Guide to Adding, Deleting and Authorizing Users in Ubuntu 24.04
💡 What Will You Learn in This Guide?
You will learn to create and manage new user accounts to increase security in the Ubuntu 24.04 operating system.
You will understand the importance of using unprivileged users instead of a root account, and you will apply two different ways to grant administrative authority (sudo) to users.
You'll also learn how to delete or temporarily lock users who are no longer needed.
🔧 Prerequisites
- A server with Ubuntu 24.04 installed
- A user account with root access or sudo authority
- Firewall (UFW) must be enabled
If you don't have a server yet, you can create an Ubuntu 24.04 server in a few clicks via the GenixNode Platform.
🧍♂️ 1. Adding a New User
After setting up a server, the safest approach is to create an unprivileged user instead of a Root account.
🔹 Adding as root
adduser yenikullanici
This command creates the new user and installs the necessary directories.
🔹 Adding with sudo authorized user
sudo adduser yenikullanici
If you are logged in as a user with sudo privilege, use this command.
🔸 Process Steps
Set Password: Create a strong password for the new user.
Additional Information: Name, phone number, etc. You can fill in additional information or leave it blank.
Confirmation: Press Y to confirm the information.
Your new user account is now active!
🔐 2. Granting Sudo Privileges to the User
You must grant sudo access for the new user to be able to run commands with administrative authority. There are two methods:
🅰️ Method A – Adding to the sudo group (recommended)
In Ubuntu, users added to the sudo group automatically have administrator rights.
sudo usermod -aG sudo yenikullanici
The -aG parameter includes the user in the sudo group in addition to their existing group.
To check the user's groups:
groups yenikullanici
If you see newuser: newuser sudo in the output, the process is complete.
🅱️ Method B – Define explicit permissions in /etc/sudoers file
This method gives full authority directly to the user.
sudo visudo
Find the following line in the file:
root ALL=(ALL:ALL) ALL
Add the following line for the new user underneath:
yenikullanici ALL=(ALL:ALL) ALL
Press Ctrl + X, then Y and Enter to save.
✅ Authority Test
After logging in with the new user:
sudo apt update
run command. If a password is requested and the process is completed successfully, sudo authority is active. 🎯
❌ 3. User Deletion and Locking
🔹 Deleting User
Deleting by Keeping Files
sudo deluser silinecek_kullanici
This command deletes the user account but preserves the home directory.
Deleting Home Directory by Deleting it
sudo deluser --remove-home silinecek_kullanici
It completely removes the user's account and home directory.
🔹 Temporarily Locking User
Sometimes it may be necessary to temporarily disable the user rather than completely deleting them.
Lock Password
sudo passwd -l kilitlenecek_kullanici
It invalidates the user's password and cannot log in.
Unlock
sudo passwd -u kilitlenecek_kullanici
Reactivates the user's login.
Disable Session Shell
sudo usermod -s /usr/sbin/nologin kilitlenecek_kullanici
Prevents the user from logging into the terminal.
If you want to enable it again:
sudo usermod -s /bin/bash kilitlenecek_kullanici
⚙️ User Management Command Summary
| Task | Command | Description |
|---|---|---|
| Add user | sudo adduser ali | Creates a new user. |
| Add to sudo group | sudo usermod -aG sudo ali | Gives administrator authority. |
| Delete user | sudo deluser ali | Removes the user from the system. |
| Deleting with home directory | sudo deluser --remove-home ali | It deletes it along with all its files. |
| Locking password | sudo passwd -l ali | It prevents him from logging in. |
| Password unlock | sudo passwd -u ali | Reactivates the account. |
| Closing the login shell | sudo usermod -s /usr/sbin/nologin ali | Turns off shell access. |
❓ Frequently Asked Questions (FAQ)
1. What is the difference between adduser and useradd?
adduser is an interactive and user-friendly script. It automatically handles home directory, skeleton files and password operations. useradd is a lower level command and requires manual parameters.
2. How do I remove sudo privilege from a user?
bash
sudo deluser to be removed_user sudo This command removes the user from the sudo group. If you added a line manually to /etc/sudoers, open the file with sudo visudo and delete the relevant line.
3. Can I back up the home directory when deleting a user?
Yes.
bash
sudo deluser --backup-home will be deleted_user The command creates a .tar.gz backup under /var/backups/ before deleting the home directory.
4. Is it possible to bring back a user after deleting them?
There's no "remove" exactly, but if --remove-home is not used, the home directory will remain. You can recreate the account and access your files using the same username and UID.
5. Which method is safer — deleting users or locking them?
Completely deleting the user is permanent, but locking them temporarily blocks access. For critical accounts, locking (passwd -l) may be a safer choice.
🌟 Result
Effective user management is the foundation of security on Ubuntu 24.04 servers. By using the adduser, usermod, deluser and passwd commands correctly, you can keep your system both organized and secure.
Take your system administration skills to the next level by trying these steps on GenixNode Servers now! 🚀