Arch Linux

ewaller

Administrator

From: Pasadena, CA

Registered: 2009-07-13

Posts: 20,260

[SOLVED]Regular User Cannot Login

I am having a problem with a system I have been using as a server.  This is a laptop with a broken hinge that used to be my daily driver.  Now it is a Plex server, my web server, and an Octoprint server.
I normally log into it via ssh with public key encryption.  ssh is configured for no passwords, only public key encryption is permitted. 

Today, I had the occasion to actually try to log in at the console.  My normal user cannot log in at the console.  root can log in at the console.
After root logs in, I can su to my user.  My user can then su to my user and, upon doing so is challenged for a password.  The user's password works properly for that challenge.
My user is a member of wheel.  sudo is set up to require a password for members of wheel.  I can use sudo with my user's password.
I can log into the box using ssh with public key encryption without a password.
If I enable sddm and reboot, the login screen comes up, but the user cannot log in from sddm.

This system has been a server for years.  It has been at least a year since I opened the lid for any purpose other than pressing the power switch so I have no idea when this problem began.

Any suggestions as to where to start debugging?

Last edited by ewaller (2024-11-26 18:09:35)

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Nothing is too wonderful to be true, if it be consistent with the laws of nature -- Michael Faraday
Sometimes it is the people no one can imagine anything of who do the things no one can imagine. -- Alan Turing
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ewaller

Administrator

From: Pasadena, CA

Registered: 2009-07-13

Posts: 20,260

Re: [SOLVED]Regular User Cannot Login

Oh, what's this:

Nov 26 09:43:18 labbench login[1022]: pam_shells(login:auth): User has an invalid shell '/usr/bin/zsh'

ewaller@labbench/~% chsh -l  
/bin/sh
/bin/bash
/bin/rbash
/usr/bin/sh
/usr/bin/bash
/usr/bin/rbash
/usr/bin/systemd-home-fallback-shell
ewaller@labbench/~% 

Why no zsh ?

Okay, I reinstalled the zsh package, it now shows up in my list of shells, and I can log in.

da faq?  How did that happen?  zsh worked fine when logged in via ssh and by su

Last edited by ewaller (2024-11-26 17:54:35)

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Nothing is too wonderful to be true, if it be consistent with the laws of nature -- Michael Faraday
Sometimes it is the people no one can imagine anything of who do the things no one can imagine. -- Alan Turing
---
How to Ask Questions the Smart Way

seth

Member

Registered: 2012-09-03

Posts: 59,882

Re: [SOLVED]Regular User Cannot Login

pacdiff oopsie?

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ewaller

Administrator

From: Pasadena, CA

Registered: 2009-07-13

Posts: 20,260

Re: [SOLVED]Regular User Cannot Login

pacdiff oopsie?

Interesting thought.  [Eric goes off to investigate....]

<edit>[... I'm back]  I'm going to leave this as a maybe.  If I did I cleaned up the evidence pretty well, no backup files, core files, pacnew or pacsave files to be found.  It is either pilot error or an artifact of this system being installed a long, long time ago and having been kept current through remote ssh login sessions.

Last edited by ewaller (2024-11-26 22:52:40)

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Nothing is too wonderful to be true, if it be consistent with the laws of nature -- Michael Faraday
Sometimes it is the people no one can imagine anything of who do the things no one can imagine. -- Alan Turing
---
How to Ask Questions the Smart Way