How to get rid off password prompts for each operation?

Question

Level 1

120 points

How to get rid off password prompts for each operation?

Hi,

I just got my Macbook Air, switching from Windows, but now I have a problem: I feel like I have UAC in Windows Vista.

Each time I want to do anything outside my user directory (in which I never work, I need my main stuff at root level), it

prompts for the user password. Even when in my use directory.

This is not going to work.

How can I full disable that stupid prompt?

Thanks for any help.

Steve

P.S. Please answer only if you have a solution, I'm not interested in "why do you want to work at root level", or "work in

your user folder", etc...

MacBook Air, Mac OS X (10.7.1)

Posted on Oct 4, 2011 11:06 PM

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Answer 1

Linc Davis

Level 10

209,547 points

Oct 4, 2011 11:15 PM in response to sjordi

It's normal to be prompted for an administrator password when changing most files outside your home folder.

To be prompted when you change files inside your home folder is not normal. Follow the instructions for Lion in the article linked below:

Reset home folder permissions | [Fix-KB]

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Answer 2

sjordi Author

Level 1

120 points

Oct 4, 2011 11:17 PM in response to Linc Davis

But outside of my home folder, how do I disable this prompt?

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Answer 3

Linc Davis

Level 10

209,547 points

Oct 4, 2011 11:26 PM in response to sjordi

If you're an expert user, open a root shell. If you're not an expert, you don't disable the prompts. File permissions exist to protect the system from unintended modification.

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Answer 4

sjordi Author

Level 1

120 points

Oct 4, 2011 11:31 PM in response to Linc Davis

I'm a developper since 1980 so I guess I'm an expert.

But I don't want to work in a terminal mode/command lines.

There is no way to log in as root and use my Mac normally without those prompts?

Even moving one file from my home to another place asks for a password. It's crazy.

Looks like I will format it and install Win7 instead (that's mainly why I bought the Macbook)

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Answer 5

Oct 5, 2011 5:50 PM in response to sjordi

Make yourself the "owner" for each of *your* folders, that is, the ones you've created at the root "/":

sudo chown -R yourusername "/Folder A"

sudo chown -R yourusername "/Folder B"

...

Once that's done Finder should stop asking you for credentials whenever you're working within and/or moving things around inside these folders.

Still, I would strongly recommend that you base youself off a parent folder such as /home, or /Users, or even /opt, or something else that according to typical unix convention will be understood as being non-OS files and shall be left alone whenever an update, Repair Permissions, or any vendor-initiated changes invariably do occur.

Hope this helps.

Note: You might be able to get this done using Finder, through the "Get Info" dialog, but this might prove daunting if you don't already have proper access.

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Answer 6

sjordi Author

Level 1

120 points

Oct 6, 2011 6:10 AM in response to François J. Perreault

Well,

actually, I can't do this. That would mean I have to do this each time I add a folder.

And chowning / would actually kill the machine. It can't be chowned steve "/", the system would then fail.

And that would mean that creating a new folder at the root level would ask me again to chown it. Each time.

I was naive enough to think that one could work as "root", the user "root" and have no restrictions at all.

But I have reformatted my Mac and installed WIn7 instead. OSX was just a side need for me, so too bad. I may reinstall OSX someday just to play with iOS developments.

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Answer 7

softwater

Level 5

5,556 points

Oct 6, 2011 8:15 AM in response to sjordi

Well, it's a shame you were so hasty. If you want to operate as root in the UI you can. Just enable the root user through the Accounts pane: http://support.apple.com/kb/ht1528

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Answer 8

sjordi Author

Level 1

120 points

Oct 6, 2011 10:15 AM in response to softwater

Well,

I have a ghost of the Apple partitions and can come back whenever I want.

I'm finishing installing all my Windows stuff (compilers mainly) and then will also ghost this part.

Then split the HD in two and restore Lion on one partition and Windows on the other one.

Ok, then it looks like there is a way to be root finally. Thanks for your answer.

I thought it would be crazy not to be able to do such a thing.

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