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locked out of g4

Submitted by artdesgnr on January 31, 2006 - 2:49am. Unix and Mac OS X

I recently got locked out of my g4 my son changed all the passwords and then he clicked multi user so now I have to try and figure out what he changed passwords to, he said all he did was type in a bunch of letters in no specific order for both my user name and my wifes can someone help, I no longer have my system discs got thrown out when I moved what can I do?

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cwsmith's picture

Best bet ...

Submitted by cwsmith on January 31, 2006 - 2:58am.

Best bet is to borrow someone else's Mac OS X CD (your version or later).

Boot with the CD in the drive, and hold the "C" key to force the computer to boot to CD. When you get to the Mac OS X installer, fiddle around in the menus until you find "Reset password."

Then ground your son til he's 42.

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g4 help

Submitted by artdesgnr on January 31, 2006 - 3:06am.

here is how new I am to this, I am not sure what version it is all I know is that it is os x on a dual processor 1.42 with 2 gb of memory. I bought it too learn how to use while I am attending school. I have a lot of software locked inside it. If I buy new operating system, can I save programs. And he is very grounded!@!!!!!

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cwsmith's picture

It's always best to be runnin

Submitted by cwsmith on January 31, 2006 - 3:26am.

It's always best to be running the most recent OS you can -- more features, better stability, better security. And you should be able to retain *most* of your applications (some of the pro apps like Adobe Creative Suite or MOTU Digital Performer may ask you to re-enter your serials).

but again, you shouldn't have to re-install the whole OS just to reset the password. Do you have any local Mac friends who might loan you their Panther or Tiger installer for a few minutes?

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g4 help again

Submitted by artdesgnr on January 31, 2006 - 3:31am.

No everyone I know has PC's and they told me to get one as well, I did, but did not find it to be user friendly, so I got my G4, which I find to be the best and most reliable machine!!! So I don't know anyone that has Panther or Tiger. Would it be in my best interest to buy this?

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Re: g4 help again

Submitted by artdesgnr on January 31, 2006 - 3:32am.
artdesgnr wrote:
No everyone I know has PC's and they told me to get one as well, I did, but did not find it to be user friendly, so I got my G4, which I find to be the best and most reliable machine!!! So I don't know anyone that has Panther or Tiger. Would it be in my best interest to buy this? One more question since all passwords were changed and I am not sure if administrator was set up if it was not sure if that got changed how will this affect me with fixing this?

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cwsmith's picture

Go for a used copy of Panther?

Submitted by cwsmith on January 31, 2006 - 12:22pm.

Given the age of the machine, it's probably a safer bet that it's got Panther or earlier installed (unless you installed Tiger yourself).

Check eBay for a used copy of Panther. You'll be able to get it for far less than the $129 for a new copy of Tiger. Another plus: Panther came on CDs, as opposed to Tiger only on DVD. If your machine has no DVD player, you won't have to jump through even more hoops.

Good luck!

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cwsmith's picture

Like this one

Submitted by cwsmith on January 31, 2006 - 12:24pm.

http://cgi.ebay.com/Software-Apple-Mac-OS-X-10-3-9-Panther-Full-Install-NEW_W0QQitemZ5860384120QQcategoryZ80258QQrdZ1QQcmdZViewItem

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Zydeco's picture

You don't need anything.

Submitted by Zydeco on February 2, 2006 - 5:50pm.

I have written a small guide on how to recover accounts with lost passwors, without using an install CD.
You can download it here:
http://stuff.zydeco.ath.cx/Mac_OS_X_Account_Recovery.pdf
And you can download the protection script it mentions here:
http://stuff.zydeco.ath.cx/Singleuser_Boot_Protection.zip

Neither of them have been tested very much, use them at your own risk.
Any comments/complaints/suggestions are welcome.

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catmistake's picture

similar method... slightly easier (less steps)

Submitted by catmistake on February 2, 2006 - 7:00pm.

Boot to single user mode (s on reboot after chime)
type these commands at the prompt:


    1) sh /etc/rc......................(should only take a couple mins to return command line... just ctrl-c if takes too long)
    2) passwd [username]........(use your short name)
    3) exit...............................(when login window appears, login using new password)

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locked out of g4

Submitted by artdesgnr on February 3, 2006 - 10:45pm.

thanks for all of the help, I am back in and running full speed thanks to the all the help that was given by all. Cat, thanks again I got in with your help and without this forum I would not have been able to do so. I have updated all passwords and usernames so tht this not happen to me again at all. Would it be worth the money to upgrade to Tiger from Panther? I was a windows user until I got my g4 and once I get the hang of this thing I will be upgrading to a G5, but I want to make sure that I have a complete understanding on how the mac operates and everything else that I need to know about them.

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