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How to access files on old MacBook Air hard drive in USB enclosure.

My old MacBook Air recently failed and I have a new replacement. I purchased a USB hard drive enclosure for the old hard drive. It loads fine and I can see everything that was on my old laptop, but when I try to access my desktop files that were created with me as the logged in user, I get this message:


The folder “Desktop” can’t be opened because you don’t have permission to see its contents.


How do I get around this permissions problem? Is there a way to log in to the old hard drive.


Thank to any and all who can help, Steve

Posted on Jan 27, 2020 5:47 PM

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Posted on Jan 27, 2020 9:46 PM

Thanks HWTech,


That worked like a charm. I was trying to access the folder/files directly from the old hard drive and couldn't figure out how/where to enter the Admin PW. As soon as I dragged the whole folder across to the new laptop I was prompted for the PW, as you said. From there it was no worries.


Cheers, Steve

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Question marked as Top-ranking reply

Jan 27, 2020 9:46 PM in response to HWTech

Thanks HWTech,


That worked like a charm. I was trying to access the folder/files directly from the old hard drive and couldn't figure out how/where to enter the Admin PW. As soon as I dragged the whole folder across to the new laptop I was prompted for the PW, as you said. From there it was no worries.


Cheers, Steve

How to access files on old MacBook Air hard drive in USB enclosure.

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