Help with reseting root passwords

You need to restart with original media disk and then you can choose reset password from the apple menu bar.

Hi I'm Peter , You can change your user password by going in with your administrator password. Here are a few helps https://iforgot.apple.com/password/verify/appleid and see
http://support.apple.com/kb/HT1274 and

and Kappys answer
https://discussions.apple.com/thread/4251616?start=0&tstart=0

In OS X Lion or later, you can reset your user password with your Apple ID.

In Mac OS X v10.6.8 or earlier, follow these steps to reset a password when there is only one administrator account on the computer, or if the original administrator account needs a password reset. "Original" administrator account refers to the one that was created immediately after installing Mac OS X. If the original administrator password is known, that administrator account may be used to reset the passwords of other administrator accounts using the steps described above. These steps require an optical drive; if your Mac does not have an optical drive and you have a Mac OS X v10.6 Install disc, see below.

1. Start up from a Mac OS X Install disc (one whose version is closest to the version of Mac OS X installed). Usually, you can start from the disc by putting it in your computer, restarting, and holding the C key. Or, put it in the computer and click the Install or Restore icon you see in the disc's main window (after which the computer will start from the disc without you needing to hold C). Or, you can use Startup Manager or the Startup Disk preference pane to select the Install disc.
2. Choose a language, click the arrow button to continue,
3. Mac OS X v10.6 or later: Choose Password Reset from the Utilities menu.
   Mac OS X v10.5 or v10.4: Choose Reset Password from the Utilities menu.
   Mac OS X v10.3: Choose Reset Password from the Installer menu.
   
   Tip: If you don't see this menu or menu choice, you're probably not started from the disc yet.
   
   Note: The default keyboard layout is U.S. English while started from the installation disc. If you use a keyboard layout other than U.S English, use the Input menu (the flag icon on the right side of the menu bar) to select the desired layout before typing a new password.
4. Select your Mac OS X hard disk volume.
5. Select the user name of your original administrator account.
   
   Important: Do not select "System Administrator (root)". This is actually the root user. You should not confuse it with a normal administrator account.
   
   
Hope this helps.

Resetting a password without an additional account Use these steps to reset a password when there is only one administrator account on the computer, or if the original administrator account needs a password reset.
"Original" administrator account refers to the one that was created immediately after installing Mac OS X. If the original administrator password is known, that administrator account may be used to reset the passwords of other administrator accounts using the steps described above. These steps require an optical drive; if your Mac does not have an optical drive and you have a Mac OS X v10.6 Install disc, see below.

1. Start up from a Mac OS X Install disc (one whose version is closest to the version of Mac OS X installed). Usually, you can start from the disc by putting it in your computer, restarting, and holding the C key. Or, put it in the computer and click the Install or Restore icon you see in the disc's main window (after which the computer will start from the disc without you needing to hold C). Or, you can use Startup Manager or the Startup Disk preference pane to select the Install disc.
2. Choose a language, click the arrow button to continue,
3. Mac OS X v10.6 or later: Choose Password Reset from the Utilities menu.
   Mac OS X v10.5 or v10.4: Choose Reset Password from the Utilities menu.
   Mac OS X v10.3: Choose Reset Password from the Installer menu.
   
   Tip: If you don't see this menu or menu choice, you're probably not started from the disc yet.
   
   Note: The default keyboard layout is U.S. English while started from the installation disc. If you use a keyboard layout other than U.S English, use the Input menu (the flag icon on the right side of the menu bar) to select the desired layout before typing a new password.
4. Select your Mac OS X hard disk volume.
5. Select the user name of your original administrator account.
   
   Important: Do not select "System Administrator (root)". This is actually the root user. You should not confuse it with a normal administrator account.
   
   >
6. Enter a new password.
7. Click Save.
8. Click the red button in the upper left corner to quit the application.
9. Choose Quit Mac OS X Installer... from the Mac OS X Installer menu.
10. Click Restart.

