# Is there still no solution to lost root token? **URL:** \ **Category:** Systems\ **Tags:** influxdb, backup\ **Created:** [April 13, 2025, 8:00am UTC](https://community.influxdata.com/t/is-there-still-no-solution-to-lost-root-token/56990 "2025-04-13T08:00:47Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 20\ **Page:** 1
**Author:** ![HenrysCat](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/h/f6c823/32.png) [@HenrysCat](https://community.influxdata.com/u/HenrysCat)\ **Post date:** [April 13, 2025, 8:00am UTC](https://community.influxdata.com/t/is-there-still-no-solution-to-lost-root-token/56990/1 "2025-04-13T08:00:47Z")
I am trying to backup influxdb 2 but get the usual error that has been discussed many times here with no solution. INFO: Downloading metadata snapshot Error: failed to backup metadata: failed to download metadata snapshot: 401 Unauthorized: read:authorizations is unauthorized I found a token called admin by running “influx auth list -t ” but that does not work for the backup command, is there really no progress on this continually recurring issue? Thanks ---
**Author:** ![Anaisdg](https://sea1.discourse-cdn.com/flex023/user_avatar/community.influxdata.com/anaisdg/32/6401_2.png) [@Anaisdg](https://community.influxdata.com/u/Anaisdg)\ **Post date:** [April 15, 2025, 7:29pm UTC](https://community.influxdata.com/t/is-there-still-no-solution-to-lost-root-token/56990/2 "2025-04-15T19:29:33Z")
Hello @HenrysCat, I understand your frustration with the 401 Unauthorized error when trying to back up InfluxDB 2. This is a common issue that many users encounter :(. The key issue here is that you need to use a token with operator-level permissions (also called a “root authorization token”). This is typically the token that was created during the initial setup process of InfluxDB, not just any admin token. Have you tried the following? : 1. Use the root/operator token: The backup command requires “the root authorization token (the token created for the first user in the InfluxDB setup process)” as seen in the [InfluxDB backup documentation](https://docs.influxdata.com/influxdb/v2/admin/backup-restore/backup/). 2. Create a new operator token: If you don’t have access to the original operator token, you might need to create a new one. [influxd recovery auth create-operator | InfluxDB OSS v2 Documentation](https://docs.influxdata.com/influxdb/v2/reference/cli/influxd/recovery/auth/create-operator/#:~:text=The%20influxd%20recovery%20auth%20create,(%20influxd%20)%20is%20not%20running). also please note: the `influx backup` command does not work with InfluxDB Cloud, as mentioned in the [InfluxDB Cloud CLI documentation](https://docs.influxdata.com/influxdb/cloud/reference/cli/influx/backup/). ---
**Author:** ![HenrysCat](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/h/f6c823/32.png) [@HenrysCat](https://community.influxdata.com/u/HenrysCat)\ **Post date:** [April 16, 2025, 6:18am UTC](https://community.influxdata.com/t/is-there-still-no-solution-to-lost-root-token/56990/3 "2025-04-16T06:18:53Z")
Tried to create new operator token and I get, ```auto influxd recovery auth create-operator \ --org esp8266 \ --username admin WARN[0000]log.go:228 gosnowflake.(*defaultLogger).Warn DBUS_SESSION_BUS_ADDRESS envvar looks to be not set, this can lead to runaway dbus-daemon processes. To avoid this, set envvar DBUS_SESSION_BUS_ADDRESS=$XDG_RUNTIME_DIR/bus (if it exists) or DBUS_SESSION_BUS_ADDRESS=/dev/null. 2025-04-16T06:16:55.130826Z info Resources opened {"log_id": "0vwJjlM0000", "system": "bolt-kvstore", "path": "/root/.influxdbv2/influxd.bolt"} Error: bucket "authorizationsv1": bucket not found See 'influxd -h' for help ``` ---
**Author:** ![HenrysCat](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/h/f6c823/32.png) [@HenrysCat](https://community.influxdata.com/u/HenrysCat)\ **Post date:** [April 21, 2025, 4:22pm UTC](https://community.influxdata.com/t/is-there-still-no-solution-to-lost-root-token/56990/4 "2025-04-21T16:22:19Z")
Any ideas on how to create a new operator token anyone? ---
**Author:** ![Anaisdg](https://sea1.discourse-cdn.com/flex023/user_avatar/community.influxdata.com/anaisdg/32/6401_2.png) [@Anaisdg](https://community.influxdata.com/u/Anaisdg)\ **Post date:** [April 21, 2025, 6:53pm UTC](https://community.influxdata.com/t/is-there-still-no-solution-to-lost-root-token/56990/5 "2025-04-21T18:53:36Z")
@HenrysCat, Let me ask @scott to see if he knows what to do once that command fails. ---
