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Asked: 2024-09-24T05:43:29+05:30 In:

I’m encountering an issue while trying to modify my user settings in Ubuntu, specifically receiving an error related to authentication token manipulation. Can anyone provide guidance on how to resolve this problem?

I’m having a bit of a headache trying to tweak my user settings on Ubuntu. So, here’s what’s happening: every time I try to change something, like when I want to update my password or even modify account privileges, it throws back an authentication error about token manipulation. At first, I thought maybe I was just entering the wrong password or something, but that’s definitely not the case since I’ve double-checked it.

I mean, I’ve been using Ubuntu for a while now and this is the first time I’ve faced an issue like this. I did a bit of digging online, and it seems like this type of error might have to do with file permissions or some underlying user configuration related to PAM (Pluggable Authentication Modules) or something? I tried running a couple of terminal commands that I found in various forums, but nothing really seemed to help.

I even tried rebooting, thinking maybe a fresh start would clear things up, but nope! Same frustrating issue. This is really throwing a wrench in my plans because I was hoping to set everything up for a project I’m working on, and now I’m stuck.

Has anyone else run into this problem and figured out a fix? I’m not super tech-savvy, so if there’s a potential solution, could you explain it in a way that’s easy to follow? I’ve read some posts mentioning checking the permissions of certain files, and I’m a bit intimidated by that since I don’t want to accidentally mess something up.

If it helps, I’m running an Ubuntu version that’s a couple of years old, so maybe that’s part of the issue? Any advice or step-by-step guidance would be incredibly appreciated because, at this point, I’m feeling a bit lost and it’s really slowing things down for me. Thanks in advance for any insights!

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    2 Answers

    1. The authentication error you’re encountering while trying to modify user settings on Ubuntu may be related to permissions on the files involved in the authentication process, particularly those associated with PAM (Pluggable Authentication Modules). Since you’re already familiar with using Ubuntu, a good first step would be to check the permissions of the `/etc/passwd`, `/etc/shadow`, and the relevant PAM configuration files in `/etc/pam.d/`. You can do this by opening a terminal and running the command `ls -l /etc/passwd /etc/shadow /etc/pam.d/`. Make sure that the files have the correct ownership and permissions; typically, `/etc/passwd` should have permissions set to `644` and be owned by `root:root`, while `/etc/shadow` should be `640` and also owned by `root:shadow`. If any of these aren’t set correctly, you can adjust them with the `chmod` and `chown` commands, but you should proceed cautiously and back up these files first.

      If verifying the permissions doesn’t resolve the issue, consider reconfiguring the PAM settings. A helpful command can be `sudo pam-auth-update`, which brings up a configuration interface allowing you to check the status of various PAM modules. Ensure essential modules like “Unix authentication” and “Password authentication” are enabled. Lastly, since you’re using an older version of Ubuntu, make sure it’s up-to-date with the required packages by running `sudo apt update` and `sudo apt upgrade`. This can help resolve any existing bugs that may be affecting the user settings functionality. If all else fails, seeking assistance from the Ubuntu community forums can provide more specific help tailored to your version.



    2. Ubuntu User Settings Issue

      Looks like you’re dealing with a pretty tricky issue there! It’s definitely frustrating when you just want to tweak your settings but keep running into those authentication errors.

      First off, yeah, those “token manipulation” errors can be a head-scratcher. It often points to something going wrong with authentication, and it could relate to file permissions or your PAM settings, like you mentioned. Here are a few steps to try and hopefully help clear things up:

      1. Check Your System Logs:

        Open a terminal and run:

        sudo less /var/log/auth.log

        This might give you more insight into what’s failing. Look for lines that show up when you try to change your settings.

      2. Check your password expiry:

        It’s possible your password has expired. Run this in the terminal:

        sudo chage -l your_username

        Replace your_username with your actual username. If your password is expired, you’ll need to change it with:

        sudo passwd your_username

      3. Look at your home directory permissions:

        Wrong permissions can cause issues, so check them with:

        ls -ld ~

        You should see something like drwx------. If it looks different, it might need fixing. You can update permissions with:

        chmod 700 ~

      4. Reinstall `login` package:

        Sometimes, reinstalling certain packages can help. Try running:

        sudo apt-get install --reinstall login

      And, yeah, if you’re using an older version of Ubuntu, you might want to consider updating if possible. Sometimes updates can fix underlying issues.

      If you mess something up, don’t worry—you can usually recover from most changes, and also having a backup is always a good practice. But make sure to follow these steps carefully, and hopefully, you’ll be back to setting things up for your project in no time!

      Good luck, and hang in there; you’re doing great learning this stuff!


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