Hi Pierre,
Thank you again for your continued help.
I have performed a final check on all of my configuration files, and I am still
seeing the same error.
Here is what I have confirmed:
1. The UUID in my `authorizers.xml` and `users.xml` files are an exact,
character-for-character match.
2. The `nifi.properties` file correctly references `managed-authorizer`.
3. I have checked for a different NiFi installation and confirmed I am running
the correct one.
Given that all configuration files are correct, I am still at a loss as to what
is causing the `Unable to locate initial admin` error.
Below is `authorizers.xml` and `users.xml` files for your review.
authorizers.xml
---------------
<?xml version="1.0" encoding="UTF-8" standalone="yes"?>
<authorizers>
<userGroupProvider>
<identifier>file-user-group-provider</identifier>
<class>org.apache.nifi.authorization.FileUserGroupProvider</class>
<property name="Users File">./conf/users.xml</property>
</userGroupProvider>
<accessPolicyProvider>
<identifier>file-access-policy-provider</identifier>
<class>org.apache.nifi.authorization.FileAccessPolicyProvider</class>
<property name="User Group Provider">file-user-group-provider</property>
<property name="Authorizations
File">./conf/authorizations.xml</property>
<property name="Initial Admin
Identity">b64b7120-1d20-4b10-9cd8-f53a0502167b</property>
</accessPolicyProvider>
<authorizer>
<identifier>managed-authorizer</identifier>
<class>org.apache.nifi.authorization.StandardManagedAuthorizer</class>
<property name="Access Policy
Provider">file-access-policy-provider</property>
<property name="User Group Provider">file-user-group-provider</property>
<property name="Initial Admin
Identity">b64b7120-1d20-4b10-9cd8-f53a0502167b</property>
</authorizer>
</authorizers>
----
users.xml
---
<?xml version="1.0" encoding="UTF-8" standalone="yes"?>
<tenants>
<groups/>
<users>
<user identifier="b64b7120-1d20-4b10-9cd8-f53a0502167b"
identity="admin-user" />
</users>
</tenants>
---
Do you have any other suggestions, or could this be an issue with my local
environment?
Thank you for your time.
Best Regards,
Dana
________________________________
From: Pierre Villard <[email protected]>
Sent: Friday, August 1, 2025 11:05 PM
To: [email protected] <[email protected]>
Cc: [email protected] <[email protected]>
Subject: Re: [NIFI-2.5.0] Persistent startup error: Element 'user' must have no
character or element information item
This is now an entirely different issue:
Caused by: org.apache.nifi.authorization.exception.AuthorizerCreationException:
Unable to locate initial admin b64b7120-1d20-4b10-9cd8-f53a0502167b to
seed policies
This error is usually because there is a mismatch on how you
configured your initial admin in authorizers.xml and how your
corresponding user is specified in users.xml.
Le ven. 1 août 2025 à 17:39, [email protected]
<[email protected]> a écrit :
>
> Hi Pierre,
>
> Thank you again for your quick response and for providing the correct format
> for users.xml.
>
> I have applied the fix you provided. However, I am still getting an error
> after several more troubleshooting steps.
>
> Here is what I have done since my last email:
>
> 1. I have updated the users.xml file to the exact attribute-based format you
> provided.
> 2. I have deleted the authorizations.xml file and the entire work directory.
> 3. I have restarted NiFi, forcing it to rebuild all its files from scratch.
>
> Despite all these steps, I am still getting the same error.
>
> The log shows the following:
>
> ---
> 2025-08-01 22:25:58,193 ERROR [main] o.s.web.context.ContextLoader Context
> initialization failed
> org.springframework.beans.factory.UnsatisfiedDependencyException: ...
> Caused by: org.springframework.beans.factory.BeanCreationException: Error
> creating bean with name 'authorizer': FactoryBean threw exception on object
> creation
> ...
> Caused by:
> org.apache.nifi.authorization.exception.AuthorizerCreationException: Unable
> to locate initial admin b64b7120-1d20-4b10-9cd8-f53a0502167b to seed policies
> ...
> ---
>
> Given that the users.xml file is now in the correct format, I am very
> confused as to why the error persists. It seems the issue might be beyond a
> simple configuration file problem.
>
> Do you have any further suggestions, perhaps related to a system-level or
> environment-specific issue?
>
> Thank you for your time and continued assistance.
