You may have been asked this previously but;
how do I turn off the startup sound on a Mac, my iMac to be precise. I managed to turn it down for quite a long time then with the latest update (to El Capitan) there it is again. What’s more none (well 4) of the so called fixes one finds on the net work any more.
I know the offensive sound is firmware based so I don’t want to mess with that, but I would like to at least turn it down, to 1% permanently. I suspect that Apple are hell bent on letting everyone in the library know a Macbook has started up and probably have someone dedicated to ensuring updates wipe out one’s modifications of this sort. I’m surprised Apple hasn’t made the Macbooks illuminated logo flash brightly on startup in unison with the loud boooooong.
iMac 27/5k model but our laptops(Sierra) need strangling also.
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Raiford
One way to do this is to simply turn the volume down before you shut it off. Then it should start up with the volume off, and you are all set.
Another thing that reportedly works, is to hold down the mute key while starting up.
There is also a Terminal command that supposedly sets the startup volume to zero. But I've never tried it.
Here's what I recommend: Simply never shut down. I never do. I only ever put my machine to sleep. Why do you need to shut down your MacBook? Just close the lid. Done. Open it up and go back to work.
There's really no need to shut down unless you are going to be putting it away for a while -- a week or more. A sleeping MacBook won't use much battery. Plus it takes care of things every once in a while in the background, making your Mac run smoother.
Raiford, the newest MacBook Pros have the startup chime disabled by default. The blog Lifehacker posted Terminal commands to enable it and how to disable it. I won't link to the blog post but it was made on Tuesday, November 1st.
Yes the Macbooks are less of an issue and are infrequently closed down. The iMac, now you mention that procedure, might be able to be put to sleep with a requirement to enter a password to wake it up.
I use keychain to manage other passwords including some required to be very secure for parts of my work, so I have always closed down the iMac. I'll see if that works.
Raiford: Yes, definitely have your iMac sleep, and wake up but require a password. That's the standard way to do it. There's no difference from a security standpoint of a Mac that has been started up and is waiting for a password and one that has been woken up and waiting for a password.
Thanks Gary.
I've done that and it works. I checked the security side and came to the same conclusion as you mention that the security provided for both closing down and sleeping with a password requirement, is equal.