I can't install new programs or updates

Hello, I have searched far and wide for a solution to this. I may be searching under the wrong thing, but I thought I would ask here. I have a newer 27" iMac running OS X 10.7.3. Lion was upgraded from snow leopard as it was a free upgrade as I bought my Mac about a month before Lion came out. It was working fine for months and then a few months ago I noticed that if I tried to update any of the programs or install new ones that weren't purchased from the App store, they will not install. I get to the point where the authenticator asks me for my password, I type in the correct one and nothing happens. It just goes back to the screen before it asked me the question. Initially I thought I had the wrong password, but if I type in the password incorrectly then it shakes like it is supposed to letting me know that the password is wrong. It does not do this with the proper password, it accepts the password, but nothing happens.

If I buy a program from the App store though it seems to work fine. As the other day I bought Ticket to Ride from there and it installed and works perfectly. Today I try and install Autocad and no go.

Any help would be greatly appreciated!!!

Try this:

Create another account on your Mac and give it Admin permissions. Log on to the new account and try to install one of the programs that you were unable to install when using your original account. If it works OK, your original account may be corrupt. Let us know...

It won't let me add a new user, it is grayed out. Also, when I click on the lock in the user panel to unlock the settings, it asks for my password just like when installing or updating and doesn't unlock. :-/

If you're comfortable with using the Terminal, you can create a new user direct from there. Follow these instructions as given in Mac OS X Hints: LINK

ouch, I don't know if I am ready to attempt that yet. If there is not another way I may do that. If my user account is corrupt, would I be better off just reinstalling the OS? 90% of my important material is on an external drive anyways, so backing up the rest won't be too much of a problem. Reinstalling all of the programs will be the only real hassle.

I think it would easier and simpler to just open Keychain Access and run the repair routine from the application menu. I doubt your user account is corrupted at all, but what you think the admin password is and what the computer thinks it is don't agree.

I remain very far from convinced that you will need to do something as drastic as reformat the boot drive.

Is anyone still around here years later? im having this EXACT problem.... any help yet?

basils said:

Is anyone still around here years later? im having this EXACT problem.... any help yet?

Click to expand...

Are you talking password issues with software installs??

- Nick

i have 296.14 gigs free out of 999.35 according to this here about this mac window. the reason i want to install something is a driver for an external hard drive so i can put all my music and pictures on there and get some one to reformat my computer so i can have a fresh start cos its getting nuggety anyway. im an artist, so dont want to loose my works, but dont mind reinstalling stuff. i just dont understand computers much. wich is why i liked this mac to start out, it was easy as. but now its all going wrong and i dont know what to do!!! ahhhh!!.

basils said:

...the reason i want to install something is a driver for an external hard drive so i can put all my music and pictures on there...

Click to expand...

You shouldn't need to install any sort of driver on an external hard drive just for music & photo storage.

What is this driver for...what app is it from?

- Nick

it seems i do though, an ntfs thing. otherwise i only have read permissions. cant do anything except get the install files for the ntfs programe of the drive much frustrate. (i just bought the drive today to try and get started doing this)

the driver came on the disk. it wont let me format the drive either, it says disk erase fail, unable to unmount drive.

basils said:

it seems i do though, an ntfs thing.

Click to expand...

Do you need to have this drive formatted as NTFS?

- Nick

p.s. By the way...the problem you are having is not the same as the OP of this thread (even though you said that it was the "EXACT" same). So it might have been better to have started a new thread.

no i dont need to have it formatted that way, just been looking around and it struck me to try reformating it, but as i say it wont let me do that either! says i can not unmount the drive.

regarding the OP thing, i am having the exact same problem,

"It was working fine for months and then a few months ago I noticed that if I tried to update any of the programs or install new ones that weren't purchased from the App store, they will not install. I get to the point where the authenticator asks me for my password, I type in the correct one and nothing happens. It just goes back to the screen before it asked me the question. Initially I thought I had the wrong password, but if I type in the password incorrectly then it shakes like it is supposed to letting me know that the password is wrong. It does not do this with the proper password, it accepts the password, but nothing happens."

thats the problem that made me decide to try and back up my art and reformat the whole freakin computer cos im getting frustrated with it. but now i have this drive and it says i have to install that driver, which i cant because of the original problem.... kinda feeling like tossing the whole bunch out the window haha.

thank you very much for your help by the way

but yes, if you know how to resolve the first problem, the op one.... that would be great

basils said:

no i dont need to have it formatted that way, just been looking around and it struck me to try reformating it, but as i say it wont let me do that either! says i can not unmount the drive.

