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How do i access other users' folders?

C

ChrisH3677

macrumors 6502a
Original poster
Oct 6, 2003
774
102
Victoria, Australia
I want to backup my kids' data. They each have their own login. Even tho I am an administrator, I can't access their directories.

I want to use Toast to backup them all at once rather than having to do it individually.

How do i do that?

thanks

PS Am running 10.3.4 and Toast 6
 
ChrisH3677 said:
I want to backup my kids' data. They each have their own login. Even tho I am an administrator, I can't access their directories.

I want to use Toast to backup them all at once rather than having to do it individually.

How do i do that?

thanks

PS Am running 10.3.4 and Toast 6
Click to expand...

You could login as root... that's about the only way I can think of- be careful as a root user. Don't stay logged in as root or open any other programs but the one you wanted to use, it's VERY EASY to screw up your computer in root if you don't know what you're doing.

Here's a tutorial on enabling and using the root user:
http://docs.info.apple.com/article.html?artnum=106290

I would strongly suggest just doing them individually. It's dangerous to login to root if you don't know what you're doing.
 
ChrisH3677 said:
I want to backup my kids' data. They each have their own login. Even tho I am an administrator, I can't access their directories.

I want to use Toast to backup them all at once rather than having to do it individually.

How do i do that?

thanks

PS Am running 10.3.4 and Toast 6
Click to expand...
My personal preference is not to back up to CD or DVD (I can't because my own user account has more data than will fit on one DVD-R), but instead to "clone" my entire system to a FireWire hard drive using Carbon Copy Cloner. This way, I'm confident that I've backed EVERYTHING up, and the backup is bootable, which means minimal hassle if I need to restore my system (just format the main HD, then clone the backup to the main HD, then boot from the main HD). I also have it set up to automatically back itself up in the middle of the night each morning (when nobody's using the computer).

If you want to back up all the user accounts with Toast to one (or more) CD/DVD, but also want to avoid having to log in as root to gain access, there is another method. Log in as each user that needs to be backed up, then create an image of their entire user account, and place the image in a folder accessible to you (such as their Public folder, or your Drop Box inside your Public folder) - using either Toast or Disk Utility (it doesn't matter which program you use). After that, burn the image files (not just their contents) to the disc with Toast. When you need to restore, you can simply open the images you backed up and overwrite each user folder with the contents of the image (be sure to promptly log out of that account after you do this).

If you decided to go ahead with the root user, once enabled, there isn't any place you can log in as a regular or administrative user that you can't log in as the root user instead. As far as I know, there isn't any way to switch users like that. Remember that root is just another user account (albeit a powerful one), like your own, and thus is subject to the same login methods that you use. Be careful with the root account. It is possible to delete/move files as root that will prevent your system from booting.
 
virividox said:
you could change the permisissions and give yourself acces
Click to expand...
There's only one problem with that - you need to change them back, and you may not know how the permissions were set originally, especially if you "mass-changed" them by copying the permissions to all subfolders and files.
 
the thing i don't get tho, is that OSX is Unix based and Unix is meant to be a better multi-user operating system than Windows.
In Windows, there is administrator level access that can access everything, set permissions etc.

Backups are then run by the administrator or an account with administrator privileges.

I would have expected the same from Unix/OSX. Is root the same thing? Can I setup an Admin account with a subset of root privileges that will enable me to backup all users folders?
 
Guys, I think you're over reacting a bit with the root thing.

I mean, if he's only gonna copy his kids' data onto a disc there is no need to worry about system failures.

As long as he stays within what he knows it'll be alright.

Now, If you start playing around with the system files and stuff while on root, THEN worry, otherwise just do it.
 
Just log in as root. Nothing wrong will happen. And yes, root is the equivalent of a Windows Administrator, with the exception that the root can also delete files that are in use.

Personally I use CCC to make a syncronized backup of my User folder every month. I don't backup the other root folders. Why? Because they're on my Panther CDs and it'll take like 20 minutes to reinstall everything. Not to mention that I store my non-apple apps in my home folder.
 
If you do not have access to another computer, follow the above instructions.

If you DO have access to another mac, follow the below:

BY FAR the easiest way is to plug that computer into another and boot the computer with the files in question in "target disk mode":
1) Attach the computers with a firewire cable
2) Boot up the computer you want to copy files to,
3) Boot up the computer that has the files on it you want, and hold down the "T" key
4) That's it. The computer with the files in question will mount on the other machine, and all permissions are disabled. You can access any user's files.
 
I use retrospect express and with it i can select which folders and files too back up within the program.
 
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