diff --git a/tools/server-setup.d/20-automation-user.sh b/tools/server-setup.d/20-automation-user.sh
index 565c9dd..d103be9 100755
--- a/tools/server-setup.d/20-automation-user.sh
+++ b/tools/server-setup.d/20-automation-user.sh
@@ -1,6 +1,11 @@
 #!/bin/bash
 
-if ! cat -q "automation" /etc/passwd; then
+if ! cat "$PATH" | grep -q "sbin"; then
+    # sudo is quirky
+    PATH="$PATH:/sbin"
+fi
+
+if ! grep -q "automation" /etc/passwd; then
     echo "setting up automation user..."
     useradd -m automation