# passwd: Critical error - immediate abort

## humbletech99

I have just discovered a very unusual thing. Trying to change any password on my gentoo laptop is now not possible using the standard passwd utility. It seems that every time I try to type this on the command line even as root it quits with an error that doesn't tell what the problem is.

```
# passwd

passwd: Critical error - immediate abort
```

The permissions on the passwd and shadow files is as follows

```
# ll /etc/passwd /etc/shadow 

-rw-r--r-- 1 root root 2219 Feb 11 21:53 /etc/passwd

-rw------- 1 root root 1000 Feb 11 21:56 /etc/shadow
```

An strace seems to indicate that the last thing that the passwd utility does is to open /etc/shadow and then do some seeking and then close it and write the error message.

I have found references to this all over the internet, mainly old redhat. The only solution I could see was to make sure the source was compiled with the right dict reference or something but I can't see how this could suddenly be a problem.

The shadow file seems to be in order having checked it out, as does the passwd file. Both have what look like fully functional lines for the root user and my regular user.

The last thing I did before trying to change the passwd of a new test user was to run unshadow from jtr. I guess this could have corrupted the original files but they look perfectly intact so my guess is there may be some file lock on /etc/shadow so I did an lsof /etc/shadow but this revealed nothing. I can still add and delete users using useradd and userdel but I can't set their passwords.

Any ideas how to check out if there is a file lock or how to fix this problem?

----------

## poly_poly-man

Odd.

Try remerging shadow, the password management package.

hih,

poly-p man

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## bunder

what does /etc/pam.d/passwd look like?

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## humbletech99

I did try re-emerging shadow before posting but it didn't make any difference.

Here is the contents of the the pam for passwd

```
$ sudo cat /etc/pam.d/passwd 

Password:

#%PAM-1.0

auth       include      system-auth

account    include      system-auth

password   include      system-auth
```

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## jmcphe

I solved this issue just now by re emerging cracklib

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## eccerr0r

Just as a word of warning, if this happens randomly out in the blue and you know you just didn't do something to break it, do make sure you do intrusion detection, it's a sort of early warning system in the password system - the auth system noticed something went awry and here's your warning.

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## pacho2

Fixed after 

```
emerge -1 cracklib shadow
```

I have sent it to:

https://bugs.gentoo.org/show_bug.cgi?id=195017

Maybe a message should be added suggesting this solution if the error appears

Thanks

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## BizarroJack

 *eccerr0r wrote:*   

> Just as a word of warning, if this happens randomly out in the blue and you know you just didn't do something to break it, do make sure you do intrusion detection, it's a sort of early warning system in the password system - the auth system noticed something went awry and here's your warning.

 

What is this an indication of?  It doesn't say anything meaningful (unless you've read the code, I guess)

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## eccerr0r

I ran across this error quite a long while ago but forgot the details.  I do recall hacking the passwd or shadow file with vi at one point thinking that it's 'fine' to do it, and possibly deleting some of the apparently temporary files.  It then gave me that error till I reverted everything back the way it was, wasn't successful trying to edit the files back.

It's not much of intrusion protection but it screamed at me for mucking with the files without using vipw...

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## tam

 *pacho2 wrote:*   

> Fixed after 
> 
> ```
> emerge -1 cracklib shadow
> ```
> ...

 

Thanks. Also helped me.

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## Simonheld

mir auch ! vielen dank!

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## only2sea

Thanks a lot.

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## romandas

Thanks!  This helped me out quite a bit.

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## pteppic

I know it's almost thread necromancy, but worked for me too. Maybe I should change passwords more often...

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