OpsMgr 2007: Viewing Alert and Event data generates HTTP 401 error if using an account beginning with "!"

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Here's an interesting Operations Manager issue I came across today.  If you happen to have accounts beginning with an exclamation mark (!) then you might want to check this out before firing up the OpsMgr console:

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Issue: When using the Operations Manager 2007 console on a Windows XP or Windows Server 2003 computer, if an alert or event is highlighted on the Monitoring tab then no data may be returned in the lower details pane and eventually a HTTP 401 error will be displayed along with "This page cannot be displayed" or "This program cannot display the webpage".

Cause: This can occur if you're running the Operations Manager 2007 console on a Windows XP or Windows Server 2003 computer and you're logged in using an account that begins with an exclamation point (!).  For example:

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Resolution:   There are a couple options you can use to workaround this issue:

1. Use the Operations Manager 2007 console on a Windows Vista or Windows Server 2008 machine as this issue only affects Windows XP/2003.

2. Use an account that does not start with the "!" character.

3. Rename the user profile directory of the account beginning with the "!" character as follows:

     a: Login with an account with local administrator rights to the machine where the Operations Console is installed.  Make sure you're not using the account beginning with the "!" character.
     b: Rename the Documents and Settings folder for the user containing the "!" character.  For example, rename “C:\Documents and Settings\!<user>” to “C:\Documents and Settings\<user>”
     c: Open Registry Editor and browse to HKLM\Software\Microsoft\Windows NT\CurrentVersion\ProfileList
     d: Go through the subkeys and rename the directory for the affected user.  For example, find the one with “%SystemDrive%:\Documents and Settings\!<user>” in “ProfileImagePath” value and give it the new value of “%SystemDrive%:\Documents and Settings\<user>”.

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J.C. Hornbeck | Manageability Knowledge Engineer