PowerConnect 2724 'User name or password missing'

Question

I have a new PowerConnect switch which was switched into managed mode after about two weeks of working in unmanaged mode.  I can not log onto the web interface.  I can ping it, and when I try to logon I can see the request for username and password, but I can't get past that point.  I am trying the username of 'admin' with no password, but I only get an error message that says 'User name or password missing'.   Browser is IE6 on Windows XP SP2, fully patched.  Also tried Firefox 1.04 on the same Windows XP machine, and IE 6 on a different machine running Windows Server 2003.   Any suggestions?

DELL-Cuong N. · Answer

Hi, We have seen in the past a problem with the browser cache that would result in this symtom.  Try clearing the cache on the browser and see if it helps. Cuong.

dicespice · Answer

And if you have cleared the temporary internet files cache in IE 6.0 and have used another computer entirely and it still does it....   then what.  That is what you get for changing it.  I never have been able to change a password correctly on a network device and have it take the first time.:smileysad:

MaxHeadroom · Answer

Clearing the cache hasn't helped. Any other ideas?

DELL-Cuong N. · Answer

I'm not sure what the problem is then. You might try reseting the device to default state to clear out everything then try again from there. Check the switch manual for instruction on how to do this.

Cuong.

MaxHeadroom · Answer

I've tried that, but there's another problem. The manual says to push the 'default' button to restore the switch to its default settings. I can't find a switch labeled 'default'. There is a switch called 'managed mode'. If this does the same thing as the default button, then that hasn't helped either. It does seem to reboot the switch though.

DELL-Cuong N. · Answer

Sorry for the problems you are experiencing with this. I have reported it to my group. We are investigating the problem. So far I have not been able to reproduce the problem on my switch. I'm not sure how to make it happen but we will look into it to see if we can discover anything. It may be specific to your setup and maybe difficult for us to diagnose so if you can provide any additional information that might help it would be appreciated.

Cuong.

dicespice · Answer

I too have the same issue as MaxxHeadroom.   The manual I saw online shows a default button, but there is not one on my switch, only the switch to change from unmanaged to managed.  My manual is that came with the switch is weak at best.  Unless there is more on the CD.   On Monday, I'm going to swap the switch out and bring it to my desk and attempt to look at the CD and or call support.   All I did was try and change the user name to a new one and a password.  The interface kept highlighting the admin user account, when I was trying to not allow that one to be active.  But when I get it reset, I'm not going to mess with it, since that seems to be out of scope for this switch.

FredJG · Answer

Good day, I have the same with IE6. Workaround: Use Mozilla or Netscape to access your managed switch. The DELL switch is not in favor of M$IE. suxes, Fred

DELL-Cuong N. · Answer

I have tested this over and over with IE6, Firefox 1.0.6 and I have not been able to reproduce the problem you all are reporting. To help figure out what the commonality here can I request the following?

Please tell me what OS version you are running?
Please tell me if you are running non-english version of the OS? For example I know that at least one problem was reported from France.
Please post a screen shot of the login screen and one of the error screen you are seeing.
I'm assuming you have setup your switch in managed mode - can you tell me if you have changed the IP address on the switch or whether you are using the default IP.

Also here are some things to consider:

We have identified that one possible problem that could occur is with the browser cache - if you are having problem try clearing the browser cache and see if that helps. Let us know if you have tried this and still didn't work.
Another problem may occur if you are connecting the same PC to different switches each using the same default management IP (192.168.2.1). If this happens and you do not clear the arp table on your PC (from the command shell do an "arp -d") then you will not be able to connect to the web interface. Make sure you can ping the switch if you find that you could not connect to the web interface.
Also if you enable managed mode on the switches without changing the default management IP and you place these switches into the same network then there is now an IP overlap which will cause routing problems in your network. So if you have more then one of these switches in managed mode please assign them different IP especially if they are connected to the same network.

Cuong.

MaxHeadroom · Answer

I was finally able to access the switch using Internet Explorer on a Windows 2000 Server that I brought out of retirement. This was the first time I had ever logged onto the switch since I received it new. I have now changed the IP address and set a different password. I can now access the switch using a Windows Server 2003 box with Internet Explorer, but I could not before changing the IP and password.

But I still can't connect to the switch with my workstation running Windows XP Professional, Service Pack 2. I get the same logon screen, but when I enter the username and password I get "Error. Username or password missing". I have tried IE6 and Firefox 1.07. I've cleared the caches, used "arp -d", and even updated the Java Runtime Environment (which I don't even know is necessary to logon). I continue to have the same error message. I'm at a total loss.

Whatever it is, it must be confined to my system. I just double-checked, and another XP Pro machine can access the switch since changing the IP and password.

readytoburst · Answer

Not sure if anyone is still working on this but I have the same problem as the other have. I am also trying to administer the switch from a WindosXP Pro SP2 box as well. I cannot. I cannot even ping the box. Also where is the mystery "default reset button?" Has anyone been able to find it?

Was there any resolution on this problem for people who use XP Pro boxes to administer this switch?

DELL-Cuong N. · Answer

There are some discussion on this link regarding this topic. Note the post concerning "antivirus software" which in one case seems to cause a problem for the user. I have not confirm this yet but it is interesting.

http://forums.us.dell.com/supportforums/board/message?board.id=pc_unmanaged&message.id=409&view=by_date_ascending&page=2

Regarding your issue though - if you can't even ping then the problem is elsewhere not related to this particular topic. Note that you must enable management on the 27xx before you can manage it. Please refer to the documentation - found here:

<ADMIN NOTE: Broken link has been removed from this post by Dell>

Cuong.

LA7SJA · Answer

This problem seems to be connected to avast anti virus (and maybe some other). I get the same message 'User name or password missing' when I enable avast 4.7 and when I disable avast the login works (no errors).   J.F.G.:smileymad:

BobboKrull · Answer

I had the same problem. Could ping the switch 192.168.2.1, connect to web interface but not login to it. Tried resetting, the same thing happens. Have tried IE7 32-bit browser, IE7 64-bit browser, Firefox 1.6 (32-bit) and Firefox 3.0a8pre (64-bit) browser, and the result is the same.

But when I disabled the avast web scanner I can login! hooah!

This fix must be put up on the frequent asked questions about the PowerConnect 27xx series switches, as it is a simple solution to (as far as I can see) many peoples problem with this line of switches.

(And yes, as some of you might have guessed, I'm running Windows XP Professional x64 Edition)

iharder · Answer

I also had this problem (64-bit Windows 7), and the problem was with AVG Antivirus. Open the main AVG window, and click on the LinkScanner icon, then uncheck "Enable Surf-Shield" (the second checkbox). If you want to leave it like this you might also want to disable the link scanner error status, under advanced options, or it will always show an error in the icon tray icon.

This too should go into an FAQ, as the DELL technician I spoke with couldn't resolve this. However, he did help me to see that it was a problem specific to my computer so it was easier to troubleshoot.

Networking General

PowerConnect 2724 "User name or password missing"

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