Benjammintoo

Q: Just bought a second hand MacPro early 2008 running Mavericks. How do I reset it to standard deleting previous owner admin account?

Just bought a second hand MacPro early 2008 running Mavericks. How do I reset it to standard, deleting previous owner admin account?

The previous owner seems to have cleared most of his stuff but I can't make changes as it's asking for the admin password!

Is there a way to reset the MacPro back as if I was logging on for the first time so that I can set it up as my computer?

Mac Pro

Posted on Aug 15, 2014 3:17 PM

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Q: Just bought a second hand MacPro early 2008 running Mavericks. How do I reset it to standard deleting previous owner admin account ... more

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  • by lllaass,

    lllaass lllaass Aug 15, 2014 3:22 PM in response to Benjammintoo
    Level 10 (189,425 points)
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    Aug 15, 2014 3:22 PM in response to Benjammintoo

    Erase the startup disk and reinstall from the Recovery partition

    What to do before selling or giving away your Mac

  • by Linc Davis,Helpful

    Linc Davis Linc Davis Aug 15, 2014 3:28 PM in response to Benjammintoo
    Level 10 (208,000 points)
    Applications
    Aug 15, 2014 3:28 PM in response to Benjammintoo

    The first thing to do with a second-hand computer is to erase the internal drive and install a clean copy of OS X. You—not the original owner—must do that. Changes made by Apple over the years have made this seemingly straightforward task very complex.

    How you go about it depends on the model, and on whether you already own another Mac. If you're not sure of the model, enter the serial number onthis page. Then find the model on this page to see what OS version was originally installed.

    It's unsafe, and may be unlawful, to use a computer with software installed by a previous owner.

    1. If you don't own another Mac

    a. If the machine shipped with OS X 10.4 or 10.5, you need a boxed and shrink-wrapped retail Snow Leopard (OS X 10.6) installation disc from theApple Store or a reputable reseller—not from eBay or anything of the kind. If the machine is very old and has less than 1 GB of memory, you'll need to add more in order to install 10.6. Preferably, install as much memory as it can take, according to the technical specifications.

    b. If the machine shipped with OS X 10.6, you need the installation media that came with it: gray installation discs, or a USB flash drive for a MacBook Air. You should have received the media from the original owner, but if you didn't, order replacements from Apple. A retail disc, or the gray discs from another model, will not work.

    To start up from an optical disc or a flash drive, insert it, then restart the computer and hold down the C key at the startup chime. Release the key when you see the gray Apple logo on the screen.

    c. If the machine shipped with OS X 10.7 or later, you don't need media. It should start up in Internet Recovery mode when you hold down the key combination option-command-R at the startup chime. Release the keys when you see a spinning globe.

    d. Some 2010-2011 models shipped with OS X 10.6 and received a firmware update after 10.7 was released, enabling them to use Internet Recovery. If you have one of those models, you can't reinstall 10.6 even from the original media, and Internet Recovery will not work either without the original owner's Apple ID. In that case, contact Apple Support, or take the machine to an Apple Store or another authorized service provider to have the OS installed.

    2. If you do own another Mac

    If you already own another Mac that was upgraded in the App Store to the version of OS X that you want to install, and if the new Mac is compatible with it, then you can install it. Use Recovery Disk Assistant to prepare a USB device, then start up the new Mac from it by holding down the C key at the startup chime. Alternatively, if you have a Time Machine backup of OS X 10.7.3 or later on an external hard drive (not a Time Capsule or other network device), you can start from that by holding down the option key and selecting it from the row of icons that appears. Note that if your other Mac was never upgraded in the App Store, you can't use this method.

