*Icloud
*App Store Sign In
Macworld reader Arthur is trying to download updates via the Mac App Store, but is stymied, because an Apple ID associated with the previous owner of the machine appears prefilled in the Sign In dialog and can’t be changed. He wonders what to do.
Apple associates app purchases with the account that made the purchase. This includes “free” apps, because such apps can have in-app purchases, which would also be associated. If you bought, inherited, were given, or found on the street a Mac that was previously owned and not wiped clean, you can wind up with apps installed that are registered to a previous user.
Because it’s a design feature, not a bug, there’s no way to get rid of this without deleting all the apps that were purchased or downloaded under that other Apple ID.
However, when you update individual apps, the login for an Apple ID other than your own shouldn’t appear unless that app was purchased or downloaded by that other party. That could help you sort out which ones to remove. Or you could ignore updating those apps.
This can be a real problem with apps like Pages and Numbers, which are free for everyone with a Mac, but are registered to a specific user. You should be able to delete them and then re-download while logged into your own Apple ID account in the App Store, and the apps should then be registered to your Apple ID.Ask Mac 911
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In other words, if you set the country to be “USA” or “Japan” on your iPhone for the App Store, that change will carry across to the Apple ID to your other devices using the same ID. That includes a Mac, iPad, iPhone, or whatever else you’re logged in with.Active2 months agoIcloud
I bought a used MacBook Pro, and I need to update some software. When I click the 'update all' button to proceed, it asks for the App Store password of the old user's account:
How do I remove the old user's account so that I can update my software? user5118 App Store Sign InSteveSteve 6 Answers
You will need to go to Store->Sign Out, then sign in with your own account.
After that, delete the software that is asking for the old account password, and reinstall it under your account. If the software is not free, you will need to buy the software again. You do not have a license to use the software, unfortunately.
In your case, there’s only keynote needing an update so you know keynote had that account tied to it. bmike♦168k4646 gold badges302302 silver badges661661 bronze badgesAlan ShutkoAlan Shutko9,17622 gold badges1717 silver badges2525 bronze badges
To switch Appstore user you can go to 'Featured' tab -- there link named as 'Welcome ' is clickable and open the window with the button 'Log out'.NakilonNakilon21811 gold badge22 silver badges1414 bronze badges
Since you do not know the previous user Apple ID, unfortunately you will have to start from scratch.
You will have to rebuild your computer OS and all Apple applications under your user ID in order to keep it up to date with software updates in the future.
Here are the detailed instructions how to do that.
I highly recommend the total wipe procedure to remove any possible software remains and modifications from previous user that you do not want.
The Operating Software and many app from Apple are FREE anyway.RuskesRuskes38.8k55 gold badges4545 silver badges122122 bronze badges
Go to System PrefernecesCheck the box next to Allow user to reset password using Apple ID.
This will let you change the locked Apple IDKrishnaKrishna
Go to System Preferences > App Store and change the first drop-down menu in the last section of the window (Purchases and In-App Purchases). This should be enough to force the system re-asking your credentials. If you already set up your account somewhere else, aka iCloud than the username will be automatically filled for you.user_1177868user_1177868
On Mojave(10.14.4). This is how I tried and changed it.
*Open App Store app and click on 'Discover' option on the left hand side bar.
*Scroll down and click on 'Add Funds to Apple ID'
*Which then prompts you to add you Apple ID and Password, fill them
*After successful login, it prompts you with account details
By then, the user name and previous Apple Id would get removed and refreshes App Store app and shows the currently signed in user at the bottom on left-hand side bar.Vinayak GHVinayak GHYou must log in to answer this question. Not the answer you're looking for? Browse other questions tagged macbookmac-appstoreuser-account .