Topic: Server manager access

[Paul]

Hello,
Sorry for my english, i'm french

I try to run v5.0
Installation is ok, web server is ok, ftp etc... All is good.
When I try to connect server manager, my pasword is refused ! i log whith "admin" and the password is the same i gave during installation....
Impossible to connect.
I'm sure for my password : it's not a problem with "querty" or "azerty" keybord.

I've ask a friend to install v5.0, and he have the same problem.

So... Is there a tip we don't know ?

Thank you for answer.

Best regards,
Paul.

[robert]

Just to exclude the obvious:
-Can you log in with username admin and same password at the console?
-Can you log in to web-manager from the configuration menu on the server itself?

[Paul]

I can log in shell whith log root and my password
but i can't log the web manager from a web-client and the server too !

and i'm sure for my password, i can log in root....

I really dont understand :/

[Paul Lakra]

I have a very similar problem. I installed v5 about 2 weeks ago and everything re access was fine including server manager. Yesterday I went to use the system again and Server Manager was not working! All access via Telnet and SSH seems normal and I can use the SSH version of Server Mnager but I can no longer use it via a brwser. I have been playing around with user names - can this have anything to do with it?

[robert]

For Paul (1):
I think it would still be informative if you try to log in as admin (i.e. not as root) with root/admin  password. I believe that would narrow down the list of possible problems.

For Paul Lakra:
Are you prompted for login name and password in server-manager, or do you not even get that far? Are you sure it's not a DNS resolution problem?

[Paul Lakra]

For Robert.

The browser times out. I do not get as far as the log on. I wondered myself if it was a DNS problem but cannot imagine why it has arisen. I have a network of 3 PC's all running Win 98 plus the Linux box. I am running ICS on one of the PC's with the other two accessing the internet through that one. I have done nothing other than the normal Windows set up. The SME server is not set up as a DNS service. I presume the pc running ICS is performing this funtion locally. Actually - now I come to think of it I have not idea how the SME server name was resolved in the first place!

[Dan Brown]

Instead of going to http://hostname/server-manager, try http://hostname:980 or http://host.ip.address:980; see if that helps.

[robert]

> The browser times out. I do not get as far as the log on. I
> wondered myself if it was a DNS problem but cannot imagine
> why it has arisen. I have a network of 3 PC's all running Win
> 98 plus the Linux box. I am running ICS on one of the PC's
> with the other two accessing the internet through that one. I
> have done nothing other than the normal Windows set up. The
> SME server is not set up as a DNS service. I presume the pc
> running ICS is performing this funtion locally. Actually -
> now I come to think of it I have not idea how the SME server
> name was resolved in the first place!

Have you tried Dan's advice to specify IP address instead of DNS name? Also, what is the operation mode/configuration of the server? Will the http server serve up other pages? If http:///server-manager doesn't work, what happens when you request http://
By the way: why don't you let the SME server take care of internet connection sharing? Is your internet connection not supported by SME?

[Paul Lakra]

I have not tried Dan's advice yet - I'm at work and the machine is at home. I will try it in a couple of hours.

You are right to ask why I do not use SME to access the Internet - this is actually the main reason I am playing with it. The snag is I am using an adsl broadband service from Homechoice in London, England. This is newish and you connect to their box via a serial cable and in Windows there is a pseudo modem driver. I have found some stuff on the Internet about how to connect a Linux client but the e-smith server is slightly different.

If anyone out there has connected to Homechoice I am very interested in how they have done it.

[robert]

Paul Lakra wrote:
>
> I have not tried Dan's advice yet - I'm at work and the
> machine is at home. I will try it in a couple of hours.
>
> You are right to ask why I do not use SME to access the
> Internet - this is actually the main reason I am playing with
> it. The snag is I am using an adsl broadband service from
> Homechoice in London, England. This is newish and you connect
> to their box via a serial cable and in Windows there is a
> pseudo modem driver. I have found some stuff on the Internet
> about how to connect a Linux client but the e-smith server is
> slightly different.
>
> If anyone out there has connected to Homechoice I am very
> interested in how they have done it.

