**NOTICE** I have not had much luck in the MEPIS (my distro) community, that is why I am posting this question in this message board instead of the MEPIS message board on this website.

I have a problem adding new user accounts in MEPIS version 3.43. Please note that for my current MEPIS installation, I have not tried to add users before. However, in previous MEPIS 3.43 installations (on same pc, etc) everything went fine.

Here are the steps:

1) First, I log in using my regular (1 and only regular account) MEPIS 3.43 account. I click on the lower left icon to go to the "MEPIS Config (OS Center)" and enter my root password to proceed. Then, I go to "add user" and type in a name and password for that new user I want to add. Unfortunately, no matter what name / password I type, I get the same reply: failed to add new user. I log off.

2) Second, I log in as "root" at the login screen instead of my regular account. I click on the lower left icon go go to the "MEPIS Config (OS Center)" then I go to "add user" and type in a name and password for that new user I want to add. It works fine. I log off.

3) Third, I log in again as my 1st regular account (the account I used in step 1). I try to add another account that way, so I click on the lower left icon to go to the "MEPIS Config (OS Center" and enter my root password to proceed. Then, I go to "add user" and type in a name and password for that new user I want to add. Again, no matter what name / password I type, I get the same reply: failed to add new user. I do not log off.

4) Fourth, out of curiosity, I remain logged in my regular account at the MEPIS Config and try to delete the new user account I just created in step 2. I deleted it fine.

So, when using my regular account, why am I unable to add a new user, but able to delete the new user? Of course, how can I fix this? I do not want to login as "root" at the login screen everytime I want to add a new user. Please note, I have never had this problem before with MEPIS 3.43. I'm lost. Any thoughts?

When you're logged in as your reg. user, as in step one, can you make any other system wide changes? Other than deleting the account.

On a side note, you could always add users the old fashioned way, with useradd. man useradd.

or you could use kde's kusers, thatn tends to work well.

the problem. The user names I selected all began with an upper case letter. Once I changed to a lower case letter, things went well.

Things like this. . .why I still keep M$ around, as much as I hate to do so.