How to enable root login Ubuntu
o actually enable root logins first you have to set a password for the root account and then unlock the locked root account. If you don't set a password for the root account the passwd command will return
passwd: unlocking the password would result in a passwordless account.
So, first execute in a terminal
sudo passwd root
you will be prompted for a new Unix password. Write it twice (second for confirmation).
Then execute
sudo passwd -u root
to unlock the account. This should return
passwd: password expiry information changed
Reverting back
If you want to disable root account in Ubuntu you need to lock the root account by using the following command sudo passwd -l root
Alternatives to root login
If you want to work on a root console you can also use sudo -i.
Only do this if you know what you are doing. More information on why to stay with sudo here
Graphical version needs setting up 1st:
pkexec gnome-terminal will open a terminal with a root prompt.
passwd root will allow you to create a password for root.
