Root User in Ubuntu- Important Things You Should Know

Why do you need to change the password in Ubuntu? Let me give you a couple of scenarios.

• Change user password via the command line
• Change root user password
• Change user password via GUI

Change user password in Ubuntu [Command Line]

If you want to change your current password, simply run this command in a terminal:

passwd

You’ll be asked to enter your current password and the new password twice.

sudo passwd <user_name>

If you changed your password and forgot it later, don’t worry. You can easily reset Ubuntu password.

Change (or set) the root password in Ubuntu

You can set or change root password using the passwd command. However, in most cases, you don’t need it and you shouldn’t be doing it.

Now, about changing the root password.

Else, you can change it using the existing root password.

sudo passwd root

Change Ubuntu password using GUI

I have used GNOME desktop with Ubuntu 22.04 here. The steps should be more or less the same for other desktop environments and Ubuntu versions.

Go to Overview (press Windows/Super key) and search for Settings.

Now, select Set password Now option on the dialog box and type and confirm the new password. If you are changing your own password, you’ll also have to enter your current password.

More on user passwords in Linux

Here’s a fun thing you can do with sudo so that it makes fun of you when you enter incorrect password.

And get familiar with the Seahorse password manager app in Linux desktops.

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If you are a newbie, you may be scratching your head about how to enable your root account in Ubuntu! Well, for several security purposes, the ubuntu root login account is kept disabled. Before we begin, here is some preface. 

When you install Ubuntu, a root account is created. The issue here is that you do not have the provision to set the password for the account. 

sudo grep root /etc/passwd

The x in the output signifies that the account’s password is empty.

sudo grep root /etc/shadow

• Temporary Method
• Command-Line and Graphical User Interface Method
• Command-Line Method

1: How to enable Ubuntu root Login Temporarily?

2: How to enable root user in ubuntu via Graphical User Interface?

Type root in the first textbox.

Type your root account password.

As soon as you type the password, you encounter an error message. The reason is that a security layer in the graphical interface stops any login until and unless several other configuration files are configured. 

sudo cp /etc/gdm3/custom.conf /etc/gdm3/custom.conf_backup

sudo cp /etc/pam.d/gdm-password /etc/pam.d/gdm-password_backup

Now, simply, open the “/etc/gdm3/custom.conf” configuration file

sudo vi /etc/gdm3/custom.conf

Press save and exit. 

Now, open “/etc/pam.d/gdm-password” which is a configuration file.

Just save and hit exit on the ‘gdm’ configuration file.

sudo reboot -f

As you have rebooted your system, login into the root account now.

You can log in to the root account easily. 

sudo passwd -dl root

Reverse whatever changes you made in the two configuration files earlier. 

Delete “AllowRoot=true” from the “/etc/gdm3/custom.conf” configuration file as shown below.

Next, delete the ‘#’ from  “/etc/pam.d/gdm-password”.

And you are done!

3: How to enable ubuntu root in Command-line?

Using the command-line method, you can easily enable or disable the root account through the command line. Here, you cannot log in through a graphical interface.

sudo -i passwd root

su – root

sudo passwd -dl root

To be sure, switch to the root account and see if the process is successful.

su - root

If you see the same message as the above image, then yes, you have successfully disabled the account, as now you can see that the authentication has failed. 

Conclusion

We hope that the article solved your queries and provided you with a better understanding of the topic. If you have any questions or suggestions, please leave them in the comment section below.

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Either you run commands with root privilege like this:

sudo any_command

sudo su

What is root user? Why is it locked in Ubuntu?

You don’t need to have root privilege for your daily tasks like moving file in your home directory, downloading files from internet, creating documents etc.

Take this analogy for understanding it better. If you have to cut a fruit, you use a kitchen knife. If you have to cut down a tree, you have to use a saw. Now, you may use the saw to cut fruits but that’s not wise, is it?

Does this mean that you cannot be root in Ubuntu or use the system with root privileges? No, you can still have root access with the help of ‘sudo’ (explained in the next section).

