How to add another user to a Mac OS X and Limit access

There are families where one laptop is used by multiple members. In such case, you may not want other users to get access to your data or manage them. If a laptop is used by multiple users there are various risks, and some of them are as follows;

1. Other user may access such files that you don’t want anyone to see. If could be videos, docs, apps and other data
2. They may delete the file or make any changes to the computer
3. They may install some spammy or infected apps if the user is not mature enough to understand what to install and what not

What kind of account type (User) you can add on Mac

When you go to add a new user on Mac, you get 5 options; Administrator, Standard, Sharing Only, Managed with Parental Control and Group.

Administrator

An Administrator can do anythings he/she want on Mac. A user with administrator access can add or delete a user, install apps, reset password, and can do everything that other users can’t do.

Standard 

A standard user can also install apps, and change settings for his/her account. However, Standard user can’t add or delete a user.

Managed with Parental Control

When you add this user, you can get the option to select age. Such user can be restricted to use certain apps, and you can also set the time limits on computer use.

Sharing Only

If you want other user to share your file on your screen, but don’t want him/her to login to Mac, you can add the user as Sharing Only. However, you may need to make changes under sharing settings that can be done from System Preferences, and then hit Sharing option.

Group

When you add a Group, you can select multiple users to add to this group. So the Group can used to give access or privilege to multiple users on the same folder or file.

Guest

Guest doesn’t need a password to login, but you may need to enable Guest account to allow guests to access your mac. You can put restriction on guests to access some certain files or apps on your Mac. Please note that when you have File Vault enabled on your Mac, guest can use only Safari to access internet.

Limiting access : Now you already know what kind of user you should add on Mac, and what a certain user type can do. So you can use a specific user type while adding a new user to have limited access on Mac. Parental control can be managed after you add the user.

How to Add a new user to Mac OS X

• Click Apple icon and select System Preferences

• Click Users and Groups under system preferences

• Click the lock icon to unlock the feature
• Enter the Admin Password, and hit Enter key

• Now click the + icon to add a new user. We have already explained all user type above, so you know what to select

• Then follow the screen’s prompt, and hit Create User. You will require to add, name, password, etc..

How to enable Guest Account on Mac

• Go to System Preferences, and click Users and Groups as we did while adding a new user
• Click on lock icon, and enter Admin Password. The same way we explained above while adding a new user
• Select Guest User
• Enable“Allow guests to log in to this computer”
• You can enable Parental control to limit access if you want, and you can also allow guests to access shared folder checking the option (those 2 option are optional). Guests will always be able to use safari to go to internet