Questions tagged [recovery-mode]

Questions about using and getting tasks done with the command line recovery mode.

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How do I boot into a root shell?

When booting to the graphical desktop fails we sometimes are recommended to boot into a "root shell" or to boot in "recovery mode". How do I do that?
Takkat's user avatar
  • 142k
16 votes
1 answer
28k views

Cannot lock '/etc/group' in recovery mode

I've currently booted into recovery mode, because I removed my sole user from admin :/ When I run adduser oadams admin, I get gpasswd: cannot lock /etc/group; try again later. For what it's worth, ...
oadams's user avatar
  • 1,301
15 votes
2 answers
57k views

Unable to mount filesystem as read-write in recovery mode

I deleted two unused user accounts. Now I am unable to login even into my own account. I rebooted in recovery mode in the root shell and tried to restore the back-up of /etc/passwd. However, the ...
Louis's user avatar
  • 263
12 votes
2 answers
37k views

fsck e2fsck: Cannot continue, aborting [duplicate]

When I tried to run fsck on Ubuntu 18.04 recovery-mode I got the following message. Can anyone tell me why? /lib/recocery-mode/recovery-menu: line 80: /etc/default/rcS: No such file or directory fsck ...
William Mills's user avatar
10 votes
1 answer
32k views

How to boot to the recovery mode if it is not listed in Grub?

I want to boot Ubuntu into recovery mode but there is no grub menu entry allowing me to do so. I pressed e and now I am able to edit boot options. It looks like that: setparams 'Ubuntu , with Linux 3....
q9f's user avatar
  • 1,231
10 votes
1 answer
16k views

Ubuntu 12.04 recovery mode root shell has no internet connection

I'm debugging some things on my computer and I boot into recovery mode from the grub menu. Then it gives me a bunch of options on what to do next, and I select the one that drops it to a root shell. ...
John Stimac's user avatar
10 votes
1 answer
27k views

How to connect to internet from recovery mode?

I am working on a kernel panic issue. As Ubuntu is very reliant on internet, I am currently investigating how to connect to internet when choosing recovery mode. Even in my healthy 11.10 system it ...
dago 's user avatar
  • 2,384
9 votes
2 answers
58k views

How to boot to root shell when GRUB recovery menu fails to load a shell?

Can't seem to boot into root shell in recovery mode from GRUB. I try booting into recovery mode from the GRUB menu and don't ever get a shell, just log messages from the kernel bootup. Ctrl+Alt+F1-F12 ...
Naftuli Kay's user avatar
  • 4,226
9 votes
1 answer
31k views

Reset root password for Ubuntu 16.04 - recovery mode asks for root password [duplicate]

We've lost the root password from our file server from supermicro server. I tried to follow the common instructions to reboot with left shift and drop to root shell as it is described in this answer. ...
zlon's user avatar
  • 229
9 votes
2 answers
4k views

Black screen during boot after TTY1 login

I've got a weeks-young install of 13.04 (3.8.0.29) and the computer has been powered on for a week. I turned it off for the night and now it freezes during boot. I have already checked this ...
Torben Gundtofte-Bruun's user avatar
8 votes
1 answer
16k views

Need to deactivate NVIDIA driver from recovery mode or using Ubuntu 12.04 install disk

I tried switching graphics drivers from 317 to 304(post-release) because it kept crashing when I wanted to move my monitor's display to the other side of the laptop display (using NVIDIA Settings) ...
dspyz's user avatar
  • 560
7 votes
4 answers
15k views

Botched upgrade--dpkg hangs on 'Started Braille Device Support'

Screwed up an upgrade from 14.10->15.04->15.10 badly. I've been messing around in recovery mode and am confidentish that I managed to get all the broken packages/dependencies removed and reinstalled, ...
neph's user avatar
  • 325
7 votes
2 answers
4k views

How to fix one existing Ubuntu installation from another

I have two partitions on my PC, each with Ubuntu 20.04 installed (separately). One of them has gone south, something related to graphics drivers and maybe also the bootloader. Is it possible to change ...
Axel Lieber's user avatar
7 votes
2 answers
2k views

Unable to boot into 11.10 in normal (get a black screen) OR recovery (get just a flashing cursor, no cli)

Okay, so I had a dual boot of Tango Studio (based on Ubuntu 10.04) and Windows XP. Yesterday I downloaded the .iso for Ubuntu 11.10 and attempted to install from a USB (my BIOS won't normally boot ...
user1092284's user avatar
6 votes
1 answer
15k views

How do I to copy files to flash drive in a recovery mode?

It seems like to deleted too much files by rm -r and now I have the error of "the system is running a low-graphic mode" in Ubuntu and I have to work in Windows because of that. However I can load it ...
Alan Coromano's user avatar
6 votes
3 answers
26k views

How to access GRUB 2 in a computer with only Ubuntu?

I want to start the Recovery mode on an Ubuntu-only machine. The problem is that machine seems to skip grub and boot directly into ubuntu (as it is the only OS installed. How can I boot into the ...
Calixte's user avatar
  • 3,443
6 votes
2 answers
19k views

Why am I only able to boot ubuntu from recovery mode?

