I lost my password to both root and sudo and need to remove ubuntu and erase my HDD. Needless to say this was a stupid newby screwup. I have backed up everything I want to save. How do I rescue my HDD?
666
I'm working on a Ubuntu system, and my client has completely forgotten his administrative password. He doesn't even remember entering one; however it is there.  I've tried the suggestions on the website, and I have been unsuccessful in deleting the password so that I can download applets required for running some files. Is there a solution?
80757
How does sudo work internally? How is it possible that it can become root without having the root password, unlike su? What syscalls, etc. are involved in the process? Is it not a gaping security hole in Linux (e.g. why couldn't I compile a heavily-patched sudo that just did whatever regular sudo did, but didn't ask for the unprivileged user's password)?  I have read . I have also read  but despite the title, they mainly deal with the differences between su and sudo.
58489
I installed Ubuntu on a hard drive that had Windows XP installed so I could dual-boot the two operating systems. Everything was fine but now I can't boot into XP or Ubuntu. I had some important documents in the Ubuntu partition and the hard drive is still working, so how can I recover those files from a working Ubuntu installation? Where should I look for the broken Ubuntu installation?
23805
What would happen if I delete the / directory while logged as root into Ubuntu?  Would I get some sort of error to the effect of Error: unable to self-destruct? Or would I actually be able to delete the directory?
111821
it began when I am trying to install something through the terminal until my root password is not working. It gave me an error saying incorrect password even though it's the right one. Tried signing out of my account then my account was locked forced to reboot. Now I can't boot my laptop since my password for sda3 has been changed as well. I also tried recovery mode but sadly it requires my sda3 pass which unfortunately got changed along with my root and account password.  Using Ubuntu 16.04
35768
I accidentally removed some files on a NTFS partition  How can I recover them staying inside Linux without rebooting ?
116764
I have installed Ubuntu using the GUI, giving myself a password and everything. I do not intricately remember the process. However, what worries me is that I don't know the following password:  $ su Password: &lt;the only password I've ever created on this machine&gt; su: Authentication failure   I just don't know what to do. I'm not in trouble, but I just want to know what's going on here. I can also lock myself out of directories:  starkers@ubuntu:~/Desktop$ mkdir foobs starkers@ubuntu:~/Desktop$ sudo chmod 777 -R foobs sudo: /var/lib/sudo writable by non-owner (040777), should be mode 0700 [sudo] password for starkers: &lt;the only password I've ever created on this machine&gt;  starkers@ubuntu:~/Desktop$ cd foobs bash: cd: foobs: Permission denied   I'm just a bit confused. How can I lock myself out like this? I think sudo is the key command here. But I'm making the foobs file as open as it can possibly be via the chmod, so why does it lock me out?
117974
I have Ubuntu installed on an old pc and want to wipe the hard drive so I can sell it. Any suggestions without having to burn a cd? (it doesn't work...)
24534
I'm planning on selling a USB external hard drive that currently contains an old Ubuntu installation with stored passwords and banking information.  How can I securely erase the drive before selling it?
104427
I have set a root password when installing the Kali linux and now I have forgotten it.I even don't remember my user name.I have searched through the internet and I have found a method that includes editing the GRUB menu, which doesn't seem to work with the Kali linux version that I have now.What do I do to reset my root password?
777
This seems to be a chicken-egg problem. The most common task using sudo is installing and removing software.  sudo apt-get purge &lt;appname&gt;   But sudo itself can be removed.  sudo apt-get purge sudo # Do not run this command on production computers!   This is where the fun comes  ubuntu@ubuntu:~$ sudo bash: /usr/bin/sudo: No such file or directory   Although it's obvious that no person in his right mind will purge sudo (other than me), someone can be fooled to run this command (not directly, in its hex mode, or whatever it's called) or a person could SSH in disguised as tech guru and do the mess.  So is there a way of reinstalling sudo?
46035
I have .rar file that is password protected, but I accidentally have forgotten the password. The file extremely important to me.  How can I get my file back? In windows, there was many programs that could remove the password of such a file. Is there one for Ubuntu?
38463
Has anyone had success recovering deleted files from an ext4 partition? I've tried various utilities, but none have worked yet. I'd be grateful if someone can share a success story!
28835
What is the best way to access a laptop's hard drive to recover data (assuming there is still intact data) when the OS (Windows XP) won't boot?  EDIT: I've tried booting from a disc, but that failed as well.
85798
Well, I have accidentally deleted my Ubuntu drive. I just want to recover all the contents of /home.   Is there a way to do it? I referred to , where I need to specify the extensions of files. And in my case, I don't know actual extensions. So, is there any utility which can let me recover my /home folder alone?  I have not even formatted that drive or touched it at all. So no write has been done on that drive.  If you have suggestions on how to recover, please tell me.
95688
How can I change my password?  I have looked around  but haven't found anything promising. A few answers got me close, but the advice always came from a more advanced user. I am new to the world of Linux however I feel I'm following the directions 100%.   I love Ubuntu &amp; I'm learning a lot of good information but I have been spending far to much energy &amp; time on what should be easy.
57460
So my friend has a USB flash drive that isn't working. I don't know a whole lot about "recovery" software so I figured I'd ask you guys.  What steps can I try (I have access to a Linux machine as well) to see....if I can get ANYTHING off the flash drive?  I've google'd around, but most of the stuff seems for windows.