How do I delete a user account without losing my saved photos and documents?

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I want to delete my user account on my imac and create a new one but I don't want to lose my photos and documents. Is there a way of doing this please?

The reason for doing this is that my external speakers stop working hen I switch accounts from my wife's to mine and have to unplug and reconnect them to get them to work again. My wife does not have the same problem when she switches from my account. I suspect my account must be damaged in some way.

If anyone can help I'd be really grateful. Thanks.
 
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Firstly have you checked the Sound preferences to see what output port your account is using
 
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Hi,

I've checked the sound preferences and they are correct; the problem only occurs when switching from another user to my account for some reason which I can't fathom. If possible I'd like to do something less drastic than deleting my account but as a last resort I'll have to try it.
 

chscag

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Create a new account for yourself and assign it admin rights. Then, copy your data from the old account to the new one. Log on to the new account, test it with all your apps and for correct sound. If everything seems OK, you can remove the old account. If not, the sound problem is elsewhere and you'll need to continue trouble shooting it.
 
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I can create the new account and assign admin rights but I'm not sure how to copy data from the old account to the new one. Should I just copy everything I need to an external hard drive and then drag it back into the new account? Thanks.
 
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I can create the new account and assign admin rights but I'm not sure how to copy data from the old account to the new one. Should I just copy everything I need to an external hard drive and then drag it back into the new account? Thanks.

We alway recommend having a backup, in any case. Its always a good thing to have as you NEVER no when something amiss will happen.
Use SuperDuper or CarbonCopyCloner and make a bootable backup or TimeMachine which copys all your files over to the Ext HD but doesnt make it bootable.
Then you can use Migration Assistant to move all your files back.
 

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