**Author:** ![tkohhh](https://sea1.discourse-cdn.com/flex023/user_avatar/community.influxdata.com/tkohhh/32/8301_2.png) [@tkohhh](https://community.influxdata.com/u/tkohhh)\ **Post date:** [April 22, 2025, 5:21pm UTC](https://community.influxdata.com/t/is-there-still-no-solution-to-lost-root-token/56990/6 "2025-04-22T17:21:58Z")
Did you stop the `influxd` service prior to running the command? Have you confirmed that you are running the command against the correct BOLT file? This post has some relevant info on the BOLT path: [Best practice of stopping InfluxDB inside a docker container without stopping the container - #4 by Jeffrey](https://community.influxdata.com/t/best-practice-of-stopping-influxdb-inside-a-docker-container-without-stopping-the-container/28455/4) ---
**Author:** ![HenrysCat](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/h/f6c823/32.png) [@HenrysCat](https://community.influxdata.com/u/HenrysCat)\ **Post date:** [April 26, 2025, 11:15am UTC](https://community.influxdata.com/t/is-there-still-no-solution-to-lost-root-token/56990/8 "2025-04-26T11:15:09Z")
I’m not using Docker, tried stopping influxd with same result. ---
**Author:** ![tkohhh](https://sea1.discourse-cdn.com/flex023/user_avatar/community.influxdata.com/tkohhh/32/8301_2.png) [@tkohhh](https://community.influxdata.com/u/tkohhh)\ **Post date:** [April 26, 2025, 4:33pm UTC](https://community.influxdata.com/t/is-there-still-no-solution-to-lost-root-token/56990/9 "2025-04-26T16:33:52Z")
did you confirm the location of your BOLT file? Maybe you are running the command against the wrong file. ---
**Author:** ![HenrysCat](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/h/f6c823/32.png) [@HenrysCat](https://community.influxdata.com/u/HenrysCat)\ **Post date:** [April 26, 2025, 4:56pm UTC](https://community.influxdata.com/t/is-there-still-no-solution-to-lost-root-token/56990/10 "2025-04-26T16:56:32Z")
How may bolt files are there? why is there more than one? ---
**Author:** ![tkohhh](https://sea1.discourse-cdn.com/flex023/user_avatar/community.influxdata.com/tkohhh/32/8301_2.png) [@tkohhh](https://community.influxdata.com/u/tkohhh)\ **Post date:** [April 26, 2025, 7:00pm UTC](https://community.influxdata.com/t/is-there-still-no-solution-to-lost-root-token/56990/11 "2025-04-26T19:00:22Z")
I don’t know. I’m just trying to help you out based on some of the things I read while trying to solve a similar problem. The guy in the link I posted above was apparently running against the wrong BOLT file. ---
**Author:** ![HenrysCat](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/h/f6c823/32.png) [@HenrysCat](https://community.influxdata.com/u/HenrysCat)\ **Post date:** [April 28, 2025, 6:44pm UTC](https://community.influxdata.com/t/is-there-still-no-solution-to-lost-root-token/56990/12 "2025-04-28T18:44:40Z")
Any news from @scott ? ---
**Author:** ![Marc-Berg](https://sea1.discourse-cdn.com/flex023/user_avatar/community.influxdata.com/marc-berg/32/19860_2.png) [@Marc-Berg](https://community.influxdata.com/u/Marc-Berg)\ **Post date:** [April 30, 2025, 6:58am UTC](https://community.influxdata.com/t/is-there-still-no-solution-to-lost-root-token/56990/13 "2025-04-30T06:58:52Z")
You are definitely using the wrong Bolt file. Try searching for the file here: /var/lib/influxdb or /var/lib/influxdb2 Why is there more than one? Nobody knows what you have done with the system so far. You probably migrated from version 1.x? ---
**Author:** ![HenrysCat](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/h/f6c823/32.png) [@HenrysCat](https://community.influxdata.com/u/HenrysCat)\ **Post date:** [April 30, 2025, 9:27am UTC](https://community.influxdata.com/t/is-there-still-no-solution-to-lost-root-token/56990/14 "2025-04-30T09:27:54Z")
Nothing in the instructions posted by @Anaisdg mention anything about any bolt file [influxd recovery auth create-operator | InfluxDB OSS v2 Documentation](https://docs.influxdata.com/influxdb/v2/reference/cli/influxd/recovery/auth/create-operator/) this is a v2 install from the start so don’t assume what you dont know. ---
**Author:** ![tkohhh](https://sea1.discourse-cdn.com/flex023/user_avatar/community.influxdata.com/tkohhh/32/8301_2.png) [@tkohhh](https://community.influxdata.com/u/tkohhh)\ **Post date:** [April 30, 2025, 9:09pm UTC](https://community.influxdata.com/t/is-there-still-no-solution-to-lost-root-token/56990/15 "2025-04-30T21:09:16Z")
I gotta say, you don’t seem very interested in the help that we are offering. It would be great if there were clear instructions for every possible issue, but that’s not the case. You’re going to have to do a little bit of legwork. I suggest that you take a look in the directories that @Marc-Berg mentioned and confirm that the BOLT file exists there. Then, when you run `influxd recovery auth create-operator`, do it using the explicit path of the BOLT file. There is an example of this usage in step 6 of this post: [Best practice of stopping InfluxDB inside a docker container without stopping the container - #8 by tkohhh](https://community.influxdata.com/t/best-practice-of-stopping-influxdb-inside-a-docker-container-without-stopping-the-container/28455/8) ---
