Re: [Launchpad-users] how to recover /etc/shadow file from single usermode

[Álvaro García <alvar_sa@xxxxxxxxxxx>]

--------------------------------------------------
From: "Edwin Grubbs" <edwin.grubbs@xxxxxxxxxxxxx>
Sent: Monday, August 03, 2009 5:49 PM
To: "Álvaro García" <alvar_sa@xxxxxxxxxxx>
Cc: <launchpad-users@xxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxx>
Subject: Re: [Launchpad-users] how to recover /etc/shadow file from single 
usermode

> On Mon, Aug 3, 2009 at 7:39 AM, Álvaro García<alvar_sa@xxxxxxxxxxx> wrote:
> > --------------------------------------------------
> > From: "saikat" <saikat.80in@xxxxxxxxx>
> > Sent: Monday, August 03, 2009 1:47 PM
> > To: "Launchpad Users" <launchpad-users@xxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxx>
> > Subject: [Launchpad-users] how to recover /etc/shadow file from single
> > usermode
> >
> > > Hi,
> > >
> > > I have forgotten the root passwod in my system. I have installed ubuntu
> > > 9.04. The /etc/shadow file also been corrupted. Now please let me know
> > > how I can recover the file from single user mode?
> >
> > Ubuntu does not have a root user, but a root group. Any user that is on 
> > the
> > root group is able to login as root (this means, having to use sudo or 
> > any
> > other thrust level elevation tool/command.)
>
> That's not true. If there wasn't a root user, there would be nothing
> to sudo to. All you need to be able to log in as root without using
> sudo is to set the password for the root user.
>
> Saikat, you can get a shell without having to enter the root password
> by editing the grub config at boot time.
>  1. At the grub screen, hit 'e' to edit the config.
>  2. Use the arrow keys to move to the line that starts with "kernel".
>  3. Hit 'e' to edit it.
>  4. Append " init=/bin/bash" to the line.
>  5. Hit Enter.
>  6. Hit 'b' to boot.
>
> -Edwin

Thanks for clearing that, I thought the root user had been moved into a 
group in Ubuntu as I have seen the root group, but not the user. Perhaps I 
did not aim my eyes in correctly in order to see that. It was strange to me, 
as in many other distros I knew about the root user, but as I did not saw it 
on Ubuntu...