Password Protection - Intel SE7501BR2 - Server Board Motherboard Product Manual

Password Protection

The BIOS uses passwords to prevent unauthorized tampering with the system.
Entering the user password permits the modification of the time, date, language, user password, and
password on boot setup fields. When a user password is configured, the server can be booted into
secure mode. See the Secure Boot Mode (Unattended Start) section above. Other setup fields can
be modified only if the administrator password is entered.
If a wrong password is entered three times in a row, the BIOS stops validating passwords and the
BIOS security engine returns a failure for any further password validation attempt. If the user
enters three wrong passwords in a row during the boot sequence (i.e., when entering Setup), the
system is placed into a halt state. This feature makes is difficult to break the password by the "trial
and error" method. When entering a password, the backspace key is accepted as a character of the
password. Pressing the backspace key to replace a mistyped character will result in a wrong
password.
If the user or administrator password is lost or forgotten, the password clear jumper can be used to
clear both passwords. See Chapter 5 under "Clearing the Passwords with the Password Clear
Jumper."
If only the administrator password is set, you:
Must enter the administrator password to enter BIOS Setup.
Must enter the administrator password to boot the server if Password on Boot is enabled in the
BIOS Setup.
Must enter the administrator password to exit secure mode.
If both passwords are set, you:
May enter the user password to enter BIOS Setup. However, you will not be able to change
many of the options.
Must enter the administrator password if you want to enter BIOS Setup and have access to all
of the options.
May enter either password to boot the server if Password on Boot is enabled in the BIOS Setup.
May enter either password to exit secure mode.
Setting Passwords
Each password can be independently set or cleared in the BIOS setup utility or in the System Setup
Utility. The passwords can be up to seven characters long and can contain only alphanumeric
characters (a-z, 0-9). Numbers from the NumLock pad are recognized as different characters than
the numbers in the top row of a standard PS/2 keyboard. The passwords are not case-sensitive.
When set, a password can be cleared by changing it to a null string.
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