I'm new to using a MacBook Air and ran into a confusing account and password problem after leaving it powered off long enough for the battery to drain completely. I initially tried my Apple Account password, then tried two different Mac login passwords, which caused several lockouts. After one lockout expired, I selected an account showing my name and an old Windows laptop profile photo. One of the passwords worked, but it opened what seems to be an incomplete or incorrect user account and prompted me to set up things that should already have been configured, including linking the account to my Apple Account. After restarting, that account is now the only one visible on the login screen. The Apple Account is already linked to the user account I actually want, so the setup prompts fail. How can I make the correct Mac user account appear again after the lockout, or regain access to it?
2 Answers
It’s possible for a macOS user account to be hidden from the login window, although that usually requires knowing the account’s short name and using Terminal commands. Check whether the account still exists in the Users & Groups settings or from macOS Recovery before trying to recreate anything. The short name can help distinguish the intended account from one created during a migration.
The issue can be fixed through macOS Recovery. Restart into Recovery, check whether the intended account appears there, and try its password. If neither password works, open Terminal from Recovery and reset the affected local account’s password. After that, restart normally and the correct account should be available again.
This solved it. I entered Recovery and found the account I actually wanted. Neither password worked, so I used Terminal from Recovery to reset the problem password. After restarting, everything was working normally again.
The short name was what finally helped me identify the wrong account. Its folder name matched the account transferred from my old Windows laptop, while the account I wanted didn’t show the same way.