Root Password ( what is it? )

**Cuddles** · 06-26-2004, 04:03 PM

Due to the flood of posts on questions ranging from:

What is the root password?
How do I get root access?
What is the Administrator password?
etc, etc, etc... when using the Knoppix CD.
( NOTE: When you install Knoppix to your hard drive, you are asked during the install what the default user "knoppix" and "root" passwords are going to be, and this does not apply. Only when you use the CD to boot with, and have not booted under a hard drive install )

This post should get those posts down to an answer here, I hope...

Originally Posted by Here is what Markus

From the FAQ:
Q: What is the root password?
A: There is none; all passwords are locked by default. You can set it by going Knoppix Menu->Root Shell and typing "passwd", then enterting a root password, also there are several sections you can read dealing with this subject in KNOPPIX/README_Security.txt. You can also type "sudo su" or "sudo -s" in any console window, or use <ctr>--F2 to get at the text console with already opened root shell.

Apparently, however, in some versions of Knoppix, if you type 'sudo -s', it will ask for a password. If you simply press return without entering anything, it will tell you 'Authentication Failed."

Thanks Markus for the quote from the FAQ.

If this post does not answer your question about passwords, Knoppix passwords that is, you can also type root password in the box above, labeled Search Knoppix.net, to find other posted questions and responses.

Thank you.

**finder** · 11-17-2004, 01:58 PM

To the list;
Doesn't seem to be effective.
You can change it but it doesn't do anything.

any ideas?

finder

**widget** · 11-17-2004, 05:52 PM

Worked for me great... thanks

**jiohdi** · 01-13-2005, 07:51 PM

what is root password?

under knoppix pull up the root shell
type# passwd
it will ask you for one
then ask for you to retype it again
then tell you its set....and now you have one whenever something asks for it

**realpc** · 05-28-2005, 05:18 PM

just to confirm that the solution that jiohdi gave works also when knoppix is installed to a hd in single user mode.

cheers.

**|enouf|** · 07-01-2005, 09:17 AM

bah....;
it doesn't do diddly when booting from 3.6 cd, running 2.6.7 kernel
it won't allow you to type anything at all

**jjmac** · 07-01-2005, 12:29 PM

Cuddles wrote:

>>

( NOTE: When you install Knoppix to your hard drive, you are asked during the install what the default user "knoppix" and "root" passwords are going to be, and this does not apply. Only when you use the CD to boot with, and have not booted under a hard drive install )
.
.
.
Here is what Markus wrote:

From the FAQ:
Q: What is the root password?
A: There is none; all passwords are locked by default. You can set it by going Knoppix Menu->Root Shell and typing "passwd", then enterting a root password,
>>

The first bit confused me a bit, but the second cleared it up.

I just muck about with Knoppix when i use it, the v3.3 as a raw install to disk. Iv'e never had any passwrd problems with it. I can't quite remember how the LiveCD performed though. I think it used a default root of "knoppix", but then allowed for a user password when i created an account ... while running from the CD.

If anyone is going online as root ... __don't__ "Horrors" alarm_alarm.png

jm

**|enouf|** · 07-01-2005, 07:22 PM

There isn't any way to create/modify passwords on the LiveCD boot - Afaik
you are logged in as User "Knoppix" - and there is no passwd ability (can NOT enter any keystrokes when prompted)..BUT

I found a way from another helpful guy here in the forums to mount (write to) my HDD in case I want to d/l files and save them to it.

Wanna 'splain a little more of Root ? danger! danger! will robinson!

I mean b/c I can write to my HDD (via tmp mount) - does that mean that anyone else can ? -- I'm behind a router...and I know Knoppix/KDE/Gnu/Linux has many many helpful 'networking' analysis tools (though I don't know how to use them properly yet) - how's about a firewall ? Is there one on the 3.6 CD ?

p.s. Yes I can drop to root (I think, temporarily, using ctrl+alt+f1/2/3 - and back out using alt+f5)...
The liveCD, I'm pretty sure, must manifest itself a bit differently than a HDD install - since I see many 'mounted things' on the desktop;

