- Passwords In Keychain Mac
- Store Password In Keychain Mac
- Save Password In Keychain Mac
- Update Password In Keychain Mac
Most of the time, your Mac just works and you don’t have to worry about any of the stuff that’s going on in the background. You just start it up, log in and get to work. Sometimes, however, there are signs that all is not well. They can range from minor irritations to major crashes. One of these apparently minor irritations, but something that is also a symptom of a bigger problem is the message “accountsd wants to use the login keychain” appearing repeatedly on-screen. In this article, we’ll tell you what accountsd is, why it keeps asking for access to the login keychain, and what you should do about it.
Changing the keychain secret key means you will relegate new secret codes for your Mac password manager. It is a unified application for all passwords, users are required to keep it secure, if not any one can access to your details. Mac users can recover lost Wi-Fi passwords or other user accounts and passwords of E-commerce websites by just viewing it in the keychain. Also, if others have access to your Mac machine, then you can delete a few entries from the Keychain Access to keep them private. If the above did not work, Office may have trouble accessing the keychain and you'll need to restore keychain permissions for Office for Mac. In these cases, you may see: The keychain access prompt every time you launch any Office application, even though you previously selected Always Allow. If the login password is reset by the administrator, the keychain password is not changed. The user is asked to reset the keychain password during the next login. If the login password was reset because the user forgot the old password, the keys, passwords, and other information in the keychain won’t be accessible, and the user will need to. If you ever need to view a password stored in a keychain, say to paste it into an app, you can do that. Launch Keychain access and click on the keychain where the password is stored. Then double-click on the keychain item and check the box next to show password. Type in the password for the keychain.
What is accountsd?
Accountsd is the Accounts database, part of the Accounts Framework, which starts login credentials for apps and services you use on your Mac. The Framework allows app developers to build access to accounts into their app, without them having access to your usernames and passwords. In order to work properly, the framework needs access to your login keychain, which manages usernames and passwords for accounts you use on your Mac.
Why does the message appear on my Mac?
When you first create a user account on your Mac, your login password and the password for your login keychain are in sync and systems that need to access the login keychain can do so when you’re logged in.
However, if your login password and keychain passwords become out of sync, those systems will have trouble accessing your keychain and will have to ask for permission. This can happen if you or an administrator on your Mac changes your login password. The message “accountsd wants to use the login keychain” is an indication that those passwords are out of sync.
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How to fix the “accountsd wants to use the login keychain” message
As we said, above, the message appears because your login password and the password for your login keychain are out of sync. So you need to fix that.
- Navigate to Application>Utilities and double-click Keychain Access to launch it.
- Click on the Edit menu and choose Change password for keychain “login”
- If the keychain is locked, enter the previous user password for your account. If you entered the correct password, you should see a new window appear.
- Enter the previous password in the box labelled Current Password.
- Enter your current user password in the New Password field.
- Type in the new user password again in the Verify field.
That should synchronize the login keychain and user login passwords and you should no longer see the message.
Create a new login keychain
If it doesn’t work, the next step is to create a new login keychain. Don’t worry, macOS retains your old keychain and all of its passwords and account details, so you can copy them to the new keychain. When you create a new login keychain, it will be given the same password as your user account. Before you do that, you need to make a copy of your existing login keychain.
- In the Finder, click on the Go menu and choose Go to Folder.
- Type: ~/Library/Keychains
- Locate the login keychain and press the Alt/Option key and drag the file onto your Desktop.
- Click and hold on the name of the copied file on your Desktop, until the name is selected. Replace ‘login’ with a different name.
Now we’ll reset the default keychains
- Go to Applications>Utilities and launch Keychain Access.
- Click on the Keychain Access menu and choose Preferences.
- Press Reset My Default Keychains.
Keychain Access will now create new empty login and iCloud keychains, which will be given the same password as your user account.
Finally, add Keychain
- In Keychain Access, go to the File menu and choose Add Keychain.
- Navigate to the keychain file on your desktop and select it. Press Add
You’ll see the keychain appear in the list of keychains in the sidebar in Keychain Access, with all your logins and passwords in it. - To copy an item from the imported keychain to your new login keychain, right-click on it in the imported keychain and choose ‘Copy [name of item]’
- Click on the new default keychain, right click on the main window, and choose ‘Paste [name of item]’.
You’ll be asked to enter the keychain password, perhaps more than once. Type in the password of the keychain you are copying from.
You can’t copy items to the new iCloud Keychain, so there’s no point importing the old one. That keychain will be populated automatically when you sync with iCloud.
