Mountain Lion keeps logging user out...

I have had very similar issue to all described, but my users get logged out (or fast user switched, cannot tell) IMMEDIATELY as they login (well within 30 seconds AT MOST). They see the desktop, sometines they can click on the first app (Safari, whatever) and the screen then 'rotates' back to the login panel.

These are Brand New (to us) MacBook 5,2, Fresh Install of Mountain Lion, Directly Upgraded to 10.8.2. and NOTHING ELSE installed (yet), and one machine keeps doing this. Two other laptops seem to not exhibit this issue (maybe not yet??).

To me, I knew it has to be some corrupted plist or some b0rked file SOMEWHERE but how to find it?

On a lark, I installed AppleJack and let it auto process. It found a corrupt plist, /Library/Preferences/com.apple.preferences.sharing.plist

It is zero k, and owned by my account. I only have used that account to ssh into that laptop, so why would a preferences file be created for a low level process like this?

Well, AppleJack moves any 'corrupted' pfile to a new /Library/Preferences\ \(Corrupt\) folder, I rebooted and viola! user can login, no forced switch/logout!

Here is some background/detail information

Before AppleJack, trying to troubleshoot this from terminal:

(~)- ssh -C -2 YYY@XXX

Password:

Last login: Tue Dec 25 20:51:05 2012 from MAIN_SERVER

Could not chdir to home directory /Network/Servers/MAIN_SERVER/Volumes/Users/Users/ME: Invalid argument

-bash: /Network/Servers/MAIN_SERVER/Volumes/Users/Users/ME/.bash_profile: Invalid argument

XXX:/ YYY$

After AppleJack found the corrupt file:

(~)- ssh -C -2 YYY@XXX

Password:

Last login: Wed Dec 26 08:03:43 2012 from MAIN_SERVER

start .bash_profile '-bash'

Calling OUT to .bash_login from .bash_profile '-bash'

start .bash_login

... (Snip for brevity, but YAY!!!)

XXX:/ YYY$

Here is the 'corrupt file info

(/Library/Preferences (Corrupt))- ll

total 0

drwxrwxrwx 3 root wheel 102 Dec 26 09:01:06 2012 ./

drwxr-xr-x+ 62 root wheel 2108 Dec 26 09:01:06 2012 ../

-rw-r--r-- 1 ME staff 0 Nov 23 17:52:17 2012 com.apple.preferences.sharing.plist

I also used to be having the same problems. I would leave my computer for 5 mins then when I came back I would move the mouse, and wherever I moved it, it would "draw" the login screen. I have not found a solution to the "drawing" but if you are just trying to keep your computer from logging you out go to system preferences and click on security & privacy>general>advanced and uncheck the box that says "log out after <mins> of inactivity"

This I find very useful as I have been trying to run a minecraft server 24/7 for a long time and I just figured it out.

I am having random logout issues with a brand new 27" imac (received Jan 2013).

This occurs while I'm actively using the computer, but in any application. I have adjusted the log out after x minutes, but again this is happening during actively using the computer. Anyone else having this problem??

I can confirm the problem - random logouts during the day with a Mac Book Pro Retina. They started to occur more often when the Macbook is hooked up to another screen via hdmi.

Please provide a fix.

Vibration,

This is a USER TO USER Support website. We offer help to each other. Apple does not come on here so any solutions will be found by someone like you and me and provided for the benifit of the community. I am bristling at your 'request for a fix'. Either you solve this issue yourself and in your kindness you post that solution to the group or someone else finds it, and posts the solution. Until then, you are the same boat as all these others, not in line requesting 'the fix' that does not yet exist.

I am sorry my colossal dumbness offended you this much.

Apparently I was wrong with my opinion that apple would monitor these forums in an attempt to get input about bugs quite a lot of users are experiencing.

I hope you accept my humble request of forgiving me this mistake and next time concern yourself with something more relevant like the rise of fascism or something the like.

""System Preferences>Security&Privacy then at the very bottom click on the Advanced button, you'll find an option that says "Log out after XX minutes of activity". Make sure the option is unticked and voila!""

This worked for me Thanks. Although I either didn't lock the settings afterwards or my changes fell out after a reboot...I'll keep an eye on it now. Cheers!

Looks like you've solved this issue which was bugging me for months!

Thanks Jonnygreen65.

🙂

One more tidbit to solve this, in addition to turning off the automatic log out in Security&Privacy turn OFF Automatically update safe downloads list, Apple software is on the safe list, and often requires a reboot to complete the install. So if your mac downloads something that needs a reboot (because this is on) it'll then try to reboot to complete the install.