If you signed in to your Mac using your Apple ID, you may be able to use it to reset the system administrator account password. If this is not your case, as an alternative you can activate the Mac's "OS X Recovery" mode to use the "Reset Password" procedure. If you know the login credentials of another system administrator user profile, you can use it to reset your login password via the "Users and Groups" menu.
Steps
Method 1 of 4: Use the Apple ID
Step 1. Try typing the wrong password three times consecutively
If you activated this security feature when you first set up your user account, you will be able to use your Apple ID to reset your account login password. This method only works if this feature is enabled.
If you have full access to the Mac you can activate this security feature by opening the "Apple" menu and selecting the "System Preferences" item. Choose the "Users and Groups" option, then select your user profile. Press the padlock button to enable changing settings, then select "Allow user to reset password with Apple ID"
Step 2. Select the link that appeared to reset the login password
This possibility is provided to you after entering an incorrect password three times in a row. If not, it means that this feature is not active for your user account, so you must use one of the other methods described in this article.
Step 3. Enter your Apple ID login password
In order to reset your Mac user profile login password, you need to provide your Apple ID password. This is the Apple ID account that you have associated with the user profile configured on the Mac.
Step 4. Create a new admin password
After entering your Apple ID password, you will be asked to create a new admin password. You will have to enter it twice in order to verify its correctness and proceed with its creation.
Step 5. After your Mac restarts, log in using the new password you just created
After resetting the system administrator profile password, you need to restart your computer. After the reboot is complete, you will be able to log in by entering the new password.
Step 6. Create a new login keychain
When you log into the system after creating a new password, a warning will most likely appear indicating that the system was unable to access the current login keychain. This is completely normal, as the new login password and the password protecting the keychain no longer match. You will be asked to create a new login keychain to keep all your passwords.
Method 2 of 4: Use OS X Recovery Mode
Step 1. Restart your computer
If you are unable to reset your password using your Apple ID, you can take advantage of the "OS X Recovery" mode. In order to access this operating mode, you need to restart your Mac and perform a sequence of steps.
Step 2. Press and hold the key combination
⌘ Command + R as soon as you hear the classic Mac startup beep.
Continue to hold down the indicated keys until the bar indicating the progress of the start-up procedure appears on the screen. This will start your Mac in "OS X Recovery" mode. It may take some time for the activation of this mode to finish.
Step 3. Access the "Utility" menu, then choose the "Terminal" item
The menu in question is placed on the bar located at the top of the screen.
Step 4. Type the command
resetpassword inside the "Terminal" window, then press the key Enter.
This will start the "Reset Password" system utility.
Step 5. Select the Mac hard drive
In case there are more disks or more partitions, you will have to select the one in which the operating system is installed, i.e. the boot system. Normally, the disc under consideration is characterized by the wording "Macintosh HD".
Step 6. Select the user account whose password you want to change
To do this, use the relevant drop-down menu.
Step 7. Create a new admin password
You will have to enter it twice in order to verify its correctness and proceed with its creation.
Step 8. Enter a "Password Hint" (optional)
This is additional information that can be displayed when you are having difficulty logging in to help you remember your login password.
Step 9. Press the "Save" button to create the new password
The new changes will take effect as soon as you restart your computer.
Step 10. Enter the "Apple" menu, choose the "OS X Utility" option, then select the "Exit OS X Utility" item
When prompted, choose to restart your Mac. This will apply the new password you just created when the system restarts.
Step 11. Log in using the new password
Once the boot process is complete, select your user account, then log in using the new password.
Method 3 of 4: Use a Different Administrator Account
Step 1. Log into your Mac using a second system administrator user profile
In order to follow this procedure, a second user account with system administrator privileges must be configured on the Mac; of course, you also need to know its login password.
If you are logged in to your user account, log out, then log back in with the second system administrator user profile
Step 2. Go to the "Apple" menu, then choose the "System Preferences" option
This will bring up the system settings window.
Step 3. Select the "Users and Groups" icon
The complete list of all user profiles registered on the Mac will be displayed.
Step 4. Click the padlock icon in the lower left part of the window that appears
In this way you will have the possibility to change the settings in the "Users and Groups" window. You will be asked to provide the login password of the account in use again.
Step 5. Select the user profile whose password you want to change
You will find it listed in the left pane of the window. The configuration settings of the selected profile will be shown in the right pane of the window.
Step 6. Press the "Change Password" button
This way you will have the possibility to change the login password of the selected user account.
Step 7. Create a new password
You will have to enter it twice in order to verify its correctness and proceed with its creation. When finished, press the "Change Password" button to save the changes.
Step 8. Log out, then log back into the system using your original user profile and the new password you just created
At this point, you shouldn't have any difficulty logging into your Mac.
Step 9. Create a new login keychain
After logging into the system using the new password, you will be prompted to create a new login keychain or change the password of the existing one. If you no longer remember your old login password, it is very likely that you will not be able to change the one that currently protects the login keychain associated with your user profile. In this case you will have to create a new one.
Method 4 of 4: Change a Known Login Password
Step 1. Access the "Apple" menu, then select the "System Preferences" item
This will bring up the system settings window. This method is only useful for changing a login password that you already know. In case you can't remember it anymore, you'll need to use another method from this article.
Step 2. Select the "Users and Groups" icon
This will allow you to change the settings related to user accounts registered on the Mac.
Step 3. Select the padlock icon in the lower left corner of the window that appears, then enter the current login password
This will give you the ability to change the configuration settings of registered users and groups on the Mac.
Step 4. Select your user profile, then press the "Change Password" button
A new dialog will appear where you can provide your new login password.
Step 5. In the first text field, you need to provide your current login password
This is the password you currently use to log into your computer.
Step 6. Create a new password
You will have to enter it twice in order to verify its correctness and proceed with its creation. When finished, press the "Change Password" button to save the changes.
Step 7. Enter a "Password Hint" (optional)
This is additional information that can be displayed when you are having difficulty logging in to help you remember your login password. This is a recommended step, as it may prevent problems with changing a forgotten login password in the future.
Step 8. Start using your new password right away
The new password you created will take effect immediately; from now on, therefore, you can use it whenever you are asked to provide it.
Advice
- Make a note of your login password, then carefully store it in a safe place (such as inside the cover of your favorite book). This will prevent it from accidentally falling into the wrong hands.
- If the "FileVault" feature is enabled, you will not be able to use the "Reset Password" procedure without having the "recovery key" and password provided when you first set up "FileVault". Without this information, the files stored on the Mac startup disk will be unrecoverable.
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