Let's say you totally forgot the password to log on to your Mac. Or maybe you purchased a used Mac from someone else and they've got it locked down. There are numerous ways to reset a password with no OS X discs.
Password Hint for Your Mac Login Password. Before you proceed with resetting your password. Reset Forgotten Admin Password OSX 10.10 Yosemite The passwords for all accounts on OSX 10.10 Yosemite, OSX 10.9 Mavericks and OSX 10.8 Mountain Lion includi. Every Mac has a built-in Recovery mode that will let you change the system password if it's been forgotten. Read our How to recover a forgotten Mac password tutorial for a step-by-step guide to. Only Apple Retail Stores or Apple Authorized Service Providers can unlock computers protected by a firmware password if you can't remember the firmware password you set. Schedule a service appointment with an Apple Retail Store or Apple Authorized.
This tutorial may ruffle some feathers, but it addresses a topic that a ton of people ask about all the time. Yes, it's startling to think that anyone could theoretically walk up to your computer and gain access within minutes. Before you go thinking that Mac OS X has a severe vulnerability that makes it less secure than other operating systems, think again. Anyone with physical access to your machine (whether it is Windows, Linux, or Mac) can eventually find a way in if they know what they're doing. There are ways of bypassing nearly any security measure when a hacker is literally sitting right in front of your system.
The information here has previously been made available from many different sources online and is presented with the intention of helping people with legitimate reasons for resetting their Mac OS X password. A few of the methods floating around the Mac community have been compiled here in one easy-to-reference place. System admins responsible for supporting entire organizations and users who bought used Macs are the folks most likely to benefit from this.
Important Note:
This tutorial was written for Mac OS X 10.4, 10.5 and 10.6. Please check out the updated version of this post if you're trying to reset the password on a Mac running 10.7 Lion or 10.8 Mountain Lion.
Reset 10.5 Leopard & 10.6 Snow Leopard password
- Power on or restart your Mac.
- At the chime (or grey screen if your chime is turned off), hold down Command+S on your keyboard to enter single-user mode.
- This step is optional, but it's a good idea because it checks the consistency of the hard disk before moving on. At the prompt, type fsck -fy and press Enter/Return. Wait for the checks to complete before going to the next step.
- Type mount -uw / and press Enter.
- Type launchctl load /System/Library/LaunchDaemons/com.apple.DirectoryServices.plist and press Enter.
- Type ls /Users and press Enter. This lists all of the usernames on the computer – helpful if you don't know or remember what these are.
- Type dscl . -passwd /Users/username password and replace 'username' with one of the users displayed in the previous step. Replace 'password' with a new password of your choice. Press Enter.
- Type reboot and press Enter.
Reset 10.4 Tiger password
- Power on or restart your Mac.
- At the chime (or grey screen if your chime is turned off), hold down Command+S on your keyboard to enter single-user mode.
- Type sh /etc/rc and press Enter/Return.
- Type passwd username and replace 'username' with the short name of the user account for which you'd like to reset the password.
- Type your desired password and press Enter. It won't show itself on the screen, so be careful what you type. You will most likely have to enter it again to confirm.
- Type reboot and press Enter.
Tricking your Mac into creating a new user account
- Power on or restart your Mac (should work for any Mac OS X system).
- At the chime (or grey screen if your chime is turned off), hold down Command+S on your keyboard to enter single-user mode.
- This step is optional, but it's a good idea because it checks the consistency of the hard disk before moving on. At the prompt, type fsck -fy and press Enter/Return. Wait for the checks to complete before going to the next step.
- Type mount -uw / and press Enter.
- Type rm /var/db/.AppleSetupDone and press Enter.
- Type shutdown -h now and press Enter.
The third method of resetting your Mac's password requires some additional explanation. Rather than simply changing the password like the previous two methods do, this one fools the operating system into believing it has never been started before. This means when you restart the machine, it will take you through the entire setup & registration process all over again. Do not worry, all of your pre-existing data is still available. Just continue with this process and do not choose the option to transfer or migrate information to the Mac.
Once you're done, log in with your new admin account and go to System Preferences > Accounts. You may have to click on the lock icon in the lower-left corner before making changes here. You should see your original user account(s) in the left column. Try clicking on one of them to convert it to a standard user account (uncheck 'Allow user to administer this computer') and change the password. You should be able to successfully log in to that account now and access all of your files and programs. If you want, you can log back in with your new admin account and re-check the 'Allow user to administer this computer' option in System Preferences to grant admin privileges to the original user again.
That should cover it! As always, remember messing with single-user mode and Terminal is risky and may lead to trouble if you make mistakes. Considering you're already locked out of the computer, though, you'll probably be willing to take your chances at this point.
One last thing… if you have a Keychain Access password, you will probably need to reset that as well. You can do this by selecting 'login' under Keychains on the left and choosing Delete from the Edit menu. You'll lose everything in the Keychain, but you'll now be able to start fresh and add new ones.
Nov 16, 2020 • Filed to: Solve Mac Problems • Proven solutions
There could be situations when you need to hack your own Mac and situations when you have trouble remembering your login password. Do not freak out when this happens - it is not a big deal. Learning how to reset or bypass Mac OS X password will be a great advantage because not only are you able to have access back into your Mac, but also keep your Mac better protected as bypassing the login password is easy.
Part 1: How to Reset Login Password
As a good practice, we recommend refreshing your login password regularly. There are a couple of ways to do it.
