Andrew Odri
This is just a little tip for anyone who has recently switched from Windows to Mac OS X and was wondering where the “Lock Workstation” shortcut went. This shows you how to set up a timeout using the screen saver as well.
- Go to the (Apple) menu, and select the System Preferences… menu item.
- Click on the Desktop & Screen Saver item, and select a screen saver. This is required if you would like to lock the screen after a timeout.
- Open Finder, and navigate to Applications ยป Utilities, and open Keychain Access.
- Go to the Keychain Access menu, and select the Preferences… menu item.
- Ensure that Show Status in Menu Bar is checked.
You should now see a little padlock in menu bar close to the clock. When you click this, and menu will drop down, and the first menu item Lock Screen will allow you to do just that.
Now if you would like to lock the screen on a time out, follow these instructions:
- Go to the (Padlock) menu, and select the Open Security Preferences… menu item.
- Ensure that Require password to wake this computer from sleep or screen saver is checked.
Unfortunately there is no keyboard shortcut for locking a workstation, and there is no way – at this time at least – to set up a shortcut to perform this particular function.
There are a number of applications that allow you to set shortcuts or triggers. For example, I use Quicksilver (see http://code.google.com/p/blacktree-alchemy/downloads/list for the latest version) as an app launcher, but it also lets you set up keyboard triggers. So, I can press Ctrl+Cmd+Opt+L to lock my screen (pressing those keys will trigger an applescript I wrote that locks the screen). If you’re interested, I can write the process up in full on my blog.
Thanks for the tip James – if you have a write up live be sure to post up a link 