    3. Partition and install OS X

    a. If you see a lock screen when trying to start up from installation media or in Recovery mode, then a firmware password was set by the previous owner, or the machine was remotely locked via iCloud. You'll either have to contact the owner or take the machine to an Apple Store or another service provider to be unlocked. You may be asked for proof of ownership.

    b. Launch Disk Utility and select the icon of the internal drive—not any of the volume icons nested beneath it. In the  Partition tab, select the default options: a GUID partition table with one data volume in Mac OS Extended (Journaled) format. This operation will permanently remove all existing data on the drive.

    c. An unusual problem may arise if all the following conditions apply:

              OS X 10.7 or later was installed by the previous owner

              The startup volume was encrypted with FileVault

              You're booted in Recovery mode (that is, not from a 10.6 installation disc)

    In that case, you won't be able to unlock the volume or partition the drive without the FileVault password. Ask for guidance or see this discussion.

    d. After partitioning, quit Disk Utility and run the OS X Installer. If you're installing a version of OS X acquired from the App Store, you will need the Apple ID and password that you used. When the installation is done, the system will automatically restart into the Setup Assistant, which will prompt you to transfer the data from another Mac, its backups, or from a Windows computer. If you have any data to transfer, this is usually the best time to do it.

    e. Run Software Update and install all available system updates from Apple. To upgrade to a major version of OS X newer than 10.6, get it from the Mac App Store. Note that you can't keep an upgraded version that was installed by the original owner. He or she can't legally transfer it to you, and without the Apple ID you won't be able to update it in Software Update or reinstall, if that becomes necessary. The same goes for any App Store products that the previous owner installed—you have to repurchase them.

    4. Other issues

    a. If the original owner "accepted" the bundled iLife applications (iPhoto, iMovie, and Garage Band) in the App Store so that he or she could update them, then they're irrevocably linked to that Apple ID and you won't be able to download them without buying them. Reportedly, Mac App Store Customer Service has sometimes issued redemption codes for these apps to second owners who asked.

    b. If the previous owner didn't deauthorize the computer in the iTunes Store under his Apple ID, you wont be able to  authorize it immediately under your ID. In that case, you'll either have to wait up to 90 days or contact iTunes Support.

    c. When trying to create a new iCloud account, you might get a failure message: "Account limit reached." Apple imposes a lifetime limit of three iCloud account setups per device. Erasing the device does not reset the limit. You can still use an iCloud account that was created on another device, but you won't be able to create a new one. Contact iCloud Support for more information. The setup limit doesn't apply to Apple ID accounts used for other services, such as the iTunes and Mac App Stores, or iMessage. You can create as many of those accounts as you like.

  • by Benjammintoo,

    Benjammintoo Benjammintoo Aug 15, 2014 4:00 PM in response to lllaass
    Level 1 (4 points)
    Desktops
    Aug 15, 2014 4:00 PM in response to lllaass

    Thanks for the quick reply!

    I'm a bit of a newbie so please be patient... How do I erase the startup disk (where do I find it) and what's involved in reinstalling from the recovery partition?

    The last owner said he had it from new but couldn't find the originally supplied discs. Is that going to be a problem?

  • by Benjammintoo,

    Benjammintoo Benjammintoo Aug 16, 2014 2:09 AM in response to Linc Davis
    Level 1 (4 points)
    Desktops
    Aug 16, 2014 2:09 AM in response to Linc Davis

    Hi Linc, thanks for that detailed response. I do have a MacBook Pro that I had a time machine backup of.

    I followed your advice and plugged in the backup hard drive and set up the Mac Pro as if it was my MacBook! Very cool suggestion and saved me heaps of time too.

    Slightly different query now; since I set it up from the time machine backup, the Mac Pro fans have started to run at full speed and it's quite noisy. It wasn't doing this previously. Is there a setting to manually adjust the fans?

  • by Csound1,

    Csound1 Csound1 Aug 16, 2014 2:11 AM in response to Benjammintoo
    Level 9 (50,816 points)
    Desktops
    Aug 16, 2014 2:11 AM in response to Benjammintoo

    How long since you completed the migration from backup?

  • by Linc Davis,

    Linc Davis Linc Davis Aug 16, 2014 8:24 AM in response to Benjammintoo
    Level 10 (208,000 points)
    Applications
    Aug 16, 2014 8:24 AM in response to Benjammintoo

    What you did (restoring a backup of one computer to another) is not what I suggested and not supported by Apple. I don't know what the effects might be. Download the Mavericks installer from the App Store and run it.

