Docker Administration: MediaWiki Password Reset

Docker Administration: MediaWiki Password Reset

This guide provides step-by-step instructions on how to reset a MediaWiki user's password using Docker.

Steps

1. Log in to the Host

First, log in to the host machine where the MediaWiki Docker containers are running.

login to soylent-host-0
# su devops
# cd /home/devops/mediawiki

2. Check Docker Containers

List the running Docker containers to ensure the MediaWiki services are up and running.

devops@soylent-host-0:~/mediawiki$ docker compose ps

You might see warnings about unset environment variables and obsolete attributes. Ignore these for now.

3. Access the Database Container

Execute a bash shell inside the database container.

# docker compose exec -it database /bin/bash

4. Retrieve Database Credentials

Inside the database container, retrieve the MariaDB credentials.

root@bc3520c0d843:/# env | grep MARIA

5. Log in to MariaDB

Log in to the MariaDB database using the retrieved credentials.

# mariadb -u soylentnews -p mediawiki

When prompted, enter the non-root password.

6. Query the User Table

Check the aex_user table to find the user whose password needs to be reset.

MariaDB [mediawiki]> show tables;
MariaDB [mediawiki]> select * from aex_user limit 1;

7. Find the User by Email

If the user is not found by name, search by email. Note that the aex_user table is case-sensitive.

MariaDB [mediawiki]> select * from aex_user where user_email like '%anrin%';

8. Reset the Password

Exit the database container and access the MediaWiki container.

# devops@soylent-host-0:~/mediawiki$ docker compose exec -it mediawiki /bin/bash

Run the password reset script inside the MediaWiki container.

root@1ccb2d87367d:/var/www/html# php ./maintenance/run.php changePassword.php --user=mrcoolbp --password=password

9. Completion

The password for the user mrcoolbp has been successfully reset.

Password set for Mrcoolbp

All done.