What does login as root mean?

In Linux, you can run privileged commands using the sudo keyword. However, sometimes it becomes a tedious act when you are doing administrative tasks and each command requires root privileges. To get rid of such a situation, become a root user and then execute commands.

This article provides various possibilities to become a root user on Linux.

How do I become a root user on Linux

As discussed earlier the root user has the necessary privileges to execute and perform various tasks on Linux-based systems. This section demonstrates Linux commands that can be used to become a root user on Linux.

How to use the sudo command to become a root user

The sudo command allows a normal user to perform the tasks that a superuser can do. Here, we provide the possible usages of the sudo command to become a root user.

Using the “sudo su –”

The `su` refers to switching the user and if the username is not provided, it will switch you to a root user, and the command provided below assists in this regard.

$ sudo su

What does login as root mean?

After successful authentication, it is noted that we are now switched to a root user.

Using the “sudo su”

The command written below will change the privileges to the root user.

$ sudo su

What does login as root mean?

Using the “sudo -i”

The command provided below will change the privileges to a root user.

$ sudo -i

What does login as root mean?

The output shows that the dollar sign($) has been replaced by the pound key(#) which also directs that you are currently logged in using the root privileges.

Using “sudo -s”

The “-s” parameter enables the user to run the shell with a specific user. And if the username is not specified then the root (default) is considered.

$ sudo -s

What does login as root mean?

How to use su command to become a root user

The su command allows you to switch the user to someone else by providing its username. However, if the name is not specified, the su command would allow you to execute the commands with root privileges.

There are various parameters that would allow you to become a root user.

Using “su –”

$ su -

What does login as root mean?

Using “su -l”

$ su -l

What does login as root mean?

Using “–login”

$ su –-login

What does login as root mean?

It is observed from the above outputs that you are switched to the root user and can now perform the privileged tasks.

During the authentication of su command, you have to put the root password.

Note: In case you are unable to execute the above commands, you must set the password for root by using the following command.

$ sudo passwd root

What does login as root mean?

Bonus Tip

Once you are logged in as a root user, it is recommended to check whether you are working with root privileges or not. To do so, the $LOGNAME variable would help, as the $LOGNAME contains the user you are currently logged in as.

$ echo $LOGNAME

For instance, we have tried to switch to the root user using the “su” command, and let’s check the logged-in user with the help of the following command.

$ su

# echo $LOGNAME

What does login as root mean?

The output shows that you are not logged in using the root privileges.

Conclusion

The root user is the ultimate boss of a Linux system, it can perform any task without any hurdle. This guide intends to explore the possible commands or ways to become a root user on Linux so that the frequent authentication hurdle can be avoided. Lastly, it is concluded that the sudo and su keywords are the main stakeholder to become a root user on Linux-based machines. The sudo requires the password of the currently logged-in user whereas the su requires the password of the target user.

What does root mean as a user?

The user named root, or superuser, is a special user account in UNIX-like operating systems that has unrestricted read and write privileges to all areas of the file system in OS X 10.10 or earlier. However, in OS X 10.11 or later, the root user's write access to certain areas of the file system is restricted.

What does root password mean?

When a user uses root passwords, the attacker simply leverages bots and tools to try iterations of that password. Based on typical password patterns, they often can determine the real password. Ethical hackers and hackathons can routinely crack very complex passwords in very short periods of time.

Should I enable root account?

We strongly recommend that you do not use the root user for your everyday tasks, even the administrative ones. As a best practice, safeguard your root user credentials and don't use them for everyday tasks. Root user credentials are only used to perform a few account and service management tasks.

Is root user same as admin?

The root account is actually the more powerful account. The administrator account is there to assist users operating in a Microsoft environment.