Hostinger VPS: How To Create a Non-Root Sudo User

Description

Logging into your VPS as root every time is one of the biggest security risks you can make.

In this tutorial, I’ll show you how to create a non-root sudo user on your Hostinger VPS and add it to the sudo group so it still has full admin privileges when you need them. If you’ve just set up a new VPS and want to follow security best practices from day one, this is your starting point.

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What You’ll Learn

• Root user — what it is and why using it daily is risky
• Sudo group — how to grant a normal user temporary admin privileges
• adduser — create a new username on your VPS
• usermod — add the new user to the sudo group
• SSH — sign in remotely as both root and your new user
• whoami — verify which user you’re currently signed in as
• $ vs. # — how to read your terminal prompt at a glance
• sudo command — how to run admin commands without being root

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Commands Used in This Video

Check current user:

whoami

Create new user:

adduser [username]

Add user to sudo group:

usermod -aG sudo [username]

SSH into VPS as root:

ssh root@[your-vps-ip]

SSH into VPS as new (non-root) user:

ssh [username]@[your-vps-ip]

Switch users inside the terminal:

su - [username]

Run a command with temporary root privileges:

sudo [command]

Exit SSH session or return to previous user:

exit

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🔗 Links

Hostinger VPS (affiliate link):
https://www.hostg.xyz/SHIDN

How To Install Fail2Ban (Reduce Brute Force Attacks)
https://youtu.be/E0bRbhOgsVI

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⏱️ Timestamps
00:00 Intro: About The Tutorial
00:16 What is Root User?
01:12 What is SUDO?
01:56 Root vs. Sudo User
02:57 Reasons For Creating New User
03:24 Fail To Ban (Brute Force)
04:17 Reason #2: Safety Prevention
05:23 How To Add New Non-Root User
05:34 whoami
05:56 Create Password in Advance
06:25 Add New User
06:43 Add New User
07:19 Enter Password in Terminal
07:48 GECOS Information
08:24 Add User to Sudo Group
09:52 Sign In Remotely Using SSH
11:49 SSH (NON-ROOT)
13:02 Exit SSH Connection
13:45 How To Switch Users
14:19 Sudo Command
15:07 sudo whoami
16:38 $ vs. #
18:20 Update Packaage as Non-Root
20:04 Recap: Root vs. Sudo User
21:06 Root vs Sudo Users
22:09 Security Benefits

🪜 Step-by-Step:

1. Sign in to your Hostinger dashboard and click the Terminal button in the top right corner.
2. Type whoami and press Return to confirm you’re currently signed in as root.
3. Before creating the new user, generate a strong password in your password manager (1Password is used in this video) and copy it to your clipboard.
4. Run adduser [username] — replacing [username] with the name you want to use — and press Return.
5. Paste in your new password when prompted. The terminal won’t show any characters as you type. This is normal. Press Return.
6. Paste the same password again when asked to confirm, then press Return. You’ll see “password updated successfully.” If you get a mismatch error, repeat the step.
7. Work through the GECOS prompts (Full Name, Room Number, Work Phone, Home Phone, Other) by pressing Return to skip each one. When asked “Is the information correct?”, type Y and press Return.
8. Run usermod -aG sudo [username] to add your new user to the sudo group. The -aG flag appends the user to the group without removing them from any other groups.
9. Open a local terminal on Mac or Command Prompt / PowerShell on Windows and test SSH as root: ssh root@[your-vps-ip]. Enter the root password when prompted.
10. Type whoami to confirm you’re connected as root. Then type exit to close the SSH session.
11. Now SSH in using your new username: ssh [username]@[your-vps-ip]. Enter the new user’s password when prompted.
12. Type whoami again. It should return your new username, confirming the login works.
13. Type exit to close that session and return to your local command line.
14. Back inside the Hostinger terminal, switch to the new user with su - [username].
15. To run any admin-level command as the new user, prefix it with sudo (for example, sudo apt update). You’ll be prompted for the user’s password.
16. Watch the terminal prompt symbol: $ means you’re a normal user, # means you’re root. The ~ before it means you’re in the home directory.
17. To switch back to root from inside the new user session, type exit. The session will fall back to root automatically.