**Author:** ![HenrysCat](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/h/f6c823/32.png) [@HenrysCat](https://community.influxdata.com/u/HenrysCat)\ **Post date:** [May 1, 2025, 5:15am UTC](https://community.influxdata.com/t/is-there-still-no-solution-to-lost-root-token/56990/16 "2025-05-01T05:15:13Z")
Why are you posting about Docker? As I said before I am not using Docker ---
**Author:** ![karloldreyes](https://sea1.discourse-cdn.com/flex023/user_avatar/community.influxdata.com/karloldreyes/32/19928_2.png) [@karloldreyes](https://community.influxdata.com/u/karloldreyes)\ **Post date:** [May 23, 2025, 6:14pm UTC](https://community.influxdata.com/t/is-there-still-no-solution-to-lost-root-token/56990/17 "2025-05-23T18:14:08Z")
I also lost my root token. Any idea on how to get this back? ---
**Author:** ![HenrysCat](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/h/f6c823/32.png) [@HenrysCat](https://community.influxdata.com/u/HenrysCat)\ **Post date:** [May 23, 2025, 6:25pm UTC](https://community.influxdata.com/t/is-there-still-no-solution-to-lost-root-token/56990/18 "2025-05-23T18:25:37Z")
You won’t get any help here, probably no way to get it back ---
**Author:** ![tkohhh](https://sea1.discourse-cdn.com/flex023/user_avatar/community.influxdata.com/tkohhh/32/8301_2.png) [@tkohhh](https://community.influxdata.com/u/tkohhh)\ **Post date:** [May 23, 2025, 9:01pm UTC](https://community.influxdata.com/t/is-there-still-no-solution-to-lost-root-token/56990/19 "2025-05-23T21:01:32Z")
Yes, it’s definitely possible. You need to run `influxd recovery auth create-operator` (documentation here: [influxd recovery auth create-operator | InfluxDB OSS v2 Documentation](https://docs.influxdata.com/influxdb/v2/reference/cli/influxd/recovery/auth/create-operator/)). There are some gotcha’s you need to be aware of: - You can only run this command while the influxd service is not running. If you’re using docker, it’s not obvious how to proceed, but you can follow the instructions posted here: [Best practice of stopping InfluxDB inside a docker container without stopping the container - #8 by tkohhh](https://community.influxdata.com/t/best-practice-of-stopping-influxdb-inside-a-docker-container-without-stopping-the-container/28455/8) - By default, this will update the bolt file in this path: `~/.influxdbv2/influxd.bolt` In some cases, that’s not the correct location of your live bolt file. If that’s the case, you’ll need to specify the correct path using `--bolt-path` - Make sure you include the `--org` and `--username` as these are required. I hope this helps! ---
**Author:** ![HenrysCat](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/h/f6c823/32.png) [@HenrysCat](https://community.influxdata.com/u/HenrysCat)\ **Post date:** [June 10, 2025, 5:20pm UTC](https://community.influxdata.com/t/is-there-still-no-solution-to-lost-root-token/56990/20 "2025-06-10T17:20:49Z")
@Anaisdg Any update on this, I’m getting nowhere here, thanks @tkohhh please do not reply, I am not using Docker and you are no help. ---
**Author:** ![Marc-Berg](https://sea1.discourse-cdn.com/flex023/user_avatar/community.influxdata.com/marc-berg/32/19860_2.png) [@Marc-Berg](https://community.influxdata.com/u/Marc-Berg)\ **Post date:** [June 19, 2025, 8:18am UTC](https://community.influxdata.com/t/is-there-still-no-solution-to-lost-root-token/56990/21 "2025-06-19T08:18:33Z")
I’ve been watching this thread develop, and frankly, your behavior is completely out of line. Multiple community members, including myself, have tried to help you solve this issue: 1. **@tkohhh** has patiently explained multiple times that you’re using the wrong Bolt file and provided specific paths and examples 2. I pointed out that you need to check /var/lib/influxdb or /var/lib/influxdb2 for the correct Bolt file 3. **@Anaisdg** provided official documentation Instead of actually following our suggestions and checking the paths we’ve given you, you’ve become increasingly hostile and dismissive. Your response “please do not reply, you are no help” to @tkohhh, who has spent time trying to help you, is absolutely disrespectful. The error “bucket not found” you’re getting is because you’re running the command against the wrong Bolt file, exactly as we’ve been telling you. If you want help in this community, learn some basic courtesy. We’re volunteers trying to help you solve your problem. [Next page](https://community.influxdata.com/t/is-there-still-no-solution-to-lost-root-token/56990.md?page=2)