I think that merits a new post, though I commend your keeping a thread alive until an issue is solved. That kind of etiquette is rare on this board. And then they wonder why noone responds to their posts!
Anyway, here's an interesting post
http://www.e-smith.org/bboard//read.php?f=1&i=10641&t=10548
Could that also be the issue in your case?

[Paul Lakra]

Thanks for the kind words Robert. Not sure I deserve them but thanks anyway!

I tried Dan's suggestions and http://host_name:980 works! It gives the log in dialog followed by Server Manager, so what's wrong?

[Paul Lakra]

Sorry - forgot the other details asked for.

The server is configured to dial out but I am not using this yet. There is a normal network card to the network. The network shares work OK and are browsable from the Win 98 machines. The http server is working because I can get server manager via http://host_name:980. Up until a few days ago I could get server manager naormally.

[robert]

Hi, I think we should thank Dan that he too looks at old threads to see what's going on there. Here's something interesting:
My server's hostname is alpha.
If I'm at a computer on the server's network and point the browser to http://alpha/ the server's http server returns the index page as it should and the address bar in the browser reads http://alpha/
If I point the browser to http://alpha/e-smith-manager (I use e-smith 4.1.2) I am prompted for login name and password for  domain 192.168.1.1 (the internal interface IP address for the server), so somehow the name request is already being translated to an IP request. Now if I enter login name and password, the address bar changes to read:
http://192.168.1.1:980/
So there's that port 980 that Dan suggested you use. In my set-up any requests to e-smith-manager (which would be server-manager in SME 5) are automatically appended to include the correct port number 980.
How do you point to your server? Do you use an outside DNS service? If so, how do you specify addresses on the server? Through its fully qualified domain name, or just by the hostname (without the domain bits)? Does that make any difference as far as access to the server-manager goes? Now that you can access the server-manager, can you see anything wrong in the 'Hostnames and addresses' panel?

[Paul Lakra]

I think we are really in the nitty gritty of this now. My machine is called Lakra1. If I type http://lakra1, I get 'page not found'. If I type http://lakra1:980 I get the log in dialog box followed by Server Manager working properly.

I've had a chat to my IT guy here about what is going on and he said the default port for web browsers is 80 and therefore the SME server must somehow be switching the browser from 80 to 980, i.e. accepting a call to port 80 but replying that the browser should now use 980 or something like that. This sort of ties up with what you see on your machine. I never see any IP nos. in the address bar on my machine.

I do not if this gives you or anyone else a clue as to what is happening (or rather not happening!)?

[robert]

Paul Lakra wrote:
>
> I think we are really in the nitty gritty of this now. My
> machine is called Lakra1. If I type http://lakra1, I get
> 'page not found'. If I type http://lakra1:980 I get the log
> in dialog box followed by Server Manager working properly.
>
> I've had a chat to my IT guy here about what is going on and
> he said the default port for web browsers is 80 and therefore
> the SME server must somehow be switching the browser from 80
> to 980, i.e. accepting a call to port 80 but replying that
> the browser should now use 980 or something like that. This
> sort of ties up with what you see on your machine. I never
> see any IP nos. in the address bar on my machine.
>
> I do not if this gives you or anyone else a clue as to what
> is happening (or rather not happening!)?
Maybe we're confusing a couple of different issues here. It looks like a DNS problem can be ruled out. By the way, what happens when you point a browser on your network to:
http://lakra1/server-manager (this should be equivalent to http://lakra1:980)
This may be a bit too obvious, but do you have a page called index.html in the root folder of your web server (/home/e-smith/files/primary/html/ if I'm not mistaken)?
Another possibility is that something stopped the http server that is listening on port 80. In which case you may be suffering from either of these known bugs:
http://www.e-smith.org/bugs/index.php3?op=showBug&bugID=56
http://www.e-smith.org/bugs/index.php3?op=showBug&bugID=54

[Paul Lakra]

Great Robert - I didn't think oflooking in the bug archives - I should have done. Your 2nd link definitely relates to my problem.