  • by Grant Bennet-Alder,

    Grant Bennet-Alder Grant Bennet-Alder Aug 16, 2014 11:24 AM in response to Benjammintoo
    Level 9 (61,078 points)
    Desktops
    Aug 16, 2014 11:24 AM in response to Benjammintoo

    Once spotlight has finished indexing your drive, you can try an SMC reset, to get the System Management Controller into a known-good state. The SMC is a micro controller used to manage power, temperature, fans, system clocks, keyboard input and other low-speed functions.

  • by Benjammintoo,

    Benjammintoo Benjammintoo Aug 20, 2014 3:19 AM in response to Csound1
    Level 1 (4 points)
    Desktops
    Aug 20, 2014 3:19 AM in response to Csound1

    Hi Csound1.

    If you're asking how long ago I did the migration from the Time Machine backup, then the answer is I did it 4 days ago.

    If you're asking how long after doing the backup the fans started running at full speed then the answer is straight away.

    Thanks Ben.

  • by Csound1,

    Csound1 Csound1 Aug 20, 2014 3:24 AM in response to Benjammintoo
    Level 9 (50,816 points)
    Desktops
    Aug 20, 2014 3:24 AM in response to Benjammintoo

    The question had relevance 4 days ago, not so now.

  • by Benjammintoo,

    Benjammintoo Benjammintoo Aug 20, 2014 3:30 AM in response to Linc Davis
    Level 1 (4 points)
    Desktops
    Aug 20, 2014 3:30 AM in response to Linc Davis

    Hi Linc,

     

    I guess I paraphrased section 2, If you do own another Mac: ......Alternatively, if you have a Time Machine backup of OS X 10.7.3 or later on an external hard drive (not a Time Capsule or other network device), you can start from that by holding down the option key and selecting it from the row of icons that appears. Note that if your other Mac was never upgraded in the App Store, you can't use this method.:

     

    This is what I did and apart from the fans running fast it seems to have got me up and running.

     

    I am however trying to get more information on erasing the disk and restoring as suggested by Illaas as I think this is going to be the best option for me.

     

    I really want the machine to behave like new so then I can update OSX using my own iTunes account etc.

     

    Thanks again for your help.

    Regards, Ben.

  • by Benjammintoo,

    Benjammintoo Benjammintoo Aug 20, 2014 3:35 AM in response to Grant Bennet-Alder
    Level 1 (4 points)
    Desktops
    Aug 20, 2014 3:35 AM in response to Grant Bennet-Alder

    Hi Grant, I tried that reset procedure but it didn't change anything.

    I found that I had a utility called fan control or similar and I was able to slow the fans down that way.

  • by Linc Davis,

    Linc Davis Linc Davis Aug 20, 2014 6:25 AM in response to Benjammintoo
    Level 10 (208,000 points)
    Applications
    Aug 20, 2014 6:25 AM in response to Benjammintoo
    I guess I paraphrased section 2

    That's a way to get into Recovery mode, if you don't have Internet Recovery or a built-in Recovery system of the right version. From there, you install OS X.

  • by BBC141977,

    BBC141977 BBC141977 Oct 20, 2014 1:19 AM in response to Benjammintoo
    Level 1 (0 points)
    Oct 20, 2014 1:19 AM in response to Benjammintoo
    1. Open system Preferences
    2. Open “User Groups” Icon
    3. Scroll down to bottom left of the screen and unlock the “LOCK” Feature
    4. Put in “password word when requested.
    5. Look under “Current User” Right Click on the name with “Admin” under it.
    6. Click on the Advance Option tab that appears up.
    7. Under “Account Name” makesure that it states the same name as the box directly under it says, but WITH NO SPACES IN BETWEEN.

    Ex.

    Account name: JohnDoe

    Full name: John_Doe

    1. Under “Home directory” erase the name that follows /Users/ and put the same name as you enter for the account name above.
    2. Under “UUID:” click “Create New” tab.
    3. Makesure that your Apple ID match if not change it.
    4. Click “OK”
    5. Your computer will request to restart