You only need to import your old login keychain and add its entries to the new one if you want to carry on using your Mac with the absolute minimum of disruption. If you use iCloud Keychain, most of your usernames and passwords will be stored in that and be automatically copied to the new iCloud keychain. For others, you will be asked to enter the username and password for accounts as and when required, and they will then be stored in the new login keychain. Adding the old keychain just provides an extra level of convenience and insurance in case you forgot the passwords.
If you don’t already use iCloud Keychain, here’s how to turn it on on your Mac.
- Click on the Apple menu and choose System Preferences.
- In newer versions of macOS, click on AppleID and then on iCloud.
- In older versions, select the iCloud pane in the main System Preferences window.
- Scroll down until you see ‘Keychain’.
- Check the box next to it.
- Quit System Preferences.
If you ever need to view a password stored in a keychain, say to paste it into an app, you can do that. Launch Keychain access and click on the keychain where the password is stored. Then double-click on the keychain item and check the box next to show password. Type in the password for the keychain and press Ok. Alternatively, to copy it to the clipboard, right-click or Control-click on the login item and choose ‘Copy password’.
Fix your accounts settings with CleanMyMac X
Keeping passwords and user accounts secure by using keychains to store them is important in improving your privacy. But there are other ways you can do that, too. And CleanMyMac can help, by sweeping up the traces you leave behind as you use your Mac.
These traces include permissions you’ve granted to applications to use your camera, microphone, boot disk, built-in apps, or other parts of this system that are protected. They also include browser and download history, saved passwords, and autofill data for all the browsers installed on your Mac. And, importantly if you use a MacBook Pro or MacBook Air, they include the list of wi-fi networks you’ve connected to in the past. CleanMyMac X can revoke permissions and remove data at the press of a couple of buttons.
Here’s how to use it.
- Download CleanMyMac X free version if you don’t already have it.
- Press scan
When it’s finished, you’ll see a list of things it has found, separated into categories, that could compromise your privacy. Review them one by one and check the box next to any that you want to remove.When you’re done, press Remove.
Clear up your internet-related items
The login keychain is a key tool used to protect your privacy by encrypting usernames and passwords for apps and services you use with your Mac. But there are other ways your privacy can be compromised. These include things as seemingly innocent as the list of apps you’ve opened recently, or websites you’ve visited, to permissions you’ve granted to apps, like access to your FaceTime camera, and wi-fi networks you’ve connected to in the past. It’s a good idea to audit this data regularly and delete what you no longer need. The simplest way to do that is to use the Recent Items List tool in CleanMyMac X.
Here is how it looks in action:
This clears up temporary details about:
- Recently accessed servers
- Recently launched applications
- Recently opened documents
Has it fixed the issue with accountsd? Apparently, the pop-up shouldn’t come up again.
As you can see, as well as the inconvenience of the ‘accountsd wants to use the login keychain’ message, there are a number of other issues you can run into with keychains. And many users find them confusing and daunting to manage. However, Keychain Access makes it quite easy, and by following the steps above you can get rid of the message and fix other keychain problems. And remember, CleanMyMac X can help protect your privacy in lots of ways, too.
Having to remember all your passwords for all your accounts — email, social media profiles, apps, and website profiles — is impossible, unless you use the same password for all accounts (which is not recommended). That’s why password managers are a gift from heaven. You no longer have to worry about ever forgetting your password because the password manager remembers it all for you.
Passwords In Keychain Mac
Apple devices have their own built-in password manager called Keychain. Apple Keychain makes it easier for users to create safe and complex passwords, as well as store account information, so users don’t have to remember it all the time. Keychain Access is available for iPhones, iPads, and Macs. Just save your login details for the website you want to access so you can directly log in using Keychain the next time you visit that website.
But what happens when you can’t access your Keychain because the data got deleted some way or another? It can be a huge hassle trying to recover the information for all those websites, especially if there is sensitive or financial data included in your Keychain account.
Store Password In Keychain Mac
Keychain data can get deleted due to various reasons. A common scenario is when an error occurs on macOS that needs to be fixed by changing settings and preferences. An update gone wrong can also wipe out data on your Mac, including passwords and website data.
However, the most common reason why Keychain data might be lost is the re-installation of macOS. If for some reason, the Mac operating system had to be re-installed and the old system settings were not saved, your Keychain data will be lost.
But you don’t have to panic, because there are several ways to restore Keychain in macOS High Sierra. Mac users who found their Keychain data deleted can restore Keychain from iCloud, restore from a backup or restore the old Keychain file from the Library folder.
How to Restore Keychain in macOS High Sierra
Getting your Keychain access deleted can be stressful because you’ll lose all your passwords, auto-fill information, and other data that makes your internet life so convenient. Fortunately, there are several ways to restore Keychain in macOS High Sierra.
