Ncp default user for local login if activation doesn't work

I managed to get an ncp installation on a raspi 5 with btrfs root partition and an unused data partition (btrfs too).
Unfortunately the activation process during web is running forever.
So no ssh configured yet.
I want to try local login and using ncp-commands for starting initial-config, but the standard user “pi” doesn’t work.

How can I login to my still unactivated NCP?
Or:
Is there a possibility to skip initial “configuration” of my data partition? I think, this may prevent the activation process finishing successfully.

Thx
Vardtraed

Take a look:
https://help.nextcloud.com/t/ncp-installed-activation-page-unable-to-connect/197009

Thank for your reply. Unfortunately this is not matching my problem.

The activation site is loaded and showing me the credentials of the two ncp-accounts.
After the click at the button “activate” there is showing a spinning icon and the message “NextCloudPi not yet initialized, trying again in a few seconds …”

What I want to try is logging into the local raspi and using the ncp-commands to activate the instance from command line interface.

Thx
Vardtraed

I just read this:
"The default login has been disabled for security reasons. Use the NCP activation page to get access and after that use the ssh setting to enable the ncp or pi user.

The reason for this is, that you are not required to login with the pi user at all when setting up NCP. If you don’t do it, anyone with physical access can just use the default credentials to get access to your server. To prevent this security flaw, all users are disabled by default until reenabled via admin UI"

from:
https://github.com/nextcloud/nextcloudpi/issues/1669

and…
That is very annoying to me, because there seems no possibility to get the activation process done.
Am I right?

If the activation process cannot guaranteed there should be a second way to get the job done.

I don’t know.
I have no clue of rpi5.
How did you write which image on what device?
Is keyboard / monitor connected?

Hello geoW

Thank you for tracking this thread.

Wich image I used? → NextCloudPi-image for RPi5 v1.54.0

Is there a monitor and keyboard connected? → Yes. This method I meant by “local login”

How did I wrote? → This is a bit complicated because of a special setup and my wish to avoid using unreliable SD-Cards as root partition.
See here:
https://help.nextcloud.com/t/curl-installation-ncp-auf-raspberry-pi-5-nvme-ohne-lauffahige-web-bedienung/195948

I use a NVMe-extension with direct connection to RPi-5 (not using USB).

Long story short:
I started with a system running from SD-Card. From there I used dd to write the ncp-image to the NVMe.
After that, I had to resize the boot-partition from 256MB to 512MB and as I wanted a root-partition with btrfs, I had to create a new partition and copied the all files from the ext4 partition to the btrfs one including permissions.

Some space I turned into a swap partition und the free space I used to create a fourth partition to use as data partition later.

First start failed (run into initramfs and stopped there) because RPi uses a start parameter for kind of filesystem it is expecting for root partition, which was ext4 by default.
I switched this to btrfs and after that RPi-5 started and NCP activation site came up.

Here we are.

As I read somewhere, someone stuck at this point too and managed to fix this by command line with manual starting command ncp-config and nc-init.

Unfortunately this info is a bit outdated (2018) and login seems blocked before activation of NC(P).
https://help.nextcloud.com/t/nextcloudplus-not-yet-initialized-trying-again-in-a-few-seconds/31019

My hope is somehow skipping the configuration of the data partition during activation of the instance just for doing it later through NCPi administration website.

I am currently running a second Pi(4) with an instance since a few month now.
Main goal is to restore a backup of this RPi-4-Instance to the hopefully better performing RPi-5 NCP.

Thanks for reading and willing to help.
Vardtraed

It is all quite new: pi5, nvme-pcie boot, armbian-based img.
It’s my obsession, here I would takj rpi-imager to write the image to the nvme. :grinning:
Then I would check, if ncp-activation is possible.
I wouldn’t mind, runningbase ncp on ext4-fs, data and db-dir on btrfs.
But first I would try to set up a running ncp.

Thx for your reply.
What does the “rpi imager” do better than dd?
Do you see any chance to get my hands on this system in this state?

Again:
If the activation process cannot guaranteed there should be a second way to get the job done.
No programmer is perfect to guarantee “the one” way to go. Isn’t it?

I think it does less wrong. it does not have the “dangerous” switches the other writers have, and you can do easily some presettings.

Sorry, I’m not qualified enough to answer that question.
Today I saw a video by chance
Eine unreife Frucht? Der Raspberry Pi 5 (CC2tv Folge 375)
Essence: Keep in mind pi is under development, get the newest software, bootloader and so on.
I would trying stepwise:

  1. Booting sd-card newest raspbian-os 64 bit desktop
  2. cheking function pcie-hat-nvme
  3. checking bootloader (for booting from nvme)
  4. rpi-imager writes ncp-image on nvme? (usb-adapter)
    5.hopefully activation of ncp

I don’t have a pi5 and I am very interested in your progress

Thx for your opinion.

My physical setup is special too because of not having a passive cooling case with the ability for the pimoroni nvme-extension.
That said I try to avoid disassembling my “rig” many times for getting my hands on the ssd.

I will see what is possible.

The firmware was updated a few days ago and I think I configured the boot order right to bring a system on a connected usb-stick prior to the hanging system from nvme.

Maybe today…

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