Forgot Password

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Forgot OS Password

The solution to resetting the root/administrator password and a user account password is similar with a slight difference. The first section of this FAQ explains how to change any account password, the second section is a shortcut for changing a user account password.

I. If you have forgotten the root/administrator password, the first thing you should do is boot to LiveCD, Then follow the steps listed below:

1. Open up your File Manager and go to something similar to: /root/My Computer/Storage Device (hda2)/etc
   Note: This is the address where the OS you want to change the password in is located. It may look different for you depending on where that OS is installed (the 'hda2' will most likely be the difference).
2. Look for a file called "passwd" (labeled exactly as such) and open it.
3. Delete the "x" in between the 2 colons in the row starting with "root", repeat this for any user accounts you may have (in the example the user account is called "joe", Fig. 1).
   
   

   (Fig. 1)
   
   
4. The result should look something like Fig. 2.
   
   

   (Fig. 2)
   
   
5. This allows you to bypass the password login for all your accounts the next time you boot up Linspire.
6. Restart and log into the account in which you would like to reset the password. To do so select Launch >> Settings >> Additional Options >> Change Password (Fig. 3). The window prompting a new password will appear (Fig. 4), followed by a confirmation pop up once the password change is complete.
   
   

   (Fig. 3)
   
   
   

   (Fig. 4)
   
   
7. The next time you restart your computer, the password change will have taken place.

II. The previous procedure does allow you to reset the user account password (since it allows you to reset any account), but if you can log into your root/administrator account you do not need a Linspire Live! CD. Simply log into the root/administrator account and follow steps 1-7 mentioned previously but this time ignore deleting the "x" in the row "root" and only delete the "x" in the row with the user account.

• Note: When entering a new password for a user account it will prompt you for the old password, leave this field blank and hit OK to continue.