IDPA: Password cannot start with a hyphen
Summary: Deployment or upgrade failures may be encountered if the system password is set to start with a hyphen (-).
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This article does not apply to
This article is not tied to any specific product.
Not all product versions are identified in this article.
Symptoms
The Integrated Data Protection Appliance (IDPA) may encounter a failed deployment or upgrade if the system password starts with a hyphen (-).
Applies to:
- All IDPA models
- Deployment or upgrade of IDPA software
Cause
Deployment/Upgrade scripts misinterpret the hyphen preceding the password as a command option.
The hyphen is read as an option and not as part of the password; this results in the failure of the associated command.
Example:
Password '-hPpYc4mpr' causes the failure of a command.
idpa-acm: # /usr/bin/expect -f /data01/tmp/patch/products/AVAMAR/AVESERVER/copyAvpOnAvNode.sh -hPpYc4mpr "/data01/tmp/patch/products/AVAMAR/AVESERVER/binaries/*" "admin@10.11.12.113:/home/admin" /usr/bin/expect: invalid option -- 'h'
Resolution
The first character of the password must NOT be a hyphen (-).
The password may contain a hyphen, but it should not be the first character of that password.
The password may contain a hyphen, but it should not be the first character of that password.
Additional Information
IDPA Password Characteristics:
This password is assigned to all appliance components.
It must contain 9 20 characters and include at least one of each type of supported character.
The following types of characters are supported:
Uppercase letters (A Z)
Lowercase letters (a z)
Numbers (0 9)
Special characters: period (.), hyphen (-), and underscore (_)
The password must not include common names or usernames such as root or admin.
Reference:
Integrated Data Protection Appliance 2.2 Getting Started Guide
Integrated Data Protection Appliance 2.1 Product Guide
This password is assigned to all appliance components.
It must contain 9 20 characters and include at least one of each type of supported character.
The following types of characters are supported:
Uppercase letters (A Z)
Lowercase letters (a z)
Numbers (0 9)
Special characters: period (.), hyphen (-), and underscore (_)
The password must not include common names or usernames such as root or admin.
Reference:
Integrated Data Protection Appliance 2.2 Getting Started Guide
Integrated Data Protection Appliance 2.1 Product Guide
Affected Products
Integrated Data Protection Appliance FamilyProducts
PowerProtect DP4400, PowerProtect DP5300, PowerProtect DP5800, PowerProtect DP8300, PowerProtect DP8800, Integrated Data Protection Appliance Family, Integrated Data Protection Appliance SoftwareArticle Properties
Article Number: 000033696
Article Type: Solution
Last Modified: 16 Sep 2025
Version: 4
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