Ibook problem Please help

PhilCurran

I have a problem with my girlfriends G4 ibook, it's running OSX (not sure which version, panther I think). it won't allow any programs to be installed without a password but the password my girlfriend uses is not accepted.
Would this kinda thing be covered by the apple warranty if I was to sent it back?
Any help would be appreciated

Oriel

Lol, certainly wouldn't be covered by the warranty - that'll only cover any error in the manufacture of the machine. Are you sure it's not something stupid like caps lock being on, or the keyboard being broken? If the laptop is new, and the keyboard is dodgy for a genuine reason, then I'm sure that would be covered by the warranty. Try testing every key on the keyboard in the username textbox, to make sure the there's nothing wrong with the keyboard.

Are you sure there even is an administrator password? On my machine for some reason, when I log in as a restricted user, it asks me for the Admin password (which there isn't) to install software and won't take no password for an answer.
So, try to set her user access from a restricted user to a normal user, to stop the machine asking you for a password when you try to install the software.

Let me know how you get on,
S.

PhilCurran

I don't think so I haven't tried to install the program it's the girlfriend who tries fails & shouts at me thinking I know all and can fix it. Is it possible that reinstalling the OSX will fix the problem?

Just seen your edit I'll try that when I'm over at hers later today or tomorrow I'll let you know how I get on

minikin

phil,

It's requesting the administrators password.
Is your girlfriends account an administrator or a restricted user account?

PhilCurran

Minikin - I'm not 100% sure but I'll check that out & get back to you

Wibbs

You can reset the admin/user password to whatever you want, if you have the original install disks(and it will have an admin password even if you don't know it). If you're still having problems PM me and I'll tell you how. Don't want to post it openly for obvious reasons. It's possible whoever set it up in the first place put in their own password. I've seen dealers do this. Bloody stupid though. Try "apple" that seems to be the preferred base password of one dealer who shall remain nameless.

Oriel

I still think that there is no Admin password, and that all she needs to do is log into the computer as the administrator, and change her profile setting.
Try that PhilCurran - log in a "administrator" with no password. If that works, then you're sorted. Go to Control Panel > Accounts and change the administrator password to something, anything, other than nothing.
Then when you are installing the program, enter the new password and you should be fine.

S.

...though I may be wrong, but no harm in trying.

babypink

easiest thing to do really is to reset the administrator password using the install disks...at least that way it'll be something she'll remember

ZENER

When she turns on the computer does she have to type in a password ? If not, as suggested above check the users control panel, if the account your gf uses does not have a password then give it one, by default she should be an admin user if she bought the computer but if not is then boot using the install disc as suggested above, cancel the install and check the menus for the change password dialog.

ZEN

PhilCurran

Sorry folks I've been real busy all day & haven't had a chance to pick up the ibook and try your sugestions but hopefully i'll get around to it tonight or tomorrow morning

PhilCurran

alright I've got the ibook off her & I can tell you that her user ac wasn't a restricted one & that there is a master password set for the computer that she didn't set herself and as such we don't know what it is.
I could create another ac & give allow that to admin the computer but that won't solve the problem that the master password is unknown

Any ideas as I'm stumped.

babypink

looks like you need to do the following:


get the OS X install disk/s and boot off the 1st disk by holding c after you press power. When the first install dialogue comes up, look at the menus at the top of the screen and there should be an option to reset master/administrator password. Do this! Once done, quit the installer and shut down.

It's not gonna kill any data so don't worry about that. You can now boot up the machine. Go to the NetInfo Manager app in the Utilites folder. Look for the enable root user option in the menus, it should ask you to enter a password as it is now blank. REMEMBER this.

Log Out of the machine, don't shut down.

Click other and it'll have blank userbname and password fields.
Log in using:
username: root
password: 'what you just entered'

go into the accounts control panel and enable her user account as an administrator account.

Log back in under her account, go to NetInfo manager and disable root user. (I've found it not really a good idea to have it enable by default, just in case)


Her account is now an administrator account, she can do pretty much anything on the machine. If it ever asks for an administrator password during a software install/update it's just her normal login password.

PhilCurran

Thanks babypink I'll try that & let u know how it goes

PhilCurran

I've hit a bit of a snag I followed the instructions for resetting the password but after the reboot I couldn't log in as Audrey It wouldn't accept her new password so I logged in my ac When I went into the NetInfo Manager app it just gave me errors stating that the root domain is not available.

Thinking I messed somewhere I repeated my steps rebooted & went back into the reset password but now the root & audrey accounts are not on the list just application sever & Philip (my acount)

I think the reason might be that after resetting the passwords initially I didn't quit the installer as per babypink's instructions, I just restarted the comp after quitting out of reset password.

Any further ideas would be really appreciated

Hugh_C

PhilCurran wrote:

I've hit a bit of a snag I followed the instructions for resetting the password but after the reboot I couldn't log in as Audrey It wouldn't accept her new password so I logged in my ac When I went into the NetInfo Manager app it just gave me errors stating that the root domain is not available.

Thinking I messed somewhere I repeated my steps rebooted & went back into the reset password but now the root & audrey accounts are not on the list just application sever & Philip (my acount)

I think the reason might be that after resetting the passwords initially I didn't quit the installer as per babypink's instructions, I just restarted the comp after quitting out of reset password.

Any further ideas would be really appreciated

I think you should consider re-installing.

PhilCurran

I tried that It took an hour but it was really only an upgrade install not a clean install from a wiped hd So the problem is still there

babypink

hughchal wrote:

I think you should consider re-installing.

i'm gonna go with hughcal....i'd dont get why the root account would have disappeared - thats a unix special access account, the account of last resort really. It should be there.

Anyway, sorry PhilCurran it went a bit pear-shaped. You should still be able to access her data to make backups before a re-install.

gerryk

Can you not just boot from a PPC Linux LiveCD and edit the /etc/passwd file on the hdd to remove the root and user passwords?