2

There are a number of files (photos, stories, poetry... etc.) on a computer that I need to retrieve. Is there any way to get around the login procedure or to get to my files without the password? Any help would be appreciated and please break down any complicated directions as I haven't used a linux system for a few years.

muru
  • 197,895
  • 55
  • 485
  • 740
Brandon
  • 21
  • 1
  • 2
  • Possible Duplicate: http://askubuntu.com/q/24006/44179 – Seth Jan 04 '13 at 01:14
  • Resetting the password (as in the proposed dupe target), booting up, and logging on is just one of several reasonable ways to access files in a system on which one does not have a password. I don't think we should close this as a duplicate of that, as there are a variety of other ways, some which are often preferable. – Eliah Kagan Jan 04 '13 at 05:41

1 Answers1

1

If the partitions and folders aren't encrypted, you might try to

  1. boot to a bootable USB stick
  2. chown the files in question to nobody:root or the USB's user - or even root:root - anything that makes it possible for you to move them
  3. Pull up gksu nautilus, copy the files to another backup drive.

Other than that - if you know the current version installed on that PC, you might even try to install a more recent version and chose the upgrade option (should be available, haven't checked with the recent versions).

user98085
  • 1,613
  • Well option one is a no go. At least not right this minute. And as for installing an upgrade, how exactly do I go about this? And can I get a physical copy of ubuntu? – Brandon Jan 04 '13 at 01:18
  • @Brandon In both cases you would be required to create a bootable medium - DVD or Stick - and boot to Ubuntu, either to install it, or to simply run it. As for upgrading - as I said, I'm not sure how it works now. As far as I remember there is an option on the screen at the 4th step of this guide that allows upgrading. – user98085 Jan 04 '13 at 01:20
  • @Brandon You might want to check if the question iSeth linked to works for you, however. I personally had issues with that once, though - hence why I'm not using it myself. :D – user98085 Jan 04 '13 at 01:23