IPMI User Management (Reset, Create, Delete, Privileges) Using ipmitool on Ubuntu

IPMI User Management (Reset, Create, Delete, Privileges) Using ipmitool on Ubuntu

1. Prerequisites

  1. Ubuntu system with sudo access and ipmitool installed
  2. Local BMC access (/dev/ipmi0) or remote BMC IP
  3. Maintenance window recommended
  4. Confirm correct User ID before modifying

2. Install and Validate ipmitool

2.1 Install
bash
  1. sudo apt update
  2. sudo apt install -y ipmitool

2.2 Load IPMI driver
bash
  1. sudo modprobe ipmi_devintf
2.3 Verify BMC access
bash
  1. sudo ipmitool mc info
If remote:
bash
  1. ipmitool -I lanplus -H <BMC-IP> -U <user> -P <pass> mc info

3. List Existing IPMI Users

bash
  1. sudo ipmitool user list 1
Typical output:
Code
ID  Name         Callin  Link Auth  IPMI Msg   Channel Priv Limit
1   ADMIN        true    true       true       ADMINISTRATOR
2   root         true    true       true       ADMINISTRATOR
3   testuser     true    true       true       USER

4. Reset Password for an Existing User

Local
bash
  1. sudo ipmitool user set password 2 'New Password'
Remote
bash
  1. ipmitool -I lanplus -H <BMC-IP> -U <current-user> -P <current-pass> user set password 2 'New Password'

5. Create a New Admin User (If Locked Out)

5.1 Set username
bash
  1. sudo ipmitool user set name 3 newadmin
5.2 Set password
bash
  1. sudo ipmitool user set password 3 'Admin@123'
5.3 Enable user
bash
  1. sudo ipmitool user enable 3
5.4 Assign Administrator privileges
bash
  1. sudo ipmitool channel setaccess 1 3 link=on ipmi=on callin=on privilege=4

6. Delete an IPMI User

IPMI does not “delete” users; instead, you disable and clear the slot.
Assume deleting User ID 3.
6.1 Disable user
bash
  1. sudo ipmitool user disable 3
6.2 Clear username
bash
  1. sudo ipmitool user set name 3 ""
6.3 Remove privileges
bash
  1. sudo ipmitool channel setaccess 1 3 link=off ipmi=off callin=off privilege=0

7. Enable Privileges for User 2

Privilege Levels
  1. 1 = Callback
  2. 2 = User
  3. 3 = Operator
  4. 4 = Administrator (standard)
  5. 5 = OEM
Set Administrator privilege
bash
  1. sudo ipmitool channel setaccess 1 2 link=on ipmi=on callin=on privilege=4
Enable user (if disabled)
bash
  1. sudo ipmitool user enable 2

8. Optional: Reset BMC

bash
  1. sudo ipmitool mc reset cold

9. Verification

9.1 Confirm user list
bash
  1. sudo ipmitool user list 1
9.2 Remote login test
bash
  1. ipmitool -I lanplus -H <BMC-IP> -U <username> -P <password> mc info

10. Rollback Procedure

10.1 Revert privilege
bash
  1. sudo ipmitool channel setaccess 1 2 privilege=2
10.2 Disable user
bash
  1. sudo ipmitool user disable 2

11. Complete One‑Shot Command Block (All Operations)

bash:
sudo apt update
sudo apt install -y ipmitool
sudo modprobe ipmi_devintf
# List users
sudo ipmitool user list 1
# Reset password for user 2
sudo ipmitool user set password 2 'NewPass123'
# Create new admin user (ID 3)
sudo ipmitool user set name 3 newadmin
sudo ipmitool user set password 3 'Admin@123'
sudo ipmitool user enable 3
sudo ipmitool channel setaccess 1 3 link=on ipmi=on callin=on privilege=4
# Delete user ID 3
sudo ipmitool user disable 3
sudo ipmitool user set name 3 ""
sudo ipmitool channel setaccess 1 3 link=off ipmi=off callin=off privilege=0
# Enable privileges for user 2
sudo ipmitool user enable 2
sudo ipmitool channel setaccess 1 2 link=on ipmi=on callin=on privilege=4
# Optional BMC reset
sudo ipmitool mc reset 

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