How to Reset Root Password for XenServer Host

This article describes how to reset the password of the XenServer Host.

Note: The boot loader has been changed during one of the previous releases of XenServer. Therefore, this article contains two procedures based on the XenServer versions.

To reset the password of the XenServer host, complete one of the following procedures based on the versions used:

• Reset Password in XenServer Version 4.1 and Earlier

• Reset Password in XenServer Versions 5.x?? and 6.x

Reset Password in XenServer Version 4.1 and Earlier

To reset the password in XenServer versions 3.1, 3.2, 4.0, or 4.1, complete one of the following procedures:

• No media Required

• Media Required??

No Media Required

To reset the password, complete the following procedure:

1. Restart XenServer.

2. Press E, at the GRUB prompt.

   

3. Switch to the line, module /boot/vmlinuz-2.6-xen root=LABEL=root-slwniknb ro console=tty0, as shown in the following screen shot:

   

4. Modify the line as the following:
   module /boot/vmlinuz-2.6-xen root=LABEL=root-pfbsesrv ro console=tty0 single

5. Press Enter.

6. Press B.

7. After XenServer starts in a single user mode, type passwd root and set the new root password.

   

8. Run the reboot command to restart XenServer.??

Procedure – Media Required

To reset the password, complete the following procedure:

1. Restart the XenServer Host and boot from the XenServer installation CD.

2. Press ALT+F2 to log on to virtual console 2.

3. Run the following command to create a mount point:
   # mkdir /mnt/root –p

4. Run the following command to check for a root file system partition:
   # fdisk –l
   Note: Most likely the boot partition will be labeled with “*”. Skip this step if you know the location of the root file system resides.

5. Run the following command to mount the root file system of the XenServer host:
   # mount /dev/sda1 /mnt

6. Run the following command:
   # chroot /mnt/root

7. Run the following command to change the password:
   # passwd

8. Run the following command to exit the chroot environment:
   #exit

9. Run the following command to restart the XenServer Host, remove the CD, boot from the hard drive, and log on with the new password:
   # reboot

Reset Password in XenServer Versions 5.x and Later

To reset the password in XenServer versions 5.0, 5.5, 5.6, 6.0, 6.0.2, 6.1, and 6.2, complete the following procedure:

1. Migrate any running Virtual Machines (VMs) to other servers or shut them down if you use a standalone server.

2. Restart the XenServer.

3. When the server completes the BIOS procedures, type menu.c32 at the boot: prompt and press Enter.

4. Highlight the default boot option (for example, xe or xe-serial) and press Tab key.

   

5. Replace "vga=785 splash" with linux single.

   

6. Press Enter to boot into Linux's single user mode.?? You should eventually be dropped into a command line prompt.

   

7. Run the passwd command to change the root password:

   

8. After setting the root password, run the following command to reboot XenServer:
   reboot

Note: This procedure also allows other kernel parameters to be applied to the host XenServer.