Terminal: WSL Ubuntu passwd: Authentication token manipulation error, no input and unable to change password

[atlasicus]

Environment

Microsoft Windows [Version 10.0.18362.207]
WSL Ubuntu

Steps to reproduce

1. Using Terminal app, open a new Ubuntu tab
2. Attempt to change the password of an existing user using passwd

Expected behavior

passwd pauses and prompts user input for new password

Actual behavior

Input field is skipped with the error "Authentication token manipulation error" and the password is unable to be changed.

Note: on the same machine, this process works on the standard WSL Bash terminal.

[zadjii-msft]

I don't have the _faintest_ idea why the Terminal might be affecting this. @benhillis do you have any idea what might cause this?

[DHowett-MSFT]

Yeah, we have no idea what's going on here.

[GuloGuloDesu]

I have been able to reproduce this on Windows 10.0.18362.239 with Debian 1-1-3-0_x64.
I also tried remounting root, to see if that would work, but I still had the same problem (wsl mount -rw -o remount /)

For anyone who needs a work around you can do something like this:

Create a file (Password.sh) with the following:
#!/bin/bash
echo -e "test1\ntest1" | passwd testuser

Then you need to copy the file to WSL, set it to executable, and then run the script:
wsl cp /mnt/c/Users/Administrator/Downloads/Password.sh
wsl chmod +x /Password.sh
wsl /Password.sh

[pellicano]

Your command above required me root password (which I did not have).
Just execute on PowerShell wsl -u root passwd testuser and then type your testuser new password.

Reference:
https://docs.microsoft.com/pt-br/windows/wsl/user-support?redirectedfrom=MSDN#reset-your-linux-password

[glenfordwilliams]

having similar issues, no idea why it started and it seems to appear randomly

[azdaly]

The above answer by pellicano is the correct one!! The docs on how to do this are wrong - they don't have the testuser which is absolutely critical for this working.