After following these steps, you need to update your keychain so that it recognizes the new password.
If your computer doesn't have an optical drive, connect it to a computer that does using Target Disk Mode, or use the Remote Install Mac OS X utility to start up the computer remotely. Resetting a user's password in Mac OS X v10.5 or earlier If you are using an earlier version of OS X, select your version number below for password reset instructions. Avoid setting a blank password for a user account when using these steps. Mac OS X v10.3 through 10.5.8

1. Log in with an administrator account. Tip: If you don't know the password of any administrator accounts, see "Resetting the original administrator account password" above.
2. From the Apple menu choose System Preferences.
3. From the View menu choose Accounts.
4. Click the lock button if it appears locked; enter the administrator password.
5. Select the name of the user whose password you want to change.
6. Click the Reset Password button or the Change Password button.
7. Enter a new password in both the New Password and Verify fields, and add a Password Hint if desired.
8. Click the Reset Password button or the Change Password button.
9. If a dialog box appears with the message "Your Keychain password will be changed to your new account password," click OK.

Mac OS X v10.2 through v10.2.8 Use Accounts preferences to reset an account password.

1. Log in with an administrator account. Tip: If you don't know the password of any administrator accounts, see "Resetting the original administrator account password" above.
2. From the Apple menu choose System Preferences.
3. From the View menu choose Accounts.
4. Click the lock button if it appears locked.
5. Select the username whose password you want to change.
6. Click Edit User.
7. Navigate to the New Password field.
8. Enter a new password in both the Password and Verify fields.
9. Click OK.
10. If a dialog box appears with the message "Your Keychain password will be changed to your new account password," click OK.

Regardless of how many characters are actually in a Mac OS X v10.2 password, seven bullet characters (•••••••) will appear in the New Password and Verify fields the next time the password is edited. Mac OS X v10.1.5 or earlier Use the Users preference pane to reset a the password.

1. Log in with an administrator account. Tip: If you don't know the password of any administrator accounts, see "Resetting the original administrator account password" above.
2. From the Apple menu choose System Preferences.
3. From the View menu choose Users.
4. Click the lock button if it appears locked.
5. Select the username whose password you wish to change.
6. Click Edit User.
7. Enter a new password in both the Password and Verify fields.
8. Click Save.

Important: Passwords for administrator accounts should not be blank.

Regardless of how many characters are actually in the password, thirteen bullet characters (•••••••••••••) will appear in the Password and Verify fields the next time the password is edited.

Changing your administrator password

To change the administrator password, you must know the current administrator password. If you're logged in as the administrator, open Account preferences and click the Change Password button.

If you don't remember the password and automatic login is turned off, you can reset the administrator password using the Mac OS X User Install disc.

IMPORTANT: Because a user with the Mac OS X install disc can gain unrestricted access to your computer, you should keep the disc in a safe place.
To reset the administrator password using the Mac OS X disc:

1. Insert the Mac OS X Install disc and restart the computer.
2. When you hear the startup tone, hold down the C key until you see the spinning gear.
3. When the Installer appears, choose Utilities > Reset Password.
4. Follow the onscreen instructions to change the password.
5. Quit the Installer and restart your computer while holding down the mouse button to eject the disc.

Be sure to change your login password in Keychain Access to match your new password.

Apple has a guide on resetting the administrator password here: http://docs.info.apple.com/article.html?path=mac/10.4/en/mh655.html This one is for OS X 10.4 (Tiger) but the method is the same for newer versions. In older versions the only difference is that the reset password option mentioned in step 3 is located in the installer menu instead of the utilities menu.

