Remove system user password

Well my Kubuntu learning curve continues...

 

Only the 3rd or 4th time I had fired up this computer with Kubuntu.

I left the computer for an hour or two and came back with the screen darkened.

I hit a key to bring the screen back to life and was asked to enter a Password.

 

Yesterday I had followed a Youtube video giving instructions on how to remove the

user password but I guess it didn't work.

 

Does anyone know how to remove all system user password prompts in Kubuntu?

Edited by MarkBeepBeep, 30 May 2024 - 06:23 PM.

You don't want that.

Quit following YouTube.

You don't want that.

Quit following YouTube.

Yes you are right on many counts. Evil Gootube.
I guess I should have come here first. 

 

Yes, you don't want to do that.

What happens is the the Root user has full control over the OS and the "Normal" user, only has limited control over his part of the OS and is unable to add software, update the computer, and any control over much of the OS itself. He can, if the Root user, gives him permission through use of the sudo command and by entering the Root password to perform temporarily any task required.

This is done this way in order to protect the OS from someone either accidentally or maliciously  causing problems. Because they would need to know Root's password, unlike where Windows makes everyone root.

Linux has another feature, that if a "Guest" account is set up, they are unable to even run the sudo command, allowing for even more safety.

Yes, you don't want to do that.

What happens is the the Root user has full control over the OS and the "Normal" user, only has limited control over his part of the OS and is unable to add software, update the computer, and any control over much of the OS itself. He can, if the Root user, gives him permission through use of the sudo command and by entering the Root password to perform temporarily any task required.

This is done this way in order to protect the OS from someone either accidentally or maliciously  causing problems. Because they would need to know Root's password, unlike where Windows makes everyone root.

Linux has another feature, that if a "Guest" account is set up, they are unable to even run the sudo command, allowing for even more safety.

Thanks Thomas.
I guess I'm in a unique situation then.
I'm the only user on this PC, and will always be the only user on it. 

When I open/close my Windows (as I have done for decades now) I never sign in.

I'd like to do the same on Linux.

 

I'd also like to shut down with just one click. Not being prompted for this and that and that.

Edited by MarkBeepBeep, 31 May 2024 - 12:16 PM.

Does the computer connect to the Internet?

Does the computer connect to the Internet?

Thanks greg.

 

Yes it does.

@ MarkBeepBeep :-

 

Have a read of this:-

 

https://igurublog.wordpress.com/2010/01/16/fear-not-root/

 

And then - if you haven't already done so - read this:-

 

https://linux.oneandoneis2.org/LNW.htm

 

Both WELL worth perusing.

 

We run as 'root' all the time in Puppy; it was always intended as a single-user system, and a "hobbyist" system at that.......designed for folks that enjoy tearing their system apart, and re-building it to suit themselves. Don't get me wrong; in a multi-user environment, the 'standard', protected-root user paradigm makes a LOT of sense.....but in the home environment, where most are the sole master of their wee kingdom, constantly entering 'sudo' to do the slightest little thing gets real old. Fast.

 

(To be fair, having the restrictions in place actually helps where noobs & beginners are concerned. It takes time to learn what you can and can't safely do with a Linux system. But in my case, I've been using Linux for over a decade now; I'm aware of all the pitfalls; I know which way is 'up', and have more than a passing acquaintance with what's what. Now, in MY case, why should I have to give myself permission to do anything on my own system.....especially where I'm the sole user? Makes NO sense.)

 

Puppy is naturally bullet-proof, anyway, running as it does from compressed, read-only files that unpack into a virtual file-system in RAM. It cannot get corrupted......and if you suspect you've picked up any nasties during a session, don't 'save' that session at shutdown. Just let it evaporate into cyberspace instead.....

 

Many mock Puppy's mode of operation, because they don't understand it. And other Linux users have more trouble understanding it than someone who's never used a 'puter in their lives. What does that tell you, hm..?

 

"Getting stuck in a rut" springs to mind......

 

 

Mike. 

Edited by Mike_Walsh, 01 June 2024 - 11:47 AM.

Ok if all that you want to do is to boot into your Desktop, without needing to enter user password:

Open a terminal and open your choice of editor as root

and change the line: gexec /sbin/getty -8 38400 tty1

to gexec /sbin/getty -8 38400 tty1 -a user-name
Replace user-name to your users name.

All that this does is bypass logging into the computer to access the desktop. You will still need to use the sudo command as you do now.

EDIT: THE LINE MAY START WITH kexec - the actual command required depends on the desktop environment, but the remainder of the line remains the same.

I'm not familiar with Ubuntu or it's flavors, but in many distributions you are given the choice of bypassing the need to enter a password and directly boot to the users desktop during installation.

You are still required to enter the root password in many cases.

