Recover Forgotten Wi-Fi Password in OS X - Easy Guide
Recovering a Forgotten Wi-Fi Password on a Mac
Losing track of your Wi-Fi password is a common issue. Often, the password is printed on a sticker affixed to the router itself, supplied by your Internet Service Provider (ISP).
However, this isn't always a viable solution. Fortunately, it's possible to retrieve your Wi-Fi password directly from your Mac computer.
Alternative Access Methods
Should the sticker prove incorrect or unavailable, remember that you can also modify the password through your router’s administrative interface. This assumes, of course, that you haven’t also forgotten the router password.
Furthermore, if you utilize Windows or Android devices, recovering a forgotten password is typically a straightforward process on those platforms.
Focusing on macOS
This guide concentrates specifically on the process for OS X (now macOS). Retrieving your wireless network password from a Mac is a relatively simple undertaking.
The following steps will allow you to easily recover your wireless password from your Mac.
Retrieving Your Wi-Fi Password
Initiate Spotlight search by pressing CMD + SPACE. Then, type "Keychain" to open the Keychain Access application.
Navigate to the "System" section and locate your Wi-Fi network's name within the displayed list.
After identifying the network, right-click on its corresponding entry. Select the option "Copy Password to Clipboard" from the context menu.
The system will likely request your password twice. Upon the second prompt, you’ll also need to input your username – typically your full name – along with its associated password.
Following successful authentication, the Wi-Fi password will be copied to your clipboard. It can then be pasted into another application to view it.
Should you wish to directly view the password, perhaps for entry on a different device, double-click the network entry in the list. This will reveal the "Show password" checkbox, which requires multiple password entries for security.
At this point, the password will be displayed in plain text, allowing you to easily read it.
Steps for Password Recovery
- Use Spotlight (CMD + SPACE) to find Keychain Access.
- Locate your Wi-Fi network within the System keychain.
- Copy the password to your clipboard via right-click.
- Alternatively, double-click the entry and check "Show password".
Keychain Access provides a secure method for retrieving forgotten Wi-Fi credentials on your macOS system.