Mac Password

Lock your Mac Screen

The absolute fastest and easiest way to lock the screen in Mac OS X is with a simple keyboard shortcut: Control+Shift+Eject

Hit that key combination and your Mac screen will go dark. This also locks the Mac screen, requiring a user to enter a password before the Mac can be accessed again… if you have the setting enabled.

If you don’t have the feature enabled, here’s how to set this up on any Mac:

Enable the Lock Screen in Mac OS X

This will cause the above keyboard shortcut to lock the screen with a password:

• Launch System Preferences
• Click on “Security” and look under the “General” tab
• Click the checkbox next to “Require password after sleep or screen saver begins” – select either immediately or 5 seconds as the time interval
• Exit out of System Preferences

The Mac OS X lock screen is the same as what you see when you wake a Mac from sleep or a screensaver when this feature is enabled, so remember that if you use a screensaver that auto-activates or sleep your Mac regularly, you’ll also be entering your password.

This feature is highly recommended to enable in offices, schools, and any other environment where you may have sensitive data on your Mac that you want to keep from prying eyes.

If you happen to forget your Mac password, you can reset it through a few different methods.

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