If you have recently acquired a used Mac that still has the old admin account that requires an unknown password, or if you have an old admin password that you want to delete but have forgotten, there is a way to delete it and start using your Mac once more.
On a MacBook, you do not need to know a password to delete an administrator account. To access the settings of the computer, you must first create a new administrator account. By logging into the new administrator account on the computer, you can delete the previous administrator account from the device.
Follow along with the steps that are provided below to learn how to delete the old admin account on your Mac and get started using it.
Instructions for creating a separate administrator account
Creating a separate administrator account on your MacBook is much simpler than it may initially appear.
- Restart your Mac
- Hold down the Command key as well as the “S” key once the screen begins to illuminate during the booting process.
- When the dialogue box appears in black and white appears, type: /bin/mount -UW /.
- After the word “Root” appears, press the enter key and type “rm var/db/.applesetupdone.”
- After pressing enter, type “reboot” when the “Root” prompt appears again.
- To start the computer up, press the enter key.
When you have finished with these steps, you will be prompted to choose a primary language, and then you will be asked to select the country in which you will be setting up your Mac. After that, you will be prompted to confirm whether or not you would like to import any information from another device. You have the option of clicking “not now” if you do not wish to immediately load the Mac with all of your personal information. At this point, you will be asked whether or not you want the location services for the Mac to be turned on.
Following this, a screen will appear that prompts you to enter both your Apple ID and password before continuing. You have the option of entering the credentials for an existing Apple ID, creating a new Apple ID, or skipping this section entirely to proceed to the next page, which contains a license agreement. To agree, click the button.
You will be prompted to create a new account for the Mac when you proceed to the following page. Because you will need to log in to this account to use the Mac, you should either write down your password or select one that is simple enough for you to keep in your head.
After that, you will be allowed to register for Apple’s latest updates and announcements. You have the option of skipping or completing this section. After that, your personal computer will be able to start up normally, and you will be able to make use of it.
Instructions for removing an old administrator account
Once you have logged into your Mac using the new account, you can view the other admin account and delete it by following these steps:
- Launch the Preferences menu for the system.
- To view the additional accounts on the Mac, select the Users and Groups icon from the Dock.
- You will need to click the lock located in the bottom left corner of the screen to make changes. This will open a box that asks for your password when you click on it.
- In the final section, you will need to type in the password for the administrative account that you set up on your Mac. You will be able to edit the accounts on the Mac after entering your credentials into the appropriate fields.
- Simply select the user account you want to delete and then clicking on it will bring up its details for you to review.
- To remove an account from the list, select the “-” button that is located to the left of the account names. This will bring up a conversation box.
- Click the “OK” button after selecting “Delete this home folder” from the drop-down menu.
Selecting the option to “Save the home folder as a disc image” will allow you to save and store the information that was contained within the previous admin account. This will guarantee that none of the information or content will be removed, even though the account will be deleted. The disc will be saved in the “Deleted users and groups” folder. This information can be retrieved at any time and can be accessed whenever necessary.
If you choose the option to “Don’t change the home folder,” the home folder and all of the information contained within it will continue to be stored in users without being altered. If you select this alternative, you will be able to reactivate your previous account at any time and access all of the data associated with it.
If you delete the home file, you will not be able to use your Mac to retrieve any of the information associated with the account or any of the information contained within it. If the other account was created using an Apple ID, on the other hand, you will be able to recover any files, photos, or messages that were stored on iCloud.
Log in to iCloud with the Apple ID that was used to create the old account so that you can view the files that were saved on the old admin account. You can look up your Apple ID on the Apple website if you have forgotten it.
Why am I unable to get rid of an Admin account on my Mac?
If you are having trouble deleting an account, there are some things you can check to make sure that everything will go through as planned. The steps that have been outlined above should guarantee that an account can be deleted without any problems.
Check that the lock in the bottom left corner of the screen is unlocked if you are unable to make any changes or click on the accounts listed on the left side of the screen. The administrative password that you are currently logged into can be used to unlock the door. Instead of the password that is used to access your Apple ID account, use the password that is used to open your computer. You should now be able to edit the accounts using this.
After you have validated the lock button, double-check that you are carrying out the remaining steps in the correct order, and you should then be able to make the modifications that you require. Contact Apple Support if the issue persists after trying the solutions provided there.
How can I access the administrative console of a Mac if I have forgotten the password?
You can reset the password for your admin account and regain access to it if you are unable to access the one you wish to use. To begin, you will need to make a new account by following the steps outlined above. Simply enter the bare minimum of information necessary to complete the setup process; do not enter your Apple ID or any other personal information.
Open System Preferences as soon as you have access to the Mac, and then navigate to the Users and Groups section. When you get there, you’ll need to click the lock icon in the bottom right corner to unlock the settings so you can make changes. You will be asked to enter your login information at this point.
The account that you just created can be accessed using this login information. When you have finished entering your information, you will be able to make changes to previously created accounts and information.
To change the password for the selected account, click the “Change password” button. It will not ask you to enter the previous password for the account that you are attempting to access; rather, it will require you to enter a new password that you will use going forward.
After you have updated the password, you will be able to sign in with the recovered account and then delete the newly created account by repeating the steps from the previous section.
