benjaminwallis

Q: i am locked out of guest user (only account on my Mac)

I recently purchased a late 2013 model macbook pro on eBay and the seller left me the password to the 'guest user'.

i changed the password to a blank password as i didn't want to have a password but i didn't create a new user account.

last night i clean installed OS X El Capitan, when the installation was complete i was asked for a password at the log in screen.

i managed to skip the password login but now i am trying to create a new password in system preferences, however i am unable to because i am required to use a password to enable changes.

Guest User is the only account on my Mac so i have no clue what to do to get out of this mess.

 

thank you in advance to anyone that can offer support.

MacBook Pro, OS X El Capitan (10.11.6)

Posted on Aug 25, 2016 10:01 PM

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Q: i am locked out of guest user (only account on my Mac)

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  • by Kappy,

    Kappy Kappy Aug 25, 2016 10:17 PM in response to benjaminwallis
    Level 10 (270,175 points)
    Desktops
    Aug 25, 2016 10:17 PM in response to benjaminwallis

    You need to erase the drive then do a fresh installation of OS X. You can do this via Network Restore:

     

    Install Lion Through Mavericks

     

    1. Restart the computer and after the chime press and hold down the COMMAND-OPTION- R keys until a globe appears. Wait patiently - 5-15 minutes - until the Utility Menu appears.
    2. Select Disk Utility from the Utility Menu and click on the Continue button.
    3. After Disk Utility loads select the drive (usually, this is the out-dented entry with the mfgr.'s ID and size) from the side list. Click on the Partition tab in Disk Utility’s main window.
    4. Under the Volume Scheme heading set the number of partitions to one volume. Click on the Options button, set the partition scheme to GUID then click on the OK button. Set the Format type to Mac OS Extended (Journaled.) Click on the Partition button and wait for the process to finish. Quit Disk Utility and return to the Utility Menu.
    5. Select Reinstall OS X from the Utility Menu and click on the Install button.

     

    This should install the original version of OS X that came with the computer originally.

  • by stevejobsfan0123,Solvedanswer

    stevejobsfan0123 stevejobsfan0123 Aug 25, 2016 10:53 PM in response to benjaminwallis
    Level 8 (43,464 points)
    iPhone
    Aug 25, 2016 10:53 PM in response to benjaminwallis

    When prompted to enter the password to enable changes, it doesn't work if you just leave it blank and press the return key?

  • by benjaminwallis,

    benjaminwallis benjaminwallis Aug 25, 2016 10:54 PM in response to stevejobsfan0123
    Level 1 (4 points)
    Mac OS X
    Aug 25, 2016 10:54 PM in response to stevejobsfan0123

    thanks i just solved my problem, i reset it back to factory settings and started from scratch... all sorted now.

    thanks for your help

  • by Kappy,

    Kappy Kappy Aug 25, 2016 10:56 PM in response to benjaminwallis
    Level 10 (270,175 points)
    Desktops
    Aug 25, 2016 10:56 PM in response to benjaminwallis

    I believe that is what I instructed you to do. I think you hit the wrong Solved button.