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When you encounter the "rejected Basic challenge" error in SVN, it typically indicates one of these scenarios:

• Credentials are being cached incorrectly
• The server requires SSL/TLS but you're using plain HTTP
• Username/password contains special characters that need escaping
• Server-side authentication module misconfiguration

Before diving deeper, try these basic checks:

# Clear cached credentials
svn auth --clear-svn-auth

# Verify connection with explicit credentials
svn checkout --username YOUR_USERNAME --password YOUR_PASSWORD http://svn.example.com/repo

Many SVN servers require specific authentication headers. Here's what works with Apache:

<Location /svn>
  DAV svn
  SVNPath /var/svn/repository
  AuthType Basic
  AuthName "Subversion Repository"
  AuthUserFile /etc/svn-auth-file
  Require valid-user
</Location>

Modify your client configuration in ~/.subversion/servers:

[global]
store-passwords = yes
store-plaintext-passwords = no
http-auth-types = basic;digest;negotiate
http-library = neon

Test the authentication layer independently:

curl -v -u username:password http://svn-server.example.com/svn/repo/

Watch for these headers in response:

< HTTP/1.1 401 Authorization Required
< WWW-Authenticate: Basic realm="Subversion Repository"

For passwords containing special characters:

# URL encode special characters
svn checkout "http://user:pass%40word@svn.example.com/repo"

If using HTTPS, ensure proper certificate configuration:

[groups]
repository = svn.example.com

[repository]
ssl-client-cert-file = /path/to/client.crt
ssl-client-cert-password = certpassword

When Basic auth fails consistently, consider these options:

# Using SSH instead
svn checkout svn+ssh://user@host/path/to/repo

# Using SVN+WebDAV
svn checkout https://svn.example.com/svn/repo --config-option servers:global:http-auth-types=digest

---

When working with SVN (Subversion), you might encounter the frustrating "Could not authenticate to server: rejected Basic challenge" error. This typically occurs when your SVN client fails to authenticate with the repository server using Basic authentication.

• Using incorrect credentials (username/password)
• Server configured to reject Basic authentication
• Credentials cached in SVN config are outdated
• SSL/TLS certificate issues interfering with authentication

First, examine your SVN configuration files. The main config file is typically located at:

~/.subversion/config (Linux/Mac)
%APPDATA%\Subversion\config (Windows)

Look for these relevant sections:

[global]
store-plaintext-passwords = no
store-passwords = no

[auth]
password-stores = gnome-keyring,kwallet

Try removing cached credentials:

rm -rf ~/.subversion/auth/  # Linux/Mac
del /s /q "%APPDATA%\Subversion\auth"  # Windows

If the server supports Basic auth but isn't offering it, you can force it:

svn --username your_username --password your_password \
    --config-option servers:global:http-auth-types=basic \
    checkout http://svn.example.com/repo

If you have access to the server, verify the Apache configuration (if using mod_dav_svn):

<Location /svn>
    DAV svn
    SVNPath /var/svn/repository
    AuthType Basic
    AuthName "Subversion Repository"
    AuthUserFile /etc/svn-auth-file
    Require valid-user
</Location>

Get more detailed information about the authentication failure:

svn --username your_username --password your_password \
    --debug checkout http://svn.example.com/repo

If Basic authentication keeps failing, consider switching to:

• SSH authentication (svn+ssh://)
• SSL client certificate authentication
• Windows Integrated Authentication (if using VisualSVN Server)

Configure your SVN client to use SSL certificates:

[global]
ssl-client-cert-file = /path/to/client.cert.pem
ssl-client-cert-password = your_cert_password