Privileges provides a quick and easy way to get administrator rights when needed on university-owned Macs for faculty and staff. When you do need admin rights, you can get them immediately by clicking on the Privileges icon in your Dock.

Working as a standard user instead of an administrator adds another layer of security to your Mac and is considered a security best practice.

Click here for some frequently asked questions about Privileges.

Using Privileges


If you are a standard user and want admin rights:

  1. Launch Privileges
  2. Click the Request Privileges button.
  3. The Privileges dock icon should change to look like a yellow unlocked padlock.
  4. A Privileges have been changed successfully message should appear.

5. The logged-in account should now have admin rights.

If you are a admin user and want to remove admin rights:

  1. Launch Privileges.
  2. Click the Remove Privileges button.
  3. The Privileges dock icon should change to look like a green locked padlock.
  4. A Privileges have been changed successfully message should appear.


5. The logged-in account should now be a standard user account.