As recommended I keyed in the status check and got:

[root@lakra1 /root]# /etc/rc.d/init.d/httpd-e-smith status
httpd dead but subsys locked
[root@lakra1 /root]# /etc/rc.d/init.d/httpd-e-smith restart
cat: /var/run/httpd.pid: No such file or directory
Shutting down http:  usage: kill [ -s signal | -p ] [ -a ] pid ...
       kill -l [ signal ]
                                                           [ FAILED ]
Starting httpd:  Syntax error on line 205 of /etc/httpd/conf/httpd.conf:
Missing IP address
                                                           [ FAILED ]
[root@lakra1 /root]#

The error message was not one reported in the bug report but in for apenny in for a pound......

I edited /etc/httpd/conf/httpd.conf and found line 205 was:

Listen 80:

This followed lines which were:

Listen 127.0.0.1:80
Listen 192.168.0.99:80

I commented out line 205 and then got a similar error on line 221 which related to port 443. I also commented this line out. I then tried to restart the httpd process.

I got an OK for the process starting but it actually dies in about 5 seconds. I tried starting rather than restarting with the same effect.

I suspect those lines I commented out need to be there but right now I do not know which IP they should contain.

[robert]

Paul Lakra wrote:
>
> Great Robert - I didn't think oflooking in the bug archives -
> I should have done. Your 2nd link definitely relates to my
> problem.
>
> As recommended I keyed in the status check and got:
>
> [root@lakra1 /root]# /etc/rc.d/init.d/httpd-e-smith status
> httpd dead but subsys locked
> [root@lakra1 /root]# /etc/rc.d/init.d/httpd-e-smith restart
> cat: /var/run/httpd.pid: No such file or directory
> Shutting down http:  usage: kill [ -s signal | -p ] [ -a ]
> pid ...
>        kill -l [ signal ]
>                                                            [
> FAILED ]
> Starting httpd:  Syntax error on line 205 of
> /etc/httpd/conf/httpd.conf:
> Missing IP address
>                                                            [
> FAILED ]
> [root@lakra1 /root]#
>
> The error message was not one reported in the bug report but
> in for apenny in for a pound......
>
> I edited /etc/httpd/conf/httpd.conf and found line 205 was:
>
> Listen 80:
>
> This followed lines which were:
>
> Listen 127.0.0.1:80
> Listen 192.168.0.99:80
>
> I commented out line 205 and then got a similar error on line
> 221 which related to port 443. I also commented this line
> out. I then tried to restart the httpd process.
>
> I got an OK for the process starting but it actually dies in
> about 5 seconds. I tried starting rather than restarting with
> the same effect.
>
> I suspect those lines I commented out need to be there but
> right now I do not know which IP they should contain.

That's interesting. Might be a bug. There should be three ip addresses for both port 80 and port 443. One is localhost/loopback 127.0.0.1. Two is internal interface. Third should be external IP. If you do not have an external ip, that line should be left blank by the template that writes to httpd.conf rather than writing a faulty line.
You may want to try expanding the template for this conf file by typing:
/sbin/e-smith/expand-template /etc/httpd/conf/httpd.conf
and see what addresses and ports it comes up with. If it looks good, restart the http server. If it's still garbled, perhaps it is time for a bug report, in which of course you should be as specific as possible about the problem and include details about your configuration (also make sure you didn't make any mistakes while configuring your system, possibly even reconfigure your system if you're in doubt).

[Kevin Flanagan]

I have a bit of a strange one.  

I was installing some of the add ons, User panel etc, after that I found that I was locked out of server-manager.  "You are not allowed to view this page"

I searched here, found the note about permissions on the directory with the panels in it, did that, and am back in, but not quite done.

Server manager seems to have forgotten the configuraion of the system, hosts, users everything.  

Is it permissions still? I'd think so, but don't know where to go next.



