TortoiseSVN: authentication error

Question

I have been getting:

Unable to connect to a repository at URL 'xxx'
Error running context: An error occurred during authentication

I've tried clearing cache, authentication data. Tried svn info --username xxx --password xxx --no-auth-cache from cmd. Tried deleting roaming/subversion, roaming/TortoiseSvn, local/TortoiseSVN, deleteing TortoiseSVN in registry and reinstalling tortoiseSVN. But still the same error. Though i can access the repo from be browser. Any ideas?

Answer 1

If it's caused by using Microsoft Account instead of Local Account to log in your Windows, the solution is in the SO link below. It's just difficult to find it because it doesn't talk exactly about TortoiseSVN, but the Subversion library which is under the hood of TortoiseSVN:

In SVN how do I override automatic Windows domain authentication

From the answer:

1. In "%AppData%\Subversion\servers" add into [groups] this line:

   yoursvnserver_com = *.yoursvnserver.com

2. In the same file later add this group:

   [yoursvnserver_com]

   http-auth-types=basic;digest

Answer 2

I was getting this same error trying to log into SVN using windows credentials. My computer was not part of the domain. I'm not sure if the fact that my computer was not part of the domain contributes to the problem.

The login screen has a checkbox "Remember my credentials". If I do not check this box when logging in to SVN, I get the error message "An error occurred during authentication". If I do check the box "Remember my credentials", the problem goes away forever.

I think in my situation, subversion may refer to those credentials several times during a repo browse or checkout and so not storing the credentials will prevent it from completing.

Several other message boards are recommending that you manually create an entry in the Windows Credential Manager. Checking the box "Remember my credentials" seems to create this entry automatically.

Answer 3

Update 2020: to me this error was caused by an expired password.

My Windows domain password was expired, just lock your screen and unlock to get prompted a password change and after that it was fixed

Answer 4

Contact the sysadmin and administrator of your server. You can't troubleshoot this problem without checking what's going on on the server and how it is configured.

BTW, read https://stackoverflow.com/help/on-topic

Answer 5

I got the same problem and was able to fix it.

I somehow managed to switch from a local account to a Microsoft account, which automatically send the (wrong) account authentication to the SVN server.

Once I switch back to a local account, TortoiseSVN works again.

Answer 6

Go to C:\Users\your_user\AppData\Roaming\Subversion\auth, delete all the files.

It'll require you to log in at the SVN again.

Answer 7

Go to "%APPDATA%\Subversion\auth" and delete all files. It'll solve your problem, requesting new credentials.