Root user is special user in Mac OS X, has high privileges and rights to make any type of change to the system, and is different than administrator. If you forgot root password, see how to reset Root user password using different methods in Mac OS X.
How to Reset Root User Password on Mac OS X

Resetting the original administrator account password Follow these steps to reset a password when there is only one administrator account on the computer, or if the original administrator account needs a password reset. "Original" administrator account refers to the one that was created immediately after installing Mac OS X. If the original administrator password is known, that administrator account may be used to reset the passwords of other administrator accounts using the steps described above. These steps require an optical drive; if your Mac does not have an optical drive and you have a Mac OS X v10.6 Install disc, see below.

1. Start up from a Mac OS X Install disc (one whose version is closest to the version of Mac OS X installed). Usually, you can start from the disc by putting it in your computer, restarting, and holding the C key. Or, put it in the computer and click the Install or Restore icon you see in the disc's main window (after which the computer will start from the disc without you needing to hold C). Or, you can use Startup Manager or the Startup Disk preference pane to select the Install disc.
   
2. Choose a language, click the arrow button to continue,
3. Mac OS X v10.6 or later: Choose Password Reset from the Utilities menu.
   Mac OS X v10.5 or v10.4: Choose Reset Password from the Utilities menu.
   Mac OS X v10.3: Choose Reset Password from the Installer menu.
   
   Tip: If you don't see this menu or menu choice, you're probably not started from the disc yet.
   
   Note: The default keyboard layout is U.S. English while started from the installation disc. If you use a keyboard layout other than U.S English, use the Input menu (the flag icon on the right side of the menu bar) to select the desired layout before typing a new password.
   
4. Select your Mac OS X hard disk volume.
5. Select the user name of your original administrator account.
   
   Important: Do not select "System Administrator (root)". This is actually the root user. You should not confuse it with a normal administrator account.
   

Did you lost the administrator password? There is a way to reset it. You will need the install disk in the resetting process. Please make sure you follow the steps accordingly.

From Mac OS knowledgebase:

Resetting the original administrator account password Follow these steps to reset a password when there is only one administrator account on the computer, or if the original administrator account needs a password reset. "Original" administrator account refers to the one that was created immediately after installing Mac OS X. If the original administrator password is known, that administrator account may be used to reset the passwords of other administrator accounts using the steps described above.

1. Start up from a Mac OS X Install disc (one whose version is closest to the version of Mac OS X installed). Usually, you can start from the disc by putting it in your computer, restarting, and holding the C key. Or, put it in the computer and click the Install or Restore icon you see in the disc's main window (after which the computer will start from the disc without you needing to hold C). Or, you can use Startup Manager or the Startup Disk preference pane to select the Install disc.
   
2. Choose a language, click the arrow button to continue, then choose Reset Password from the Utilities menu (or from the Installer menu, if using Mac OS X 10.3.9 or earlier). Tip: If you don't see this menu or menu choice, you're probably not started from the CD yet.
   
   Note: The default keyboard layout is U.S. English while started from the installation disc. If you use a keyboard layout other than U.S English, use the Input menu (the flag icon on the right side of the menu bar) to select the desired layout before typing a new password.
3. Select your Mac OS X hard disk volume.
4. Select the user name of your original administrator account.
   
   Important: Do not select "System Administrator (root)". This is actually the root user. You should not confuse it with a normal administrator account.
   
   
5. Enter a new password.
6. Click Save.

here you go I hope you have your original CDs http://support.apple.com/kb/HT1274 See the section near the end called : Resetting the original administrator account password Enjoy

Hi there
You'll need your install disk.

1. Start up from a Mac OS X Install CD (one whose version is closest the the version of Mac OS X installed). You should first disable Open Firmware password protection, if it is enabled. Hold the C key as the computer starts.
2. Choose Reset Password from the Installer menu (or Utilities menu in Mac OS X 10.4 Tiger). Tip: If you don't see this menu or menu choice, you're probably not started from the CD yet.
3. Select your Mac OS X hard disk volume.
4. Set the user name of your original administrator account.
   
   Important:Do not select "System Administrator (root)". This is actually areference to the root user. Do not confuse it with a normaladministrator account.
5. Enter a new password.
6. Click Save.