How to run commands as root user in Ubuntu?

apt update
Reading package lists... Done
E: Could not open lock file /var/lib/apt/lists/lock - open (13: Permission denied)
E: Unable to lock directory /var/lib/apt/lists/
W: Problem unlinking the file /var/cache/apt/pkgcache.bin - RemoveCaches (13: Permission denied)
W: Problem unlinking the file /var/cache/apt/srcpkgcache.bin - RemoveCaches (13: Permission denied)

So, how do you run commands as root? The simple answer is to add sudo before the commands that require to be run as root.

sudo apt update

[email protected]:~$ sudo apt update
[sudo] password for abhishek: 

If you are absolutely new to Linux, you might be surprised that when you start typing your password in the terminal, nothing happens on the screen. This is perfectly normal because as the default security feature, nothing is displayed on the screen. Not even the asterisks (*). You type your password and press enter.

Bottom line:
To run commands as root in Ubuntu, add sudo before the command.
When asked for password, enter your account’s password.
When you type the password on the screen, nothing is visible. Just keep on typing the password and press enter.

How to become root user in Ubuntu?

The sudo command allows you to simulate a root login shell with this command:

sudo -i

[email protected]:~$ sudo -i
[sudo] password for abhishek: 
[email protected]:~# whoami
root
[email protected]:~# 

You’ll notice that when you switch to root, the shell command prompt changes from $ (dollar key sign) to # (pound key sign). This makes me crack a (lame) joke that pound is stronger than dollar.

sudo su

If you try to use the su command without sudo, you’ll encounter ‘su authentication failure’ error.

exit

How to enable root user in Ubuntu?

sudo passwd root

Again, this is not recommended and I won’t encourage you to do that on your desktop. If you forgot it, you won’t be able to change the root password in Ubuntu again.

sudo passwd -dl root

I hope you have a slightly better understanding of the root concept now. If you still have some confusion and questions about it, please let me know in the comments. I’ll try to answer your questions and might update the article as well.

Forgot your Ubuntu login password? It happens.

If you haven’t used Ubuntu for some time, it’s only natural to not remember the password. The good news is that you don’t need to reinstall the entire operating system because of it. You can recover Ubuntu passwords easily.

The method mentioned here works for resetting an Ubuntu password in VMware, dual boot or single install. All you need is a little bit of patience and to run a couple of commands. You’ll reset the root password within minutes.

Reset Ubuntu password from recovery mode

Step 1: Boot into recovery mode

Switch the computer on. Go to the grub menu. Generally, it appears automatically – if not, then hold down the shift key or press Esc key until the boot menu appears.

If you’re using Oracle VirtualBox or VMware, you have to hold down the shift key when the logo of Oracle or VMware appears.

In the grub menu, select the “Advanced Options for Ubuntu”:

In here, you’ll see the option to go to recovery mode:

It will bring you to a black screen with several lines of output being displayed in a flash. Wait for a few seconds here.

Step 2: Drop to root shell prompt

Now you’ll be presented with different options for recovery mode. Here you need to choose “Root – Drop to root shell prompt“.  Just press the enter key to select this option. Like in the picture below:

You’ll see that when you select the root shell prompt option, an option to enter commands appears at the bottom. This is your root shell prompt and this is where you’ll use the commands to reset the password.

Step 3: Remount the root with write access

You need to have write access to the root partition. By default, it has read-only access.

Use the command below to remount it with write access:

mount -rw -o remount /

Step 4: Reset username or password

ls /home

passwd username

It prompts for a new password. Enter the new password twice.

Enter new UNIX password:
Retype new UNIX password:

Voilà! There you go. You have just successfully reset the password. Now exit the root shell prompt:

exit

When you exit, you’ll be back at the recovery mode menu. Select the normal boot option here.

There will be a warning about graphics mode compatibility. Don’t worry. A complete reboot will fix any issues with this.

You should now be able to log in with the new password.

Possible Troubleshoot:

While entering the new password you might be prompted with Authentication token manipulation error like this:

mount -rw -o remount /

Now try to reset the password again. It should work now.

