How to enable a Root Password in Solus

Solus comes with the root password disabled by default settings as an additional layer of security. During the installation of Solus, a user with administrator rights can be created. Still, when you try to ‘su’ in the Terminal, you will see an authentication failure error even with the administrator password.

Let me throw some light on the administrator and the root account.

Root vs. Administrator

Ironically, both the accounts are basically the same! So why would the administrator’s password result in the “Authentication failure” error while invoking the su command?

In Linux, even the administrator runs as a standard user normally. When installing updates or apps or changing config files, the system prompts for the administrator password. Once that activity is completed, the system reverts the user access rights to working as a standard user.

Using the ‘su’ command in the ‘Terminal,’ a user can get continuous root access without entering ‘sudo’ every time. This makes things to be done quickly. In Solus, the root access is disabled by default settings.

Enabling Root Password on Solus

1) Launch the ‘Terminal.’

2) Let’s first check if the root is enabled on your PC. Enter ‘su’ and press enter.

su

3) Enter the administrator password and hit enter. You should get the “su: Authentication failure” error.

Trying to get su rights

4) Enter ‘sudo su’ to enable the root password. Now try entering the administrator password. The system should take you to the root prompt, where you will have continuous root privileges until the end of that Terminal session.

sudo su

Root Password enabled in Solus

Changing the Root Password in Solus

If you wish to change the password, enter ‘passwd’ and hit enter. You can then enter the new password.

Changing Root Password in Solus