TIA

[robert]

On the subject of configuration:
What operation mode are you using? 'Server only', right? From what you told me, I gather that a windows machine is the gateway for your LAN. Did you specify that machine's ip address as the gateway ip when you configured your sme-server. And is it in the same subnet? You probably also need to specify that gateway machine as the primary domain name server, but I'm not sure about that.
Also, what's the entry for ExternalIP in /home/e-smith/configuration?
It may well be a blank (because the gateway machine never told your sme-server), in which case httpd.conf will be set to listen to
127.0.0.1:80
local_ip:80 (in your case 192.168.1.99:80)
AND
[blank]:80     <-that conflicting line you mentioned

[robert]

Kevin Flanagan wrote:
>
> I have a bit of a strange one.  
>
> I was installing some of the add ons, User panel etc, after
> that I found that I was locked out of server-manager.  "You
> are not allowed to view this page"
>
> I searched here, found the note about permissions on the
> directory with the panels in it, did that, and am back in,
> but not quite done.
>
> Server manager seems to have forgotten the configuraion of
> the system, hosts, users everything.
>
> Is it permissions still? I'd think so, but don't know where
> to go next.
>
>
>
> TIA
For anyone reading this. I was writing my previous post in response to Paul Lakra just when the post quoted here was posted. So, my previous post is not in response to Kevin, which may save you some headaches figuring out the connection betweeen these posts: there isn't any.
By the way, Kevin: I really have no idea. I think this is a good one for a new thread.

[Paul Lakra]

Ok Robert here is the latest.

I expanded the .conf file from the template as you suggested but it created a file identical to the original and the fault remained.

I then read your second email and decided to reconfigure as a server only (it was configured as adial up gateway.) On doing this the problem was fixed and the offending lines 205 and 220 of the .conf file are both blank. I am sure something else must be different becasue I had commented the lines out before. I have not managed to compare the two .conf files completely yet but I will try and do this.

I did also put the IP of my Windows gateway as the Internet gateway and the primary domain name server. I did all thee things at once so I am not sure which fixed the problem. I will try going back to teh gateway mode but now the SME server can see the internet I am going to install the two upgrade blades first.

[robert]

Paul Lakra wrote:
>
> Ok Robert here is the latest.
>
> I expanded the .conf file from the template as you suggested
> but it created a file identical to the original and the fault
> remained.
>
> I then read your second email and decided to reconfigure as a
> server only (it was configured as adial up gateway.) On doing
> this the problem was fixed and the offending lines 205 and
> 220 of the .conf file are both blank. I am sure something
> else must be different becasue I had commented the lines out
> before. I have not managed to compare the two .conf files
> completely yet but I will try and do this.
>
> I did also put the IP of my Windows gateway as the Internet
> gateway and the primary domain name server. I did all thee
> things at once so I am not sure which fixed the problem. I
> will try going back to teh gateway mode but now the SME
> server can see the internet I am going to install the two
> upgrade blades first.

E-smith/SME uses templates for configuration files. If you restart a server, it will first produce a new configuration file from the template and use that to start the server. This means that any edits you make to the conf file rather than to its template (they're in /etc/e-smith/templates) will be overwritten. The reason why the template produced a conf file that didn't work is because it looks like you configured your system wrong. You can't configure the system as a gateway if it isn't physically hooked up as a gateway. When you set it up the first time in server and gateway mode, how did you configure your external interface? Where did you expect it to get its IP address from if it's not connected to any network?
I urge you to Read The F* Manual, read all the faqs, read the info on this website about customizing the system that discusses templates and also to read all bug reports.

[Paul Lakra]

Hey Robert - keep your hair on! You must be having a bad day. I'm not as daft as all that.

I actually did take the trouble to download the manual and I printed it out and I read it cover to cover before I even put the CD into the machine to install it. The manual is actually very weak in the area of dial up modems and I do not find there is too much on the e-smith site.

