Can I leave the 'Anonymous Identity' field blank when configuring 802.1X authentication on a NAS with 'Tunneled TLS' or 'Protected EAP'?
Last modified date:
2025-09-10
Applicable Products
Network & Virtual Switch in all QNAP NAS
Scenario
When setting up 802.1X authentication with Tunneled TLS or Protected EAP , some administrators attempt to leave the Anonymous Identity field empty. However, the system does not allow applying the configuration unless a value is entered.
Solution
The Anonymous Identity field is mandatory by design. Even though the identity is “anonymous,” a placeholder value is still required for the authentication process to function correctly. This helps ensure that the initial outer authentication exchange does not expose the real user identity.
