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Q259353: Must Enter Password Manually After You Toggle Password Sync

Article: Q259353
Product(s): Internet Information Server
Version(s): 4.0,5.0
Operating System(s): 
Keyword(s): kbOSWin2000
Last Modified: 05-JAN-2001

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The information in this article applies to:

- Microsoft Internet Information Services version 5.0 
- Microsoft Internet Information Server version 4.0 
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SYMPTOMS
========

In Internet Information Server (IIS) version 4.0, when you clear the Enable
Automatic Password Synchronization check box (or the Allow IIS to control
password check box in IIS version 5.0), use the Browse button to browse to the
IUSR_<computer> account, and then click to reselect the check box, the
password field is blank and you must enter the password manually. However, when
you just clear, select, and clear this setting, and you do not browse to the
IUSR_<computer> account, the password field retains the entry, and you are
not required to enter the password manually.
In addition, if the password is not entered, the Event Viewer logs may contain
the following error message:

  The server was unable to logon the Windows NT account
  'IUSR_<machinename>' due to the following error: Logon failure: unknown
  user name or bad password.

CAUSE
=====

By default, when in IIS you clear the Enable Automatic Password Synchronization
or Allow IIS to control password check boxes, you are required to enter the
password manually and anonymous authentication will fail until you do.

MORE INFORMATION
================

The following information details what occurs when you choose whether you want
IIS to control the anonymous user password:

1. On a new installation of IIS, the following metabase entries are created:

   - AnonymousPasswordSync = 1
   - AnonymousUserName = "IUSR_<COMPUTER>"
   - AnonymousUserPass = "<Random Password>"

2. When you clear the Enable Automatic Password Synchronization or the Allow IIS
  to control password check box, the AnonymousPasswordSync value is set to 0.
  However, because the IIS metabase already contains the AnonymousUserPass
  setting, you are not required to enter the password.

3. When you next select the Enable Automatic Password Synchronization or the
  Allow IIS to control password check box, IIS sets the AnonymousPasswordSync
  setting to 1 and then deletes the AnonymousUserPass setting from the
  metabase.

4. When you clear the Enable Automatic Password Synchronization or the Allow IIS
  to control password check box again, the AnonymousPasswordSync value is set
  back to 0. However, because the metabase no longer contains the
  AnonymousUserPass setting, you must enter the password manually.

REFERENCES
==========

For additional information, click the article numbers below to view the articles
in the Microsoft Knowledge Base:

  Q253204 PRB: Error Message: The Server Was Unable to Logon the Windows NT
  Account IUSR_machinename

  Q184730 Password Sync and IIS 4.0 Return FrontPage Error Message

Additional query words: iis 5 4

======================================================================
Keywords          : kbOSWin2000 
Technology        : kbiisSearch kbiis500 kbiis400
Version           : :4.0,5.0
Issue type        : kbprb
Solution Type     : kbpending

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