1

So I figured I would post my question here and hopefully someone could in-turn tell me what site exactly to post this on (if there is even a site to ask this). It is IT related but not truly technical, just informational.

A lot of users know the default Dell password of "calvin" for iDRAC, yet no one seems to know where it came from (as this is a pretty weird default password). Out of all of the default passwords that are generically used, "calvin" seems like a one off where there has to be a reason someone chose this (must be some technical term or acronym I just do not understand). I cannot seem to find online why "calvin" was chosen as the default password (or what exactly it stands for/means), so I am hoping someone else would know (purely information and I enjoy random facts). Does anyone know why "calvin" is the default password for Dell (DRAC) and what it stands for/means in the IT world? It has been asked multiple times on other websites, which still remain unanswered.

Thank to Ben for the answer and correcting my extremely long-winded question. TLDR;

Is there any technical significance to the default password of calvin on the Dell iDRAC?
16
  • Off-topic everywhere on the SE network is my guess.
    – DavidPostill Mod
    Commented Apr 19, 2016 at 20:38
  • @DavidPostill Should I just go ahead and delete my question now then?
    – IT_User
    Commented Apr 19, 2016 at 20:47
  • Up to you. You never know, you might get an answer if you leave it a while ;)
    – DavidPostill Mod
    Commented Apr 19, 2016 at 20:47
  • "A lot of users know the default Dell password of "calvin" for iDRAC, yet no one seems to know where it came from (as this is a pretty weird default password)." - I stopped reading your question at this point. We are not a group of Dell Engineers, only the Dell Engineer(s) who decided upon this password, would know the reason this password was picked. Questions seeking why something was done (unless there is a technical reason for it) almost always make horrible questions for a Q&A website. Even the questions seeking the technical reason are tough to write and even answer.
    – Ramhound
    Commented Apr 19, 2016 at 20:48
  • (continued). If you are wondering the reason its tough to answer those questions, a good question often has a practical problem associated with it, knowing the reason a specific default password was chosen isn't really a practical problem.
    – Ramhound
    Commented Apr 19, 2016 at 20:52
  • @Ramhound My reasoning behind this question was that maybe "calvin" stood for something I did not know about in the IT field. I figured maybe there was some acronym or technical jargon for "calvin" that I just did not know/understand and I did not think a random engineer chose this because he liked the name. I figured an IT community would know the meaning behind "calvin" (granted, if there was one), that I may just not understand as I am newer in the IT field compared to people here.
    – IT_User
    Commented Apr 19, 2016 at 21:04
  • How are we suppose to know what it stands for? Programmers in general are known for having their ego, they put their name on more stuff, then Donald J Trump does. It could be somebody's (name, dog, son, cat, bird, pet alligator, pet pigeon, father, mother, daughter, nickname for body part, or even a bear).
    – Ramhound
    Commented Apr 19, 2016 at 21:24
  • @Ramhound Well if it stood for something in the IT realm that I was unaware of...I would expect a percentage of a group of programmers and administrators to know. Exaple being MPEG, listserv, nntp, etc. Or "Trojan horse" having duel meanings. I figured the password was of that sort of name that had a meaning to the IT community I was unaware of.
    – IT_User
    Commented Apr 19, 2016 at 21:33
  • Good luck! It doesn't seem like you understand my reasons.
    – Ramhound
    Commented Apr 19, 2016 at 21:35
  • @Ramhound If my reasoning is flawed and "calvin" doesn't hold meaning to the IT realm/world and there is no meaning outside of some random developer chose this, then cool. I will go ahead and delete my answer.
    – IT_User
    Commented Apr 19, 2016 at 21:35
  • @Ramhound It does not seem you understand mine. Do you know that this is just a randomly chosen default password and is not an It acronym or term that you are just not familiar with? If so then that is the answer I am looking for. But if you are not sure then I want to continue digging until someone can tell me if this is just some random chosen string or that there is IT meaning behind it.
    – IT_User
    Commented Apr 19, 2016 at 21:37
  • @bluerojo - Don't delete your question, there is no reason to do that, removing questions yourself is in bad taste on a Q&A website. You can do what you want, but I can tell you, this question isn't on topic here at Superuser. So don't ask it at Superuser.
    – Ramhound
    Commented Apr 19, 2016 at 21:42
  • @Ramhound Thank you, I believe I have received the answer I expected to receive from Ben. He summed up my extremely long-winded story into a single understandable question.
    – IT_User
    Commented Apr 19, 2016 at 21:52
  • 2
    My guess: the developer was a fan of the Calvin and Hobbs comic strip.
    – fixer1234
    Commented Apr 20, 2016 at 18:50
  • @Ramhound: You say, "Questions seeking why something was done (unless there is a technical reason for it) almost always make horrible questions for a Q&A website."  I agree. Is this just your personal opinion, or can you point to a reference like a Stack Exchange help page, or even a statement by a moderator?
    – Scott - Слава Україні
    Commented Apr 22, 2016 at 17:26

1 Answer 1

Reset to default
1

The best way to ask that question would be something like this:

Is there any technical significance to the default password of calvin on the Dell iDRAC?

Depending on the site and voters' moods, it could still get closed with the generic off-topic reason, since it's not really a practical problem. A definitive answer of "no" would require the answer writer to know every technical term in the field. Even if it doesn't get closed, it's likely to be downvoted (one of the reasons for downvoting is that the post is "not useful.")

By the way, I'm fairly certain there's no technical significance to calvin - it's probably somebody's name.

1
  • Thank you very much Ben. That is along the lines of an answer I expected in regards to "calvin". Also, thank you for summing up my extremely long-winded story into a single understandable sentence ;).
    – IT_User
    Commented Apr 19, 2016 at 21:49

You must log in to answer this question.

Not the answer you're looking for? Browse other questions tagged .