*Hard Disc (/) [root] <--I assume when I see this--> root@ttyp0[/]# at a konsole/command prompt/terminal that I'm root ...correct?
*Hard Disc (cloop) [/KNOPPIX] <-- loop to HDD ?
*CD-ROM (scd0) [/cdrom] <-- obviously the cdrom knoppix is running from, seen as an scsi device ??
*CD-ROM (cdrom) <-- perhaps a leftover since I disconnected 1 broken DVDROM drive recently ?
*Hard Disc (/mnt/auto) <-- ramdisk ?? - I have no clue

But I do NEED to understand the DIR structure knoppix uses,
and learning the Terminology / Lingo is BIG with me too, as well as HOW to state the syntax properly....(for ex; I never knew xterm / rxsvt ? / konsole mean the same thing -- either/or type dealio - yet I realize the spaces in between otherwise someone may interpret it as a PATH)
....so any help is much appreciated.

I am reading reading reading (manuals / forums / lists / threads / handbooks) -- but when I look/search for a specific explanation (like described above about the DIR structure), it always takes me a long long time to find an explanation... as I get hung up finding something similar (sometimes not similar), but equally informative - so I get distracted and try to learn/follow up on what I found.

so... I've seen
1. Knoppix@ttyp0[knoppix]$ <-- Konsole (QuickStart | Terminal Program)
2. root@ttyp0[knoppix]# <-- Knoppix QuickStart menu | Root shell (is it called QuickStart ?)
3. Knoppix@ttyp0[tmp]$ <-- KDE | tools menu | Open Terminal
4. root@tty1[/]# <--ctrl + alt + f1/2/3 (3 diff shells ? - 3 diff virtual machines(Desktops) ? - or 3 diff runlevels ? ) (and notice there's a missing "p" after the tty)

so "which" one to be leary of for security ?? -- or all ??
and so Knoppix/root is the "User" ? the "Group" ? or the "Owner" - perhaps DIR's in ex; 1 and 2 above
and [knoppix] [tmp] or [/] is the DIR you're in at the present time ?
what's with the $ and the # ?
I've seen ppl write commands using ' sudo ' ' ! ' ' ./ ' ' su '

alrighty - so what the heck is TTYP0 or TTYP1 ?

bah...it ended up reallllyy loooong again -- and my typing sucks, my keyboards is broken, and I'm an utter *nix newb -- being a newb sucks

**UnderScore** · 07-01-2005, 07:44 PM

Originally Posted by |enouf|

There isn't any way to create/modify passwords on the LiveCD boot - Afaik
you are logged in as User "Knoppix" - and there is no passwd ability (can NOT enter any keystrokes when prompted)..BUT

First, everthing after that point deserves to be addressed in a thread of its own since it falls outside the scope of passwords.

Any way to change passwords? Sure there are. In a terminal, become the root user:

Code:

su -

Then change the user 'knoppix' password:

Code:

passwd knoppix

Then change root user's passwd:

Code:

passwd

So if you attempt to change the passwd, it looks like nothing is happening but it is infact recognizing your keystrokes as the password but will not display any characters to the screen.

As for your concerns on security and the default root password, the first post says that "all passwords are locked by default." The Knoppix developers did this on purpose to prevent many attacks & exploits from even attempting to harm your running Knoppix system.

**|enouf|** · 07-02-2005, 06:15 AM

I appreciate your attempt to help, but if that's the case
then I now have a password of;

lvbd;khebf;khdbf;iusfhg;iousrh t;ufdhtgi;ukrh

b/c that's what you type when frustration sets in

*EDIT
I stand corrected (thanks underscore)
I clicked "Terminal Window" on the QuickStart bar - started with;
Knoppix@ttyp0[knoppix]$

Code:

su -

(SuperUser)
gives you;
root@ttyp0[~]#
From here - I did change the passwd - and as pointed out - the keystrokes show NOTHING on the screen while entering passwd keys

Is this the ONLY way to become "Root User" (su -) from the Terminal Window ??
Will this passwd stay if I "Save Knoppix Config" ??
Are all root privileges are confined to that Terminal Session ? without the use of GUI ?

Do you understand the frustration - as your info is NOT what is listed above, anywhere in this thread?

So now what ? -- How to run some ROOT only functions/apps...
I will carry-over any futher non-exactly-password-specific topics to another thread - no prob..
Thank you[/code]