- Mac bootable disk utility going into firmware password install#
- Mac bootable disk utility going into firmware password password#
- Mac bootable disk utility going into firmware password download#
Starting in 2011, users began finding they could no longer reset their firmware passwords simply by modifying the hardware configuration.
Mac bootable disk utility going into firmware password password#
These fallbacks made the Mac's firmware password almost laughable as a security measure, but this has changed with newer Mac systems. While administrative rights are required to uncover it, with these rights one can use included utilities in OS X to reveal the password in the PRAM, which is masked only by a simple obfuscation routine. Not only did this basic way of bypassing the password exist, but the password was also not stored very securely. The firmware password on any Mac can be set using the Firmware Password utility that is available on the OS X installation volume.Īltering the system's hardware configuration, such as by removing or adding RAM modules, would clear the security password and permit booting to alternative modes. In earlier Intel-based Macs the firmware password was stored in the PRAM of the system, and was simply read by the system's EFI firmware before other PRAM variables in order to maintain the lock on the system however, this setup had drawbacks that allowed the firmware to be reset or even revealed. However, as a security measure the firmware password has been met with some criticism because it could easily be bypassed by someone who has physical access to the system. It doesnt say on it which version it is.With Apple's firmware password feature on Mac systems you can lock down the options to select an alternative startup disk, boot to Safe or Single User modes, reset the PRAM, and otherwise start the system in ways that can bypass the security features of OS X. We dont know what kind of mac mini it is, but it is metal, with a DVD slot, and a plastic round base which can unscrew, HDMI and displayport. We dont know what version of OSX is installed, but its probably 1-2 years old.
Mac bootable disk utility going into firmware password install#
Opening the mac to take out the disk, format it with a PC, then put it back in looks too risky, and we dont have the special screwdrivers, and we dont know if this will help solve the problem and allow us to install Snow leapard, then upgrade through app store. We dont care about the data, we just want to wipe it and reinstall, which so far seems imposisble.
Mac bootable disk utility going into firmware password download#
Even if we bought or borrowed a second mac, just to be able to download mountain lion, We do not know if it is possible to convert it from the downloaded format (which is presumably is DMG ) into something bootable, and if this bootable image will work to recover our bricked mac mini. There seems to be no way to purchase a bootable/installable version of mountain lion, as we have no other macs to go to the appstore. I.e it doesnt seem possible to re-install OSX from snow leapard DVD. When we do this, and restart, it says "your computer was restarted because of a problem" then it just goes back to the "enter disk password" again. We found an old Snow Leapard disk, and we can boot with this (by holding down option), it then works for a bit, then says you need to restart your computer. We tried booting with cmd-S to go into single user mode, but it doesnt. The guy who set this up has left, and we dont know what it is. When you switch on, it asks for a "disk password". We have a mac mini in the office I desperatly need to get working so we can start developing an IOS app.