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Keychain Access: Can't Export in Catalina

Hi, Apple Community,


I just migrated successfully from a 2017 iMac to a 2020 iMac, but since I waited to migrate, I missed the initial Setup Assistant. My passwords in Safari didn't come over.


Apple info suggests exporting from the old Keychain Access and importing that file into the new iMac's Keychain Access.


But on the old iMac, where I've selected "Local Items" (unlocked) and"Passwords," in the "File" menu, "Export Items" is greyed out.


Am I missing something here? Is there another, or a better way to get Keychain Access up to date on my new iMac?


Both iMac's are running MacOS Catalina 10.15.7 (19H2).


Thanks in advance,

Mike



iMac 27″ 5K, macOS 10.15

Posted on Nov 22, 2020 9:04 AM

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Question marked as Top-ranking reply

Posted on Dec 11, 2020 12:01 PM

Belated thanks, Matthew.S81.


I've done many migrations now, and I never knew there was a difference between what Setup Assistant brought over, vs. doing it later with Migration Assistant. Oh, well, live and learn.


I avoid iCloud Keychain because I don't want my passwords on anybody's server.


So the last resort for me, which will probably take an hour or two, will be to "Share" each of my Safari passwords by AirDrop, one by one, to the new iMac.


But that's okay-- I get to thin out the password list.

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4 replies
Question marked as Top-ranking reply

Dec 11, 2020 12:01 PM in response to Matthew.S81

Belated thanks, Matthew.S81.


I've done many migrations now, and I never knew there was a difference between what Setup Assistant brought over, vs. doing it later with Migration Assistant. Oh, well, live and learn.


I avoid iCloud Keychain because I don't want my passwords on anybody's server.


So the last resort for me, which will probably take an hour or two, will be to "Share" each of my Safari passwords by AirDrop, one by one, to the new iMac.


But that's okay-- I get to thin out the password list.

Nov 30, 2020 12:04 PM in response to Adayapple

Hello, Adayapple.


Thank you for using Apple Support Communities.


From your post, you want to export your Keychain access information to add it to your new iMac. We'd be glad to help. Are you using this article as a guide? Import and export keychain items using Keychain Access on Mac


"Export keychain items

  1. In the Keychain Access app  on your Mac, select the items you want to export in the Keychain Access window.
  2. Choose File > Export Items.
  3. If the Export Items menu is dimmed, at least one of the selected items can’t be exported.
  4. Select a location to save your keychain items, click the File Format pop-up menu, then choose a file type.
  5. Click Save.
  6. Enter a password.
  7. The password is required to access the exported keychain items when you import them on another computer. Some exported items, such as public keys, don’t require a password.


Step #3 states a reason why Export may be greyed out.


As an alternative, you could look into iCloud Keychain: Set up iCloud Keychain


Cheers!

Nov 30, 2020 3:56 PM in response to Adayapple

Hello again, Adayapple.


If you use Migration Assistant, Keychain should be copied over as stated in this article: Copy keychains to another Mac


"If you migrate your data to a different Mac using Setup Assistant, your keychains are automatically transferred to the new computer.

If you didn’t use Setup Assistant, the best way to copy your keychains to a new computer is to export and then import them using Keychain Access. See Import and export keychain items.


Note: You can’t copy passwords stored in your Local Items or iCloud Keychain. To transfer these keychain items to another computer, set up iCloud Keychain on the other computer using your iCloud user name (normally your Apple ID) and password.


You can manually copy keychains other than Local Items or iCloud Keychains to another Mac using the steps below".


  1. "On your Mac, locate the keychain files you want to transfer.
  2. Keychains are usually located in the Keychains folder in the Library folder in your home folder. To locate these files, press and hold the Option key and choose Go > Library, then open the Keychains folder.
  3. Select the keychains you want, then press and hold the Option key and drag the selected keychains into another folder to copy them to the folder.
  4. Keychain files typically end with .keychain-db. Don’t select and copy encrypted folders with names that appear as a series of numbers.
  5. Transfer the folder containing the keychains to the new computer.
  6. Important: Transfer the keychains in a safe manner so no unauthorized person can access them. For example, use AirDrop or a USB flash drive to copy the files.
  7. Change the name of the transferred keychains on your new computer so they don’t become confused with any of the existing keychains.
  8. This is especially important if you are copying a standard keychain, such as the login keychain.
  9. Open Keychain Access, located in the Utilities folder in the Applications folder.
  10. Add each copied keychain one by one by choosing File > Add Keychain, selecting your keychain, then clicking Add".



From this article, are these the same steps you took when copying the .db files?


Best regards.

Nov 30, 2020 2:57 PM in response to Matthew.S81


Thanks, Matthew.S81,


I've reviewed the link you sent extensively, followed it to the letter, and couldn't export anything.


I copied the keychain.db file from my User/Library/Keychains folder to the one on my new iMac, and it did appear in the new iMac's Keychain Access, but the system asks for a password.


None of my iMac passwords from the past 5 years work.


I'm putting off installing Big Sur for another month or two, but what about this:


If I installed Big Sur, could I get the Setup Assistant so I could transfer the Keychain?


Also, is there a way to export Safari passwords separately?


Thanks,

Mike



Keychain Access: Can't Export in Catalina

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