"Other" login identity. How do I get rid of it?

Question

I am using an iMac desktop running Lion 10.7.5.  I had a problem last night.  When I tried to login, I typed in my password.  It seemed like it was going through its normal routine but it took me back to the gray screen where you type in your password.  I tried typing in my password again and again, but it never worked.  It always went back to the gray screen where you type in your password.  I tried restarting, it didn't work.  I tried running the disk utility, it didn't work.  I went online with my Macbook Pro and found the following article:
https://discussions.apple.com/docs/DOC-3622
I tried resetting the PRAM, it didn't work.  I evenually tried step 6 in this article - resetting the password, it didn't work.  I tried
Reset Home Directory Permissions and ACLs, (part of step 6).  That didn't work, but when I restarted the machine after trying to "Reset Home Directory Permissions and ACLs", I now had two options to login, my regular identity and a new one called "Other".  Eventually, I tried reinstalling Lion.  That DID work, but now when I start the machine I still have the two indentities at the login screen.  How can I get rid of the identity labled "Other"? I tried going to "Users and Accounts" to delete it in the "normal" way, but that didn't work, the "Other" account is not listed in the Users and Accounts preferences window.  The "Other" identity IS still there when I go to login.  How do I get rid of this?  Thanks!

Answer 1

Joe
OK, so root is disabled from login, but "Other" still appears.
Well, you could try biovizier's idea, but … both "OTHERUSER" and "SHOWOTHERUSERS_MANAGED" are set to true in my "/Library/Preferences/com.apple.loginwindow.plist", and I don't see the "Other" user in my login pane.
Here's what worked for someone a while back, in 10.3 days I think.
First, let's just take a backup of your NetInfo database. Open the Terminal (from /Applications/Utilities) and copy and paste the following into the Terminal window, one line at a time, with a return after each line:
cd /var/db/netinfo
cp -p local.nidb local.nidb.origAfter the first return you will be prompted for your password. This is not echoed for security reasons: just type it and press return.
Then you can quit Terminal, and open NetInfo Manager. Be careful!
In Netinfo Manager, authenticate and navigate to /users/root.
Delete the generateduid (if there is one) and authentication_authority fields (the whole line, not just the values—select the line and click "Delete").
Select the "passwd" line and edit its value (double-click the value to do this) to a single *.
Close the window and accept the changes when prompted.
Now quit NetInfo Manager, and start Directory Access (in /Applications/Utilities). Under the Services tab, is "NetInfo" enabled? If it is, turn it off (you will need to authenticate).
As I say, this worked under 10.3, but may no longer be relevant.