Users

A regular user facilitates the non-administrative functions of a system:

1. Log in as the root user.
2. Create a regular password-protected user with useradd larry && passwd larry.
3. Assign root privileges with usermod -aG sudo larry.
4. Create a user-owned home directory with mkdir /home/larry && chown larry: /home/larry.
5. Log in as the regular user.
6. Test regular user privileges with whoami (expected: larry) and sudo whoami (expected: root).
7. Change the default shell with chsh -s /usr/bin/example. I usually choose Zsh for the regular user.

Substitute larry with your own username.

Tips

1. Available shells are listed with cat /etc/shells.
2. It is recommended to not change the root user’s shell to a non-default shell. A mistake here may permanently brick your system.
3. The root user should have a different password from all regular users. While there are smarter security measures if your machine sits all day at home, this provides an opportunity to learn when each password is used (eg.: any sudo ... command and su).