Gaining Access to a Mac

[Speed38]

I don't know in which forum to post this but I am going to guess that folks who read the forum on Networking are probably pretty tech savvy and may know the answer to this problem.

The wife of a former colleague contacted me today. Her husband died, the obit he wrote for himself - and of course lots of other things she needs access to - are on his Mac computer to which she has forgotten the admin password.

I seem to recall that there was once a way to restart in Recovery Mode and reset the admin password.
I don't know whether he has an Intel of a Silicon Mac but I can contact her if that's necessary.

Can anyone help. Any guidance would be greatly appreciated.

Lest you think I am some scammer - I have been a registered MacRumors member since 2011!

 

[Fishrrman]

So it goes when one does not take proper precautions in preparation for one's own demise (sigh).

It would help if we knew
WHAT Mac it is
WHAT YEAR it was made
WHAT OS is running (i realize this may not be knowable until it's booted)

Can the Mac boot to target disk mode?
What you should ask her to do now before doing anything else:
Tell her to go to the Mac
Tell her to press the power on button and IMMEDIATELY hold down the "T" key (nothing else) and to KEEP HOLDING IT DOWN
Does this invoke a thunderbolt or firewire icon?
And get the Mac into "target disk mode"?
(I believe this works on Intel Macs (2020 and earlier), but I don't think it works on Apple Silicon).

IF you can get to target disk mode, you may be able to get connected to another Mac.

If you can get the drive icon to appear on the desktop, do this:
Click ONE time on the icon to select it
Bring up the get info box (type "command-i")
At the bottom of get info, see if there is a lock icon
If so, click it and enter YOUR administrative password to unlock it
Now, put a check into "ignore ownership on this volume"
Close get info.

Then, I would use the command to make normally-invisible files visible:
Command+Shift+period

Now, go to
Private/var/db
Find the file ".applesetupdone"
Delete it.
(this assumes you can get into target mode, then over-ride permissions using the get info trick above)

WHY YOU ARE DOING THIS:
Once the applesetupdone file is removed, the next time the target Mac is booted, it will go directly to Setup Assistant, which will let you create A NEW ACCOUNT with administrative powers (but leave the old account UNtouched).

If you can do this, as a "new" administrator, you can "get into" the deceased's account and change the password so that you can then access the account directly.

I make no promises that this can work, and again, I don't think this trick will work on Apple SIlicon.
But I have personally used it on another MacBook Pro where the owner had somehow "changed" his user account from administrative to regular, and it wasn't working right. The process worked...

A final and personal comment:
In my file cabinet upstairs, I have four envelopes (for my sister)
- Death instructions (to be opened immediately on death, with immediate steps to take)
- Envelope with power of attorney and power to make medical decisions on my behalf
- 3rd envelope contains copy of will (original on file in attorney's office)
- 4th envelope contains numerous non-legal instructions re personal property, financial info, AND a page showing how to get logged into my Mac AND directions pointing the way to a document that contains all my online passwords, etc.

Again, at a later stage of life it's time to be thinking of such things...

 

[Speed38]

Deeply, deeply appreciate your response and guidance. As you can imagine, the spouse is buried in funeral arrangements, etc., but I will try to get answers to each of your questions. The first thing I did after her phone call to me was to ask her the age of the computer and I am waiting for that answer.

Stay tuned. Please. 😃

 

[BeatCrazy]

Deeply, deeply appreciate your response and guidance. As you can imagine, the spouse is buried in funeral arrangements, etc., but I will try to get answers to each of your questions. The first thing I did after her phone call to me was to ask her the age of the computer and I am waiting for that answer.

Stay tuned. Please. 😃

Rather than ask her too many questions, just ask to send several pics of it.

 

[MacCheetah3]

I seem to recall that there was once a way to restart in Recovery Mode and reset the admin password.
I don't know whether he has an Intel of a Silicon Mac but I can contact her if that's necessary.

If you forgot your Mac login password - Apple Support

If you can’t remember the password to log in to your Mac user account, or the password doesn’t work, try these steps to reset your password.

support.apple.com

The catch being if it’s an Apple Silicon or Mac with T2 chip, you’ll probably need the Apple ID credentials. That’s because of Activation Lock. I did a partial test. And using the Reset Password Manager does require deactivation before the actual password reset step, which, as far as I’m aware, requires Apple ID verification. The point the manager indicated a need to deactivate is when I stopped.

Request access to a deceased family member’s Apple Account - Apple Support

Learn how to request access to or delete someone’s Apple Account and the data stored with it after they have passed away.

support.apple.com

I performed another test as something of a confirmation. This time on a 2013 Mac running macOS Monterey (v12.7.6). Using the Reset Password Manager in Recovery Mode immediately allowed entering a new password. NOTE: FileVault is not enabled, and Apple ID was never signed in on said Mac. The latter should be irrelevant because both hardware and software are prior to Activation Lock.

 

[Speed38]

@MacCheetah3 - Thanks for those links which I have bookmarked in a folder for the next time I am asked for help on this question by some distraught survivor.

As to the current problem - all is well as the lady in question was able to recall the password and gained access to her deceased husband’s Mac.