Monday, August 6, 2007

Recover / Reset Linux Password

Found these concise steps for reseting a password at: http://ubuntuforums.org/showthread.php?t=3609

Just thought I'd write it down for myself, instead of having google it up again.

Q: I am a complete moron and forgot my password. How can I get back into my system?
(Hey, YOU forgot it, I think that gives me the right to do some degrading before letting you back in!)

A:
1. Turn off your computer.
2. Tap it 3 times
3. Say your favorite magic word.
---- If that doesn't fix your problem, do the steps below... #-o
4. Turn your computer on.
5. Press ESC at the grub prompt.
6. Press e for edit.
7. Highlight the line that begins kernel ........., press e
8. Go to the very end of the line, add rw init=/bin/bash
9. press enter, then press b to boot your system.
10. Your system will boot up to a passwordless root shell.
CAUTION: This is a FULL ROOT SHELL! You can damage your system if not careful!
11. Type in passwd . Set your password.
12. Type in reboot.
NOTE: steps 1-3 may help at this point.
13. Bow down to me....