User switching doesn't work properly in macOS Sonoma

AFAICR, this problem used to happen when using touch id to switch, and when the two accounts used the same finger - like your index finger. The system would recognize the fingerprint as belonging to the main account and log you in to that account.

One possible workaround was to either use a different finger for the second account, or to type its password instead.

I had this issue as well and it seemed related to the user names.

I had 2 user accounts, niclas and niclas-2.

Then i renamed niclas-2 --> niclas.

So now i had 2 user account names called niclas, but with different passwords.

In the user directory i also had 2 different account directories, niclas-2 and niclas althought the user names were the same.

Now it always logged in to the first account in the list no matter what password i used.

So it seem like the problem is related to:

1. you can actually have multiple accounts with same username
2. the selection of the user based on username is not done correctly.

For me it worked when i differentiated the user names properly. Im suspecting the problem might also arise when you have user names with space in it.

For example: user name, user fullname.

For that case i suggest change the names complete for testing, like randomName, username.

Yes it does work properly. On switching users on the login screen you place the cursor on the avatar of the user and the rest of the users show up. Click on the user you want switch to and enter the password or touch-ID. I have six user accounts on my Mac and can login to any one of them just fine. As a matter of fact I can have up all six users logged in at the same time without issues.

If this is not what you are experiencing then you have an issue with your installation or a misunderstanding, not a Sonoma bug.

Two things to try to resolve.

1. Restart your Mac
2. Restart your Mac in Safe Mode

Start up your Mac in safe mode - Apple Support

Safe mode performs a bunch of maintenance tasks, clears caches, and many times clears up glitches.

"It isn't constant behavior. After restart it works normal. But eventually issue comes back."

So try restarting your Mac in Safe Mode as the link I provided instructs. If fast user switching works while in Safe Mode then restart normally and see if the issue returns. If it does then the possibility exists that some third party extension, plugin, etc. May be causing this. Safe Mode starts up with only Apple’s add ons and nothing else.

FRsstr wrote:

Managed to fix this issue for myself by logging into the available user, Apple > Restart… then a dialogue box with a Switch User button appears. I clicked Switch User and it took me back to the login screen and I was able to access the other user account that was affected by this bug.

That sounds like normal FileVault behavior where only one user is authorized to decrypt the drive.

Managed to fix this issue for myself by logging into the available user, Apple > Restart… then a dialogue box with a Switch User button appears. I clicked Switch User and it took me back to the login screen and I was able to access the other user account that was affected by this bug.

I had the same problem on my MacBook Air while still running the earlier versions of macOS Sonoma.

The update to version 14.4. finally fixed I for me.

.

I have a Mac Book Pro M3 Max and have never had this issue - the laptop is FAST.

HOWEVER, when I upgraded to 14.4.1 started having weird "slowdowns" on miscellaneous things but not enough to really worry about EXCEPT user switching. I use the laptop for personal and work - so 2 main accounts I switch back and forth with A LOT. Every time I try to switch users it instantly gives me the option for a quick switch, but when I click on the other user its almost as if it "locks" up and freezes eventually if you wait it finally gives the password box for the other user.

I have changed nothing on my laptop except the OS update to 14.4.1 - so reasonable logic based on my experience and all of the post (in addition to other forum other than this one) it seems that this would indeed be a bug/glitch that Apple needs to address and fix.

Thanks to all for the suggestions as as I have tried them all and hate having to do a "hold the power until it does a hard reboot" method when I get stuck.

Macbook pro M3 Max

36 GB Ram

Sonoma 14.4.1

happens during a already logged in user or at the lock screen .

Thanks

I am not at my mac now, but the only times I experienced this were due to badly placed cursor. Clicking just outside the area recognized as corresponding to a certain account results in the already logged in account being selected, not unlike clicking way outside. Maybe there is a bug related to screen coordinates, and maybe it’s affecting users more depending on their screen resolutions.

Rread in this discussion and also elsewhere on the web how many people have this problem. It is a bug, it has nothing to do with any configuration!

This just began happening to me this morning. I have two users logged in to the computer, both admins. I cannot reboot the computer to resolve the issue because the other user is away for the day and has work that would need to be saved first. When I choose the Fast User Switching in the Menu Bar (or name, I've tried all the options), the other user is greyed out. If I lock the screen, the main login window appears. If I hit Escape, both users appear. But when choosing the other user not currently logged in, it quickly goes back to the username currently logged in. This is new and is not something caused by third-party software as this problem began overnight.

I am running two machines:

MacBook Pro, M1 Max 64GB Sonoma 14.4.1

iMac 24inch M3 24Gb Sonoma 14.4.1

I am a developer. Until this evening I had not experienced any issues with user switching. I now have experienced the issue of user switching as described in this forum, on my iMac. Co-incidentally, yesterday a neighbour who I support, had the same problem with his iMac 24inch, that I put down to user error or other. I suggested Control + Command + Q to log out of the current user to return to the login screen and then select the other user to login in, but this appeared not to work. Without being able to visit him, he ultimately had to power down and back on.

I have now experienced the same issue on my iMac M3 (his machine was also a iMac M3).

There is an issue that needs to be addressed.

So Sonoma 14.5 was release yesterday. Have you updated to see if the problem still exists? Since you are a developer I would have thought you being up to date with beta releases and already have moved to 14.5. No?

The issue has only occurred on my iMac M3 within the last days having already witnessed on someone else’s iMac M3. Neither are development machines hence they are on 14.4.1 and do not run beta releases.

I will, in the first instance, encourage my neighbour to update and see if the problem persists.

Use case: MacBook Pro M2 2022 8gb Sonoma 14.5; only 2 users (same person really just separating personal and school workspaces), both users are administrator, both have Touch ID user switching enabled

Note: menu bar switching enabled as well and consistently works as expected for both user profiles.

Issue: From the "school" user, no issue -- i.e. resting finger on TouchID button brings up the 'press to switch...' verbiage on the Touch Bar within 2-3 seconds, I press and the other user is loaded fairly quickly though sometimes if heavy cpu / memory load it's slow enough to see it cycle through the log in screen. However, from the "personal" user, resting finger on TouchID either 1) generates no response, or less commonly 2) prompts me to switch to the _current_ user.

Presumably a combination of factors, and obviously restricted to multi-user workflows, but yes it is a bug. A bug that makes my Mac feel clunky and stupid and un-Mac-like.

(IMHO rebooting to enable fast user switching is not a solution, eh? It's not always pebkac)