Strange behaviour accessing router

[marco]

My host system (XP64) is connected by a network cable to a modem/router.
I usually access the router's configuration panel through Firefox, by logging in as administrator (login name and password saved in the modem's settings).
Today, for the first time, I accessed the router from within an XP32 VM, using Firefox, with no problems at all.

Since then, I'm not able anymore to access it from the host system, no matter if the VM is open or not, no matter if VBox itself is open or not. In other words, since that occasional web browser access from inside a VM, all my browsers installed in the host system refuse to let me enter the router panel, giving me the "401 Authorization Required" error message, as if I was typing wrong name or password (which are obviously the same).

I really can not understand the reason for this.
I also tried restarting the host system and trying to login before launching VBox, without success.
Any idea?

[Perryg]

Reset the router. Actually since all of this is text and you are having issues connecting to it via the host direct I think you have eliminated VirtualBox.

[marco]

Well, resetting the router (both in the soft and hard way) was one of my fist attempts.

This morning as well, after turning both the host and the router on, the same thing happens: no way of accessing the router from a browser running in the host system (before launching VBox manager), no problem in accessing it from within a VM (I tried with 3 different VMs).

The only thing I'm sure of is that this problem started after I accessed the router from a VM, which I never did before and happened "by mistake", as I forgot I was inside the (full screen) VM.

[marco]

Any ideas about a possible reason for VMs being able to access the router while the host system isn't any more?

I'm not blaming VBox, but surely VBox has something to do with this.
What kind of side effect may have happened, in the host system, as a result of the access made ??from inside a VM?

[Sasquatch]

Execute a profile reset for one of your browsers on the Host. Firefox is one I know you use and how to do it. Open an Explorer window and browse to %appdata% (the actual folder is expanded now, it's hidden by default so unless you've set to show them, you won't see it normally). Then go to the folder Mozilla, then Firefox. Either rename the Mozilla folder, the Firefox folder, or the profiles.ini file. Make sure Firefox isn't running. Now start Firefox and you should have a clean profile. Open the webinterface of the router and see how that goes.

From what you say that's happening, is that your browser(s) isn't picking up the authorization request and thus doesn't show you the authentication dialogue to log on to the router.

[Leak]

Execute a profile reset for one of your browsers on the Host. Firefox is one I know you use and how to do it.

Actually, it's sufficient to run "firefox.exe -p" and create a new profile in a different location; that way you can easily switch between several profiles and don't have to move files around - just make sure to exit the running Firefox instance completely before launching the profile manager or it'll just tell the running instance to open another window.

[Sasquatch]

Execute a profile reset for one of your browsers on the Host. Firefox is one I know you use and how to do it.

Actually, it's sufficient to run "firefox.exe -p" and create a new profile in a different location; that way you can easily switch between several profiles and don't have to move files around - just make sure to exit the running Firefox instance completely before launching the profile manager or it'll just tell the running instance to open another window.

Fair enough. I don't use FF that much, so I didn't know about startup parameters. But the reset might be a bit easier to execute, unless the user creates a separate shortcut for FF and changes the startup line. Either does the job.

[marco]

Thanks for your replies.

Actually my browser does show me the authentication dialog to log on to the router, but when I type the (correct) user name and password I get the authentication error message.

Anyway your suggestions about the user profile were very helpful. I'm using a portable version of FF, so all it's settings are stored inside a folder. I created another FF folder by expanding from scratch the original downloaded zip file and then I launched the program, which obviously started with the default "empty" profile; then I was able to access the router.
As I do not want to loose my usual profile, I'll try to find out how to fix it.

A curiosity remains: how did the profile change and why did it change when I accessed the router from within a VM?

[Sasquatch]

Do you use the portable FF in the VM too, like from shared folders? There are numerous things that could have contributed to this behaviour, but I doubt VB did anything.

[marco]

I finally found out it was a tricky coincidence. Vbox is totally innocent.
I happened to switch on the "Do Not Track" feature in FF (which was not active inside the VMs) and also the similar option in IE.

I did, as usual, many investigations before posting my message on the forum, but this time I got fooled.
Maybe it's another sign of relentless aging...

I'm sorry for the time I made you loose and thank you again.

[Sasquatch]

I knew it wasn't VB the moment you used a clean profile where it didn't happen on. Glad you figured it out.