8.1. Password Management

The more you do online, the more you need passwords. Ideally, you want different passwords for everything; having your bank account password be the same password you use to post to a third-rate message board isn’t the best idea. However, with so many passwords running around, it is easy to forget them. We’ve all been faced with the situation where we were sure we typed in the right password only to be repeatedly denied access. Fortunately, Mac OS X can help.

8.1.1. Recovering a Forgotten Password

So you’ve forgotten a password to some rarely visited yet essential server or some network you only join rarely. Turns out Snow Leopard probably has remembered the password for you (to have it save passwords for websites, see Section 6.1.19.11). To recover the password, open Keychain Access (/Applications/Utilities/Keychain Access) and type the name of the site, application, or something relevant into the search box of Keychain Access. Double-click that item and a window will pop up with a checkbox to display the password. Check the box, enter your Mac OS X password when prompted, and you’ll see a readable password.