Users can change their password on the Account and Resources Management Tool.

You can find a detailed description of the tool on the dedicated page the CSCS User Portal.

You can also change your current password on the front-end system Ela (ela.cscs.ch) using either the command kpasswd or passwd: the new password will be valid to access the front-end and the computing systems as well, since it will be propagated by the Kerberos network authentication protocol.

Step-by-step guide

  1. You will be prompted to insert your current password first, then you will need to enter the new password twice, as in the example below:

    Change password on the front-end system
    ela1:~$ kpasswd
Password for <username>@CSCS.CH:
Enter new password:
Enter it again:

  2. If you insert a wrong password when prompted for your current one, you will get one of the errors below, depending on the command that you have used:

    Current password incorrect
    kpasswd: Password incorrect while getting initial ticket

Password change failed. Server message: Old password not accepted. 
passwd: Authentication token manipulation error

  3. Some restrictions apply on the string that you can choose as password. The password change will be rejected if your new password is shorter than expected:

    New password too short
    Password change rejected: New password is too short.
Please choose a password which is at least 12 characters long.

  4. In addition, a password must contain different character classes:

    New password too simple
    Password change rejected: New password does not have enough character classes.
The character classes are:
	- lower-case letters,
	- upper-case letters,
	- digits,
	- punctuation, and
	- all other characters (e.g., control characters).
Please choose a password with at least 4 character classes.

  5. Finally, you cannot choose a password that you have been using recently:

    New password already used
    Password change rejected: New password was used previously. Please choose a different password.