HTTP error 401 while trying to log in as root
I need to access the WHM cPanel for a client. He gave me the credentials and also added my IP to the list of allowed IPs, for all services.
While trying to access the page in the browser I get this error:
HTTP error 401
You do not have permission to access this page.
Trying the same URL with wget I get this:
HTTP request sent, awaiting response... 401 Access Denied
Username/Password Authentication Failed.
I don't get any login form, just this Access Denied message.
I also tried connecting via SSH, and I get this message:
kex_exchange_identification: read: Connection reset by peer
What else could we check / update to enable my access to the WHM cPanel (preferably), or at least to SSH?
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Hey there! The SSH error indicates they likely have access restrictions and you wouldn't be able to connect with a password. You'd need an SSH key configured to access their system.
The WHM access is always "root" for the username and the root password of the server. The only exception would be if they were providing you with limited reseller access to the system.
Without access to one of those two areas there isn't really anything you can do. You'll need to contact them again for help to see why you can't log in.
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Hey cPRex, thanks for the prompt reply!
My client is not that experienced and needs my help, while I don't have experience with using WHM / cPanel as root - on my servers I either have root access via SSH, or a WHM & cPanel with limited reseller access. While RTFM is generally a good solution, I did my fair bit of reading, but it's not that great without access to the system to implement what I read from the manual. At the other end, I don't like keeping my client waiting in front of his computer running Zoom / AnyDesk, while I also read my way through what needs to be done.
#1 SSH connection: please confirm that I have this right (or I am at least close to it): in the SSH admin interface for the root I would have the option to add my public key (https://docs.cpanel.net/cpanel/security/ssh-access/#manage-your-keys), and doing that would be enough to grant me access. Do I need to also restart sshd or do anything else before connecting? (I would prefer not to restart the whole system, as I'm afraid that the problem that I need to troubleshoot might extend from the new servers to the existing ones, and that would be really bad).
#2 Connecting via the web interface: when connecting to WHM as root again with some remote desktop software, what should I or my client do to troubleshoot the connection issue?
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For issue, #1, no, that is specific to a cPanel account and not the server as a whole.
For #2, you shouldn't be using anything except a browser. WHM access is always found at https://x.x.x.x:2087, where "x.x.x.x" is the IP address of the server.
If your credentials don't work, there really isn't anything you can check. If the client also can't access the machine with those same credentials, you or the client would need to contact the hosting provider to have them check the system and confirm access is working, and reset the root password if necessary.
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It seems I was unclear about accessing the server via the browser (#2).
The problem is that when I access https://x.x.x.x:2087/ from my browser, directly from my IP, I get the error page (HTTP error 401) directly, without having the opportunity to use any credentials:
I can access WHM from the client's computer through remote control, but I don't know what else I should configure / test to enable access to the same account directly from my IP.
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Thanks for that clarification.
I would check WHM >> Host Access control to see if there are any restrictions in place there. If so, remove them, and then the access will work properly.
If there aren't, you can use the WHM >> Terminal feature to check the cPanel error log at /usr/local/cpanel/logs/error_log to find more details.
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