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Can't connect to SQL Server via ODBC

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by steves815

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I have created a user on a Win2K SBS system using active directory. I have added this user to SQL Server as well and given him access permission to a database. However, when this user is logged in to a Windows 2000 pro workstation and tries to use an application that uses a drop down list based on an ODBC connection to this database he is presented with an SQL Server log in dialog. (ODBC DSN uses Windows authentication.) His ID and password are rejected and he must log in with some other ID. (Pretty annoying when using a drop down!) Other ID's that are set up like his do not experience this problem. Can anyone say what the correct SQL Server permission setup must be? I swear this should not be happening. The error is "SQL Server Error: 18456 Login failed for ". Any clues appreciated. More detail upon request.

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by sgt_shultz

could this be it?
from mskb article 301076
PRB: Unable to Connect to SQL Server Through ODBC When Password Contains a Semi-colon
View products that this article applies to.
This article was previously published under Q301076
SYMPTOMS
When you use SQL Server Authentication, a computer running SQL Server allows login passwords to be defined with semi-colons. When you attempt to connect to a SQL Server server through ODBC or OLEDB by using a SQL Server login whose password contains a semi-colon, an error message similar to the following occurs:

Unable to connect to server :

Server: Msg 18456, Level 16, State 1
[Microsoft][ODBC SQL Server Driver][SQL Server]Login failed for user ''.
This error message occurs when you use either the Query Analyzer or the SQL Enterprise Manager.
CAUSE
ODBC interprets the semi-colon as the end of the password, not part of the password itself.
RESOLUTION
Change the password and remove the semi-colon.
STATUS
This behavior is by design.

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