> ## Documentation Index
> Fetch the complete documentation index at: https://docs.ipmideck.com/llms.txt
> Use this file to discover all available pages before exploring further.

# Troubleshooting

> Connection, authentication, and IPMI errors when ipmideck talks to your BMC.

## ipmideck cannot reach the BMC

ipmideck communicates with BMCs over UDP port 623 (IPMI/RMCP+). If a server shows as
offline:

* In Docker, confirm you started the container with `--network host`. Without it, the
  container cannot reach BMCs on your LAN.
* Verify the BMC IP is reachable from the host (`ping <bmc-ip>`).
* Confirm IPMI-over-LAN is enabled on the BMC and that UDP 623 is not blocked by a
  firewall or VLAN boundary.

<Note>
  ipmideck always uses `lanplus` (IPMI 2.0) for encrypted sessions. A BMC stuck on
  IPMI 1.5 only, or with RMCP+ cipher suites disabled, may refuse the connection.
</Note>

## Authentication / privilege errors

If commands fail with an authentication or privilege error:

* Double-check the BMC username and password you entered for the server.
* The BMC account needs at least Operator privilege for power and fan control;
  Administrator is required for configuration changes.
* Some BMCs lock an account after repeated failed logins, wait, or reset the account from
  the BMC's own web UI.

## Commands time out

Older hardware can be slow to answer. ipmideck applies a per-command timeout set by
`ipmi.command_timeout` (default 30 seconds). If you see timeouts on a slow BMC, increase
that value in `config.yaml`. Sensor and SEL reads on large repositories are the most
likely to be slow.

## Sensors are missing or read zero

* Confirm the BMC actually exposes those sensors (`sdr elist` support varies by vendor).
* Some sensors only populate while the server is powered on.
* Check the polling interval (`ipmi.poll_interval`, default 30s / `IPMIDECK_IPMI_POLL_INTERVAL`);
  very long intervals delay the first reading.

## Fans return to BMC control unexpectedly

FanPilot deliberately hands fans back to the BMC's own thermal management in two cases:

* **Safety override**: at or above the critical temperature, fans go to 100%.
* **Recovery**: after an unclean shutdown, server-offline, or stale-sensor detection,
  ipmideck restores the BMC's auto mode so hardware is never left unmanaged.

This is intended fail-safe behavior, not a bug. See [Security](/en/security).

## The dashboard will not load

* Confirm the container or process is running and listening on the configured port
  (`server.port` / `IPMIDECK_SERVER_PORT`, default 3000).
* Open `http://<your-ip>:3000`, not `https`, unless you set `server.https: true`.
* Check the application logs; raise `logging.level` to `debug` for more detail.