How do I figure out what my username is so I can make changes to my own **** computer? System is OS X El Capitan version 10.11.
The name of your macOS user account and the name of your home folder must both be the same. Changing these names does not change or reset the password of your user account.
Because doing this incorrectly could damage your account and prevent you from logging in, you should back up your important data before proceeding.
First rename the home folder
- Log out of the account you're renaming, then log in to a different administrator account. (If you don't have another administrator account, you can create one in Users & Groups preferences.)
- Open the Users folder on the startup disk. It contains the home folder for each user. To get there, you can choose Go > Go to Folder from the menu bar, then enter
/Users
. - Rename the user's home folder without using any spaces in the new name. You'll be prompted to enter the administrator name and password that you used to log in. If you're using file sharing to share the home folder, you won't be able to rename it until you stop sharing the folder.
Then rename the account
While still logged out of the account you're renaming, follow these additional steps:
- Choose Apple () menu > System Preferences, then click Users & Groups.
- Click , then enter the administrator name and password that you used to log in.
- From the list of users on the left, Control-click the user you're renaming, then choose Advanced Options.
- Change the “Account name” field to match the new name of the home folder. It should have no spaces.
- The account name also appears in the “Home directory” field, after
/Users/
. Change that account name to match the new name of the home folder. - If you want to change the full name associated with your account, update the ”Full name” field as well. It can be any name, and you can use either the full name or the account name to log in to your Mac or make changes that require your name and password.
- Click OK, then restart your Mac.
- Log in to the renamed account, then verify that your old files and folders are visible and the account is working as expected.
Create a new user
To allow users to log into your macOS computer, create an account for each of them.
- From the Apple menu, select System Preferences....
- From the View menu, select Users & Groups.
- If it's locked, click the padlock in the bottom left corner of the window, and then authenticate as an administrator.
- Under the list of user accounts, click + (the plus sign).
- From the menu next to 'New Account:', select the type of account you want to create. To allow this user to make changes to the system settings, add programs, and perform other system functions beyond basic use, select Administrator. For lower access accounts, choose Standard or Managed withParental Controls as appropriate. Sharing Only and Group are special options for specific needs. For more, refer to your operating system's documentation. Selecting Administrator will give the user the ability to make changes to your system without your approval.
- In the 'Full Name:' field, enter the new user's real name.
- In the 'Account Name:' or 'Short Name:' field, enter a username you wish to assign to the user. At Indiana University, UITS strongly recommends that you use your IU username for the account name or short name. This is necessary in order to access some services on the IU network.
- In the 'Password:' field, type a password for the user, and then type it again in the 'Verify:' field. You can optionally set a password hint for the user. For the hint, try to use something only the new user will understand; alternatively, leave this field blank.
- Click Create User or Create Account.
Delete a user
- From the Apple menu, select System Preferences....
- From the View menu, select Users & Groups.
- If it's locked, click the padlock in the bottom left corner of the window, and then authenticate as an administrator.
- Select the name of the user you want to delete, and, under the list of accounts, click - (the minus sign).
- Choose Save the home folder in adisk image, Don't change the home folder, or Deletethe home folder depending on how or whether you want to save the user's data. If you choose to delete the home folder, there is also an Erase home folder securely option. Then, click Delete User or OK.