Resetting The Root Password

The portal doesn't have a one-click "Reset root password" button. The supported way to set a new root or admin password is to reinstall the OS - the install form lets you set the initial credentials, and the new system comes up with them. If you need to keep the data on the disk, the alternative is to boot a rescue ISO and reset the password by hand from the rescue shell.

Pick the path that matches your situation:

• You don't need the data on the disk: Path A (reinstall). Fastest and simplest.
• You need to keep the data: Path B (rescue + passwd). A few more steps, but nothing is wiped.

• Decide which path you need. If in doubt, back up first and use reinstall.
• This page is about your server's root password, not your portal login password. For the portal login, see Changing Your Password.
• For Path B you'll need a rescue ISO link ready (Grml, SystemRescue, or your distro's installer).
• The server must not be suspended. Contact Support first if it is.

This wipes the disk. You'll set the new password in the reinstall form, the same way you would at order time.

For the full reinstall walkthrough, see Reinstalling the OS.

This boots a rescue ISO, mounts your root filesystem, and runs passwd from a chroot. The data on the disk is untouched.

1. Open Settings > ISO Media and mount a rescue ISO.

2. Switch Boot Order to CD-ROM.

3. Power-cycle.

You'll end up at the rescue ISO's boot menu.

In the top-right toolbar of the VPS detail page, click Console. The noVNC tab attaches to the running rescue environment. Pick the default boot entry from the rescue menu and wait for a shell prompt.

In the rescue shell, mount the original root partition, plus the kernel virtual filesystems, then chroot in. Replace <root-partition> with your actual root device — lsblk will help you find it.

mount /dev/<root-partition> /mnt
mount -t proc proc /mnt/proc
mount -t sysfs sys /mnt/sys
mount -o bind /dev /mnt/dev
chroot /mnt

If you use LVM, activate the volume group first with vgchange -ay, then mount /dev/<vg-name>/<lv-name> instead.

Inside the chroot:

passwd root

Type the new password twice. You'll see passwd: password updated successfully when it works.

1. Type exit to leave the chroot.
2. Unmount everything in reverse:umount /mnt/dev /mnt/sys /mnt/proc /mnt
3. Back in the portal, open Settings → ISO Media and click Unmount on the rescue ISO row.
4. Switch Boot Order back to Disk first.
5. Click Reboot now in the banner.

The VM boots off its own disk again. The disk contents are unchanged — only the root password has been updated.

For dedicated servers, there's no in-portal ISO mount. Use the KVM session and your remote-management agent's virtual-media feature to attach a rescue image, or open a Support ticket for hands-on help.

• After either path, log in with the new password from your usual SSH client.
• Path A: the rest of the system is fresh too. Your previous data is gone. Cloud-init applies the SSH keys and password on first boot, which can take an extra minute.
• Path B: nothing else is changed. Services, files, and configuration are exactly as you left them.
• The password change isn't logged in the portal Activity tab (it happens inside the guest OS, which Synteq doesn't see). The reinstall or ISO mount that surrounded it is logged.