Basically I've tried dual-booting ubuntu with windows 10 and when I try to boot ubuntu I get stuck with the message: /dev/sda8: clean, 201385/4890624 files, 2235266/19531008 blocks - I am able to then ...
NicLovin's user avatar
  • 173
6 votes
1 answer
9k views

In recovery mode, cannot type in the terminal

So I have been having problems with my graphics card (Nvidia Geforece GT 620) and Ubuntu not reading it. I then booted into recovery mode to try and get any updates. Upon clicking recovery mode, all ...
Kayla's user avatar
  • 61
6 votes
2 answers
21k views

What is the difference between single user mode, recovery mode from GRUB, and booting with Ubuntu install disk?

What is the difference between the following: Entering single user mode, e.g. telinit 1 Entering recovery mode, at the GRUB screen selecting Ubuntu ... (recovery mode) Using the Ubuntu installation ...
user779159's user avatar
6 votes
3 answers
13k views

What are the standard file permissions for the /etc directory(file)

I kinda screwed up the /etc directory by running: sudo chmod 417 /etc Leaving me unable to use sudo: sudo: can't open /etc/sudoers: permission denied. sudo: no valid sudoers sources foundm ...
Joeri's user avatar
  • 61
6 votes
3 answers
16k views

USB device connecting and disconnecting repeatedly

I was having some problems booting into Ubuntu. After trying to reboot for sometime, I eventually opened the 4.4.0-31 recovery mode. while it was booting into recovery mode, it said that /dev/ubuntu-...
Gautam Raghuvanshi's user avatar
5 votes
4 answers
4k views

Will I lose data in recovery mode?

I search everywhere if I will lose data in recovery mode so will I? I looked everywhere even in ask ubuntu and found nothing helpful.
Johann George's user avatar
5 votes
2 answers
21k views

How to exit the recovery console?

I was having problems with Ubuntu 11.04 freezing up with Firefox, then it was freezing up with other applications as well. At login I tried Recovery Console and now I can't get out of it. Ubuntu 11....
Dan's user avatar
  • 51
5 votes
1 answer
42k views

How to boot into Single-User recovery mode?

In desktop Ubuntu there is handy GRUB menu, but there is no such menu in Ubuntu Server. How do I get into recovery (single-user) mode on Ubuntu Server then?
Ivan's user avatar
  • 57k
5 votes
1 answer
2k views

How do I reboot from the recovery console?

I run Ubuntu in a virtual machine and I've managed to reset my password in recovery mode, by editing the parameters according to these instructions on Superuser.com. Summarizing my steps: I changed ...
forumuser's user avatar
5 votes
2 answers
3k views

Can't start without X server in order to install video drivers

On 10.10 I was able to make quick Video Drivers installs just by starting Ubuntu in "recovery mode", which would me allow to modify the X server. But now if I start the system in recovery mode it ...
Bruno Philipe's user avatar
4 votes
3 answers
23k views

Is recovery mode supposed to hang after fsck?

Ubuntu 12.04.1 LTS I wanted to test running fsck on root file system (ext4) on my home PC before I try to fix a real problem on my work server. I booted into Linux recovery mode, and selected: fsck - ...
Chris Good's user avatar
4 votes
1 answer
19k views

Connect to internet in recovery mode?

I had a few problems with my Ubuntu and in order to fix them, I needed to boot into recovery mode and update everything, well I am in recovery mode but how do I connect to the internet? (I am wanting ...
DaKouchPotatoe's user avatar
4 votes
2 answers
4k views

Why there is no password to root under Recovery Mode?

I am trying to understand this situation... Today I got a problem with de sudoers file since I modified and got problem whit this modification. So the only way to solve the problem was to modify the ...
aliasbody's user avatar
  • 1,001
4 votes
2 answers
6k views

Lost my user directory, all files still there when viewing unmounted partition from rescue disk, how to restore?

I'm using 11.10 (ext4) and somehow I've lost /home/myuserid. /home is there, but appears empty. I can boot to the login prompt and login as Guest, but when attempting to login as myuserid, I get ...
bgibson's user avatar
  • 4,787
4 votes
1 answer
122 views

How can I recover from a failed hibernation wake up

I am trying to login after a failed a hibernation (my computer just hangs there) Now I can not get into the system. When I try to login, it tells me I am in emergecy mode, and I need to login as root. ...
DrizzleX's user avatar
  • 375
4 votes
2 answers
13k views

Ubuntu 20.04 Stuck on Black Screen Before Login

My computer is stuck on black screen with cursor before Login after booting into Ubuntu 20.04, nothing is working, even cursor is not moving, its freeze, i also tried CTRL+ALT+F4 its not opening the ...
Askani's user avatar
  • 131
4 votes
2 answers
14k views

Recovery menu missing in 18.04LTS

I'm trying to drop a root shell for recovery, but after the reboot, I cannot see the recovery menu where I should select the "Drop root shell" option. After the secure-boot selection I just prompted ...
Tobia's user avatar
  • 173
4 votes
2 answers
18k views

systemd-networkd - No networking in recovery mode

Running UbuntuGnome 17.04 I am not enable to start networking in recovery mode, because there is an unknown group "power" in message bus configuration file error when NetworkManager is trying to ...
user avatar
4 votes
1 answer
17k views

