root password

[sickyourIT]

you guys will love this.


i installed a happy new installation of VectorLinux, did all the command stuff, set up a root account and a user account for myself, with 2 different passwords

after that, something went sour, so i had to re=install. after using a different root pword (wasn't paying attention) and a different other user password (for obvoius reasons) I can't login to root.


here's the deal.... the password that i made for root both times was complex, and case sensitive, so i'll have to putz around with it a little bit, and hack my own pword. i do want to narrow it down so #1 i don't have to reinstall again and #2 i'm not trying to figure out the wrong password combo.

(one was something liike BigJohn-1234, the other was something like GJjd--45A i'm not sure about the caps, spacing, special symbols and all, so if i can narrow it down to one or the other, i'm in better shape. and no, those weren't the passwords, they were just examples.)


anyway, the password should be the root pw from the last install, not the default or the first install, right...?

thanks,
SK

[Kezil]

when you do a new install it wipes out the previous, so in that case it should be from the latest install, and the one you gave it (I don't believe there is a default root password). If you did an upgrade on the other hand, it might have your old password.

PS: You could use this as an opportunity to test the security of your system by logging in as the lowly user and trying to gain su or crack the password.

good luck.

[wassup]

this is simple to fix.....boot with a boot disk and mount the linux partition, go to the /etc/shadow file and where the encrypted password is put a blank space. root will then have no password, just login as root and run passwd to put one back

[sickyourIT]

yeah, believe it or not, the VectorLinux installs with a default root password, and then they have you change it upon first boot.

[phishphreek]

Could you boot to knoppix as root and then modify the /etc/passwd or /etc/shadow file there?

I've never tried it for *nix... but I think I will have to...

[roswell1329]

Why not just reboot into single user mode? I don't know what the switch would be at lilo for VectorLinux, but it's usually something like 'linux -s'. You don't need a password to log in as root in this mode, and you could then run passwd again to bring everything back up.

[NeuTron]

Originally posted here by wassup
this is simple to fix.....boot with a boot disk and mount the linux partition, go to the /etc/shadow file and where the encrypted password is put a blank space. root will then have no password, just login as root and run passwd to put one back

This seems like the easiest fix, Im not quite sure that it will work but if it does, you won't have to waste much time.

[slarty]

The normal root password recovery technique for linux:

Assuming you boot from lilo, and it's not password protected itself (or you have the password):

From lilo, instead of pressing return or entering "linux",

linux init=/bin/sh

Then it should boot the kernel and immediately drop you into a root shell. However the root fs will probably be readonly,

mount -n / -o remount,rw

Should make the root fs writeable.

Then

passwd root

Should suffice, you will be prompted for a new root pw.

mount -n / -o remount,ro

Makes the root fs back readonly again (and hence the disc gets written back)

sync # for the paranoid :)
reboot

And you're back in business.

[nipp2001]

Why can't you just boot into single user mode and type passwd when you get dropped to prompt?

That's what I did once with my redhat system.


at lilo boot prompt I just typed:

linux single ... like so

lilo: linux single

linux being the name of the kernel image you want to boot.

OOPS sorry roswell... didn't read your post till just now so ... yeah do what he said :-)
and to get into single user mode just type linux single at lilo boot prompt....