Password does not work after being created in system prefs

Hi all

I bought a used macbook pro 15 inch / OS 10.5.8 which had "admin" as the user and no password set. I added a new password in the System Prefs > Accounts as I always do, and when I restarted my laptop - my new password did not allow me to access the system. My password hint was there.

So I reset my password with the Mac installer disc / Reset password option - but no dice. Still did not work. It only worked once I left the new password as a blank entry, which means no password.

I tried going into the root level as per some online advice earlier to reset my password, but even that didn't work. The system seems to have another layer of access.

I noticed in the Mac Installer Reset Password option that there is another user stated which is System Administrator (root) - could this be something I would need to change the password for?

Also, when I logged back into my Mail account - it now asked me for a login password based on my keychain - which was my previous password that I had set for logging into my account before leaving it blank.

I'm not sure what to do, and would appreciate any help to fix this. I would like to set a password.

Thanks in advance

Far better when you purchase a new pre-loved machine, is to format and partition the hard drive and do a clean system install.

Apart from that...any other solutions? Thanks

You've already tried the fix that should have worked. On a used machine you never even know if all the system files are still there that are needed for anything you try to work properly. There are a lot of users out there that go willy nilly into their system deleting stuff they feel isn't necessary. You could spend days researching and trying stuff and never get it fixed.

I have to agree with harryb. In less than an hour you can have a fresh install on the machine.