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I need to authenticate so that I can use the VNC Server and Viewer and be able to access the Pi's screen from another computer. When I download the VNC Server I have to authenticate and enter a password for the username "pi" . The password is not "raspberry" and I do not remember if I changed it or not (i am a newbie to this). I have been working on a project for a long time and I don't wanna have to reset the whole pi. Is there a solution to reset the password or "find " it somewhere so that I can keep working? Thanks

xoani
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2 Answers2

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The hashed password is stored in /etc/shadow. There is no efficient way to find out what the password is, by design.

However, it is easy to reset as long as you have physical access. Start a Linux on a computer. It can be an installed Linux or a Live Linux on a PC, or it can be a Linux on a PI. Find the line with the password of the PI in the /etc/shadow of an original SD card image. Mount your SD card, you may need an extra SD card reader for this. Replace the line with the password with the original value. You have reset the password to the original value.

RalfFriedl
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to reset your password:

  • Power down and pull the SD card out from your Pi and put it into your computer.
  • Open the file 'cmdline.txt' and add 'init=/bin/sh' to the end. This will cause the machine to boot to single user mode.
  • Put the SD card back in the Pi and boot.
  • When the prompt comes up, type 'su' to log in as root (no password needed).
  • Type "passwd pi" and then follow the prompts to enter a new password.
  • Shut the machine down, then pull the card again and put the cmdline.txt file back the way it was by removing the 'init=/bin/sh' bit.

more information: https://web.archive.org/web/20160228052651/http://mapledyne.com/ideas/2015/8/4/reset-lost-admin-password-for-raspberry-pi

Hope this helps!

das Keks
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Xilef
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