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How to find out if my Mac has a firmware password?

How do I find out if my machine has a firmware password? is that the password I use to open the machine in the morning, or is that something else?


[Re-Titled by Moderator]

MacBook Pro 13″, macOS 10.13

Posted on Oct 26, 2022 7:51 PM

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Question marked as Top-ranking reply

Posted on Oct 28, 2022 9:59 AM

Hold down the Option key immediately after hearing the startup chime. If you get the padlock screen as shown by @P. Phillips, then you have a firmware lock enabled. This only applies to Intel Macs. M1/M2 Macs with Apple Silicon do not have an option for a firmware lock.




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Question marked as Top-ranking reply

Oct 28, 2022 9:59 AM in response to fynnyg

Hold down the Option key immediately after hearing the startup chime. If you get the padlock screen as shown by @P. Phillips, then you have a firmware lock enabled. This only applies to Intel Macs. M1/M2 Macs with Apple Silicon do not have an option for a firmware lock.




Oct 28, 2022 11:13 AM in response to PRP_53

When a firmware password is enabled, it prevents booting or using any special startup keys. With some special startup keys the user will never know why those keys are not working. AFAIK, the only special startup keys which show the padlock prompt to enter a password are the Option Boot or Recovery Mode options. The Option Boot mode is the quickest method since the padlock icon will appear almost immediately.

How to find out if my Mac has a firmware password?

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