RavenDB: CryptographicException & FormatException: Input string was not in a correct format

January 2017

If you get an error similar to the below and are using encrypted databases, make sure that you’re running the RavenDB process as the same user you were when the databases were created/encrypted.

The encryption keys are stored in per-user stores by Windows so if you created the database while RavenDB was running as a Windows Service (as LOCAL SYSTEM) and then later run RavenDB directly using Raven.Server.exe it will be running as the logged in user, not LOCAL SYSTEM and won’t have access to the encryption keys.

Raven.Database.Server.Tenancy.AbstractLandlord`1,Warn,,45,Could not unprotect secured db data Raven/Encryption/EncryptIndexes setting the value to '<data could not be decrypted>',"System.Security.Cryptography.CryptographicException: Key not valid for use in specified state.
   at System.Security.Cryptography.ProtectedData.Unprotect(Byte[] encryptedData, Byte[] optionalEntropy, DataProtectionScope scope)
   at Raven.Database.Server.Tenancy.DatabasesLandlord.Unprotect(DatabaseDocument databaseDocument) in c:\Builds\RavenDB-Stable-3.0\Raven.Database\Server\Tenancy\DatabaseLandlord.cs:line 283
Raven.Database.Server.Controllers.RavenDbApiController,Warn,,45,Could not open database named: XXXX Input string was not in a correct format.,"System.FormatException: Input string was not in a correct format.
   at System.Number.StringToNumber(String str, NumberStyles options, NumberBuffer& number, NumberFormatInfo info, Boolean parseDecimal)
   at System.Number.ParseInt32(String s, NumberStyles style, NumberFormatInfo info)
   at Raven.Database.Config.InMemoryRavenConfiguration.Initialize() in c:\Builds\RavenDB-Stable-3.0\Raven.Database\Config\InMemoryRavenConfiguration.cs:line 339
   at Raven.Database.Server.Tenancy.DatabasesLandlord.CreateConfiguration(String tenantId, DatabaseDocument document, String folderPropName, InMemoryRavenConfiguration parentConfiguration) in c:\Builds\RavenDB-Stable-3.0\Raven.Database\Server\Tenancy\DatabaseLandlord.cs:line 263
   at Raven.Database.Server.Tenancy.DatabasesLandlord.CreateTenantConfiguration(String tenantId, Boolean ignoreDisabledDatabase) in c:\Builds\RavenDB-Stable-3.0\Raven.Database\Server\Tenancy\DatabaseLandlord.cs:line 99
   at Raven.Database.Server.Tenancy.DatabasesLandlord.TryGetOrCreateResourceStore(String tenantId, Task`1& database) in c:\Builds\RavenDB-Stable-3.0\Raven.Database\Server\Tenancy\DatabaseLandlord.cs:line 160
   at Raven.Database.Server.Controllers.RavenDbApiController.TrySetupRequestToProperResource(RequestWebApiEventArgs& args) in c:\Builds\RavenDB-Stable-3.0\Raven.Database\Server\Controllers\RavenDbApiController.cs:line 618