How to Reset Mac OS X Account Passwords

It’s human nature to forget little bits of information from time to time and passwords are not an exception. If you forgot your Mac account password or you have a new Mac (bought or inherited) and you don’t know the password needed to login, this tutorial will help you reset an original administrator’s password with or without using a Mac OS X DVD Install disc.

Forgetting a password might seem inconceivable to most people, but it has happened many times. This might happen not only because one cannot memorize things, but also due to using the Automatic login feature in Mac OS X.

Once Automatic login is disabled from System Preferences, by you or anyone else, you will have to enter your account or the administrator password to be able to access the Mac OS X desktop. If you have always trusted your Mac to automatically log you in, this might be a serious problem you have to solve.

Although resetting an (administrator) account’s password might seem a highly intrepid operation, after reading the steps listed below you will see that it’s not.


Reset the administrator password using the Install disc

1. Shut down your Mac and insert your Mac OS X Install disc into the SuperDrive (if not available, you can create your own bootable Leopard Install USB memory stick using the tutorial available HERE).

2. Start your Mac using the power button, while pressing and holding the OPTION key. When the Startup Manager screen appears, select the Install disc using the keyboard arrow keys and hit RETURN.

3. Choose your language and click “Continue”.

4. Go to the Utilities menu available on the top menu bar and choose “Password Reset” (“Reset Password” for a 10.5 or 10.4 Install disc).

5. Select your Mac OS X installation drive (its default name is “Macintosh HD”) and select your administrator account’s name (WARNING: Do not select “System Administrator” – this is the root user).

6. Enter your new password and a new password hint, click “Save” and close password reset utility.

7. From the menu bar choose “Quit the Mac OS X Installer” and click “Restart”

8. Login using your new password.


Reset the administrator password without an Install disc

This method should be used if your DVD drive is not reading the Install disc, if you own a MacBook Air (which has no DVD drive), or if you do not have the Mac OS X Install disc.

1. Restart the Mac and hold down Command-S. A command line will appear on your Mac’s screen.

2. Type in the following command (press Enter/Return after each of them):

/sbin/fsck -y
/sbin/mount -uaw

(these instructions will allow you to access the startup disk in read/write mode)

rm /var/db/.applesetupdone

(this command will delete the .applesetupdone file so that Mac OS X will think that the setup process was never finished)

reboot

Now your Mac will restart and will be as good as new. You will be able to change the password you lost from the account preferences.


Although the above steps will allow you to reset your own password, it also means that others with physical access to your Mac will also be able to use them for accessing your information. To further protect your Mac, you should set an Open Firmware password using Apple's utility and the instructions available HERE.

If you have any questions or you want further details regarding the steps you have to take for resetting your Mac OS X account’s password, leave a comment below.