Stop Users From Installing Software On Mac

I have some apps installed under the admin account on my Mac. I set up standard user accounts on this machine, and I would like these users to access the already installed applications. When they run the app, it either opens in trial mode or asks for a serial number, even though they are already installed. Is there any way to do this?
posted by dhruva to Computers & Internet (13 answers total) 3 users marked this as a favorite

Feb 20, 2012 Prevent Software installation using Group Policy. Windows Server. If all the applications that users might run are not known, then administrators can step in and disallow undesired applications or file types as needed. Please refer to this article to configure it. Installing software on your Mac. Your computer allows you to do some really amazing things. Digital photo editing, sophisticated computer gaming, video streaming—all of these things are possible because of different types of software. Developers are always creating new software applications, which allow you to do even more with your computer. Mar 15, 2015 As Quora User says, yes, if it's a matter of simple drag-and-drop, as much of today's Mac software is. These can normally be run from anywhere too, so if the /Applications folder is write-protected you can drop the app somewhere else and run it fr. I was trying to install a kodak software app but had a hundred problems. It would not install but it would not stop or quit either. How can I find this installation that is still in progress since yesterday so I can stop. Oct 16, 2019 Enter the following command at the Terminal command line: sudo softwareupdate -ignore 'macOS Catalina'. Hit return then enter the admin password. and hit return again to execute the command with super user privileges. Re-open System Preferences, the “MacOS Catalina” update will no longer show as available. That's just the download though, you cannot really stop them from installing it on a unmanaged PC, if they get their hands on the installer (from another tenant for example). But you shouldnt really care that much, with the 5+ activations we are given per user:) 0 Likes.

Have you tried adding your Apple ID to the App Store for those users?
If you're unwilling to do that, then you'll probably have to buy the applications again for each user. Welcome to Apple's walled garden, we hope you enjoy your stay!
posted by pharm at 1:23 PM on June 5, 2013

Some of these apps are not bought from the App Store.
posted by dhruva at 1:27 PM on June 5, 2013

Which apps specifically are you using? There are a variety of different licensing and registration schemes out there, other than the Apple App Store, and they all may be subtly different. You may want to contact the authors of the apps directly.
posted by xil at 1:28 PM on June 5, 2013

For example JMP or Scrivener
posted by dhruva at 1:29 PM on June 5, 2013

Although some more reading has turned up conflicting answers. Humph. Maybe it depends on the licensing of specific Apps?
If the programs are not bought from the App store, where are they installed? If you installed them into the user's Applications directory (my Mac is at work right now, so I can't check, but doesn't each user have their own as well as the system one?) then that's presumably why the other users can't see the Applications. You could either reinstall for each user, or else install them into the system Applications directory.
posted by pharm at 1:31 PM on June 5, 2013

For most ordinary applications, copying the App from the user Applications directory to the system one will just work (tm) I think.
posted by pharm at 1:38 PM on June 5, 2013

They are installed in the Admin user's Application directory. I remember some apps asked me if I was installing for one user or all users, and I foolishly said one user, so I was wondering if there's any way around this without having to reinstall a bunch of software.
That might be (part/all of) your problem, right there. User-specific application directories exist specifically to install software only for that user - if you want everyone to have access to something, you want it in the root /Applications directory.
posted by Tomorrowful at 1:43 PM on June 5, 2013

In the past I have found that some apps keep their registration keys in the preferences or application support folders. So, if just moving the application to the system application folder doesn't make the 'unregistered' messages go away you could try copying any related preference folders as well.
posted by Quinbus Flestrin at 3:18 PM on June 5, 2013 [1 favorite]

Building on what Quinbus Felstrin said, look in ~/Library and its subdirectories for stuff related to the apps in question. Try moving it to /Library.
Or maybe just try scrapping the apps and reinstalling..
posted by Good Brain at 5:37 PM on June 5, 2013

Stop Users From Installing Software On Mac Computer

You can make the non admin accounts admins, log in as those users, set the correct registration numbers then log out and remove admin rights. Once registration info is entered, it should stick.
Though technically, you shouldn't have to make them admins to do that.
posted by inviolable at 6:41 PM on June 5, 2013

Seconding what Qinbus Flestrin is saying. If the other users can see the applications, and open them in trial mode, there's nothing wrong with where the application is stored on disk. It also doesn't matter whether the other users are admins or not.
The problem is that the apps store their registration info per-user. It's possible the apps have an option to store the info globally. Otherwise, you'll have to enter the registration info for each user, or at least copy over files containing that info. I'd recommend contacting the vendors and asking for advice.
posted by vasi at 9:11 PM on June 5, 2013

Ok I tried putting in the preferences files in the user accounts, but the app refused to run, it needed an activation. I guess I will have to re-install, or contact the vendors. Thanks everyone.
posted by dhruva at 10:38 AM on June 6, 2013

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Prevent Mac Users From Installing Software

Please make sure that your Mac is not configured to automatically install operating system (OS) updates. Since Apple recently released a major update to the Mac operating system, now is a good time to make sure your Mac doesn’t automatically install this update. The reason why I advocate this position is that major updates often introduce significant changes to how things look and operate. Additionally, some of your applications or peripherals may not be fully compatible with the new operating system. Most people do not want to unexpectedly have to learn a new way of doing things or deal with the inconvenience of a critical application not working properly.

In previous Tech Tips I write about when one should install major updates and how to do it. I do not feel that everybody needs to install every major update to the Mac operating system. If you do choose to install every major update, I don’t recommend doing it until a couple of months, or more, after it’s released. Instead, I think it is often sufficient to install every other or possibly every third major update. For these reasons, I encourage you to make sure your Mac is not configured to automatically install OS X updates. Turabian style software for mac. Here’s what you need to do.

Delete Users On Mac

Click on the Apple menu and select System Preferences
Click on the App Store icon.
Uncheck, if needed, the box labeled Install OS X Updates, as shown in the image below. This image was taken on a Mac running OS X El Capitan (aka OS X 10.11). Please be aware that the options listed in the App Store’s system preferences might vary slightly on different versions of OS X.