"Sorry, unable to set root password" error during install

When you run into problems installing MX Linux XFCE
Message
Author
dorkypanda

"Sorry, unable to set root password" error during install

#1 Post by dorkypanda »

I've got to the last page of installing Mx Linux from usb on my machine, the HDD was wiped and I've never had Mx before, but for some reason I can't set a password. I've tried lots of different things, character lengths, symbols etc but nothing works. Any help greatly appreciated!

User avatar
dolphin_oracle
Developer
Posts: 19921
Joined: Sun Dec 16, 2007 1:17 pm

Re: "Sorry, unable to set root password" error during install

#2 Post by dolphin_oracle »

I've heard of one other user with this error and we never did track it down.

Let me see if I understand...you put in the user password and the root password, but you get the message upon clicking apply, correct?

I think this may work as a workaround.

1. close the installer. the system should still boot.

2. after reboot, open a terminal and do

Code: Select all


sudo passwd root

supply your user password when prompted. you should be able to give the root account a new password that way.
http://www.youtube.com/runwiththedolphin
lenovo ThinkPad X1 Extreme Gen 4 - MX-23
FYI: mx "test" repo is not the same thing as debian testing repo.

User avatar
Eadwine Rose
Administrator
Posts: 11894
Joined: Wed Jul 12, 2006 2:10 am

Re: "Sorry, unable to set root password" error during install

#3 Post by Eadwine Rose »

Just to be sure: you did check the md5sum of the download and the usb, right? These kinds of minor quirks can happen if the sum mismatches.
MX-23.2_x64 July 31 2023 * 6.1.0-18-amd64 ext4 Xfce 4.18.1 * 8core AMD Ryzen 7 2700
Asus TUF B450-Plus Gaming UEFI * Asus GTX 1050 Ti Nvidia 525.147.05 * 2x16Gb DDR4 2666 Kingston HyperX Predator
Samsung 860EVO * Samsung S24D330 & P2250 * HP Envy 5030

dorkypanda

Re: "Sorry, unable to set root password" error during install

#4 Post by dorkypanda »

Dolphin, that is correct. I will try that :)
Eadwine I'm sorry but I have no idea what that is :P

User avatar
Artim
Posts: 288
Joined: Sun Apr 01, 2018 9:04 am

Re: "Sorry, unable to set root password" error during install

#5 Post by Artim »

dorkypanda wrote: Sat Mar 23, 2019 7:46 am Eadwine I'm sorry but I have no idea what that is :P
Whwen you first download the MX iso, there's a series of numbers and letters called the md5sum. This md5sum needs to EXACTLY match the one in the iso when you go to put the downloaded file on a USB stick or DVD. If any of the numbers or letters are different, it means the iso got messed up during the download, and there may be issues with your copy. Trash that copy and use a new one before installing.

A lot of people skip that step, since it seems to happen only rarely, but it's a way to insure that your downloaded copy is a true copy, uncorrupted.

dorkypanda

Re: "Sorry, unable to set root password" error during install

#6 Post by dorkypanda »

Hey guys just wanted to update this. I tried just closing it when the PW wasn't working but it wouldn't load on boot, didn't detect the OS or Grub. So I tried reinstalling from the same iso and there was no PW issue this time but still not detected. Decided to try redownloading and use the new iso, worked like a charm, so clearly a corrupt download! Thank you all so much for the help :)

User avatar
fehlix
Developer
Posts: 10303
Joined: Wed Apr 11, 2018 5:09 pm

Re: "Sorry, unable to set root password" error during install

#7 Post by fehlix »

dorkypanda wrote: Sat Mar 23, 2019 7:58 pm Hey guys just wanted to update this. I tried just closing it when the PW wasn't working but it wouldn't load on boot, didn't detect the OS or Grub. So I tried reinstalling from the same iso and there was no PW issue this time but still not detected. Decided to try redownloading and use the new iso, worked like a charm, so clearly a corrupt download! Thank you all so much for the help :)
Probably a good time to check our wiki for how to do integrity verification of the download iso.
First hints are given on the top of the
ISO Download page::
https://mxlinux.org/wiki/system/iso-download-mirrors/
And and pointers to those wiki entries are mentioned also for
Checking integrity of downloaded iso-files :
https://mxlinux.org/wiki/system/checkin ... iso-files/
and
Checking signed ISO files :
https://mxlinux.org/wiki/system/signed-iso-files/
Note: It's never to late to get prepared for such integrity checks.
Within running MX Linux the Thunar file-manager provides a nice context menu entry for checksum-verification of downloade iso's.
:puppy:
Gigabyte Z77M-D3H, Intel Xeon E3-1240 V2 (Quad core), 32GB RAM,
GeForce GTX 770, Samsung SSD 850 EVO 500GB, Seagate Barracuda 4TB

User avatar
JJones
Posts: 4
Joined: Sat Apr 06, 2019 7:49 pm

Re: "Sorry, unable to set root password" error during install

#8 Post by JJones »

I'm getting the same problem... won't accept the root password after copying all the files over and after/during grub setup.
It won't boot to the unfinished install.
Maybe I can run GRUB from the live image - I'll try it once I have more time.

My md5sum is ok.. so not a corrupt image.
I'm installing into a VirtualBox virtual machine.

User avatar
JJones
Posts: 4
Joined: Sat Apr 06, 2019 7:49 pm

Solved: Was Low on Disk Space Re: "Sorry, unable to set root password" error during install

#9 Post by JJones »

Solved it... was running low on disk space.

User avatar
Adrian
Developer
Posts: 8248
Joined: Wed Jul 12, 2006 1:42 am

Re: Solved: Was Low on Disk Space Re: "Sorry, unable to set root password" error during install

#10 Post by Adrian »

JJones wrote: Sat Apr 06, 2019 8:41 pm Solved it... was running low on disk space.
Hmn, interesting, how much space did you original give to MX, do you know?

Post Reply

Return to “Installation”