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- Jul 27, 2012
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Help! I am locked out of my laptop because the system refuses to recognize my password after a system restore from a Time Machine backup. I have followed onscreen instructions to the letter, tried every combination of solutions and searched the forums in vain.
Sorry for the lengthy explanation that follows, but it was a complicated sequence of events. After trying and failing to eliminate the Spinning Wheel of Death on my 2009 MacBook Pro, I decided to wipe the hard drive and reinstall the OS. First, I backed up all my files (most of them created in Snow Leopard) to my Time Machine.
Next, I did a clean install of the original OS X (Leopard v 10.5) that came with the machine. Then I did a clean install of the Snow Leopard upgrade (v 10.6). Finally, I restored all my files from the Time Machine backup.
After the laptop restarted, everything appeared fixed. The usual login screen appeared with my usual user account name and avatar. I typed in the same password I have used for two years. A progress bar told me it was logging in. Suddenly, up popped a dialog that said: "You are unable to log in to the user account "MyUserAccountName" at this time. Logging in to the account failed because an error occurred."
I did everything I knew to do -- checked caps lock, retyped carefully, went through the "Forgot password" process, etc. Finally, I used the master password to try to reset the user account password and unlock the File Vault. I followed the onscreen instructions: entered a new password, verified the new password, and typed in a password hint. But I got the shaking screen, and the system refused to accept my new password.
So I booted to the install disk and used the Reset Password utility to change the password. The utility told me the new password had been saved. I rebooted to the hard drive, tried to log in with the new password, and once again got the dialog that said: "You are unable to log in to the user account "MyUserAccountName" at this time. Logging in to the account failed because an error occurred."
I just went through the entire OS installation process again, in case I had missed a step. But I've ended up exactly where I started out: with a system that doesn't recognize my password and won't let me create a new password.
Any ideas?
Sorry for the lengthy explanation that follows, but it was a complicated sequence of events. After trying and failing to eliminate the Spinning Wheel of Death on my 2009 MacBook Pro, I decided to wipe the hard drive and reinstall the OS. First, I backed up all my files (most of them created in Snow Leopard) to my Time Machine.
Next, I did a clean install of the original OS X (Leopard v 10.5) that came with the machine. Then I did a clean install of the Snow Leopard upgrade (v 10.6). Finally, I restored all my files from the Time Machine backup.
After the laptop restarted, everything appeared fixed. The usual login screen appeared with my usual user account name and avatar. I typed in the same password I have used for two years. A progress bar told me it was logging in. Suddenly, up popped a dialog that said: "You are unable to log in to the user account "MyUserAccountName" at this time. Logging in to the account failed because an error occurred."
I did everything I knew to do -- checked caps lock, retyped carefully, went through the "Forgot password" process, etc. Finally, I used the master password to try to reset the user account password and unlock the File Vault. I followed the onscreen instructions: entered a new password, verified the new password, and typed in a password hint. But I got the shaking screen, and the system refused to accept my new password.
So I booted to the install disk and used the Reset Password utility to change the password. The utility told me the new password had been saved. I rebooted to the hard drive, tried to log in with the new password, and once again got the dialog that said: "You are unable to log in to the user account "MyUserAccountName" at this time. Logging in to the account failed because an error occurred."
I just went through the entire OS installation process again, in case I had missed a step. But I've ended up exactly where I started out: with a system that doesn't recognize my password and won't let me create a new password.
Any ideas?