Reset vCenter Password When It Says Password Has Already Been Used

This tutorial will show you how to Reset vCenter Password When It Says 'Password Has Already Been Used'.

Problem: The vCenter root account password expired, and it prompted me to reset it. Somehow, a new password was set. The problem is that the password is configured somewhere in seldom-used applications, and I am unable to figure out where it is configured. Additionally, these seldom-used applications do not have access to update the current password.

The steps below may be helpful for resetting the previously expired password on vCenter.

Note: This method may require approval if it conflicts with your organization's security policies.

Step 1: "passwd' command is used to the change password of the current login account.

#passwd

Step 2: "/etc/security/opasswd" is the file where password hashes and the account database are stored. Use the below commands to reset previously expired password on vCente for root account.

! To read the file, use the cat command:

#cat /etc/security/opasswd

! **Best practice:** Always take a backup of the file before making any changes, use the cp command to copy the file.

# cp /etc/security/opasswd /etc/security/opasswd.bkp

! Verify that the backup file is present using the ls command.

ls /etc/security/opasswd.bkp

! To clear the contents of the `/etc/security/opasswd` file, use the command below. Do not modify or remove whitespace from this command.

#echo " " > /etc/security/opasswd

! Read the file again using cat to verify that the opasswd file is empty.

 #cat /etc/security/opasswd

! Now you can reset the previously used password for the root account on vCenter

#passwd

Output: Refer the screenshot & text output for reference.

root@vcsa-01a [ - ]# passwd

New password:

Retype new password:

Password has been already used. Choose another.

passwd: Authentication token manipulation error

passwd: password unchanged

root@vcsa-01a [~]# cat /etc/security/opasswd

root:0:2:$6$/qwQ2/wo.zdo/jIM$BSywW7czLdxluuTHVzXvxbzhvOWsmMd6tD6qujw1051LrbQLWD63r.kUojW6pIR7sMMQWbhcGUWMIfwHBpK.b1, $6$uQhF02nGrZqh7MHt $ViDeQykePK7Uoen17qV/n

soilBwmvRAxmCMZSMUBIAdp1F5/2zdHbunYFISX8NeZvAUnZO9R22how950bKiKs0

root@vcsa-01a [~]# cp /etc/security/opasswd /etc/security/opasswd.bkp

2

root@vcsa-01a  [ - ]# ls /etc/security/opasswd.bkp

/etc/security/opasswd.bkp

root@vcsa-01a [~]# echo " " > /etc/security/opasswd

root@vcsa-01a [~]# cat /etc/security/opasswd

root@vcsa-01a  [ - ]# passwd

New password:

Retype new password:

passwd: password updated successfully

root@vcsa-01a  [ - ]#

“Information is power. But like all power, there are those who want to keep it for themselves.”

― Aaron Swartz

I hope this information is useful for you. Please forgive any typos or incomplete sentences.

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