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lock a mac?
- Thread starter kayleee
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You mean to password lock it? Go to System Preferences > Security and there you should have an option so that the Mac will require a password after the number of time you've set.
That's the number of time after it went to sleep (or just the screen) or after the screensaver was activated.
If you want it to run in the background you need to go to the "Energy Saver" menu (also in System Prefs) and set the computer to never go to sleep, but only the screen.
I have set it in a way that after 15 minutes the screen would go to sleep. I have no screensaver so the screen would become all black but the Mac can keep working in the background. This isn't needed for downloads or such where the Mac stays awake itself until the download is finished, although since ML I think this feature doesn't work properly anymore. And then of course if I want to wake up the screen of the Mac, it would require a password.
Hope this helped!
That's the number of time after it went to sleep (or just the screen) or after the screensaver was activated.
If you want it to run in the background you need to go to the "Energy Saver" menu (also in System Prefs) and set the computer to never go to sleep, but only the screen.
I have set it in a way that after 15 minutes the screen would go to sleep. I have no screensaver so the screen would become all black but the Mac can keep working in the background. This isn't needed for downloads or such where the Mac stays awake itself until the download is finished, although since ML I think this feature doesn't work properly anymore. And then of course if I want to wake up the screen of the Mac, it would require a password.
Hope this helped!
As Sanchez said, you need to configure a password and set the occasions at which your Mac will ask for it. To lock the Mac without putting it to sleep, simply push Control + Shift + Eject (or the Power button if you don't have an Eject key).
I am not sure whether your Mac will go to sleep anyway after the relevant timer lapses (System Preferences > Energy Saver > Computer Sleep), but you can manually extend it or set it to 'Never', or alternatively download the app Caffeine to prevent your Mac from falling asleep when enabled (it adds a toggle to your Menu Bar).
I am not sure whether your Mac will go to sleep anyway after the relevant timer lapses (System Preferences > Energy Saver > Computer Sleep), but you can manually extend it or set it to 'Never', or alternatively download the app Caffeine to prevent your Mac from falling asleep when enabled (it adds a toggle to your Menu Bar).
Yet another method is to open Keychain Access, enable "Show Keychain status in the menu bar" from the Keychain preferences, and then select "Lock Screen" from the menu bar item whenever you want to lock your computer. Note that your user account must have a password set in order to require a password to unlock the computer.