Setting an ESXi password fails with the error: Weak password: based on a dictionary word and not a passphrase
search cancel

Setting an ESXi password fails with the error: Weak password: based on a dictionary word and not a passphrase

book

Article ID: 323600

calendar_today

Updated On:

Products

VMware vSphere ESXi

Issue/Introduction

Symptoms:
  • Attempting to change an ESXi password fails with the error message:

    A general system error occurred: Weak password: based on a dictionary word and not a passphrase.
     
  • Password does not appear to contain any dictionary word and meets the password requirements. For more information, see the ESXi Passwords and Account Lockout section in the vSphere Security Guide.


Environment

VMware vSphere ESXi 6.0

Cause

ESXi uses pam_passwdqc for password management and control. This issue occurs when the password requirements are not met.

Resolution

To resolve this issue, use a password that meets the pam_passwdqc requirements. For more information, see the Linux man page pam_passwdqc.
Note:If you find a link is broken, please provide feedback. 


Additional Information

The password validation is not as simple as searching words. It is a complex process that checks for partial strings of words and checks the strings in reverse.
 
During a password validation:
 
1. The password is checked against a list of 4000+ dictionary words. You see an error if the password contains any of these words.

2. If the password does not contain any dictionary word, the module checks if the password and any of dictionary words has a common string of specified length (default 4).

3. If there is a common string, the module removes it from the password, and then tests if the remainder of the password meets the complexity requirement.

4. The module then reverses the password and repeats steps 1-3.
ESXi パスワードの設定が次のエラーで失敗する:弱いパスワード:辞書に載っている単語に基づいており、パスフレーズではありません
Hitachi Virtual Storage Platform G1000/Gx00 と Hitachi Storage Cluster for VMware vSphere を使用した vSphere Metro Storage Cluster の実装
设置 ESXi 密码失败并显示错误:弱密码: 基于字典单词,而不是密码短语 (Weak password: based on a dictionary word and not a passphrase)