Re: Deleted root account in passwd
On Sun, 2004-08-15 at 11:55, Simon Kitching wrote:
> On Sun, 2004-08-15 at 06:14, Pete Clarke wrote:
> > Hi there,
> >
> > <dumb mode>I managed to delete the root entry in /etc/passwd whilst playing
> > on a test box</dumb mode>
> > Is there an easy way of re-inserting, or copying the backup passwd file I
> > have without physical access to the box?
> >
> > I can ssh into it, but only as a regular user - obviously I can't su to root
> > as it doesn't exist anymore :-)
>
> I presume it's still possible to boot into "single user mode" with a
> broken /etc/passwd. Here are instructions I found by googling for "linux
> boot single user mode":
> http://www.redhat.com/docs/manuals/linux/RHL-7.3-Manual/
> custom-guide/s1-rescuemode-booting-single.html
> It should then be possible to edit the /etc/passwd file.
>
> Alternatively, boot using a rescue disk, mount the filesystem containing
> the /etc/passwd file, then edit it to reinsert a root entry. I think the
> Debian install CD will function as a "rescue disk" for this purpose. Or
> Knoppix/Gnoppix/etc will do the job.
Sorry, I didn't read the original email properly, and missed the bit
about not having physical access to the machine.
Are the security patches on the server up-to-date? If not, you might be
able to download code for one of the local-root-exploit holes that have
been found within the last 6 months :-)
Otherwise, I think you're stuffed. Rather like I was when I
misconfigured iptables on a remote server :-(
Regards,
Simon
Reply to: