Path: utzoo!attcan!utgpu!jarvis.csri.toronto.edu!rutgers!cs.utexas.edu!usc!ucsd!hub!pumpkin!dz From: dz@pumpkin.ucsb.edu (Daniel James Zerkle) Newsgroups: comp.sys.next Subject: Re: changing su password in netinfo Message-ID: <2258@hub.UUCP> Date: 28 Aug 89 06:28:41 GMT References: Sender: news@hub.UUCP Reply-To: dz@cornu.ucsb.edu (Daniel James Zerkle) Distribution: comp Organization: University of California, Santa Barbara Lines: 53 In article mdixon@thelonius.PARC.xerox.com (Mike Dixon) writes: >somehow we've lost the su password to one of our machines. Write it down, next time. Make someone take it home in a sealed envelope.... >if it were >a vanilla unix box i'd just boot it single user and hack the >/etc/passwd file, but with netinfo running that's not enough. 0.9 is still pretty weak for the way passwords are implemented. 'Tis a bit irritating that the passwd file does nothing. >i can't >seem to niload the new passwd file without netinfo running, but of >course if i run netinfo i can't log in su & hence can't do the niload. >the only fix i can think of is to boot single user You can boot off of an optical disk, then netinfo will be running... >and and smash the netinfo >database (/etc/netinfo/local.nidb/collection, as far as i can tell) with >a copy from the original system disk. is there really no better way to >do this? 1. Nidump everything on the machine you want to preserve. Especially the passwords. Put the results in some convenient files. 2. Modify the passwords how you want them. Probably just blank out the passwd for root. 3. Get some disposable optical disk with the whole operating system on it. Boot from it and su to root. 4. Niload those conveniently saved files (including the modified passwd file) onto the floppy. 5. I forget for the moment what file the Netinfo is stored on (but "collection" doesn't sound familiar). In any case, copy the file(s) from the optical disk to the place on the normal boot disk. Should be ok, now. >p.s. they're on a net, but each has just a local netinfo database Couldn't tell if they boot from the net or not. Hope not, as this could be completely wrong.... Good luck. You may need it. | Dan Zerkle home:(805) 968-4683 morning:961-2434 afternoon:687-0110 | | dz@cornu.ucsb.edu dz%cornu@ucsbuxa.bitnet ...ucbvax!hub!cornu!dz | | Snailmail: 6681 Berkshire Terrace #5, Isla Vista, CA 93117 | | Disclaimer: If it's wrong or stupid, pretend I didn't do it. |