Linux: Locking/Unlocking An Account

Task: Linux Locking an Account

The syntax is as follows:

# passwd -l {username}

The -l option disables an account by changing the password to a value which matches no possible encrypted value. In this example, lock user account named vivek. First, login as a root user and type the following command:

# passwd -l vivek

Task: Linux Unlocking an Account

The syntax is as follows:

# passwd -u {username}

The -u option re-enables an account by changing the password back to its previous value i.e. to value before using -l option. To unlock user account named vivek. Login as a root user and type following command:

# passwd -u vivek

Referência: Linux Locking An Account