Tom Nelson

Q: os 10.5 has not admin account

Hi - recently upgraded my PPC Powerbook to OS 10.5.4 from 10.4.  Somehow what was formally my administrator account is a "standard" account.  I have no administrator account.  I cannot unlock any of the system preferences panes.  I cannot start-up from the OS Install disc.

 

I'm stuck.  The computer will not let me do anything, moving in finder, deleting, etc.

 

Any suggestions?

Thanks,

Tom Nelson

PowerBook, Mac OS X (10.5.4)

Posted on Mar 25, 2012 7:06 AM

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Q: os 10.5 has not admin account

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  • by BDAqua,

    BDAqua BDAqua Mar 25, 2012 10:35 AM in response to Tom Nelson
    Level 10 (123,765 points)
    Mar 25, 2012 10:35 AM in response to Tom Nelson

    Hi Tom, what happens when you try to start from the Install Disc?

     

    Boot up while holding the Option/alt key down until you see the boot manager, do you see this...

    /___sbsstatic___/migration-images/179/17952177-1.jpg

    Firmware password protection in Mac OS X ...

     

    http://support.apple.com/kb/HT1352

     

    It would block usage of all the startup keys, like C, N, T, D, CMD+s, CMD+Option+p+r, CMD +v, Option, and Shift, as well as booting from anything but the Hard Drive.

  • by Tom Nelson,

    Tom Nelson Tom Nelson Apr 1, 2012 7:57 AM in response to BDAqua
    Level 1 (5 points)
    Apr 1, 2012 7:57 AM in response to BDAqua

    Yes, thanks for your reply.  That's exactly what I get if I try to boot the powerbook from any other means than the internal HD system.  Since I somehow lost the administrator access to my system, what can I do?  My administrator account is now listed as "standard.". 

     

    How can I remove the firmware password protection?  I've tried remote install of OS 10.5.5, remote desktop, remote start from USB, everything I can think of.

     

    Since the machine sees no admin, I am locked out of the computer.  Any suggestions?

    Thanks,

    Tom Nelson

  • by BDAqua,Solvedanswer

    BDAqua BDAqua Apr 1, 2012 11:07 AM in response to Tom Nelson
    Level 10 (123,765 points)
    Apr 1, 2012 11:07 AM in response to Tom Nelson

    Force Removing Password Protection

     

    1) Add or remove DIMMs to change the total amount of RAM in the computer.

     

    2) Then, the PRAM must be reset 3 times. (Command + Option + P + R).

     

    http://www.securemac.com/openfirmwarepasswordprotection.php