VMware VirtualCenter Server service fails to start with the vpxd.log error: ODBC error: (28000) (1017688)

Symptoms

If you experience an ungraceful shutdown of the database (for example, because of a power outage), you may experience these symptoms:

• The VMware VirtualCenter Server service fails to start.
• ODBC connection to the database tests successfully with the specified user.
• The vpxd.log file (located at C:\Documents and Settings\All Users\Application Data\VMware\VirtualCenter\logs) contains entries similar to:
  
  [02896 error 'App'] ODBC error: (28000) - [Microsoft][SQL Native Client][SQL Server]Login failed for user 'vmware_user'.
[02896 error 'App'] Error getting configuration info from the database
[02896 error 'App'] [Vpxd::ServerApp::Init] Init failed: VpxdVdb::InitVdb::GetInstance(), false, false)
[02896 error 'App'] Failed to intialize VMware VirtualCenter. Shutting down...
[02896 info 'App'] Forcing shutdown of VMware VirtualCenter now

Cause

This is a rare issue that occurs if a password is corrupted by an ungraceful shutdown (for example, due to a power outage). With a graceful shutdown, Windows saves everything that was in cache to disk, but when an operating system shuts down unexpectedly, settings can be lost or corrupted. The password can get corrupted if the registry is being accessed at the time of the outage.

This issue occurs even if:

• The integrity of the database has been verified.
• The SQL permissions have been verified and set properly.
• The connection information (including password) is present and correct in the registry key:
  
  
  • 32-bit operating systems:  HKEY_LOCAL_MACHINE\SOFTWARE\VMware, Inc.\VMware VirtualCenter\DB
  • 64-bit operating systems:  HKEY_LOCAL_MACHINE\SOFTWARE\wow6432node\VMware, Inc.\VMware VirtualCenter\DB

Resolution

To resolve this issue, you must change the password.

To change the password:

1. Open a command prompt. For more information, see Opening a command or shell prompt (1003892).

2. Change to the directory containing the VMware VirtualCenter Server service executable vpxd.exe (typically located at C:\Program Files\VMware\Infrastructure\VirtualCenter Server). If vpxd.exe is not at that path:

   1. Click Start > Run, type services.msc, and click OK.
   2. Right-click the VMware VirtualCenter Server Service and click Properties. The path to vpxd.exe is on the General tab.
      
      
3. When you have verified the location of vpxd.exe, run this command in the appropriate directory to change the password in the registry:
   
   vpxd -p
   
   
4. To start the VMware VirtualCenter Server service, right-click VMware VirtualCenter Server service and click Start.

Additional Information

Note: With vCenter Server 4.1, the vCenter Server system must have a 64-bit DSN. Using a 32-bit DSN on vCenter Server 4.1 may result in a similar issue outlined in the above symptoms. For more information, see the  ESX and vCenter Server Installation Guide for vCenter Server 4.1.

For related information, see  Starting VMware VirtualCenter Server service when using SQL authentication fails with the error: Login Failure, Failed to connect to database (2015824).

See Also

• Opening a command or shell prompt
• Starting VMware VirtualCenter Server service when using SQL authentication fails with the error: Login Failure, Failed to connect to database

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source   http://kb.vmware.com/selfservice/microsites/search.do?language=en_US&cmd=displayKC&externalId=1017688