Reset Supermicro IPMI Password to Default – Physical Access – ipmicfg
Generally speaking, the default username and password for Supermicro IPMI is ADMIN / ADMIN. Since Supermicro platforms are plentiful, it is best practice to change the default, especially if you are going to colo the server. All too often, the server runs in the field fine for a year or two, then comes the need to perform some maintenance. When the time comes, it is easy to have forgotten the username and password. This just happens. In fact, I had a machine at home that had a 643 day uptime (Supermicro X8ST3-F if you were wondering) that I recently had to log into. I could not remember the password for the life of me. This guide will show you how to use ipmicfg to reset a lost password. The guide does assume you have physical access to the machine. I will do another guide shortly on how to reset the IPMI password under Linux and Windows. Bookmark this page, you never know when you will need it.
Test Configuration
For this guide, I am using the new SSD test configuration.
- CPUs: 2x Intel Xeon E5-2690 CPUs
- Motherboard: Supermicro X9DR7-LN4F
- Memory: 8x 4GB Kingston unbuffered ECC 1333MHz DIMMs
- SSD: Corsair Force3 120GB
- Power Supply: Corsair AX850 850w 80 Plus Gold
- Chassis: Norco RPC-4220
- Operating System: FreeDOS
For those wondering, I utilized a USB DVD drive and my LiveCD that was updated with IPMIcfg and the new Supermicro X9DR7-LN4F BIOS for flashing.
How to Reset Supermicro IPMI Username and Password to Default
This guide will show how to use a DOS LiveCD or USB to modify IPMI users and reset the IPMI BMC to factory defaults. The first step is to get ipmicfg. Supermicro has a package that includes DOS, Windows and Linux versions. The current revision is 1.02.
IPMIcfg dir listing
Since we have physical access to this machine, we are using a DOS LiveCD to do the IPMI Password reset.
IPMIcfg DOS dir listing
The IPMICFG.EXE that one can see above is the tool that we will use. One of the first things that you should do is make sure you get the IPMI IP address and MAC address. Use ipmicfg -m to get this information. It may be a good idea to write this down.
IPMIcfg show ip address and MAC
One of the most useful tools is just creating a new user. During this process, you need three pieces of information:
- User Number
- User Name
- Password
- Privileges
IPMIcfg DOS user levels
The next thing I will generally do is create a new user. The below creates a user with the username Patrick and the password Password. The user is created in the third spot. User 1 is anonymous and user 2 is ADMIN if that is still active. As will be obvious, it is easy to create a user with an IPMI password that you can use to login.
IPMIcfg DOS add a user at the user level
One thing you may want to consider is making an operator user. Using ipmicfg -user level 3 3 we can turn Patrick (user 3) into an operator (privilege level 3) in that order.
IPMIcfg DOS add a user at the operator level
If this does not work, you can Using ipmicfg -user level 3 4 and then see Patrick changed to an Administrator.
IPMIcfg DOS add a user at the administrator level
All that is well and good, but there is a way to reset the unit to factory defaults, thereby resetting the IPMI password and user to ADMIN / ADMIN. Use ipmicfg -fd and in a few seconds the BMC will restart. It should be noted, while you are restoring to factory defaults, you will not be able to use other commands.
IPMIcfg reset to factory defaults and default IPMI password
As you can see, the Patrick user we created is no longer there. The factory default username and password have been re-enabled.
IPMIcfg user results after reset
Hopefully that quick guide helps those who have a Supermicro server or motherboard with IPMI that they are locked out of. The total process takes a few minutes at most.
Bookmarked. Gonna have a Linux version?