Path: utzoo!utgpu!news-server.csri.toronto.edu!cs.utexas.edu!uunet!hitachi!jon
From: jon@hitachi.uucp (Jon Ryshpan)
Newsgroups: comp.unix.sysv386
Subject: Re: HELP root password unknown
Message-ID: <656@hitachi.uucp>
Date: 3 Dec 90 18:41:46 GMT
References: <1990Nov20.094505.896@ceres.physics.uiowa.edu> <1990Nov21.170504.10243@druid.uucp> <1990Nov29.004739.6162@chinet.chi.il.us>
Reply-To: jon@hitachi.UUCP (Jon Ryshpan)
Organization: Hitachi America - Semiconductor & IC Div.
Lines: 19

In article <1990Nov29.004739.6162@chinet.chi.il.us> ignatz@chinet.chi.il.us (Dave Ihnat) writes:

>You *don't* need to go to the trouble of having it rename all your
>files, etc.  Bring up the floppy-based first disk, break (as mentioned
>by one other person), and you've a "tail-wagging-dog" situation, with
>the floppy-booted Unix running and the hard disk waiting in the wings.
>Mount your hard disk--the boot floppy will have that command--then use
>your favorite editor from your hard disk to delete the password from
>the hard disk copy of /etc/passwd (or /etc/shadow!).  Then reboot and
>reset the root password...

You will probably also have to run fsck on whatever partitions you want
to mount.  Fsck should also be on the boot floppy.

Any system that is not *physically* secure is not secure.  As a last
resort the "bad guy" can take out the hard disk and install it in
another system.

Jonathan Ryshpan		<...!uunet!hitachi!jon>