After logging into the Aria Operations node through the vSphere Web Console using the root user, the system instantly redirects back to the login page

Products

• VCF Operations/Automation (formerly VMware Aria Suite)

Issue/Introduction

• When attempting to log into the Aria Operations node through the vSphere Web Console using the root user, the system immediately redirects back to the login screen. However, entering incorrect credentials prompts an 'incorrect password' message
  
  
• Additionally, SSH access to the Aria Operations appliance fails with an 'Access denied' error

Environment

VMware Aria Operations 8.18.x

Cause

• This issue occurs due to an incorrect shell path assigned to the root user in the /etc/passwd file. Specifically, the file shows:
  
  root:x:0:0:706/F/*/ Builtin account:/root:/bin/appliancesh


• Photon OS (the underlying OS of Aria Operations) requires a valid shell path for the root user. If this shell path is set incorrectly or is missing (as in the case above, where /bin/appliancesh is used), login attempts will silently fail or return to the login screen

Resolution

To resolve this issue, follow these steps:

1. Take a snapshot backup of the Aria Operations appliance
2. Boot into single-user mode:
   • Log into the VMware Aria Operations admin UI as the local admin user
   • Click "Take Offline" under Cluster Status
   • Wait for Cluster Status to show as Offline
   • In the vSphere Client, open the console of the desired node
   • Restart or power on the virtual machine
   • When the GRUB loader menu appears, immediately press the 'e' key to enter edit mode
   • Add a space at the end of the line (after elevator=noop), then type rw init=/bin/bash to add another option to the line
   • Press F10 to start the virtual appliance in single-user mode
3. Edit the /etc/passwd file:
   • Use vi /etc/passwd to edit the file
   • Update the root shell path to root:x:0:0:root:/root:/bin/bash
   • Save the configurations
4. Reboot the appliance:
   • Type reboot -f to reboot the appliance
   • Check the status to ensure the issue is resolved