How to change root password in Ubuntu Linux

By default, the root user account password is locked in Ubuntu Linux for security reasons. As a result, you can not login using root user or use a command such as ‘su -‘ to become a SuperUser.

You need to use the passwd command to change the password for user accounts on Ubuntu Linux. A typical user can only change the password for his/her account only. A SuperUser (root) can change the password for any user account. Your user account info stored in /etc/passswd and an encrypted password stored in /etc/shadow file.

How to change root password in Ubuntu

The procedure to change the root user password on Ubuntu Linux:

1. Type the following command to become root user and issue passwd:
   sudo -i
   passwd
2. OR set a password for root user in a single go:
   sudo passwd root
3. Test it your root password by typing the following command:
   su –

A note about root password on an Ubuntu server/desktop

Enabling the root account by setting the password is not needed. Almost everything you need to do as SuperUser (root) of an Ubuntu server can be done using sudo command. For example, restart apache server:
$ sudo systemctl restart apache2
You can add an additional user to sudo by typing the following command:
$ sudo adduser {userNameHere} sudo
For example, add a user named pankaj to sudo:
$ sudo adduser pankaj sudo