SUDO PASSWD RESET?

[Maskero]

Preface: *I recently did a factory reset on my steam deck

So I recently did a factory reset on my steam deck and was reinstanling emudeck but when the prompt came up from sudo password i couldnt remember it I dont know how to reset it or why theres still a password on there after the factory reset.
without access to the bios on steam deck start up im not sure how to go about resetting my sudo password please any help would be greatly appreciated

[ReBoot]

Which of the recovery options have you used?

[Taktloss]

Set the password again in Desktop mode under Settings and then users or similar.
Depending on what you select on the factory reset some data is still left on the Steam Deck which can be good if you dont want to loose you data.

[Izeyash]

You can change the password in settings, no need for konsole. I was trying the konsole command too but it wasn't deterministic, meaning that even if I did the same things the results weren't.

Going via system settings worked flawlessly.

[Maskero]

Originally posted by Izeyash:

You can change the password in settings, no need for konsole. I was trying the konsole command too but it wasn't deterministic, meaning that even if I did the same things the results weren't.

Going via system settings worked flawlessly.

How in system settings? where do you get the options to change the sudo password in the system settings?

[Izeyash]

Originally posted by Maskero:

Originally posted by Izeyash:

You can change the password in settings, no need for konsole. I was trying the konsole command too but it wasn't deterministic, meaning that even if I did the same things the results weren't.

Going via system settings worked flawlessly.

How in system settings? where do you get the options to change the sudo password in the system settings?

You seriously are asking me how to access the system settings to change your user password?

[Yuusharo]

Originally posted by Izeyash:

Originally posted by Maskero:

How in system settings? where do you get the options to change the sudo password in the system settings?

You seriously are asking me how to access the system settings to change your user password?

Not exactly a helpful response 🙄

Knowledge isn’t intuitive. No one is born knowing something. You had to learn how something worked before you knew about it. No idea why you’re on a community support forum just to be a jerk about something, but you do you I guess.

Anyway, to OP: just redo the passwd command in konsole. SteamOS will always prompt for the su password even after a factory reset when no password is set. That’s just how Linux works.

Running passwd at any time will let you set a new password. Cheers!

[Izeyash]

Originally posted by Yuusharo:

Originally posted by Izeyash:

You seriously are asking me how to access the system settings to change your user password?

Not exactly a helpful response 🙄

Knowledge isn’t intuitive. No one is born knowing something. You had to learn how something worked before you knew about it. No idea why you’re on a community support forum just to be a jerk about something, but you do you I guess.

Anyway, to OP: just redo the passwd command in konsole. SteamOS will always prompt for the su password even after a factory reset when no password is set. That’s just how Linux works.

Running passwd at any time will let you set a new password. Cheers!

It wasn't supposed to be helpful. Changing the user password is really that easy.

[Tev]

It really isn't though. It wants my current password to change my password to a new one if I try it via settings.

Mounting it elsewhere it is.

[Maskero]

i ended up putting the steam os on a usb and resetting it that way

[ZoLatKam]

Originally posted by Tev:

It really isn't though. It wants my current password to change my password to a new one if I try it via settings.

Mounting it elsewhere it is.

In case you're still looking for a way to do this on the Steam Deck or for anyone else that isn't familiar with Linux GUIs:
- Tap the [Plasma] button (Steam Deck symbol in place of the Windows key on most PCs)
- Tap [Settings] > [System Settings]
- Tap [Users] (Under "Personalization" section)
- Tap [Change Password] button
- Enter desired password, twice
- Tap [Set Password]

I was able to set a password, and use the sudo command, without issue.

[master.z]

Originally posted by ZoLatKam:

Originally posted by Tev:

It really isn't though. It wants my current password to change my password to a new one if I try it via settings.

Mounting it elsewhere it is.

In case you're still looking for a way to do this on the Steam Deck or for anyone else that isn't familiar with Linux GUIs:
- Tap the "Plasma" button (Steam Deck symbol in place of the Windows key on most PCs)
- Tap "Settings" > "System Settings"
- Tap "Users" (Under "Personalization" section)
- Tap "Change Password" button
- Enter desired password, twice
- Tap "Set Password"

I was able to set a password, and use the sudo command, without issue.

What you and others does not understand is that you can not change the password if you forgot the old one!! It is simply to write go to setting etc etc, but you does not understood the real issue

[Jake Sully]

Originally posted by master.z:

Originally posted by ZoLatKam:

In case you're still looking for a way to do this on the Steam Deck or for anyone else that isn't familiar with Linux GUIs:
- Tap the "Plasma" button (Steam Deck symbol in place of the Windows key on most PCs)
- Tap "Settings" > "System Settings"
- Tap "Users" (Under "Personalization" section)
- Tap "Change Password" button
- Enter desired password, twice
- Tap "Set Password"

I was able to set a password, and use the sudo command, without issue.

What you and others does not understand is that you can not change the password if you forgot the old one!! It is simply to write go to setting etc etc, but you does not understood the real issue

I don't think you understood the issue. Person said they did factory reset and this question comes. So there is no password set. He can just type passwd in terminal write new password 2 times and done. When I first got my steam deck it was the same where it also asked me for a password to use sudo command. Since I never assigned one I can do it with command I wrote and it solved my problem.

[maxRunner]

There seems to be confusion about whether a password was set or not. Also note, there can be two passwords, the user and root.

- Steam deck defaults to no passwords.
- On steam deck sudo won't even work unless you set a user password. pkexec will work however. I would consider just using pkexec and leaving everything alone.
- There are multiple ways to set the user password, one is the command 'passwd'. Another is the GUI.
- Once you set a user password pkexec and sudo seem to behave the same.
- You can remove the user password using 'passwd -d deck' from a root prompt.
- If you have set a user password, but you don't remember what it is, then you are in kind of a pickle but there are ways to fix it, like

Originally posted by Maskero:

i ended up putting the steam os on a usb and resetting it that way

[BreakfastSamurai]

I'm in the same situation. No one has answered the question. I forgot my sudo password and need to reset it. I can't reset it without the old one. Is there a way to do a system restore for the Steam Deck Desktop mode. Factory Rest in the 'Game Mode' didn't work...

[BreakfastSamurai]

Originally posted by BreakfastSamurai:

I'm in the same situation. No one has answered the question. I forgot my sudo password and need to reset it. I can't reset it without the old one. Is there a way to do a system restore for the Steam Deck Desktop mode. Factory Rest in the 'Game Mode' didn't work...

I found a solution.
https://help.steampowered.com/en/faqs/view/1B71-EDF2-EB6D-2BB3

You will have to re-image the steam os on the steam deck. That seems to be the best way to 'reset' your sudo password back to default.