As you can see, it is extremely easy to change Ubuntu password even if you’ve forgotten it. It will barely take a few minutes.

Alternate method to reset Ubuntu password

If for some reason you have difficulty dropping to the root shell and changing the password, you can try these steps.

Step 1

Reboot your computer. Hold shift to bring up the grub screen (if it doesn’t appear automatically). Press E at the grub prompt to edit the grub screen.

Step 2

Find the line starting with linux, change the ro to rw and append init=/bin/bash at the end of that line.

Step 3

Press ctrl-x to save your changes and boot.

In other words, your system will boot up to a passwordless root shell.

Step 4

Set your new password.

Once you’ve set the new password, exit the terminal. Just type reboot in the terminal or use the shutdown command.

shutdown -r now

Your password should be changed now.

If resetting Ubuntu passwords is this easy, isn’t this a security risk?

That’s a fair question. One of the main advantages of Linux over Windows is its security. But if “anyone” can reset the password, how come Ubuntu or other Linux distributions can be considered secure?

Let me explain a few things here. The main security risk is if someone hacks into your account from a remote location via the internet. That’s not happening here.

If anyone has physical access to your computer, the data in your computer is already at risk. Unless the entire disk is encrypted, anyone can “steal” your data using a live USB without even entering your installed operating system.

This lack of root password is a deliberate feature The “advanced options for Ubuntu” in the boot menu allow you to perform some specific root-related tasks from the “root shell prompt”. This is why you’re able to reset the Ubuntu password through this method.

Bonus Tip: Handling the possible keyring issue after changing the password

There is a keyring feature in Ubuntu that is used for keeping passwords locked and safe.

When you reset the forgotten password, the keyring remains unlocked and you may see an error message like this.

Open the Passwords and Keys application and here, delete the Login passwords.

When you try to use Google Chrome again in Ubuntu, it will ask you to create a new keyring. Use the new login password as the keyring password.

Did it help you?

I hope I made things clear about resetting forgotten passwords in Ubuntu.

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How to change Ubuntu root password?

1. Open the terminal by pressing Ctrl+Alt+T or searching for «Terminal» in the Ubuntu Dash.
2. Type the command «sudo passwd root» and press Enter. You will be prompted to enter your current user password.
3. After authenticating, you can set a new password for the root user. Make sure to choose a strong and secure password.
4. Retype the new password when prompted to confirm.
5. Once the password change is successful, you can exit the terminal.

How to change the Ubuntu default password using the command line?

1. Launch the terminal by pressing Ctrl+Alt+T or searching for «Terminal» in the applications menu.
2. To change the root password, you need administrative privileges. Execute the following command to access root privileges: sudo -i
3. Once you have root privileges, enter the following command to change the root password: passwd

You will be prompted to enter a new password. Make sure to choose a strong and secure password that includes a combination of uppercase and lowercase letters, numbers, and special characters. Note that the password will not be visible as you type.

4. After entering the new password, you will be prompted to confirm it. Re-enter the password carefully, ensuring it matches exactly as you intended.
5. If the password change is successful, you will receive a confirmation message. Your Ubuntu system’s root password is now updated.

Remember to keep your root password confidential and avoid using easily guessable information. Regularly changing your passwords enhances the overall security of your Ubuntu system.

How to change default root password Ubuntu using GUI?

1. Launch the Terminal: Open the Terminal by clicking on the Applications menu, typing «Terminal» in the search bar, and selecting the Terminal application.
2. Access User Accounts: Type «sudo gnome-control-center user-accounts» command in the Terminal and press Enter. This command will open the User Accounts settings.
3. Authenticate: Enter your user password when prompted to authenticate your access.
4. Modify Root Account: In the User Accounts settings, select the » root » account and click the «Password» button.
5. Set New Password: Enter the new password for the root account in the provided fields. Make sure to choose a strong and secure password.
6. Apply Changes: Click on the «Change» or «Apply» button to save your changes to the root password.
7. Confirm Changes: Close the User Accounts settings and log out of your session. To apply the new root password, you need to log back in using the updated credentials.

