How to Add a User in Debian
Adding new users is a very important skill for a system administrator, whether you're operating a Debian-based computer at your workplace or at home. You can add new users using only a single shell script included with the operating system, allowing you to create the user account, set the password and give the user a home on the filesystem to call his own.
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Instructions
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Open a shell terminal if you are in a graphical environment. If not, you can simply type the commands at the prompt already displayed on your screen.
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Enter the command "sudo adduser john", replacing John's name with that of the user you're creating the account for. Note that Debian user names are always lowercase. Because this command is run as root, you will have to enter your password to perform the operation.
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Type the new user's password when prompted. Enter it again to confirm. Enter the user's other data, including full name and phone number if desired. Press the "Enter" key to skip a given field.
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Press the "Y" key and then "Enter" when asked if the information is correct to complete the script and finish creating the new user account.
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Tips & Warnings
This script is only included in Debian-based distributions, such as Ubuntu and Debian itself. Other Linux distributions use "adduser" as an alias for the command "useradd", a program that will create a user account but not give it a password or home directory automatically.
