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Mac laptops : Is there a way to "lock down" my MacBook with a password?
Is there a way to "lock down" my MacBook with a password?
by oregonian2008 - 10/10/08 7:50 AMOne that no one would be able to get in at all? I've read where someone could use the install disc and set a new password. There's no way at all to make my computer totally safe from someone getting into it?
Passwords
by mrmacfixit
- 10/10/08 9:39 AM
In reply to: Is there a way to "lock down" my MacBook with a password? by oregonian2008
While it is true that it is possible to reset a password using the Installation disk, it would require someone to have complete and unfettered access to your computer.
Your extra long and complicated account password is normally sufficient to prevent the "average" user from accessing your machine.
There are a number of password resetting tools out there for most platforms and most rely on being able to boot the machine from something other than the internal hard drive. (ie. from a CD/Floppy/Thumbdrive)
Even the BIOS password, on a Windows machine, can be removed by moving a jumper. Information on which jumper is freely available at the manufactures website.
This from ARS Technica:
"Every Mac shipped since 2000 has the ability to set a password in Open Firmware, the code built into PowerPC-based Macs that controls the startup process. (For Intel Macs, Open Firmware is replaced by EFI, which also supports password protection.) A firmware password prevents a user with physical access to the computer from starting up from an optical disk, a network boot volume, a separate drive connected in Target Disk Mode, or into single-user mode. It also requires a password to be entered before the system will start up from its regular boot drive. If you're in an environment where you need a little extra physical security, this is a simple add-on to your security toolkit."
P
thanks for the reply
by oregonian2008 - 10/10/08 12:02 PM In reply to: Passwords by mrmacfixit
uhm....what does BIOS mean? I have a MacBook running Intel core2 duo. Open Firmware? Not sure what that is. Guess that doesn't apply, since I have a 2006 macBook. What is EFI and how do I access this? Is it something already on my computer? Will Google this and see what I can find. I am a computer dummie, I admit it 
==================
Even the BIOS password, on a Windows machine, can be removed by moving a jumper. Information on which jumper is freely available at the manufactures website.
This from ARS Technica:
"Every Mac shipped since 2000 has the ability to set a password in Open Firmware, the code built into PowerPC-based Macs that controls the startup process. (For Intel Macs, Open Firmware is replaced by EFI, which also supports password protection.) A firmware password prevents a user with physical access to the computer from starting up from an optical disk, a network boot volume, a separate drive connected in Target Disk Mode, or into single-user mode. It also requires a password to be entered before the system will start up from its regular boot drive. If you're in an environment where you need a little extra physical security, this is a simple add-on to your security toolkit."
P
Very complicated...think I'll just make sure I'm signed out
by oregonian2008 - 10/10/08 12:26 PM In reply to: thanks for the reply by oregonian2008of sites like my journal that i wouldn't want someone to access if I wasn't around any more. Should be a way to lock down a computer permanently so no one can get in to it. hmmm....an easy way, any how LOL
http://support.apple.com/kb/HT1352
a strong password
by mrmacfixit - 10/11/08 4:36 AM
In reply to: Very complicated...think I'll just make sure I'm signed out by oregonian2008
containing Upper and Lower case letters, numbers, special characters and more than 8 characters in length will go a long way to slow down access to your machine.
BTW, "access if I wasn't around any more" If that was the case, you would not be concerned with anyone accessing your machine. Given enough time, and physical access, any computer would be vulnerable.
P
RE: thanks for the reply
by grtgrfx - 10/19/08 3:14 PM In reply to: thanks for the reply by oregonian2008"uhm....what does BIOS mean? I have a MacBook running Intel core2 duo. Open Firmware? Not sure what that is. Guess that doesn't apply, since I have a 2006 macBook. What is EFI and how do I access this? Is it something already on my computer? Will Google this and see what I can find. I am a computer dummie, I admit it"
BIOS means what's imprinted in the chips that tell your Mac what to do, in conjunction with the operating system, OS-X.
EFI is the name for the method of getting information in and out from your hardware to the Mac's CPU (the Intel chip), and is not software that you can operate.
Firmware is the name for hard-wired (not user-changing) instructions that are built into in your Mac's innards, that tell it how to display a screen, remember the date, and how to talk to your other computer items like printers or mice.
All of the things that Open Firmware and EFI can do, if user accessible, are found in your System Preference application, like, for example, setting a firmware password. I'd suggest going to apple.com/support and searching for "firmware password" to see how to go about it.
These are the basics, and someone even more technical could probably correct me, but it should give you an idea of what your Mac does and uses underneath the OS-X interface.
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