Re: [PLUG] unable to login at console

[Dan Crosta <dcrosta@sccs.swarthmore.edu>]

Greg Helledy wrote:
> I am using SME Server 6.0 as a dialup gateway/firewall/print server.
>
> This morning I went to login (using the machine's monitor and keyboard, 
> as I've changed hardware) and could not--when I type a username (root, 
> admin) and hit enter I just get another "login:" prompt.  It simply 
> refuses to acknowledge that I've typed anything, even though I see the 
> characters appearing on the screen.
>
> The odd thing is that when I ssh in, it works normally.
>
> I did move to a different box last night.  So the hard drive is now on a 
> new motherboard, but with the same network card, modem, keyboard and 
> monitor.  Everything works fine other than not being able to log in.
>
> Anyone ever heard of something like this?  The new motherboard is a 
> recycled Pentium Pro--could this indicate some kind of stability issue?
>
> Greg Helledy

I had a problem with the same symptoms, and it was the damndest thing -- 
someone pointed me at PAM, and it wasn't until an hour or so of looking 
at PAM that I realized a line break wasn't just vim wrapping lines, but 
an actual \n in the file. I'd check your pam files relevant to console 
login (in debian, /etc/pam.d/login) and make sure there are no 
accidental line breaks.

SSH, on woody at least, uses /etc/pamd.d/ssh, and so is immune to issues 
in the login file.

dsc
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