Open the Apple menu located on the upper-right corner of the screen. Open 'System Preferences' and click on 'Users & Groups'.
Type in your username and password to 'Unlock' the Users & Groups preferences.
In the left panel, highlight your username. Click 'Reset Password'.
Key in your new password and verify it. For future reference, it is highly recommended that you place a hint. To finish the process, click the 'Change Password' button.
Part 2: How to Bypass Mac OS X Password
Now, while refreshing your password may be good practice, it is tiresome to remember your password. At one point or another, many of us just forget our passwords and there is no way for you to enter your account on your Mac.
Do not worry about that. Here are some ways you can bypass the Mac OS X password and regain access to your computer.
Method 1: Mac OS X installer CD
Pop in the Mac OS X installer CD and hold the 'C' button while you restart your Mac. Wait until the Apple logo and the 'Mac OS X Utilities' window appear. On the menu bar at the top of the screen, click 'Utilities'.
Sublime text 3 2 2 build 3211. Click 'Terminal' and type 'resetpassword' in the prompt. Press the 'Enter' button on your keyboard.
Select the specific 'Volume Hard Drive' in the top section of the window. Select the 'User Account' that needs its password to be reset and enter the new password. Verify the password and click the 'Save' button.
Click 'OK' when the prompt asks you to verify your actions.
Once you get into your desktop, restart your Mac to boot it back to normal and log in using your new password.
Method Two: Reset the Password in Single User Mode
Not all of us keep the installer CD or know where we have kept it. Therefore, this method will come in handy. It will involve some command-line footwork, but do not let that scare you away.
Restart your Mac while holding the 'CMD' and 'S' buttons. Your Mac will boot itself into the Single User Mode.
Type the following commands and press 'Enter' on your keyboard after each line and wait until it prompts you to key in the next line. Eon 2 6 4 – simple and elegant time tracking.
Forgot Mac Password Yosemite Recovery Tool
If your Mac is running Snow Leopard or below, type the following and change username and new password accordingly:
If the Mac is running Lion or above, type the following commands instead, changing the username and new password accordingly:
You should now be able to access your Mac without restrictions. Best casino game to win money.
Part 3: Protecting your Mac from Mac OS X Password Bypass
As you can see, it is really easy to hack into your own Mac. Therefore, you need to protect it from malicious intent. To add protection to your device, you can set up a firmware password. By having this layer of protection, an unauthorized third party will not be able to reset your machine even in single-user mode.
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Pop in the Mac OS X Installer CD and wait for it to boot. You will soon be able to see the 'OS X 'Utilities' window.
Forgot Mac Password Yosemite Windows 10
Do not worry about that. Here are some ways you can bypass the Mac OS X password and regain access to your computer.
Method 1: Mac OS X installer CD
Pop in the Mac OS X installer CD and hold the 'C' button while you restart your Mac. Wait until the Apple logo and the 'Mac OS X Utilities' window appear. On the menu bar at the top of the screen, click 'Utilities'.
Sublime text 3 2 2 build 3211. Click 'Terminal' and type 'resetpassword' in the prompt. Press the 'Enter' button on your keyboard.
Select the specific 'Volume Hard Drive' in the top section of the window. Select the 'User Account' that needs its password to be reset and enter the new password. Verify the password and click the 'Save' button.
Click 'OK' when the prompt asks you to verify your actions.
Once you get into your desktop, restart your Mac to boot it back to normal and log in using your new password.
Method Two: Reset the Password in Single User Mode
Not all of us keep the installer CD or know where we have kept it. Therefore, this method will come in handy. It will involve some command-line footwork, but do not let that scare you away.
Restart your Mac while holding the 'CMD' and 'S' buttons. Your Mac will boot itself into the Single User Mode.
Type the following commands and press 'Enter' on your keyboard after each line and wait until it prompts you to key in the next line. Eon 2 6 4 – simple and elegant time tracking.
Forgot Mac Password Yosemite Recovery Tool
If your Mac is running Snow Leopard or below, type the following and change username and new password accordingly:
If the Mac is running Lion or above, type the following commands instead, changing the username and new password accordingly:
You should now be able to access your Mac without restrictions. Best casino game to win money.
Part 3: Protecting your Mac from Mac OS X Password Bypass
As you can see, it is really easy to hack into your own Mac. Therefore, you need to protect it from malicious intent. To add protection to your device, you can set up a firmware password. By having this layer of protection, an unauthorized third party will not be able to reset your machine even in single-user mode.
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Pop in the Mac OS X Installer CD and wait for it to boot. You will soon be able to see the 'OS X 'Utilities' window.
Forgot Mac Password Yosemite Windows 10
Open the 'Utilities' menu and click 'Firmware Password Utility' to set a firmware password.
Check the checkbox, enter your firmware password and verify it. To apply the password, click 'OK'.
You can also add another layer of protection with 'FileVault'.
Open the 'Apple Menu' located on the upper right-hand corner of the screen. Open 'System Preferences' and click on 'Security & Privacy'.
Open the 'FileVault' tab and click 'Turn On FileVault'. Your disk is now encrypted.
As you can see, password recovery for Mac is easy to execute and usually does not take a long time to do - it is simple enough for you to save a trip to the Apple store. However, since it is uncomplicated to do, your Mac is vulnerable towards invasion. Therefore, it is important to know how to hack your own Mac and protect it from any unwanted attention!