Edited by Thomas53, 01 June 2024 - 08:32 AM.

@ MarkBeepBeep :-

 

Have a read of this:-

 

https://igurublog.wordpress.com/2010/01/16/fear-not-root/

 

And then - if you haven't already done so - read this:-

 

https://linux.oneandoneis2.org/LNW.htm

 

Both WELL worth perusing.

 

...

 

Puppy is naturally bullet-proof, anyway, running as it does from compressed, read-only files that unpack into a virtual file-system in RAM. It cannot get corrupted......and if you suspect you've picked up any nasties during a session, don't 'save' that session at shutdown. Just let it evaporate into cyberspace instead.....

 

Many mock Puppy's mode of operation, because they don't understand it. And other Linux users have more trouble understanding it than someone who's never used a 'puter in their lives. What does that tell you, hm..?

 

"Getting stuck in a rut" springs to mind......

 

 

Mike. 

Thanks Mike those two articles at the top were very interesting. 

 

I guess I should explain where I'm coming from and what I am expecting.

 

There are two main reasons I am trying out Linux now.

1. A recent episode I went through trying to restore PING backups (Windows backups made with Linux software)

    that went awry.

2. A recent purchase of a huge SSD (2T) for a second computer that made me think of partitioning it into a Windows/Linux computer.

 

So in other words, I didn't throw caution to the wind and go full tilt into Linux computing.

Again this is a second computer that I occasionally use and have left the option on this computer to use either Windows/Linux at boot up.

 

I had many of the preconceptions mentioned in the second article you linked to above.

 

I had expected Linux (at this late stage) to be very Windows-like in user experience.
I see that not only at its core has it kept the nuts and bolts command line (sudo?) ready to use at a moments notice, but also for everyday housekeeping chores.

 

I like to have full control of a computer that I use (that's why I went the Windows way as opposed to Mac) but try to minimize

the times I need to reach for the command line.

 

I can see the advantages to using the Puppy system. There is just one thing that is pushing me away at the moment.
I'm not enamored with default the fonts in the user interface. Is it possible to change them to another one that I may like?

Ok if all that you want to do is to boot into your Desktop, without needing to enter user password:

Open a terminal and open your choice of editor as root

and change the line: gexec /sbin/getty -8 38400 tty1

to gexec /sbin/getty -8 38400 tty1 -a user-name
Replace user-name to your users name.

All that this does is bypass logging into the computer to access the desktop. You will still need to use the sudo command as you do now.

EDIT: THE LINE MAY START WITH kexec - the actual command required depends on the desktop environment, but the remainder of the line remains the same.

I'm not familiar with Ubuntu or it's flavors, but in many distributions you are given the choice of bypassing the need to enter a password and directly boot to the users desktop during installation.

You are still required to enter the root password in many cases.

Thanks Thomas.
I investigated further and found a way to edit the key file (don't know its name) inserting

NO PASSWD for me, the user. And I also went into the User Profiles section and turned off password there.

 

I'm happy to report that I am no longer prompted for password at start-up. 

 

Shutting down is not so bad.

It's a three step process currently.

1. Clicking the wheel (bottom left)

2. Choosing 'shutdown'.

3. And then clicking on 'OK' to avoid waiting 30 seconds.

 

The only somewhat annoying thing happening now is the shutdown time.

For some reason this Linux distro is taking around a minute to shutdown!

It's a brand spanking new Linux system with only two apps installed (FF and VLC).

It takes this time with everything closed.

Yes Linux does take longer than Windows. It's because Windows goes into a deep sleep instead of actually shutting down as Linux does.
The easiest way to understand, without going into details, is
Windows is like closing your house to go shopping, you leave the dirty dishes in the sink, you don't dust the house, sweep the floor, and things like that because you don't need to spend the time.
But when you shut Linux off, it's like when you going on vacation where you do all of those things.
Here is where Linux has an advantage, you also have the ability to go into a sleep mode that, like Windows doesn't require the computer to do all of those tasks.

The real advantage of going into sleep mode is that it's faster to get back to where you were instead of waiting for the OS to do what it needs to do instead of having it already at hand.

You can actually have Windows shut off off but it takes about the same amount of time in the long run both going off and going through the boot sequence when turning back on.

Linux is very fast at shutting down takes less than 10 seconds for my linux installs to shutdown

Linux is very fast at shutting down takes less than 10 seconds for my linux installs to shutdown

Thanks Dan.

I continue to learn each day I fire her up.

New things hit me each time. 

 

Just now as I was testing her out again, I saw that it had updated FF without asking me.

 

And then when I went to shut her down, it took less than 5 seconds this time!

Go figure. 

 

One minute changed to five seconds!

Firefox is handled via the update manager. When it gets ran it updates every thing installed with apt from the apt sources list.