>
> Best Regards,
>
> Dana
>
>
> ________________________________
> From: Pierre Villard <[email protected]>
> Sent: Friday, August 1, 2025 9:12 PM
> To: [email protected] <[email protected]>
> Cc: [email protected] <[email protected]>
> Subject: Re: [NIFI-2.5.0] Persistent startup error: Element 'user' must have
> no character or element information item
>
> You should define the users as below:
>
> <?xml version="1.0" encoding="UTF-8" standalone="yes"?>
> <tenants>
> <groups/>
> <users>
> <user identifier="b64b7120-1d20-4b10-9cd8-f53a0502167b"
> identity="admin-user" />
> ...
> </users>
> </tenants>
>
> Hope this helps,
> Pierre
>
> Le ven. 1 août 2025 à 16:05, [email protected]
> <[email protected]> a écrit :
> >
> > Hi Pierre,
> >
> > Thank you for the quick reply.
> >
> > Here is the content of my users.xml file, as requested.
> >
> > ---
> > <?xml version="1.0" encoding="UTF-8" standalone="yes"?>
> > <tenants>
> > <groups/>
> > <users>
> > <user>
> > <identifier>b64b7120-1d20-4b10-9cd8-f53a0502167b</identifier>
> > <identity>admin-user</identity>
> > </user>
> > </users>
> > </tenants>
> > ---
> >
> > I appreciate your help in looking into this.
> >
> > Thank you.
> >
> > Best Regards,
> >
> > Dana
> >
> > ________________________________
> > From: Pierre Villard <[email protected]>
> > Sent: Friday, August 1, 2025 5:59 PM
> > To: [email protected] <[email protected]>
> > Subject: Re: [NIFI-2.5.0] Persistent startup error: Element 'user' must
> > have no character or element information item
> >
> > Hi Dana,
> >
> > Can you share the (redacted if needed) content of users.xml file?
> >
> > Thanks,
> > Pierre
> >
> > Le ven. 1 août 2025 à 12:39, [email protected]
> > <[email protected]> a écrit :
> > >
> > > Hello everyone,
> > >
> > > I'm trying to set up a new instance of Apache NiFi 2.5.0 with security
> > > enabled for a new project.
> > >
> > > I have been running into a persistent startup error and am looking for
> > > some guidance.
> > >
> > > Environment Details
> > >
> > > NiFi Version: 2.5.0
> > > Java : openjdk version "21.0.7"
> > > OS : Windows 10 Home
> > >
> > > The Problem Description
> > >
> > > The application fails to start with the following error:
> > > 2025-08-01 16:53:11,024 ERROR [main] o.s.web.context.ContextLoader
> > > Context initialization failed
> > > org.springframework.beans.factory.UnsatisfiedDependencyException: ...
> > > Caused by: org.springframework.beans.factory.BeanCreationException: Error
> > > creating bean with name 'authorizer': FactoryBean threw exception on
> > > object creation ... Caused by:
> > > org.apache.nifi.authorization.exception.AuthorizerCreationException:
> > > jakarta.xml.bind.UnmarshalException - with linked exception:
> > > [org.xml.sax.SAXParseException; systemId:
> > > file:/C:/nifi-2.5.0-bin/nifi-2.5.0/./conf/users.xml; lineNumber: 8;
> > > columnNumber: 16; cvc-complex-type.2.1: Element 'user' must have no
> > > character or element information item [children], because the type's
> > > content type is empty.] ...
> > >
> > > Based on standard troubleshooting, here is a list of the steps I have
> > > already taken:
> > >
> > > 1. Configured security files (authorizers.xml, users.xml) and verified
> > > the configuration multiple times.
> > >
> > > 2. Confirmed the 'Initial Admin Identity' is correctly set in both the
> > > access policy provider and the managed authorizer blocks.
> > >
> > > 3. Ensured the 'User Group Provider' property is correctly defined in all
> > > relevant sections of authorizers.xml.
> > >
> > > 4. Corrected the 'nifi.security.user.authorizer' property in
> > > nifi.properties to point to 'managed-authorizer'.
> > >
> > > 5. Confirmed the users.xml file has the correct structure (groups before
> > > users, valid tags, etc.) and contains the admin user definition.
> > >
> > > 6. Recreated users.xml from scratch using a clean text editor and from
> > > the command line to rule out hidden character or formatting issues.
> > >
> > > 7. Performed a complete and clean reinstallation of NiFi 2.5.0, deleting
> > > all old files and re-applying the configuration.
> > >
> > > 8. Confirmed that the user running NiFi has Full Control permissions over
> > > the NiFi installation directory.
> > >
> > > Despite all these steps, the error persists.
> > >
> > > This is an unusual issue, and I'm at a loss for what to try next. Could
> > > someone please provide some guidance on what might be causing this error,
> > > or if there's something I've missed?
> > >
> > > Thank you for your time and expertise.
> > >
> > > Best Regards,
> > >
> > > Dana
