudit_enable="YES" -
Subscribe to
freebsd-security-notificationsat lists.freebsd.org. -
Mirror through a local pkg repository managed by
poudriere:poudriere jail -c -j 13amd64 -v 13.4-RELEASE poudriere ports -c -p default poudriere bulk -j 13amd64 -p default <category>/dokuwiki-devel -
Version-pin sensitive packages:
sudo pkg lock dokuwiki-devel -
Take an automatic ZFS boot-environment snapshot before every upgrade (ZFS root only):
sudo bectl create pre-upgrade-$(date +%Y%m%d) -
Monitor file integrity (create a baseline, verify against it later):
# Create a baseline (use -c; target /usr/local/etc, /etc, /boot — NOT /): sudo mtree -c -K sha256digest -p /usr/local/etc > /var/db/usr-local-etc.mtree sudo mtree -c -K sha256digest -p /etc > /var/db/etc.mtree # Verify later: sudo mtree -p /usr/local/etc < /var/db/usr-local-etc.mtree # Or with AIDE for a richer ruleset: sudo pkg install -y aide && sudo aide --init && sudo aide --check -
Harden jails with
allow.*tunables in/etc/jail.conf:dokuwiki-devel_jail { allow.raw_sockets = 0; allow.sysvipc = 0; allow.mount = 0; allow.chflags = 0; }
Related Errors & Cross-Refs
Issues that commonly surface alongside a dokuwiki-devel update: pkg lock contention, mismatched ABI after kernel/userland skew, pf rule drift, and stale shared-library references after upgrade. Triage with:
freebsd-version -kru
uname -K
pkg check -d
pfctl -sr
View all freebsd-13 tutorials on the Tutorials Hub →
Browse all common problems & solutions on the Tutorials Hub.
References & Further Reading
Primary reference: FreeBSD VuXML. Useful manual pages on FreeBSD 13:
man pkg
man freebsd-update
man pfctl
man ipfw
man bectl
man periodic.conf
Other resources: the FreeBSD Handbook, the FreeBSD Security Advisories at security.freebsd.org, and the /usr/ports/UPDATING file for port-specific notes implicated in this advisory.