Click to expand...

If you don't need the drive formatted as NTFS...then format it as "Mac OS Extended (Journaled)".

basils said:

regarding the OP thing, i am having the exact same problem...

Click to expand...

You and the OP have/had different problems:

- The OP could not install stuff due to password issues.
- You're having problems (from what I see) due to hard drive formatting.

* Nick

I have managed to get the hard drive formated now. so i can go about backing up my stuff and reformating the whole computer (different frive then we have been talking about). but with the OP, and my original issue, i dont think it is a password issue, we enter the correct password (which has been working fine for ages, and do everything the same as always) but then after we enter the authenticity key, instead of launching into the installation, it goes back to before you have clicked install like you did nothing. if you inter an incorrect password it tells you so by shaking the box, and thats not whats happening. have tried changing the password and everything. it just wont install things

basils said:

but with the OP, and my original issue, i dont think it is a password issue, we enter the correct password (which has been working fine for ages, and do everything the same as always) but then after we enter the authenticity key, instead of launching into the installation, it goes back to before you have clicked install like you did nothing. if you inter an incorrect password it tells you so by shaking the box, and thats not whats happening. have tried changing the password and everything. it just wont install things

Click to expand...

A few posts back you said that you "Don't understand computers much".

What you're not understanding is...NTFS hard drive formatting is NOT a hard drive formatting that the Mac OS works with automatically.

With an NTFS formatted HD...the Mac OS can READ items on the hard drive...but the Mac OS cannot WRITE to an NTFS hard drive (without jumping thru some hoops first).

Your problem is that you are not able to write/install things to the NTFS formatted drive. Which I just clarified above...the Mac OS does not allow you to write things to an NTFS formatted drive without doing some special "Stuff" first.

The Mac OS works great with a hard drive formatted "Mac OS Extended "Journaled". Since this IS the way the Mac OS works best with HD's.

Once more. The OP's problem did NOT have anything to do with an NTFS formatted drive. The NTFS formatted HD IS your problem. These two problems ARE NOT THE SAME!

- Nick

nope sorry man i think we misscomunicated. i have (had) 2 issues, one relating to an ntfs formated drive, which i have now resolved. the second issue.... is exactly what the o.p posted. forget about the external hard drive. i have figured that out now. imagine i am the op. and answer me that question please. it would help me out. if you dont mind. (the reason we were talking about the external disk, was because i had to instal a programe to run it, wich it turns out, as you have helped me with, i didnt need to install that software after changing it to mac os extended. HOWEVER, the main problem i have, is the same as the op. you are right, it has nothing to do with an ntfs formated drive. sorry for confusing the issue, i should never have mentioned the external drive thing as its unrelated really. just please proceede as if i was the op. the other issue has been resolved. (provided you can be bothered, i wouldnt blame you if you cant.)

basils said:

nope sorry man i think we misscomunicated. i have (had) 2 issues, one relating to an ntfs formated drive, which i have now resolved. the second issue.... is exactly what the o.p posted. forget about the external hard drive. i have figured that out now. imagine i am the op. and answer me that question please. it would help me out. if you dont mind. (the reason we were talking about the external disk, was because i had to instal a programe to run it, wich it turns out, as you have helped me with, i didnt need to install that software after changing it to mac os extended. HOWEVER, the main problem i have, is the same as the op. you are right, it has nothing to do with an ntfs formated drive. sorry for confusing the issue, i should never have mentioned the external drive thing as its unrelated really. just please proceede as if i was the op. the other issue has been resolved. (provided you can be bothered, i wouldnt blame you if you cant.)

Click to expand...

Ok...no problem...you're probably right. There probably was some confusion as to what the main problem in your situation was.

Are you saying that nothing mentioned in the thread (responses to the OP from other members)...has helped?

- Nick