This guide will show you how to get back your deleted Keychain data in three ways: via iCloud, via Time Machine backup, and via Library folder. You’ll just have to choose which method fits your circumstances.
Before you try restoring your Keychain access, it is important to take these preparatory steps first to make the troubleshooting process smooth and efficient. First, turn off Keychain Access on your Mac to prevent it from syncing to your iCloud Keychain or other devices.
To turn off iCloud Keychain on macOS, follow these steps:
Save Password In Keychain Mac
- Click the Apple menu, then choose Preferences from the dropdown list.
- Click iCloud, and then uncheck Keychain.
- Enter your Apple ID and password to continue.
- Follow the on-screen instructions to proceed.
Once you have disabled iCloud Keychain, the next step is to clean up your system using Outbyte MacRepair. This tool gets rid of all junk files that might interfere with the troubleshooting process. After doing all this, you can proceed with the fixes below.
Method 1: Restore Keychain From iCloud.
One of the good things about Apple is that you can sync most of its services via the Cloud. In this case, you can sync Keychain Access to your iCloud account so that any information you add will also get automatically added to other devices using your iCloud account.
This means that any changes you make to your Keychain Access on your iPhone will get synced to your Mac, iPad, or other Apple devices linked to your iCloud Keychain. This is the reason behind the disabling of your iCloud Keychain on Mac.
Follow the instructions below to restore Keychain from your iCloud account:
Update Password In Keychain Mac
- Make sure that the iCloud Keychain is turned off on your Mac and all other devices.
- Turn on iCloud Keychain on the device that you want to restore the data from. It could be your iPhone, iPad, or another Mac.
- Turn on iCloud Keychain on your Mac where you want Keychain to be restored. Just go to Preferences > iCloud, then tick off Keychain.
Your Mac’s Keychain should automatically sync with the Keychain on the device where you turned it on first.
Method 2: Restore Keychain from Time Machine.
Time Machine is your Mac’s default backup system that runs in the background. It creates backups of your macOS, including files and system settings, on a regular basis. You can use your Time Machine backup to restore files, such as Keychain data, to their previous version.
Here’s how you can restore Keychain from a Time Machine backup:
- Launch Keychain Access under the Utilities folder.
- Click Keychain Access from the top menu, then choose Preferences.
- Click on the First Aid tab.
- Tick off Synchronize login keychain password.
- Close the Preferences window and go back to the Keychain Access dropdown menu,
- Select Keychain First Aid this time.
- Type in your admin username and password.
- Click Repair, then Verify.
- Quit the Keychain Access app by pressing Command + Q.
- Navigate to Finder > Go > Go to folder, then search for ~/Library/Keychain/login.keychain. Highlight the file.
- Open Time Machine and choose a restore point you want to use.
- Click Restore this file. This should replace the current version of the login.keychain with that from your backup.
- Go back to Finder and look for ~/Library/Preferences/com.apple.keychainaccess.plist this time. Highlight the file as well.
- Go back to Time Machine and choose the same restore point you have chosen initially.
- Click Restore this file. This should replace the current version of the keychain .plist file with that from your backup.
- Relaunch the Keychain Access app and click the Keychain Access menu.
- Select Keychain First Aid, then type in your account username and password.
- Click Repair and wait for the process to be completed.
Relaunch the Keychain Access app to check if the passwords have been restored.
Method 3: Restore Keychain from Library.
If you accidentally deleted your Keychain passwords, you can simply restore them from the Library folder. However, the Keychain folder is hidden by default, so you need to take some extra steps to restore them.
To do this:
- Quit the Keychain Access app.
- Launch Finder and press Shift + Command + G.
- Type in this address: ~/Library/Keychains, then press Enter to open the folder.
- Rename all files in that folder.
- Open Keychain Access, then click Keychain List from the Edit menu.
- Select the keychain you would want to replace with the backup version.
- Click the (-) button to delete that Keychain file.
- Drag your original Keychain files from the Trash to the Keychains folder.
- Go back to Keychain Access and click Edit > Keychain List.
- Click the (+) button and choose the Keychain files you want to use. Click Open.
- Click OK and close the Keychain Access app.
Relaunch the app to check if the passwords have been restored.
Summary
Keychain Access is a handy app for remembering passwords and autofill data. It is troublesome when you accidentally delete your Keychain data or it gets wiped out for some reason, because recovering these passwords takes a lot of time and patience. What you can do is recover your Keychain instead using the methods above. It is more efficient and less time-consuming that way.
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