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The ESXi host must not use the default Active Directory ESX Admin group.

Overview

Finding IDVersionRule IDIA ControlsSeverity
V-258796ESXI-80-000241SV-258796r933449_ruleCCI-000366medium
Description
When adding ESXi hosts to Active Directory, all user/group accounts assigned to the Active Directory group "ESX Admins" will have full administrative access to the host. If this group is not controlled or known to the system administrators, it may be used for inappropriate access to the host. Therefore, the default group must be changed to a site-specific Active Directory group and membership must be severely restricted.
STIGDate
VMware vSphere 8.0 ESXi Security Technical Implementation Guide2023-10-11

Related Frameworks

1 mapping across 5 frameworks
SCF0 mappings

No source states a mapping between these directly.

Also reachable in 3 hops (8) derived by us, not asserted by any source

Each of these is a route we composed by chaining published mappings. No publisher states a relationship between the two endpoints.

CFG-01Configuration Management Program
1.00
END-01Endpoint Device Management (EDM)
1.00
END-04Malicious Code Protection (Anti-Malware)
1.00
END-06Endpoint File Integrity Monitoring (FIM)
1.00
MON-01Continuous Monitoring
1.00
MON-01.7File Integrity Monitoring (FIM)
1.00
CFG-02Secure Baseline Configurations
0.50
CFG-02.7Approved Configuration Deviations
0.50
NIST 800-530 mappings

No source states a mapping between these directly.

Also reachable in 2 hops (100) derived by us, not asserted by any source

Each of these is a route we composed by chaining published mappings. No publisher states a relationship between the two endpoints.

AC-12Session Termination
1.00
AC-16(1)Dynamic Attribute Association
1.00
AC-17(1)Monitoring and Control
1.00
AC-2Account Management
1.00
AC-2(1)Automated System Account Management
1.00
AC-2(11)Usage Conditions
1.00
AC-2(3)Disable Accounts
1.00
AC-2(4)Automated Audit Actions
1.00
AC-24(1)Transmit Access Authorization Information
1.00
AC-25Reference Monitor
1.00

+90 more (top 10 by confidence shown)

NIST 800-1710 mappings

No source states a mapping between these directly.

Also reachable in 3 hops (2) derived by us, not asserted by any source

Each of these is a route we composed by chaining published mappings. No publisher states a relationship between the two endpoints.

3.4.1
1.00
3.4.2
1.00
CCI1 mapping
CCI-000366
1.00
NIST CSF 2.00 mappings

No source states a mapping between these directly.

Also reachable in 3 hops (5) derived by us, not asserted by any source

Each of these is a route we composed by chaining published mappings. No publisher states a relationship between the two endpoints.

DE.CM-09
1.00
PR.PS-01
1.00
PR.DS-10
0.50
PR.PSPlatform Security
0.50
PR.PS-05
0.50

Who does this work

10 NICE work roles and 9 EC-Council certifications.

This is an inference across published mappings, not a single claim by anyone. This check maps to a control, which maps to a Cybersecurity Framework outcome, which NIST assigns to the work roles below. EC-Council separately maps its certifications to those same roles.

A certification prepares someone for a role. It is not evidence that a holder is qualified, and neither NIST nor EC-Council has stated that any certification here addresses this check.

Work-role assignments published by NIST (NICE Framework Components 2.2.0 and the CSF 2.0 OLIR crosswalk). Certification mappings published by EC-Council.

Details

Check Text (C-258796r933449_chk)

For systems that do not use Active Directory, this is not applicable. From the vSphere Client, go to Hosts and Clusters. Select the ESXi Host >> Configure >> System >> Advanced System Settings. Select the "Config.HostAgent.plugins.hostsvc.esxAdminsGroup" value and verify it is not set to "ESX Admins". or From a PowerCLI command prompt while connected to the ESXi host, run the following command: Get-VMHost | Get-AdvancedSetting -Name Config.HostAgent.plugins.hostsvc.esxAdminsGroup If the "Config.HostAgent.plugins.hostsvc.esxAdminsGroup" setting is set to "ESX Admins", this is a finding.

Fix Text (F-62445r933448_fix)

From the vSphere Client, go to Hosts and Clusters. Select the ESXi Host >> Configure >> System >> Advanced System Settings. Click "Edit". Select the "Config.HostAgent.plugins.hostsvc.esxAdminsGroup" key and configure its value to an appropriate Active Directory group other than "ESX Admins". or From a PowerCLI command prompt while connected to the ESXi host, run the following command: Get-VMHost | Get-AdvancedSetting -Name Config.HostAgent.plugins.hostsvc.esxAdminsGroup | Set-AdvancedSetting -Value "<site specific AD group>" Note: Changing the group name does not remove the permissions of the previous group.