NVE: How To Reset SSH Rootid Passphrase

Summary: Reset Secure Shell (SSH) rootid passphrase when unknown in NetWorker Virtual Edition (NVE) by deleting rootid_key and rootid_passphrase_encrypted files and regenerating keys.

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Instructions

NOTE: The contents of this KB are pulled from the NetWorker Virtual Edition Deployment Guide. The NVE deployement guide is available through: Support for NetWorker | Manuals & Documents 

Resetting SSH rootid passphrase

Follow these steps to reset the SSH rootid passphrase when it is unknown:

  1. Log in to the NVE using SSH as an admin user.
  2. Switch to the root user by entering the command sudo su.
  3. Delete the rootid_key and rootid_passphrase_encrypted files from the /usr/local/networker folder.
  4. Generate the rootid and the adminkey without passphrase.
  5. Apply the latest NVEUpgrade.

Details for steps 3 and 4 are as follows:

# Change directory to /usr/local/networker
cd /usr/local/networker

# Delete rootid_key and rootid_passphrase_encrypted files
rm -rf rootid_key rootid_passphrase_encrypted

# Generate rootid without passphrase
ssh-keygen -q -t ecdsa -b 521 -N "" -C "root@`hostname`" -f /root/.ssh/rootid

# Generate adminkey without passphrase
ssh-keygen -q -t ecdsa -b 521 -N "" -C "admin@`hostname`" -f /home/admin/.ssh/admin_key
Note: If prompted to overwrite, click Yes.

Additional Information

The NVE will continue to function without a passphrase. During the next upgrade (specifically 19.12.x and later) will prompt you to create a new passphrase; thereby re-enabling passphrase protection

Affected Products

NetWorker Family, NetWorker
Article Properties
Article Number: 000333905
Article Type: How To
Last Modified: 03 Nov 2025
Version:  3
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