# How to login to root account in LMDE ?



## RoutedScripter (Dec 7, 2011)

Hello

I just installed linux mint debian on an old HDD , i have knowledge of PCs and i do learn stuff quick.

Testing stuff out ... so have no idea about linux, but i won't learn this way, i will learn it my way, as i have learned win7, tweaked the shit out of it. This is testing, so i don't really care if anything breaks, i have windows on another hdd so don't worry. 

Please how do i access every single file every thing whatever it is on the computer without permission errors, read-only crap ... etc

I have spent 2 hours to search the web how to get into root mode in terminal... now i still don't have access to change simple files in /etc , still didn't figured out how to install/update firefox ... no deb file to be seen ... 

Also the auto updater reported so many warnings and 1 error .. kind of weird. Is this normal ?



Thank you for help



Spoiler



seriously this has to be the biggest joke ever ... can't find anything on the web, just some "root login" in terminal nonsense ... don't tell me it's not possible then i hit the format button right away.

what a good first-impression haha , also i installed LMDE cause one guy told me the difference from others so i thought this was to be the "OS FOR PROs" and look what i get - fiddle with this nonsense, where there could just be a SIMPLE option at start that could save me hours. I laugh from time to time at the stupidiness of the software at large, mostly at microsoft, but linux scores one here, cause im really angry i lost like 4 HOURS DOING .... NOTHING. 

The community expects you to know things to understand ... but it does really "good" on getting you started to learn, i am fucking sick of this babysitting, how the heck can those that CAN and WANT to evolve fast ... but can't because there are "security" measures for noobs in place. See the stupidity. It's stupid. If i would design debian, the first option i would offer: Select Root Mode or Normal Mode. DONE  No stupid sudo sumo chmod whoami wtfomg fiddling with the consoles all day long. what the heck man, all this could be avoided very simply in the beginning before the system starts for damn sakes sake of sakes.


----------



## Frick (Dec 7, 2011)

If you don't want to spend time in the console don't do Linux. And why would you want to have root access constantly? That is nothing you want in a system anyway.

My advice is that you get used to the console and keyboard shortcuts, it's the way Linux was meant to be.


----------



## 1freedude (Dec 7, 2011)

You have to give explicit permissions for any root operation.  I am not familiar with mint, but I do mess with my android.  Usually, any root command starts with "su"  which I gather stands for super user.  Dangerous territory here.  What su does is access a tool box of commands called busy box.  They let you do a whole bunch of admin stuff I don't care to know.

Learn busy box and you are golden.


----------



## travva (Dec 7, 2011)

actually su is the command that gives you root access during a specific session. sudo is likely what you're thinking of ^. @OP, seriously,  i think you need to re-evaluate your motives for using linux or at the very least do some googling. i suggest you google 'what is sudo' 'what is su' 'what is apt-get' to get started. good luck.


----------



## hellrazor (Dec 7, 2011)

I don't know about debian edition, but in Gnome Edition I can just login as root with my administrator account password at the login screen - but keep in mind that Gnome Edition is based on Ubuntu and Debian Edition is based on Debian and the only common thing between Ubuntu and Debian is the barest necessities in the Linux kernel.


----------



## RoutedScripter (Dec 7, 2011)

Ok ... fresh start.


Im doing something and well i have to edit a configuration file, which is read-only.

The whole folder is read only.

Plus if you're root it doesn't nag you about "not found" it is in "sbin/blabla", the root just executes even if it's in other folders.


See the point here, i want to use the console, but im left down and can't do anything, how am i supposed to learn if im not allowed to do anything ? That "step by step from babysitting mode up" is a way of learning that in my opinion is quite less effective for me, i wouldn't have figured out as much of the low level stuff.


----------



## RoutedScripter (Dec 7, 2011)

Aha ... now i asked someone physically who knows this and he fixed it for me in less than 10 seconds, using root in console he right clicked on /etc and "opened as administrator" TADA ... done. The window was painted red in color so that means it works.


My motives for linux are wine, system tools, tweaking, driver modification, programming, stuff that you can't do effciently with these silly permission naggies. Throwing away time to get this console to work, while i should already have wine working and other stuff prepared.



1freedude said:


> Dangerous territory here.



no offense but i simply
do
not
care

I said that in the first post  I am testing which means learning, im not depending on linux. I don't have to babysit it in the first install , hell i'll probably do 10 reinstalls before i settle down so ... i don't really expect to settle down anytime soon.

Feels like one of those threads where i want to disable/explain the windows pagefile and everyone goes "why, you shouldn't do that, windows won't work" ... they know exactly what i mean over at the software forums  noumerous such occasions. Well people should start to ... relax and stop worrying so much.

The problem with those worries is ... they're invalid, wrong information. I don't run pagefile on win7 and everything works better than ever. To this date i haven't seen a single app to be saying "cannot run because pagefile is disabled"... trololololo


EDIT:

Anyways already reinstalled LMDE - downloading updates now. Firefox did not update and also updates were broken so i didn't want to waste more time on the whole thing.


But okay i won't use anything alse except "sudo passwd root" which will let me to open as admin and there i am what i wanted so no other things necessary imo.


----------



## eightclicknine (Dec 7, 2011)

RuskiSnajper said:


> Ok ... fresh start.
> 
> 
> Im doing something and well i have to edit a configuration file, which is read-only.
> ...



Are you trying to access through terminal?
Root mode in debian should be su- or su -
sudo gedit will get you into any config file as root
/etc/sudoers contains information on giving accounts root privelage
sudo visudo is used to open this sudoers file to edit permissions.
I agree with the others, the GUI is great but linux is ALOT of cmd line, so if you want to learn this it is crucial that you learn command line, you will get no where fast without it.


----------



## RoutedScripter (Dec 7, 2011)

Okay the guy showd me now to do it with

sudo su


i open folders "as administrator" and give write&read permissions to everyone


Works fine thought. Still some programs like SQLITE3 had problems writting as i had to make write permissions to the normal account too not just root , on the empty file it self and not just folder , but weird because i ran every command with root, seems to be faster than going into /sbin/ and whatelse.


----------



## 1freedude (Dec 7, 2011)

None taken.  Just stating the obvious.


----------



## Easy Rhino (Dec 8, 2011)

you should probably do some reading on linux directory structure and file permissions before you begin.


----------



## yogurt_21 (Dec 8, 2011)

Easy Rhino said:


> you should probably do some reading on linux directory structure and file permissions before you begin.



not to mention the essential gnu commands.


----------



## Easy Rhino (Dec 8, 2011)

yogurt_21 said:


> not to mention the essential gnu commands.



very true. a lot of new people to linux think they can just plow through it and learn as they go. that is a very painful way to go about it even for the quickest of learners. you may even get frustrated enough to think Linux sucks because you can't understand how it works.

remember, if you hit a wall in linux, it is not linux it is YOU.


----------

