Your choice. I don't, but others do. Note that this is a home machine and I muck around in the innards quite a bit. Apple recommends no, but then it's trying to protect its users from themselves. 😉
I follow Apple's security guidelines and use a non-admin account for everyday use. When running as an admin user, everything you do, every program you run, runs with elevated admin privileges. There is no good reason to give admin rights to your e-mail program or web browser, for example. It's an unnecessary security risk. Apple says to never read e-mail or browse the web while logged in to an admin account.
Nearly all admin and even root tasks can be done from a non-admin account anyway, simply by entering the admin username/password when prompted. So there's rarely if ever a need to actually switch to the admin account to do an admin task. I haven't logged in to my admin account in months and I do admin and root tasks all the time.
People who ignore Apple's guidelines and run all the time as an admin user do so at their own risk. I personally don't see the advantage of running all the time as admin. What benefit does it bring?
Apple says to
never read e-mail or browse the web while logged in to an admin account.
Really? Have a citation? While highly recommended, I can't find any such assertion. IMO, if that was the case, the OS wouldn't allow installation and running with only an admin account, as the default.
Unless you need administrator access for specific system maintenance tasks that cannot be accomplished by authenticating with the administrator’s account while logged in as a normal user, always log in as a nonadministrator user. Log out of the administrator account when you are not using the computer as an administrator. Never browse the web or check email while logged in to an administrator’s account.
IMO, if that was the case, the OS wouldn't allow installation and running with only an admin account, as the default.
The first account has to be an admin account. Apple probably thinks it would be too confusing for new OS X users to go through the whole process of making a first (admin) user account, and then be prompted to do the same thing all over again.
But for the user who has already set things up and is now wondering about best security practices, as the OP seems to be, Apple's published guidelines are out there. And's it's easy to switch: Make a new admin account, and change old one from admin to standard. It's one of the best 15 seconds that can be spent to improve the security of one's Mac.
Thanks for the reference. Since I've not followed that for over eight years w/o issues, I'll most likely continue the practice. Others need to decide on their own how they'll take that advice. 🙂
I ran as admin for years too, and never had an issue. It's only when I learned about the security implications of doing so that I made the change. It's kind of like the seat belt in your car. One could drive around for eight years with no seat belt on, and never be in a collision. But the seat belt isn't designed to prevent collisions; it's designed to protect
you should a collision occur. Running as non-admin is the same. It isn't designed to prevent a security issue from arising. It's designed to protect
you, should one arise.
I think we can let the OP decide on his own now what to do. 🙂
So what, precisely, are the implications of using the default? It seems that the admin account still requires authentication to install anything anyway - what is the vulnerability?
Prior to Snow Leopard, everything in /Applications and was completely wide open to admin users, meaning that an admin user could modify any app in that directory without having to authenticate. Imagine a malware that modified Safari to sniff out your credit card number and send it to a third party. If a user had been running as admin when that malware arrived, it could have installed itself without any prompting for authentication. By logging in as a non-admin user, it would have been stopped dead in its tracks.
Apple locked down its apps in Snow Leopard and made them writable only by root, so that even users who are admins are now required to authenticate to modify an app like Safari. But other things are still wide open to admins, like /Library, applications migrated from a 10.5 or earlier system, and a lot of third party apps like Flip4Mac. All group writable by admin, and so all vulnerable to exploits that can install themselves simply by people being logged in to admin accounts when they arrive.
Run all the time as an admin user if you want. Heck, enable root and run all the time in that account if it tickles your fancy. I won't try to stop you. My only question to people who feel the need to run all of their programs with unnecessarily elevated privileges is... why?
Thanks for the the great insight and advice. A seperate Admin account is the way to go. It is odd that if Apple feels so strongly about it that they bury it on page 119? You would think it would be a little more prominate. Still, it's amazing what you can learn when you RTFM!
New to Macs, I had the same question about the recommended Single User set-up. This was a very helpful discussion - which reinforced the benefit of the 'why take the risk without anything to gain?' approach...I'm keeping my Admin for Admin and Standard for everyday use, it's a no-brainer guys!
Having come to Macs only recently and been preoccupied with learning the basics I’ve run mine (a used machine with SL all ready installed) using just the Admin account because I never thought to do otherwise. This thread is food for thought in that regard. I’m just a bit nonplussed as to how I might shift all my data across to any new standard account. A separate topic strictly speaking, I know, but not unrelated and any advice would certainly be appreciated.
plumpjack wrote:
I’m just a bit nonplussed as to how I might shift all my data across to any new standard account.
A far easier way is to make a new admin user account, and then change the old one from admin to standard. It takes about 15 seconds and nothing needs to me moved.
But you are taking a Very High Security Risk by using a pre-owned Mac's software as-is. Who knows what sorts of hacks, security holes, pirated software, keyloggers, credit card sniffers, or other even riskier stuff may have been left on it by any previous owners. You should erase the hard drive and reinstall everything from the original install discs. Then restore your personal data from backups. I don't even hook a used Mac up to the internet until it has had a fresh reformat and reinstall.
