How to Reset Password in Veeam Backup for AWS

Challenge

You may need to reset a password in Veeam Backup for AWS.

Solution

Make sure that the machine you are using for troubleshooting is in the list of allowed IP addresses in the Security Groups of your Veeam Backup for AWS server, then connect to the Veeam Backup for AWS server by the ssh client using the private key you have specified when deploying the server.

NOTE: You can find the name of the key in the Key pair name property located on the Description tab of your EC2 Instance. Consider checking the Lost private key file section below if you lost the private key.

To reset a password, you can use either a Linux or Windows desktop:

• To connect to the Veeam Backup for AWS server from a Linux desktop, run the following command and enter Yes to connect to the specified server.

> ssh -i private_key.pem ubuntu@<DNS name or IP address of Veeam Backup for AWS server>

• To connect to the Veeam Backup for AWS server from a Windows desktop, follow the procedure described in Connecting to Your Linux Instance from Windows Using PuTTY.

Once a connection is established, run the following command and enter a new password.

> sudo passwd <your username>

If you forgot the username, run the following command and find the correct user at the end of the list.

> sudo cat /etc/group | grep VEEAM_ADMINS

To finish the session, enter the following command.

> exit

More Information

According to security practices of AWS EC2, you are allowed to download the private security key only once — that is, only after it has been created in EC2 Services / Network & security / Key Pairs. If such a key is lost, you will not be able to connect to the Veeam Backup for AWS server by SSH.

For more information on how to reset a key for the Veeam Backup for AWS Server EC2 Instance, see the Replace a Lost SSH Key Pair article.