# password issues with geli on supermicro



## eydaimon (Sep 5, 2017)

I have the following mobo: https://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B00FM4M7TQ

I've got geli on boot, and it's been giving me a lot of pain since there seems to be an issue with USB and getting the password entered. If I use a different motherboard, I can login every time, but with the supermicro, being able to login is intermittent at best.

1. is it possible / easy to remove the geli encryption on boot or need I start over?
2. Anyone know what may be causing this issue of sometimes successful login?


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## eydaimon (Sep 5, 2017)

https://www.reddit.com/r/freebsd/comments/6rxza9/removing_geli_preboot_passphrase/


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## eydaimon (Sep 5, 2017)

doesnt' seem possible to remove the encryption, and maybe not even to remove the passphrase


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## SirDice (Sep 5, 2017)

(Geli) Encryption can't be enabled or disabled on the fly. So if you want to remove the encryption you're going to have to backup the data, partition/format (without encryption) and restore the data.


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## eydaimon (Sep 5, 2017)

SirDice said:


> (Geli) Encryption can't be enabled or disabled on the fly. So if you want to remove the encryption you're going to have to backup the data, partition/format (without encryption) and restore the data.



It's not that I "want" to remove encryption but I cant login. This worked in earlier FreeBSD versions.


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## SirDice (Sep 5, 2017)

Typically new PCs/Servers don't have a PS/2 keyboard connection anymore. If you do have one see if that helps. Also check if the BIOS/UEFI has a setting for "USB Legacy keyboard" or something similar. Most BIOS/UEFI provide a way to "trick" the OS into thinking a USB keyboard is a PS/2 one. Unfortunately this doesn't always work. I've had combinations of mainboards and  USB keyboards that worked fine in the BIOS, didn't work during the boot menu (no way to select single user mode for example), and worked fine again once the machine was fully booted. If I recall correct the Geli password question appears somewhere between loading the kernel and loading the OS. At that point it may not detect a USB keyboard correctly.


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## eydaimon (Sep 5, 2017)

Any insight as to why it works intermittently ?


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## eydaimon (Sep 5, 2017)

btw, after enough failures, it kicks me to a command prompt.  The keyboard works fine there. Any way to kick off the password prompt again from there?


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## SirDice (Sep 6, 2017)

eydaimon said:


> Any insight as to why it works intermittently ?


For me is was certain combinations of mainboards and specific USB keyboards. The keyboards work fine, just not in the menu. That same keyboard worked fine with other mainboards. It probably has something to do with the 'legacy keyboard' implementation of the BIOS and the firmware on certain (cheap) USB keyboards.


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## eydaimon (Sep 6, 2017)

Hm, this explanation doesn't fit my experience.  In my case, the keyboard works. It accepts enter key. and Sometimes I've been able to login. If I try 10 logins, I usually make it in. At first I thought I maybe have a typo I get sometimes when typing it fast, but I tried booting from another computer and it worked fine every time there.

This is the first time ever I can't login no matter how many times.  Also, I was able to login just fine with 9.x. It wasn't until 10.x the issues started.


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## eydaimon (Sep 6, 2017)

also as mentioned, if I put in the wrong password, I'm eventually kicked to a mountroot> prompt. There the keyboard works fine. Is there a way I can initiate the mount again?


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## eydaimon (Sep 6, 2017)

I managed to finally get in.... If I wait to plugin the keyboard until after the GELI password prompt shows, then it seems to work. I'm afraid to try it again, but it worked twice (the first time it rebooted on its own)


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## Russ Perkins (Sep 7, 2017)

I'd copy what you got to some backup media pronto


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