i know this sounds ultra newb but i dont know how to be "root" i cant install any RPM packages, and i dont know the root password. im on knoppix. please help!

root is the administartive account in linux
what is ur real roblem?
if u want to login as root when linux login prompt comes give the user name as root
and root passwd

root can be accessed vi a console by entering su (=super user) at the prompt. Re password see your documentation but quote from it;

"Q: What is the root password?

A: There is none; all passwords are locked by default. There are several
sections you can read dealing with this subject in
KNOPPIX/README_Security.txt."

Knoppix is Debian based and therefore uses the Debian packaging system. RPM packages are designed for use with RedHat based systems. It is often very difficult to use them as many need to place scripts in rc.local which does not exist on Debian. If you want a package look for it in the Debian package repositories. If you cannot find a Debian package then you need to compile it from a source tarball i.e. a compressed package. You may need to read up on Debian systems - but then you might as well just install it. You can find out about Debian at www.debian.org.

AAH! you dont get it! i dont know the root password or account. im the only user of the machine and i never set it up and i need to know how

I think in knoppix the root password is either root or toor or there is no password, you just press enter when prompted for it.

And the guy above was right, you don't use RPM files on knoppix, they're for Red Hat based systems. Knoppix is debian based.

If you're running Knoppix off the LiveCD there is no root password. But you can always become root using 'su' or perform certain actions with root privileges using 'sudo'.

Every linux system has the root user, it is created upon install / in your case allready exists on the live CD.. So you dont have to create it, it allready exists.. The last time I used knoppix all one had to do was type: su , it wouldnt even ask for a password.. Tho this might have changed in newer releases.. btw imho it comes from Switch User, not Super User.. (:

once you finally get up and going to convert your rpm packages to debian, you'll need to dl the application and then in console as root type alien -d "packagename".rpm note you won't actually use the quotations, this is where your packagename goes...i.e. say your packagename is blahblah.rpm...then in console as root (su) type alien -d blahblah.rpm and it will then be a debian programs so you can install...by the way make sure you have alien downloaded

It comes from Unix (I started using Unix's little brother, Xenix in 1988 which was then owned by the Santa Cruz Corporation) and stands for Super User as opposed to Ordinary user. The term derives from the fact that Super User has all administrative rights in the system.

noz6; I gave you the reference in the documentation and I quote again from my first post;

"Q: What is the root password?

A: There is none; all passwords are locked by default. There are several
sections you can read dealing with this subject in
KNOPPIX/README_Security.txt."

Please read the reply and read relevant documentation referred to else you are waisting both your and my time.

I read that "su" came from "substitute user" since you can use the command not just to gain root's priveleges, but to change to any user. Doesn't really matter I suppose

What is the best package system to use for Slackware? [/hijack]

Just to clarify the derivation of "su" once and for all since you have great difficulty accepting the fact that it stands for Superuser. Here are the following quotes and their references so you can check them out yourself;

Only predefined software can run in kernel mode

Obviously, software running in kernel mode can control the computer. If a user application was to run in kernel mode, it could prevent other applications from running, destroy their data, etc. It is therefore important to guarantee that user code will never run in kernel mode.The trick is that when the CPU switches to kernel mode, it also changes the program counter (PC) to point at operating system code. Thus user code will never get to run in kernel mode.
here are two ways to enter kernel mode: interrupts and system calls.
Note: kernel mode and superuser
Unix has a special priviledged user called the “superuser”. The superuser can override various protection mechanisms imposed by the operating system; for example, he can access other users’ private files. However, this does not imply running in kernel mode. The difference is between restrictions imposed by the operating system software, as part of the operating system services, and restrictions imposed by the hardware.

Reference: http://216.239.59.104/search?q=cache...client=firefox

Tightening Security in Linux

In order to further tighten security in Linux, there are a couple of essentials that should be performed. First of all, the Linux administrator should protect the ROOT account. If you are unfamiliar with this account, the ROOT user is the all-powerful Linux account holder. Root can do anything within the Linux filesystem while either logged in as root user or by issuing what is called the “SuperUser”, or su command at the command line using what is referred to as an X-Terminal window.

reference: http://www.cyberangels.homeip.net/html/other_oss.html

If you wish I can go on and on and on ........

Not to get into a discussion, but on my system when I man su

NAME
su - run a shell with substitute user and group IDs

and since i can
I would tend to think it means subsitute user


but, in the end, it doesnt really matter

Not to beat a dead horse (and off-topic, at that), but back in the mid-80s when I was a SVR2 system administrator, it was known that "su" stood for "switch user".

Strange how different distros have different descriptions. man su for Debian is;

DESCRIPTION
su is used to become another user during a login session. Invoked
without a username, su defaults to becoming the super user. The
optional argument - may be used to provide an environment similiar to
what the user would expect had the user logged in directly.

the fact that when "su" is invoked without a username it defaults to "su root" doesn't mean "su" stands for "super user"...

a non-root user can make use of "su" to become other users without ever even thinking about being root...

"su" most likely stands for "switch user" or "substitute user"...