Require password after sleep/screensaver

ricede · 09-14-2012, 02:37 AM

In Snow Leopard i had the option ticked in security/system prefs to require password after coming out of sleep/screensaver.

In Mountain Lion, if i tick this option - it works fine. However as soon as i do a restart, it becomes unticked automatically.

Can anyone please tell me which pref file deals with this option? Or maybe there is a terminal command i can use to activate it ?

ganbustein · 09-14-2012, 06:37 AM

There's an easy way to find out which preference file a setting is stored in:

Open a Finder window on ~/Library/Preferences. Put the window in List view, sorted by Date Modified with the latest date at the top. Then change the setting, and see which preference file bubbles to the top.

Some settings are saved "by host". To understand what that means, imagine a computer lab at a school, where there are a whole bunch of computers, some nicer than others with bigger screens and zippier processors. The computers are all first come, first serve, but no matter which one you sit down at you can log into your personal account on the school's file server. You might want some of your settings (desktop picture, for example) to be different according to which computer you get that day. Those settings are saved "by host" (i.e., according to the current computer). They'll be stored in preference files inside ~/Library/Preferences/ByHost, so you also need to look for files bubbling up to the top of that subfolder.

In this case, toggling the "Require password ..." setting makes ~/Library/Preferences/com.apple.screensaver.plist bubble up, so that's the file the setting is stored in.

ricede · 09-14-2012, 08:45 AM

Thanks for that info - i hadn't thought of searching like that.
When opened the finder that way ~/Library/Preferences/com.apple.screensaver.plist came up to the top.
Firstly i deleted the plist file & restarted. (First checking the settings in the plist file) Then i set the option 'Require password' and it gave these readings :

'Ask for password' Integer 1.
'Ask for password delay' Float 0 (presumably because i asked it to work immediately on sleep)
'tokenRemovalAction' Integer 0

These readings are the same as were in the trashed version. Are any of them obviously wrong ?
Still it 'unchecked' itself on a restart.
Not sure where to go next ?

ganbustein · 09-14-2012, 09:35 PM

Do you have any "System enhancers" active? Maybe one of them is configured to reset the option every time you log in (or out). Check your login items. Check your LaunchAgents (in Library/LaunchAgents, for various definitions of "Library".) Check anything else that might run automatically on login.

Does it happen in other user accounts?

ricede · 09-15-2012, 03:43 AM

Its very strange ganbustein. This morning i read your post & tried a new user a/c ( i don't have any system enhancers on board ). Still no joy. Then i left the mac for a while & when i came back it was sleeping. Lo & behold - up came the password window when i opened the lid. I imagine that something i did yesterday, or this morning, has made the option stick. However that doesn't account for my trying it in a new user a/c this morning & it not working. All very weird. Anyway I'm very happy that it seems to work ok now. Its not the first gremlin I've come across since i upped to Mountain Lion, but overall its a great upgrade from Snow Leopard . Thanks for your input.

09-14-2012, 02:37 AM	#1
ricede All Star Join Date: Jul 2008 Location: India Posts: 529	Require password after sleep/screensaver In Snow Leopard i had the option ticked in security/system prefs to require password after coming out of sleep/screensaver. In Mountain Lion, if i tick this option - it works fine. However as soon as i do a restart, it becomes unticked automatically. Can anyone please tell me which pref file deals with this option? Or maybe there is a terminal command i can use to activate it ?

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09-14-2012, 06:37 AM	#2
ganbustein MVP Join Date: Apr 2008 Location: Berkeley CA USA Posts: 1,016	There's an easy way to find out which preference file a setting is stored in: Open a Finder window on ~/Library/Preferences. Put the window in List view, sorted by Date Modified with the latest date at the top. Then change the setting, and see which preference file bubbles to the top. Some settings are saved "by host". To understand what that means, imagine a computer lab at a school, where there are a whole bunch of computers, some nicer than others with bigger screens and zippier processors. The computers are all first come, first serve, but no matter which one you sit down at you can log into your personal account on the school's file server. You might want some of your settings (desktop picture, for example) to be different according to which computer you get that day. Those settings are saved "by host" (i.e., according to the current computer). They'll be stored in preference files inside ~/Library/Preferences/ByHost, so you also need to look for files bubbling up to the top of that subfolder. In this case, toggling the "Require password ..." setting makes ~/Library/Preferences/com.apple.screensaver.plist bubble up, so that's the file the setting is stored in.

09-14-2012, 08:45 AM	#3
ricede All Star Join Date: Jul 2008 Location: India Posts: 529	Thanks for that info - i hadn't thought of searching like that. When opened the finder that way ~/Library/Preferences/com.apple.screensaver.plist came up to the top. Firstly i deleted the plist file & restarted. (First checking the settings in the plist file) Then i set the option 'Require password' and it gave these readings : 'Ask for password' Integer 1. 'Ask for password delay' Float 0 (presumably because i asked it to work immediately on sleep) 'tokenRemovalAction' Integer 0 These readings are the same as were in the trashed version. Are any of them obviously wrong ? Still it 'unchecked' itself on a restart. Not sure where to go next ?

09-14-2012, 09:35 PM	#4
ganbustein MVP Join Date: Apr 2008 Location: Berkeley CA USA Posts: 1,016	Do you have any "System enhancers" active? Maybe one of them is configured to reset the option every time you log in (or out). Check your login items. Check your LaunchAgents (in Library/LaunchAgents, for various definitions of "Library".) Check anything else that might run automatically on login. Does it happen in other user accounts?

09-15-2012, 03:43 AM	#5
ricede All Star Join Date: Jul 2008 Location: India Posts: 529	Its very strange ganbustein. This morning i read your post & tried a new user a/c ( i don't have any system enhancers on board ). Still no joy. Then i left the mac for a while & when i came back it was sleeping. Lo & behold - up came the password window when i opened the lid. I imagine that something i did yesterday, or this morning, has made the option stick. However that doesn't account for my trying it in a new user a/c this morning & it not working. All very weird. Anyway I'm very happy that it seems to work ok now. Its not the first gremlin I've come across since i upped to Mountain Lion, but overall its a great upgrade from Snow Leopard . Thanks for your input.