Microsoft KB Archive/887578

= You receive a &quot;Logon failure&quot; message when you use a smart card on a Windows Server 2003-based computer =

Article ID: 887578

Article Last Modified on 3/26/2007

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APPLIES TO


 * Microsoft Windows Server 2003, Standard Edition (32-bit x86)
 * Microsoft Windows Server 2003, Datacenter Edition (32-bit x86)
 * Microsoft Windows Server 2003, Enterprise Edition (32-bit x86)
 * Microsoft Windows Server 2003, Datacenter Edition for Itanium-Based Systems
 * Microsoft Windows Server 2003, Enterprise Edition for Itanium-based Systems
 * Microsoft Windows Server 2003, 64-Bit Datacenter Edition
 * Microsoft Windows Server 2003, Enterprise x64 Edition

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Important This article contains information about how to modify the registry. Make sure to back up the registry before you modify it. Make sure that you know how to restore the registry if a problem occurs. For more information about how to back up, restore, and modify the registry, click the following article number to view the article in the Microsoft Knowledge Base:

256986 Description of the Microsoft Windows registry



SYMPTOMS
When you try to use a smart card to log on to a Microsoft Windows Server 2003 domain controller, you cannot log on and you may receive the following message:

Logon failure



CAUSE
This problem occurs when the certificate revocation list (CRL) is outdated and a new CRL is not available. A public key infrastructure (PKI) that is not working can cause the distribution server of the CRL not to publish a new CRL. If a new CRL is not published, logons to client computers are not allowed.



Service pack information
To resolve this problem, obtain the latest service pack for Windows Server 2003. For more information, click the following article number to view the article in the Microsoft Knowledge Base:

889100 How to obtain the latest service pack for Windows Server 2003

Prerequisites
No prerequisites are required.

Restart requirement
You must restart your computer after you apply this hotfix.

Hotfix replacement information
This hotfix does not replace any other hotfixes.

File information
The English version of this hotfix has the file attributes (or later file attributes) that are listed in the following table. The dates and times for these files are listed in Coordinated Universal Time (UTC). When you view the file information, it is converted to local time. To find the difference between UTC and local time, use the Time Zone tab in the Date and Time item in Control Panel.

x86-based versions
Warning Serious problems might occur if you modify the registry incorrectly by using Registry Editor or by using another method. These problems might require that you reinstall your operating system. Microsoft cannot guarantee that these problems can be solved. Modify the registry at your own risk.

After you have installed the hotfix, the following three registry keys are made available so that you can extend the validity period of the CRL.

 

This DWORD value lets you to extend the CRL validity period by a specified number of hours. When you set this value to a non-zero value, the certificate status checking code for smart card logons ignores any validity period errors as long as the CRL is not expired by more than the number of specified hours. This extension of the validity period only applies to CRLs that are used during the evaluation of certificates used for smart card logon. For example, this extension would apply to a certificate that is issued by a certification authority (CA) that is populated in the NTAuth store and to any certificates that are part of the trust chain used to verify the NTAuth store certificate.

 

This DWORD value lets you to specify the CRL time-out period to reduce false positives. The Key Distribution Center (KDC) passes this value to the certificate policy checking code. By default, the KDC specifies a time-out value of 90 seconds even if this registry value is not set.

 

This DWORD value lets you to specify the CRL time-out period to reduce false positives. The Kerberos client passes this value to the certificate policy checking code. By default, the Kerberos client specifies a time-out value of 90 seconds even if this registry value is not set.



WORKAROUND
To work around this problem, disable the policy that requires a smart card to log on. To disable this policy, follow these steps:
 * 1) Click Start, click Run, type gpedit.msc, and then click OK.
 * 2) Under Local Computer Policy, expand Computer Configuration, expand Windows Settings, and then expand Security Settings.
 * 3) Expand Local Policies, and then click Security Options.
 * 4) In the right pane, double-click Interactive logon: Require smart card.
 * 5) Click Disabled, and then click OK.



STATUS
Microsoft has confirmed that this is a problem in the Microsoft products that are listed in the &quot;Applies to&quot; section. This problem was first corrected in Windows Server 2003 Service Pack 2.



MORE INFORMATION
For additional information about PKI and CRL, see the &quot;Checklist: Deploying smart cards for logging on to Windows&quot; Help topic on the following Microsoft Web site:

http://technet2.microsoft.com/WindowsServer/en/library/2e0186ba-1a09-42b5-81c8-3ecca4ddde5e1033.mspx?mfr=true

For more information, click the following article number to view the article in the Microsoft Knowledge Base:

824684 Description of the standard terminology that is used to describe Microsoft software updates

Keywords: kbwinserv2003sp2fix kbqfe kbhotfixserver kbbug kbcertservices kbppkey kbsmartcard kbwinserv2003presp1fix kbfix kbprb KB887578

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