Pressing shift does not get me into any grub menu

I need to get into recovery mode but pressing and holding shift does not work during boot, I also tried tapping shift and f8 but nothing happens, any suggestions? My system runs ubuntu 14.04 and here ...
Cisum Inas's user avatar
4 votes
4 answers
4k views

Could not resolve archive.ubuntu.com when reinstalling xorg

I managed to uninstall xserver-xorg completely, and now all I see when booting Ubuntu is a blank screen. I've tried reinstalling it through shell prompt (recovery mode) but every time I get errors ...
JLinden's user avatar
  • 980
3 votes
2 answers
4k views

Grub boots into recovery mode

When I boot grub doesnt show up (only ubuntu installed) I would like grub to be shown for a second or 2 (shift doesnt seem to bring it up). My main problem is that grub boots into what i assume to be ...
Will's user avatar
  • 3,353
3 votes
4 answers
7k views

Low graphics error unless I boot via recovery mode [duplicate]

I recently upgraded to 12.10 (fresh install). I am a facing weird problem: When I boot, I get a message notifying me of low graphics. For now, I have been switching to console using Alt+F1 and then ...
Amey Jah's user avatar
  • 2,695
3 votes
1 answer
37k views

How to start a fail-safe graphics session? (with mouse & web browser)

How do I boot into a "Recovery mode" "fail-safeX" graphical session to troubleshoot graphics drivers with a desktop & mouse? That way I can use a web browser & nice GUI ...
user613307's user avatar
3 votes
3 answers
2k views

Bypass Ubuntu Encryption

I need to get into an encrypted Ubuntu system (14 maybe?). And, yes, it is mine, I am the legal owner, etc. Problem is, I lost the passphrase in a move. There is some data in there that is pretty ...
typosruinjokes's user avatar
3 votes
1 answer
10k views

experimental nvidia drivers, no normal boot? how to remove nvidia drivers from recovery mode?

After I installed experimental Nvidia drivers, Ubuntu will not boot. How can I remove the drivers from recovery mode? If I choose recovery mode and in the menu choose "root" (drop to root shell ...
user127817's user avatar
3 votes
1 answer
5k views

Can't access recovery mode by holding shift [duplicate]

I have Xubuntu 14.04 and I cannot access recovery mode via holding down the SHIFT key. I read almost everywhere that this is how you do it. Does that work for Xubuntu as well or just Ubuntu? The ...
Norman Bird's user avatar
3 votes
1 answer
3k views

How to stop Ubuntu's Recovery Mode from timing out

Trying to work in Ubuntu's Recovery mode, I click on Drop to root shell prompt. Then within about two minutes (before I can perform the task) I get a timeout message: [ TIME ] Timed out waiting for ...
L. D. James's user avatar
3 votes
1 answer
881 views

Can I log in without loading my .profile?

I recently inserted an error into my .profile file and now logging in just presents me back to the log in page, much like in this question. I've booted into recovery mode and recovered my encrypted /...
Garry Cairns's user avatar
3 votes
1 answer
5k views

How to Enter Recovery Mode from Grub

I have a dual boot installation with Windows 7 and Ubuntu 12.04 LTS. I am currently trying to solve this problem, where any mouse and keyboard input is ignored on the login screen. The apparently ...
O. R. Mapper's user avatar
3 votes
1 answer
6k views

Recovery Mode Freezes and no options turning up

I am currently running a dual boot of windows 8 and ubuntu 12.04. I recently had several problems with ubuntu (like lost password etc) , so i tried booting through the recovery mode . But ...
nishkr's user avatar
  • 95
3 votes
3 answers
16k views

How to install a package in recovery mode?

I was using Ubuntu 11.10 and installed the KDE Desktop and I was happy with that. But I wanted to get my old login screen back so I removed the package kdm. When I boot my PC now, it keeps booting and ...
js-coder's user avatar
  • 2,247
3 votes
1 answer
849 views

Reinstalling critical files in Recovery Mode

I might have accidentaly purged some critical files, causing my Kubuntu 14.04 to not boot past the startup logo. By entering the recovery mode from a LiveUSB, and running sudo apt-get install -f, I ...
Douglas James Bock's user avatar
3 votes
0 answers
146 views

Installation of Ubuntu 20.04 hung up and had to power off. After powering off, cannot boot into Linux on dual boot PC

For a little while now (6 years) my Lenovo z70 laptop was dual booted with having Windows 10 on one partition and Linux Ubuntu 16.04 on another partion. Unfortunately, I had to upgrade to 18.04 since ...
iam whoiam's user avatar
3 votes
0 answers
533 views

Ubuntu 16.04.3 Kernel panic during boot (after trying to auto decrypt disk on startup)

Followup to an earlier question on having my encrypted disk auto-decrypt on startup. It seems I completely shut myself out of my system, I'm getting a kernel panic on startup. Here's what I did: ...
RocketNuts's user avatar

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