14.04.4 LTS root login after install

[Chan_Kim]

This should be very basic question but, can't I login as root after fresh install?
The install procedure asks for my name(Chan Kim) and login ID(ckim) so I entered my name and login.
I can login using that ID (ckim), but how do I login as root?

[coffeecat]

If by login as root, you mean log into a GUI as root, you do not need to. And if you do mean that you wish to log into a GUI as root, that is not something we will support here. Please see our login as root policy:

http://ubuntuforums.org/showthread.php?t=1486138

Also the RootSudo wiki page: https://help.ubuntu.com/community/RootSudo

[grahammechanical]

Ubuntu works differently from some other Linux distributions. Those kind of distributions create two accounts. One for Root/Administrator and one for a standard user. With Ubuntu we get one account and we work as a Standard user until we try to do something that only Root/Administrator is allowed to do then we are asked to authenticate. We put in our password and at that moment we are working as Root.

In regards to entering commands in the terminal. If the command requires the user to have Root/Administrator privileges we pre-fix the command with "sudo." We are then asked for our password. Which is not printed to the screen as we type it. To use a harmless command as an example.


apt-get update

will get this


graham@sdb7-Dev:~$ apt-get update
W: chmod 0700 of directory /var/lib/apt/lists/partial failed - SetupAPTPartialDirectory (1: Operation not permitted)
E: Could not open lock file /var/lib/apt/lists/lock - open (13: Permission denied)
E: Unable to lock directory /var/lib/apt/lists/
W: Problem unlinking the file /var/cache/apt/pkgcache.bin - RemoveCaches (13: Permission denied)
W: Problem unlinking the file /var/cache/apt/srcpkgcache.bin - RemoveCaches (13: Permission denied)
E: Could not open lock file /var/lib/dpkg/lock - open (13: Permission denied)
E: Unable to lock the administration directory (/var/lib/dpkg/), are you root?


But

sudo apt-get update

will get this


graham@sdb7-Dev:~$ sudo apt-get update
[sudo] password for graham:


And away we go updating/upgrading as Root/Administrator.

Regards.