Basic Ubuntu tutorial-learn about the Root account

For new Ubuntu users who want to know about the Root account, here is a brief article that will give you a clear understanding of the root account and how to use it and why to use the root account. As you can see, each version of Ubuntu has a root account.

The root account is also called the administrator account. You can regard the root account as an account with the same power as God. It can delete any file, any directory, and make any modifications to the system. The root account has unlimited permissions.

Because the root account is too powerful, the system will automatically generate a password string, which cannot be matched by encryption in the system. As a result, the user cannot use the root account to log on to the system. Ubuntu allows you to use the sudo command to directly log on with the root account.

The sudo command allows authorized users to temporarily escalate their permissions by using their own passwords without knowing the root account password or using the root account.

If you still want to use the root account to log on to the system for some other reasons, it is easy to set a password for it. In this way, you can enable the root account:

Sudo passwd

The above command can activate the root account, but to log on to the system with the root account, you must also enable the manual login function disabled by Ubuntu. The manual logon function allows the user to enter the account and the corresponding logon password, instead of simply selecting an account to log on from the logon interface.

To enable the manual logon option in Ubuntu 13.10, run the following command:

Sudo gedit/etc/lightdm. conf. d/50-unity-greeter.conf

Then add the following line of text

Greeter-show-manual-login = true

Save and restart your computer.

For earlier versions of Ubuntu, you can find this configuration file in another location, namely, the/etc/lightdm directory. The file name may be lightdm. conf.

After the modification, you can enter the root account and password on the logon page and then log on to the system.

If you want to lock/disable the root account, use the following command

Sudo passwd-l root

Pleasant use!

Recommended reading:

How to switch the root user in Ubuntu

Precautions for installing Ubuntu 13.04 and setting the root password

Set the root user logon GUI in Ubuntu 13.04

Change the root password in Ubuntu Linux with an unknown root Password

How to switch the root user in Ubuntu

This article was originally translated by LCTT and launched with the Linux honor in China

Translator: Linchenguang Proofreader: wxy