How to fix and manage macOS Keychain Access 'Local Items' password prompts

Summary

This guide helps you troubleshoot and resolve: How to fix and manage macOS Keychain Access 'Local Items' password prompts. Follow the steps below to fix the issue.

Common Causes

If your Mac is repeatedly asking for your password for "Local Items" or "login" keychains, it usually indicates a synchronisation mismatch between your user account password and the keychain database. This often occurs after a password change or a system update, preventing macOS from automatically unlocking your stored credentials.

Quick Fix: Resetting the Default Keychain

In most cases, the fastest way to resolve persistent prompts is to create a new default keychain, which forces the system to synchronise with your current login password.

1. Open Keychain Access (found in Applications > Utilities).
2. In the menu bar at the top of the screen, select Keychain Access > Settings... (or Preferences... on older macOS versions).
3. Click the button labelled Reset Default Keychains.
4. Enter your current macOS user password when prompted and click Reset Default Keychain.
5. Restart your Mac to ensure all background processes adopt the new keychain.

Detailed Instructions: Manual Management

If you prefer not to wipe your stored passwords, you can attempt to manually synchronise the keychain or remove the corrupted local items folder.

Updating the Keychain Password

If you recently changed your Mac login password, your keychain may still be using the old one.

1. Open Keychain Access.
2. Right-click (or Control-click) on the login keychain in the left-hand sidebar.
3. Select Change Password for Keychain "login".
4. Enter your Old Password (the one used before the change) and then enter your New Password twice.
5. Click OK.

Removing the Local Items Folder

If the "Local Items" prompt persists despite password updates, the local database may be corrupted. You can force macOS to regenerate this folder.

1. Quit Keychain Access.
2. Open Finder.
3. Click the Go menu at the top of the screen, hold the Option key, and select Library.
4. Navigate to the Keychains folder.
5. Locate the folder with a long alphanumeric name (e.g., A2B3C4D5-E6F7...). This is your Local Items folder.
6. Drag this folder to the Trash.
7. Restart your Mac immediately.

Troubleshooting Common Issues

Prompt appears only for specific apps

If the prompt only appears when opening a specific application (like Mail or Outlook), the issue may be with a specific certificate or stored token rather than the entire keychain.

• Open Keychain Access.
• Use the search bar in the top right to search for the name of the application.
• Delete the entries associated with that app.
• Restart the application and sign in again to create a fresh, valid entry.

Keychain is "Locked" and won't unlock

If the keychain status shows as Locked and refuses to accept your password:

1. Ensure your Caps Lock is off.
2. Verify that your user account has administrative privileges.
3. If the account was recently managed by a different organisation or MDM profile, the keychain may be encrypted with a legacy corporate password.

If these steps do not resolve the prompts, please Open a Ticket so our technicians can analyse your system logs.

Still Having Issues?