Admin login loop on IIS

I'm in the same boat as this guy. I'm having the same issue. I have been through the steps mentioned in all of the prior information in this thread to no avail...

Ideas?

Mine is in a development server - I'm trying to learn zencart and integrate it with my site before going live on a legit host...

Its a brand new install, its on a local IIS box, I've been through zcinstall twice, so i kno3 my username and login, but it never continues past the login page...I've tried multiple browsers, multiple computers, clearing out the cookies, etc...no luck...

any idea what could be going on?

As said earlier in this discussion, if you're getting a password error, then your username/password is wrong. If you're getting NO error, then you have a sessions/cookie problem.

I got that part, I am using several browsers on 3 different pc's that I have cleared cookies ad restarted...

I don't know where to go with server side session issues, but I have followed all the instructions above and it hasn't helped..sooo..that's my question, where to go from here...

Perhaps you can use an Apache setup instead of IIS, to rule that out?
If you're using an IP address instead of a domain name, that can sometimes be problematic.
'Local test servers' are seldom configured the way live webservers are, and many times all your problems will quickly disappear by using a real webserver.
You haven't indicated your PHP version or MySQL version, nor given any details about how exactly your local test server has been built and configured.

Its IIS 7, running MySQL 5.5 and PHP 5.3.6 -I'm using a smattering of firefox and ie browsers, Chrome...

not sure what else you want on config.

All my info is set to route to an actual domain...no internal business...

I'm not running it on a production server because I may not even like zencart. I'm going to attempt to do some development and see if i like the feel of this cart versus others structure wise, but as of now, I can't even get it running good

I realize there are other hosts out there, and If I like the product, ill likely go to that, but for the time being the task at hand is making it work on my box and getting my server to actually run it...

Oddly enough, if i enter the wrong user and pass, i get no error... I'm 98% positive im using the right user and pass because i went through the zcinstall twice and set it...send password doesn't work.

Just because you've got a Windows PC doesn't mean that you have to use IIS as the offline web server - but the problem will be in getting rid of it. If you can get rid of it then install XAMPP (http://www.apachefriends.org/en), which is an all-in-one Apache based web server with all you need (Apache, PHP, MySQL, phpMyAdmin etc.). If you choose the 'Installer' version then it is literally a 1-click install.

Vger

I don't want to be difficult, but surely there is a better answer than run it on a linux emulator...I don't feel like dealing with the linux learning curve along with getting zencart going...surely this is a common issue given all the people having to install this on an IIS box...there is a whole windows section devoted to IIS in the forum...the install manuals and documentation are woefully lacking...thus far I have been able to fumble through getting it going based on forum threads and google, but with this I have reached a wall...

I just need the admin login to work and all the stuff listed thus far hasn't....

If I had a box on which to run an IIS emulator to try to simulate your unique problem, I might consider it. But, just as you don't feel like running an emulator today, neither do I. I'm on my way out the door to a family picnic.

Vger didn't say you had to use Linux. You could just use Apache as she suggested. It's a way better webserver engine than IIS anyway. Plus, IIS is woefully lacking in security protections especially if you're not the Administrator user of the server; whereas with Apache you can often just drop in the supplied .htaccess files and have a huge number of security protections handled automagically.

That said, despite it working great for thousands of storeowners and thousands of developers who run local servers without problem, maybe Zen Cart isn't a good fit for you.

So that's the response? No help because its IIS?

Come on man, no need for sarcasm, I'm trying to solve my problems, not divert to other servers and restart on the several hours of work I have in this. Its that simple...I'm not being lazy, I'm trying to fix my config - not start over and spend two days trying to get some other server going...

Please actually help and don't be sarcastic because its not on your favorite platform...solve it on the platform where there is actually the problem...

I don't really care about security - its not on a production box...ill deal with security when its a real store...

Incidentally, I see the login attempts in the database admin logs...

rolo550:

Incidentally, I see the login attempts in the database admin logs...
That confirms that it's a session/cookie mismatch problem.

Ok, Thank you. I appreciate you being willing to continue.

So Following that line of thinking.

1. I have cleared my cache in several browsers on 3 machines. This indicates it is not a cookie/browser thing, right?

So we get to sessions...

I'm not 100% on what you mean...while Im pretty deep in windows platforms and html/css, with php and mysql, im a noob...I need guidance...I try to be diligent and go through the prior forums and faq's , but those routes have not been fruitful - I have checked and rechecked the methods described...I may have missed something, sure, but I feel I have been somewhat thorough

2. where do I go from here - do you feel I have overlooked something? I can give you my url to see whats up if you like...

thanks again...

also, thsi appears odd, but may be nothing...when i look at the admin table, its shows my admin id as "1" but in the log, it shows "0" in the admin id slot on he login attempts...

another thing, is that when one goes to create customers, one puts in all the information, clicks submit - its clearly processing becasue it will do the password check and return a fail if they don't match, but when one submits, it just brings back up the customer info screen with empty fields....

when i look in my address book or customer tables, there is nothing in it...it looks like that part isn't working either...so is that session related/related to my issue as well?

So , as mentioned by other posters, I installed XAMPP. The website is up and hosting...still doing the same thing...

I'm uninstalling everything - IIS, the whole 9, then ran XAMPP, everything us up...still no login, still putting the fails in the database......

Comments?

rolo550:

also, thsi appears odd, but may be nothing...when i look at the admin table, its shows my admin id as "1" but in the log, it shows "0" in the admin id slot on he login attempts...

The 0 is because when the page is first drawn there is no admin id yet because you're not logged in.
It only uses a non-zero value when a login actually completes.

rolo550:

another thing, is that when one goes to create customers, one puts in all the information, clicks submit - its clearly processing becasue it will do the password check and return a fail if they don't match, but when one submits, it just brings back up the customer info screen with empty fields....

when i look in my address book or customer tables, there is nothing in it...it looks like that part isn't working either...so is that session related/related to my issue as well?
Yes.

What cookies are set in your browser?
What is the zenAdminID cookie value set to?
What domain name is in that cookie?
How does that domain name compare with the domain name you're using in your browser?

What language is your browser using by default?
What language is your store set up for? If not the default of english, try that first.

What version of Zen Cart are you using for all this?

When you say you've tested from 3 different computers, does that mean you've installed Zen Cart on 3 different computers?
Or are you using a separate dedicated server and merely trying to access that server from those 3 computers?
How are you managing DNS? What's providing nameserver services for those computers to access the Zen Cart site?
Are you using a domain name or just an IP address? You'll note that the FAQ article mentioned earlier ( https://www.zen-cart.com/tutorials/index.php?article=281 ) points out that using an IP address alone can be problematic, and since that's not a real-world scenario for a live store, it's best to switch to a named domain to gain access.

Have you tried installing XAMPP locally on your PC and testing it there directly? That might help rule out your home-networking environment as the cause.

Apologies for my non response. I have been out of town and haven't been able to spend much time messing with the cart. i installed xampp on a win 7 laptop, edited the host to redirect my domain name back into the local machine and it works...

never got it to work on IIS on two separate boxes, but as mentioned before my goal is development not deployment, so getting it up and running is all i care about...

Thanks for the help, I'm sure more questions will be coming...