2.6 Setting Administrative Passwords

You can modify the passwords and SSH access permissions for the appliance administrator: the root user in the Administrative Passwords tab. If your password policy requires it, you must modify passwords periodically or if you reassign responsibility for the appliance administration to another person.

NOTE:The vaadmin helps to manage virtual-machine-level settings and service configurations that affect an entire service and its interactions with other services.

The vaadmin user can use the Administrative Passwords page to perform the following tasks:

  • Modify the vaadmin user password. To change a password, you must provide the old password.

  • The vaadmin user automatically has permissions necessary to remotely access the appliance with SSH instead of using a VMware client. The SSH service must be enabled and running to allow SSH access.

    NOTE:The SSH service is disabled and is not running by default. For information about how to start SSH on the appliance, see Accessing System Services.

The root user can use the Administrative Passwords page to perform the following tasks:

  • Modify the root user password. To change a password, you must provide the old password.

  • Enable or disable the root user SSH access to the appliance.

    When you select Allow root access to SSH, the root user is able to SSH to the appliance.

To manage the administrative access as the vaadmin user:

  1. Log in to the Configuration Console as the vaadmin user.

  2. Click Administrative Passwords.

  3. Specify a new password for the vaadmin administrator. You must also specify the current vaadmin password.

  4. Click OK.

To manage the administrative access as the root user:

  1. Log in to the Configuration Console as the root user.

  2. Click Administrative Passwords.

  3. Specify a new password for the root administrator. You must also specify the current root password.

  4. (Optional) Select or deselect Allow root access to SSH.

  5. Click OK.