Merge and remove user accounts?

A

adetrade

Registered
Thank you in advance for any advice, I'll try and keep this clear on what I would like to achieve....but first a bit of background...

Splitting up with girlfriend and we share a MacBook, 320gb HDD, upgraded from original 120gb HDD (currently in an USB enclosure used as an external drive) running Snow Leopard, which I have agreed she can have as I'm going to purchase a new MBPro in near future.

We have separate user accounts, but I have data (Photos, Documents etc.) in her account but not in mine, which I want to keep.

I use Time Machine to backup to an external firewire HDD 250gb, which is at capacity (245gb); and I have an Airport Extreme, with a 1.5tb HDD connected which I use as a media drive.

So here is where I want to end up, which I think is the easiest way to understand a route of how I might get there....

I want to give her the MB with the original 120mb HDD reinstalled and only her user account installed with administrator privileges, no trace of my user account. I want to store all my data on the 1.5tb HDD until I buy MBPro, next month, and be able to put my user account on it, having merged the two user accounts.

Hope this is clear and someone can help me work out a method of doing it.

Thanks in advance.
 
assumptions:
  • your account is an admin account
  • the 120GB disk isn't used for anything at present
  1. open the Account Preferences Pane in System Utilities, click on the lock, authorize yourself and change your girlfriends account to an admin account
  2. copy your account to the 1.5TB HD
  3. log out of your account and log into your girlfriends account
  4. copy the girlfriends account to the 1.5TB HD
  5. delete the files in her account that are yours
  6. open the Account Preferences Pane in System Utilities, click on the lock, authorize yourself and delete your own account
  7. open Terminal and execute these commands :
    Code: 
    cd /Users ; sudo rm -rf <your-short-account-name>
    if it still exists
  8. open Disk Utility and format the external 120GB HD
  9. download and install Carbon Copy Cloner
  10. use Carbon Copy Cloner to clone the 320GB to the 120GB
  11. swap the two HDs
 
Last edited:
Thanks Bjarne for your advice....could I clarify a couple of points with you please?

I have CCC already and have a TM back up of everything on the 320 GB HD on a 250GB external drive.

1. no problem I can do this ok
2/4. copy using what software/utility?

"...if it still exists?" What did you mean by this?

Cheers
Adrian
 
2/4 : any way you like : Finder, CCC, Disk Utility, Terminal

When you delete a user account, you usually get several options as to should happen to the data in the account. If you choose to delete the data, sometimes not everything is deleted or the process fails and the data is left intact on the HD. You can remove the last remnant by deleting the user folder from Terminal.
 
If you have - and keep - the 320 GB drive with everything installed as was, the steps are easier, assuming that she doesn't need anything from _your_ account:

0.) Make the secondary account an admin account as well.

1.) Install 120 GB drive internally, connect 320 GB drive externally.

2.) Boot from Snow Leopard installation DVD, format the 120 GB drive and clean install the OS onto it.

3.) At first boot, when the Assistant asks you whether you want to migrate from something, choose the 320 GB drive, where you select everything except your user account.
 
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