Q: When I try to telnet into my machine from another machine as user root,
it kicks me out. What am I doing wrong?
A: You are not doing anything wrong. This is the default installation
behavior of Solaris. It can be changed, but is considered to be a security
risk. If you wish to change it read on. Otherwise, create another user
account and use that to log in via telnet, or preferably, SSH.
SUMMARY:
1) Edit the /etc/default/login file.
2) Log in remotely as root.
DETAILED:
1) From the local machine, edit the /etc/default/login file. Type:
vi /etc/default/login
Look for the line in the file that reads:
----- BEGIN SCREENSHOT -----
# If CONSOLE is set, root can only login on that device.
# Comment this line out to allow remote login by root.
#
CONSOLE=/dev/console
----- END SCREENSHOT -----
Using your vi skills, comment out
the line that starts with CONSOLE= In order to comment something out, you
just put a # sign in front of it. The line should end up looking like this:
#CONSOLE=/dev/console
Save the file and quit.
2) Log in remotely as root.
Go back to the remote machine and telnet into the box you just edited /etc/default/login
file on. You should now be able to log in as root with no problems. Keep
in mind this is considered a security risk. Unless this is a "play" machine,
you should not do this.