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Re: [Xen-users] resetting lost root password on a xen guest

From: Nico Kadel-Garcia <nkadel@xxxxxxxxx>

Date: Tue, 30 Oct 2007 15:49:11 +0000

Delivery-date: Tue, 30 Oct 2007 08:48:41 -0700

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List-id: Xen user discussion <xen-users.lists.xensource.com>

Darren Jacobs wrote:

Hi All,

I need to get into a xenguest running linux for which the rootpassword has been lost. I'm running xen 3.0.3 under RH 5.

I'm trying to figure out how to get pygrub for this guest to load upthe typical "init=/bin/sh" to get the console to come up at thecommand line prompt so I can reset the root password.

Why? Can't you shut down the DomU, mount the DomU's "/" partitin, do a

chroot to it, and edit it from the Dom0?

If not, you should be able to use "xm create -c domain" to get the grub

console and boot into single user mode, unless you've been very fascist

about your grub configuration.

Trolling though google I've see suggestions to add args ='init=/bin/sh' or opts = 'init=/bin/sh' to the guest configurationfile. None of them appeared to have worked. If I do a 'xen createecho11 -n' after making any of the above file mods I see that the argswere not modified:


--
(vm
    (name echo11)
    (memory 500)
    (on_reboot restart)
    (on_crash restart)
    (vcpus 1)
    (uuid cb855323-2867-b84a-d766-32a39d252bb7)
    (bootloader /usr/bin/pygrub)
    (image
        (linux
            (ramdisk /var/lib/xen/initrd.kIQYUw)
            (kernel /var/lib/xen/vmlinuz.Xwl81-)
            (args 'ro root=/dev/VolGroup00/LogVol00')
        )
    )
    (device

(tap (uname tap:aio:/var/lib/xen/images/echo11) (dev xvda)(mode w))

    )
    (device (vif (bridge xenbr0) (mac 00:16:3e:69:69:90)))
--

So I tried to bring the guest up manually from dom0 with " pygrub/var/lib/xen/images/echo11.dsk". When the menu comes up I edit thekernel line directly and insert "init=/bin/sh". You can see belowthat the init statement was indeed read:

See, this is where you should use "xm create -c 'DOMAIN'" _______________________________________________ Xen-users mailing list Xen-users@xxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxx http://lists.xensource.com/xen-users

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