My initial configuration was for a gateway using a dial up modem. I thought the machine should be quite comfortable that way wether or not it was connected to the internet because dial up is by its nature intermittent. I also cannot see why a gateway machine cannot sit happily on the network offering to be a gateway. Even if it has no internet connection providing no other machines try and use it as such. I also do not see any problems over IP addresses. All my machines have preset addresses including the SME server so there is no need for a DNS server or its address. I have run networks for years without a DNS server.

Also if you run through the configuration on SME 5 the dialogs advise against entering IP addresses in these areas. As far as I could I followed the instructions to the letter and as I said right at the beginning the Server Manager worked fine for a couple of weeks. I still think something happened while I was trying to configure different user names and also I was playing with the dial up connection and rebooting the server.

Have a good day Robert.

[robert]

Paul Lakra wrote:
>
> Hey Robert - keep your hair on! You must be having a bad day.
> I'm not as daft as all that.
>
You are absolutely right! My girlfriend was just telling me the same thing. So I guess I am having a bad day.
The points you make are all valid and as you said the server had no problem with the configuration you entered in the beginning. It looks like something somewhere got broken along the way, but unless you can repeat the problem we'll never know if it's a bug or anything else.
I hope your can set up your server to do all the things you want it to do now that it seem to be working again. Try starting a new topic about that internet connection you were having trouble with. Maybe someone with the same set-up has already solved the problem.

> Have a good day Robert.
You have a good day too!
(P.S. Your etiquette is certainly better than mine.
Now let's see if I can get some work done today. Maybe that will improve my mood.

[robert]

Hi Paul,
OK, I thought I owed you one, so I delved into some old logs and found that my ExternalIP (the one that's in /home/e-smith/configuration) was originally set to a non-routable address (192.168.65.17). This looks like a 'bogus' setting designed to prevent the sort of problem you were having with a missing ExternalIP. When the external interface gets assigned a 'real' IP address (usually by an ISP), this triggers an event in /etc/e-smith/events that's called 'ip-change', which will first set the value for ExternalIP in the main configuration and then use that variable to configure any applicable services. My external IP changes quite often because my ISP provides rather short DHCP leases, and the ip-change event always handles that situation well.
My guess is that in your situation the ip-change event should never have occured. The ip-change event is run with the IP address for the external interface as its argument. So it's 'ip-change 234.5.6.7' for instance. It seems like on your machine the ip-change event was run without an argument (or with an empty argument), which would set the ExtrenalIP to an empty value and then fill in that empty value in all applicable conf files, such as httpd.conf. Which in turn would lead to the problems you were experiencing.
Come to think of it, you may have inadvertently set off the ip-change event with an empty value when you configured the server. I haven't checked how the configuration script parses these kind of entries, but it might just be that if you enter one or a couple of spaces for your external interface's IP, instead of interpreting that as no entry, it's interpreted as an entry of "   ".
Would you be willing to test that theory? I'm running a rather unusual set-up here, so my testing is probably not as conclusive as yours. If the theory is correct, I think we've got ourselves a nice catch.
Sincerely,
Robert

[robert]

Hi Paul,
Please disregard the last part of my previous post, because I just came up with a brilliant idea (ahem)! Instead of taking wild guesses at what may have happened, why don't we look in your logs to see what actually did happen!
On the assumption that the event 'ip-change' ran with an empty argument, you may search your /var/log/messages log file for such an entry. One way to do that would be:
less /var/log/messages |grep " ip-change"   (<-mind the leading space)
On my machine, this returns several lines of the form
[something, date, time, something] Running event: ip-change 345.11.22.33
where the last bit's an IP address from my ISP's IP pool.
Let's see if you get a line back that says
[something, date, time, something] Running event: ip-change [blank]
If it's not in /var/log/messages, see if logrotate left some logs in the var/log/ directory that are called messages.1, messages.2, etc. and search for the line there.
If you do find an ip-change event with an empty argument, you can find in the appropriate log file when and why it occured. If you don't, I'm not sure where else we may look.
Regards,
Robert