Completely locked out of OpenVMS 8.4 system

[cyb2600]

Hi,

I fired up my Itanium box after about a year of it collecting dust and unfortunately I had forgotten the system password. I tried every password I usually use and after about 35 tries I gave up and decided to just reset the password. I followed the instructions I found online and successfully reset the password but I still can't log in. I tried creating a new account with adduser.com and I can't log in with that account either.

Is this because I used the wrong password so many times? Did I enable some sort of break-in defense that needs to be disabled?

This is what I did to reset the password
fs0:\efi\vms\vms_loader.efi -flags 0,1
SET/STARTUP OPA0:
SET WINDOW_SYSTEM 0
SET WRITESYSPARAMS 0
CONTINUE
spawn @SYS$SYSTEM:STARTUP
SET DEFAULT SYS$SYSTEM:
RUN SYS$SYSTEM:AUTHORIZE
MODIFY SYSTEM /PASSWORD=newsystempassword
quit

[cyb2600]

> [...] Pwdchange: (pre-expired)

I've already suggested changing that when setting the new password.[

I just tried that, no difference

> I'm using Teraterm, I think when I installed the system I used Putty.
> Maybe that's my issue...

Did you run that experiment?

I did - same result. I tried changing the password from Putty in case Teraterm was adding some garbage to the password.

> Are you doing all this stuff at some kind of serial console terminal,
> or what, exactly?

Still wondering.

I'm using the serial port on the SUV cable, same way I had used the console in the past. The only possible difference is that I might be using a different Serial->USB converter

Added in 53 minutes 50 seconds:
Does anyone know how to interpret these status codes?

$account /since=10-feb-2024/type=logfail

Date / Time Type Subtype Username ID Source Status
--------------------------------------------------------------------------------
16-FEB-2024 06:13:34 LOGFAIL <login> 00000425 OPA0: 10D38064
16-FEB-2024 06:14:32 LOGFAIL SYSTEM 00000426 OPA0: 10D380FC
16-FEB-2024 06:15:12 LOGFAIL SYSTEM 00000427 OPA0: 10D380FC
16-FEB-2024 06:15:44 LOGFAIL SYSTEM 00000428 OPA0: 10D380FC
16-FEB-2024 06:16:10 LOGFAIL SYSTEM 00000429 OPA0: 10D380FC
16-FEB-2024 06:16:37 LOGFAIL <login> 0000042A OPA0: 10D38064
16-FEB-2024 06:16:57 LOGFAIL SYSTEM 0000042B OPA0: 10D380FC
16-FEB-2024 06:17:12 LOGFAIL <login> 0000042C OPA0: 10D380F4
16-FEB-2024 06:17:41 LOGFAIL <login> 0000042D OPA0: 00D380F4
16-FEB-2024 06:21:16 LOGFAIL SYSTEM 0000042E OPA0: 10D380FC
16-FEB-2024 06:21:32 LOGFAIL SYSTEM 0000042F OPA0: 10D380FC
16-FEB-2024 06:21:47 LOGFAIL SYSTEM 00000430 OPA0: 10D380FC
16-FEB-2024 06:22:00 LOGFAIL SYSTEM 00000431 OPA0: 10D380FC
16-FEB-2024 06:22:21 LOGFAIL <login> 00000432 OPA0: 10D38064
16-FEB-2024 07:01:28 LOGFAIL SYSTEM 00000403 OPA0: 00000001
16-FEB-2024 07:19:42 LOGFAIL SYSTEM 00000403 OPA0: 10000001
16-FEB-2024 07:20:16 LOGFAIL SYSTEM 00000424 OPA0: 10D380FC
16-FEB-2024 08:20:50 LOGFAIL SYSTEM 00000403 OPA0: 107880BC
16-FEB-2024 08:21:21 LOGFAIL <login> 00000424 OPA0: 00D380FC
16-FEB-2024 08:49:36 LOGFAIL SYSTEM 00000403 OPA0: 100388B2
16-FEB-2024 09:01:54 LOGFAIL SYSTEM 00000403 OPA0: 00038090
16-FEB-2024 09:02:20 LOGFAIL <login> 00000424 OPA0: 10D38064
16-FEB-2024 09:52:57 LOGFAIL SYSTEM 00000403 OPA0: 10030001
16-FEB-2024 09:53:39 LOGFAIL <login> 00000424 OPA0: 10D38064
16-FEB-2024 10:25:33 LOGFAIL SYSTEM 00000403 OPA0: 100388B2
16-FEB-2024 11:24:04 LOGFAIL SYSTEM 00000403 OPA0: 00000001
16-FEB-2024 11:24:23 LOGFAIL SYSTEM 00000424 OPA0: 10D380FC
16-FEB-2024 11:24:43 LOGFAIL <login> 00000425 OPA0: 10D38064

Added in 47 minutes 46 seconds:
I added /FULL and saw the error was "invalid password" I suspected this was because my new password was too close to older ones (even though it didn't complain when I set the password) so I changed it to something completely different and now I can get it! Thanks everyone for their help.

[sms]

Code: Select all

> [...] the error was "invalid password" [...]

   Some of it were.  But thanks for the report.


   For future reference:

> Does anyone know how to interpret these status codes?

   Built-in, and often effective: EXIT <code>

   For example:

ITS $ exit %x0D380FC   ! The %x10000000 bit suppesses the message.
%LOGIN-F-INVPWD, invalid password

   For success codes (and other odd-balls), I have a DCL script:

ITS $ exit %x0030001   ! Not helpful, but...
ITS $ 
ITS $ show symbol sysmsg
  SYSMSG == "@ UTILITY:SYSMSG.COM"
ITS $ sysmsg %x0030001
%CLI-S-NORMAL, normal successful completion

      http://antinode.info:/ftp/misc/sysmsg.com

   So:

0000001  %SYSTEM-S-NORMAL, normal successful completion
0030001  %CLI-S-NORMAL, normal successful completion
07880BC  %SHOW-F-NOINTRUDERS, no intrusion records match specification
0D38064  %LOGIN-F-CMDINPUT, error reading command input
0038090  %CLI-W-IVVERB, unrecognized command verb - check validity and spelling
00388B2  %CLI-E-IMAGEFNF, image file not found !AS
0D380F4  %LOGIN-F-NOSUCHUSER, no such user
0D380FC  %LOGIN-F-INVPWD, invalid password

   On a running V8.4-2L3 (rx2600) system, I can get "0D38064 
%LOGIN-F-CMDINPUT" from "SET HOST 0" by hitting Ctrl/Z at the
"Password: " prompt.

   Similarly, "0D380F4  %LOGIN-F-NOSUCHUSER" by specifying a nonexistent
"Username: ".

   If your (unspecifed) "my Itanium box" has an MP/iLO, then using that
for the console connection might let you eliminate problems with the
actual serial port.  A badly configured terminal emulator might still
cause trouble, of course.

[cyb2600]

Thanks. It's a BL860c i2 blade I have running without a Bladesystem chassis. So the only serial port I can use is the one on the SUV cable. I could poke a couple wires into the backplane to get iLo ethernet too but I don't see the need at this point.