How To Add User To Sudo Group on Debian 11

In this article, we will show you how to add user to sudo group on Debian 11 and provide sudo access to an existing user. The sudo command is the preferred means to handle elevated permissions. In supported versions of Debian, using the sudo command will grant the permissions for 15 minutes.

Contents hide

1 Prerequisites

2 Switch to root Account

3 Add User to Sudo Group

4 Verify User Belongs to Sudo Group

5 Conclusion

5.1 Related Linux Tutorials:

Standard user accounts are restricted from performing sensitive tasks, such as viewing the contents of the /root directory. This prevents the accidental use of commands with massive consequences. It also makes it more difficult for intruders to compromise a system. However, sometimes you need to run an administrative command. Sudo – or Super User Do – grants you privileges to run sensitive tasks.

Prerequisites

A system running a supported version of Debian
Access to a root user account or another account with sudo privileges
An user account without sudo privileges

Switch to root Account

If you have a fresh installation then you have to login or switch the user to root. So you can use the following command to switch the user account to root.

$ su -

Add User to Sudo Group

Most Linux systems, including Debian, have a user group for sudo users. To grant the new user elevated privileges, add them to the sudo group.

In a terminal, enter the following command (root user):

# usermod -aG sudo username

Replace the username with your username.

Again, if you are login with sudo privileges account, run the command with sudo as follows:

$ sudo usermod -aG sudo newuser

The -aG option tells the system to append the user to the specified group. (The -a option is only used with G.)

Note:- After this, sudo still won’t work! You will need to logout from that user, then relogin, and sudo will work.

Verify User Belongs to Sudo Group

Now after login to Debian 11 again you have to simply run the following command to verify that you have sudo privilege:

$ sudo apt update

Conclusion

Now you know how to give sudo privileges to the user on Debian 11 or you can say how To add a user to the Sudo group on Debian 11. Before sudo, users would log in to their systems with full permissions over the entire system with the su command. The sudo command in Linux strikes a balance – protecting user accounts from malicious and inadvertent damage while allowing a privileged user to run administrative tasks.