ESXi 4.1 server refuses root password after reboot!?

steinooo · 2 May 2012 at 10:55

Hi all,

I just rebooted my ESXi 4.1 server to add more discs, and it all rebooted lovely, with the config still intact (It had hostname and ip address still configured)

But........the root login will not work any longer! It refuses the password.

Has anyone seen this before or managed to login sucessfully?

I have tried root / null, and tried typing the password in the username field to ensure it looks correct and it does!

edscdk · 2 May 2012 at 10:59

^^^^ what he posted

what he means "I forgot my ESXI root password HELP"

steinooo · 2 May 2012 at 11:14

nope! I logged in with it 1 minute before I rebooted and it worked fine! Nothing constructive then keep out

Little_Crow · 2 May 2012 at 11:38

How are you connecting to the server, SSH, Vsphere client?

ruffneck · 2 May 2012 at 14:36

Has the keyboard layout changed? If you have special characters in your password you might not be typing what you think your typing.

steinooo · 2 May 2012 at 15:17

Little_Crow said:
How are you connecting to the server, SSH, Vsphere client?

Vsphere client but I am next to the server for local access too.

To the other reply - I did read something about a faulty keyboard, but I cannot verify this, I have tried connecting a few more keyboards and it still doesn't wwork

edscdk · 2 May 2012 at 15:21

hopes its not a production system!

Little_Crow · 2 May 2012 at 15:40

The fact you've typed the password so it's visible should discount a keyboard issue.

I'm unsure on esxi 4.1, but if posible I would try logging in locally as root.
If it works, then you know the password is fine and it's some other strange issue.

It could be the VM services are an issue, so try restarting those from the troubleshooting options at the console.

Other than that I would go back to basics, checking network connectivity, ping responses etc.

steinooo · 2 May 2012 at 22:28

Little_Crow said:
The fact you've typed the password so it's visible should discount a keyboard issue.

I'm unsure on esxi 4.1, but if posible I would try logging in locally as root.
If it works, then you know the password is fine and it's some other strange issue.

It could be the VM services are an issue, so try restarting those from the troubleshooting options at the console.

Other than that I would go back to basics, checking network connectivity, ping responses etc.

I had console access locally so was trying all this locally and on the vSphere clinet on my laptop next to it.

Absolutely stumped so installed again wiping the datastore. A tech partner of my firm suggested something to do with a keyboard issue when building,
installed on AZERTY, and first logged in with QWERTY, I find it hard to believe tbh. I guess I will never know, but this is the SECOND TIME this has happened on the same server.

No thankfully it was not in production until tomoorrow, altho that means I have a lot more work to do tomorrow now!

LostCorpse · 3 May 2012 at 21:56

steinooo said:
nope! I logged in with it 1 minute before I rebooted and it worked fine! Nothing constructive then keep out

Actually that wasn't an unconstruct comment, if you spend a few mins looking through the web you may have found a few arciles that may have helped i.e.
http://vm-help.com/esx/esx3i/Reset_root_password.php
http://www.bock.nu/blog/reset-root-password-vmware-esxi-4.1
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=CoL43UBpVyI&feature=youtu.be

forgotten or change it makes not odds fact was you needed to change the loin with or with out the password.
for future ma be worth looking though the above few articles as a starting point.

i've not tested the above links my self so can not confirm that it works correctly.

a suggestion also if i may for future, is to install the esxi onto a usb memory stick and boot from that, should mean in furture you'll have easy access to the files and wont have to wipe the VM datastore, as well as ease of creating clones and managing configs.