Troubleshooting Login Problems

If a student in one of your lab sections is unable to log in, please try the following troubleshooting steps. If none of these resolve the issue, please contact the EECS IT Helpdesk.

1. Ask the student who cannot log into an EECS system to check their UTK NetID account by logging in at https://directory.utk.edu/login. If the user is unable to log in to the UTK directory, there is a problem with the NetID. The UTK Password Tools may be helpful and, if necessary, the student can contact the OIT Help Desk.

1. Check if the user has a valid EECS account. From any EECS Linux system run getent passwd netid where netid is the student's UTK NetID. If the EECS account exists, you should see output like this:

   getent passwd jruser
   jruser:*:19417:2405:Joe User:/home/jruser:/bin/zsh

   If there is no output, the student has no valid EECS account. Please have them contact or come by the EECS IT Helpdesk to get their account created.

2. If a user has repeatedly typed an incorrect password, their account will be banned from logging in for 10 minutes. Only the EECS IT Helpdesk can unban users early. Some reasons a students may be entering their login information incorrectly:
   1. They are using capital letters in their username/NetID. When logging into EECS systems, usernames must be entered in lowercase.
   2. The CAPS-LOCK key is engaged.

1. Check if the user has a valid EECS account. From any EECS Windows system, open a Command Prompt (cmd.exe) and run:net user netid /domain | find “UTK.EECS.AllUsers” where netid is the student's UTK NetID. Please note that capitalization (such as the “U” in AllUsers) matters. If this command produces any output, the user has a valid EECS account. Sample output:

   net user jruser /domain | find "UTK.EECS.AllUsers"
   Global Group memberships     *UTK.EECS.AllUsers    *UTK.UTApps.Licgroup3

   If there is no output, the student has no valid EECS account. Please have them contact or come by the EECS IT Helpdesk to get their account created.