Introduction
Setting up Pi-hole v6 on Unraid can be a rewarding experience for network-wide ad blocking, but it often comes with its own set of frustrating login hurdles. Many users, myself included, have found themselves banging their heads against the wall trying to access the web dashboard. This guide will walk you through the two primary issues I encountered—password management changes and a puzzling login page error—and provide straightforward solutions to get you up and running smoothly.

Understanding Pi-hole v6 Password Management
One of the first points of confusion for those migrating or fresh installing Pi-hole v6 is how passwords are handled. The process has evolved from v5, and some key differences can easily trip you up:

1. Ephemeral Initial Password: The randomly generated password displayed during the initial Docker container setup is a one-time affair. If you restart your Docker instance or miss it in the logs, it\’s gone. Don\’t worry, there\’s a simple fix.
2. The New Command: pihole setpasswd: Forget pihole -a -p for setting passwords; pihole setpasswd is the modern and preferred command for v6. This command securely updates your password hash in /etc/pihole/pihole.toml.
3. Docker Environment Variables:
   • WEBPASSWORD is deprecated. If you\’re setting the password via a Docker environment variable (though not generally recommended for security reasons), you\’ll now need to use FTLCONF_webserver_api_password. Remember, this stores the password in plain text.
   • WEBPASSWORD_FILE still functions! You can assign the path to a file containing your password to this variable, offering a slightly more secure alternative than the plain-text environment variable.
4. Docker Secrets on Unraid: While Docker secrets are great for security, they\’re typically associated with Docker Compose or Swarm, which aren\’t standard Unraid deployments. For Unraid users, the simplest and most recommended approach is directly setting the password.

The Solution: The easiest way to manage your Pi-hole v6 password on Unraid is to open the Docker terminal for your Pi-hole instance and simply run:
pihole setpasswd
Follow the prompts to set your desired password.

The Mysterious “No SID Provided” Login Error
Even after correctly setting the password, many users report being unable to log in. You enter your credentials, hit enter, and the page just refreshes—no error message, just a silent rejection. This was incredibly frustrating!

Upon deeper investigation (checking network requests in the browser developer tools), a cryptic message appeared: no SID provided. “SID” likely stands for Session ID, suggesting Pi-hole was refusing to establish an authenticated session. This led to a brief, misguided thought about HTTPS requirements for initial setup, which rarely makes sense for first-time configurations.

The Hostname Revelation: Pi-hole Needs a Name!
The breakthrough came unexpectedly while setting up an Nginx reverse proxy, something I was planning to do anyway. Suddenly, the login worked! The seemingly broken login page wasn\’t broken at all; it was simply particular.

It turns out that Pi-hole v6 prefers—and often requires—being accessed via a hostname rather than a raw IP address. Without a proper hostname, it struggles to establish a session, leading to the “no SID provided” error and silent login failures.

The Embarrassingly Simple Fix:
To resolve this, you just need to add an entry to your local machine\’s hosts file. This maps a friendly hostname to your Pi-hole\’s IP address.

Open your hosts file (location varies by OS: C:\Windows\System32\drivers\etc\hosts on Windows, /etc/hosts on Linux/macOS) and add a line similar to this, replacing 12.34.56.78 with your Pi-hole\’s actual IP address:
pi-hole.lan 12.34.56.78

After adding this entry, access your Pi-hole dashboard in your browser using the hostname you defined (e.g., `http://pi-hole.lan/admin`). You should now be able to log in without any issues!

Conclusion
The journey to a fully functional Pi-hole v6 dashboard on Unraid can have its tricky moments, primarily stemming from updated password handling and an unexpected reliance on hostnames for session establishment. By understanding the pihole setpasswd command and configuring a simple hosts file entry, you can overcome these common hurdles and enjoy the benefits of your new ad-blocking solution. Hopefully, these insights save you from the same head-banging frustration I experienced!