If you get a message on your Mac - often after an update to a new macOS such as Catalina, Big Sur or Monterey - that you do not have the correct access rights to open certain programs or files, then it is time to repair them .
With current macOS versions, this usually only affects the access rights in the user folder, since the volume with the macOS operating system is write-protected and therefore there are usually no incorrect access rights.
The following instructions refer to macOS versions such as Mojave, Catalina, Big Sur and Monterey.
Option 1: repairHomePermissions
The first way to correct the access rights in the user's home directory is via a terminal command. Here is the exact sequence to do this:- Start Mac in recovery mode
- Start Terminal from the Utilities menu
- Enter the following command and confirm with Enter: repairHomePermissions
- then exit Terminal and choose Reinstall macOS from the Recovery menu
Don't worry, overinstalling macOS doesn't delete any personal data. But after the new installation, the access rights should be correct again.
Possibility 2: Repair with diskutil command
If the above option does not bring the desired result, you can try again in the following way:- Open Terminal (under Applications > Utilities)
- Enter the following command and confirm with Enter:
sudo diskutil resetUserPermissions / 'id -u' - Now enter the admin password
- if an error is reported, please enter these two commands (each with Enter):
chflags -R nouchg ~
sudo diskutil resetUserPermissions / 'id -u' - Once that's done, restart the Mac and check if everything is working now
Possibility 3: complete reinstallation and migration
The last option left to solve the permissions issue is to completely reinstall macOS. To do this, proceed as follows:- create a bootable backup of your system hard drive (please make sure that it is complete and working!)
- Start Mac in recovery mode
- Open Disk Utility
- in the left pane, select the volume that is affected and delete it
- Now select the option “reinstall macOS” in the recovery menu
- during installation you create a user that has a different name than the previous one on the system
- Once the installation is complete, open the "Migration Assistant" app under Programs > Utilities, with which you can import the user from the backup into the new system
With these tips, you should be able to fix the messages about missing access rights. You have to try which of the three options works for you or is necessary.