Remember, changing the root password in Ubuntu enhances the overall security of your system by preventing unauthorized access. Ensure you choose a unique and robust password to maintain the integrity of your Ubuntu installation.

How to reset the default ubuntu password?

Forgot your Ubuntu login password? If you haven’t used Ubuntu for a long time, and now you want to login in, and you don’t remember your password. So here is the method to reset your Ubuntu Password. You quickly get your password, and you don’t even need to reinstall it.

How to reset or change root password:

Open up the terminal!

After opening the terminal, type the command sudo space passwd space root

• [ Sudo passwd root ] & press enter
• Enter the new root password and press Enter button
• Retype root password and enter
• Password changed successfully

To verify your new password, use this command.

• su root  & press Enter key 
• Now Enter the new given password of your Ubuntu and press Enter Key

Now you can use your new Ubuntu Root Password. You have successfully made a new password to the Ubuntu root terminal.

How to reset Ubuntu’s root password from Recovery Mode

1. Start or restart your Ubuntu system.
2. When the GRUB boot menu appears, select the advanced options for Ubuntu and choose the recovery mode option. If you don’t see the GRUB boot menu, you may need to press and hold the Shift key during startup to make it appear.
3. In the recovery mode menu, select the option that says «root Drop to root shell prompt.» This will drop you into a root shell with root privileges.
4. Remount the file system in read/write mode by running the following command:

mount -o remount,rw /

5. Next, you need to change the root password. Use the following command to set a new password:

You will be prompted to enter the new password twice. Note that when you type the password, it won’t be visible on the screen for security reasons. Press Enter once you’ve entered the new password.

6. After setting the new password, you can reboot your system by running:

Remember to keep the root password secure and make sure to remember it or store it in a safe place.

How to switch a root user account in Ubuntu

Sudo Users

The first time you use Sudo, you will be prompted to enter the password. If you want to run the command with sudo without entering the password, you must edit the sudoers file.

What are Ubuntu default login credentials?

What is the Ubuntu Default Root Password?

How to enable root account in Ubuntu?

1. Open a terminal: Press `Ctrl + Alt + T` on your keyboard to open a terminal window.

4. Next, you will be asked to enter the new password for the root account. Type your desired password and press Enter. Please note that while typing the password, no characters will be displayed on the screen for security reasons.

5. Confirm the new password by typing it again and pressing Enter.

How to disable your root user account in Ubuntu?

1. Open a terminal on your Ubuntu system.
2. Run the following command to set a password for the root account (if you haven’t already done so): sudo passwd root

You will be prompted to enter and confirm a new password for the root account.

3. Once the root password is set, run the following command to lock the root account: sudo passwd -l root

This command locks the root account, effectively disabling it.

Advantages and Disadvantages of Ubuntu

Here you can find the pros and cons of using Ubuntu leaving root logins disabled by default, includes:

• People often forget their login passwords occasionally (the root password).

• It avoids the access of «I can do anything» login by default. It will prompt for a password earlier; the changes can happen!

• Sudo adds a log access of the command(s) run (in /var/log/auth.log). In case you were in trouble, you can go to the authorities and run.

• Every cracker trying to brute-force their manner in on a server will know it has an account named root and could try that first.

• What they do not know is the usernames of your other users. Due to the fact that the root account password is locked, this attack doesn’t pose any threat at all as there may be no password to crack or guess inside the first location.

• Allows easy transfer of admin rights by adding or removing users. When you use only one Ubuntu root password, you could change the root password if you forgot.

• Sudo may be set up with a safety policy.

Automatically the authentication expires after some time (you can also set the time duration). So if you walk away or leave your desktop a few times from the terminal after running commands as root using sudo, you will not be leaving a root terminal open indefinitely.

Conclusion 

You can also add special characters to your password. Add up to at least 16 characters with upper, and lowercase letters and numbers. It is how we can change the default root password.