[NTLUG:Discuss] Re: None

[Tom McDonald]

On Mon, 22 Sep 2003 11:06:25 -0500
"linux" <linux at cowtown.net> wrote:

> Tom McDonald writes: 
> 
> > On Sun, 21 Sep 2003 07:34:11 -0500 (CDT)
> > Ed Coates <edcoates at nighthawk.dyndns.org> wrote: 
> > 
> >>  
> >> 
> >> On Sun, 21 Sep 2003, linux wrote: 
> >> 
> >> > Ed Coates writes:
> >> >
> >> > >
> >> > >
> >> > Good tip! Found several errors shown in tty10-12:
> >> > SIOCSIFADDR: No such device found
> >> > SIOCSIFNETMASK: No such device found
> >> > SIOCSIFBRDADDR:  No such device found 
> >> 

<snip>

> > If you can't login on runlevel 3 then you may have a problem with pam or
> > passwords etc.  In any event /var/log/messages or /var/log/secure or /var/log/auth
> > may give a clue.
> 
> Booted to runlevel 3 and cannot log in. After giving valid user name or root 
> and it just returns another login prompt. 
> 

Next thing I would do is at the lilo boot prompt enter linux 1 - single user mode 
so it shouldn't require a login.  

If you have recently updated check in /etc directory and make sure that you 
have the right passwd file.  You can grep for a known good user name to locate 
the passwd file you will need.  "grep loginname passwd*"  

You may have a passwd, passwd.OLD,passwd-, passwd~, passwd.rpmorig, passwd.rpmnew, etc.
If the file with the known good user is named passwd then make sure that the group 
file is valid also.  

If both are okay then check them against the shadow file (assuming you are running pam)
entries in shadow should be the same as the passwd file, and shadow.org against the 
group.org and group file. 

If all that is okay make sure that the shell if valid, and home directory exists (shouldn't
make a difference but ??? ) - If that is okay, You can edit the /etc/shadow file and remove 
the password for the user by deleting all the characters between the first and second :
structure of the file will be 

login name:ENCRYPTED_PASSWORD:last password change:days until change allowed:days before change required:days warning for expiration:days before account inactive:date when account expires:reserved for future use

After edit

login name::last password change:days until change allowed:days before change required:days warning for expiration:days before account inactive:date when account expires:reserved for future use

This should allow the user to login without a password. (Make sure that the first command they run is
the passwd command to set a new one.)

Make sure that there is no special access restrictions in the /etc/usertty file.  

Make sure the file /etc/nologin is *not* there.

If all that doesn't work, email me off list with a phone number where I can talk to you..

Tom

----

Tom McDonald <tom at compuclaim.com>
Compuclaim Inc.


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