Can't start a podman machine as any other use than the one who installed podman (macOS)po

[jdmarshall]

Issue Description

No other use seems to be able to run podman instances, which makes 'install for all users' incorrect.

podman version
Cannot connect to Podman. Please verify your connection to the Linux system using `podman system connection list`, or try `podman machine init` and `podman machine start` to manage a new Linux VM
Error: unable to connect to Podman socket: failed to connect: dial tcp 127.0.0.1:49619: connect: connection refused

As the original user:

podman version
Client:        Podman Engine
Version:       5.7.1
API Version:   5.7.1
Go Version:    go1.25.5
Git Commit:    f845d14e941889ba4c071f35233d09b29d363c75
Built:         Wed Dec 10 06:58:11 2025
Build Origin:  pkginstaller
OS/Arch:       darwin/amd64

Server:       Podman Engine
Version:      5.7.1
API Version:  5.7.1
Go Version:   go1.25.4 X:nodwarf5
Git Commit:   f845d14e941889ba4c071f35233d09b29d363c75
Built:        Mon Dec  8 16:00:00 2025
OS/Arch:      linux/amd64

Steps to reproduce the issue

Steps to reproduce the issue
1.Install podman for all users on MacOS

1. create a new account.
2. podman machine init somename
   1.podman machine start somename

observe hang forever

Describe the results you received

connection reset by peer or connection refused depending on the operation

Describe the results you expected

For it to work

podman info output

podman info
OS: darwin/amd64
buildOrigin: pkginstaller
provider: applehv
version: 5.7.1

Cannot connect to Podman. Please verify your connection to the Linux system using `podman system connection list`, or try `podman machine init` and `podman machine start` to manage a new Linux VM
Error: unable to connect to Podman socket: failed to connect: dial tcp 127.0.0.1:49619: connect: connection refused

As original user:
podman info

Client:
  APIVersion: 5.7.1
  BuildOrigin: pkginstaller
  Built: 1765378691
  BuiltTime: Wed Dec 10 06:58:11 2025
  GitCommit: f845d14e941889ba4c071f35233d09b29d363c75
  GoVersion: go1.25.5
  Os: darwin
  OsArch: darwin/amd64
  Version: 5.7.1
host:
  arch: amd64
  buildahVersion: 1.42.2
  cgroupControllers:
  - cpu
  - io
  - memory
  - pids
  cgroupManager: systemd
  cgroupVersion: v2
  conmon:
    package: conmon-2.1.13-2.fc43.x86_64
    path: /usr/bin/conmon
    version: 'conmon version 2.1.13, commit: '
  cpuUtilization:
    idlePercent: 99.79
    systemPercent: 0.13
    userPercent: 0.08
  cpus: 8
  databaseBackend: sqlite
  distribution:
    distribution: fedora
    variant: coreos
    version: "43"
  emulatedArchitectures:
  - linux/arm64
  - linux/arm64be
  eventLogger: journald
  freeLocks: 2048
  hostname: localhost.localdomain
  idMappings:
    gidmap:
    - container_id: 0
      host_id: 1000
      size: 1
    - container_id: 1
      host_id: 100000
      size: 1000000
    uidmap:
    - container_id: 0
      host_id: 501
      size: 1
    - container_id: 1
      host_id: 100000
      size: 1000000
  kernel: 6.17.7-300.fc43.x86_64
  linkmode: dynamic
  logDriver: journald
  memFree: 1376903168
  memTotal: 2045435904
  networkBackend: netavark
  networkBackendInfo:
    backend: netavark
    dns:
      package: aardvark-dns-1.17.0-1.fc43.x86_64
      path: /usr/libexec/podman/aardvark-dns
      version: aardvark-dns 1.17.0
    package: netavark-1.17.1-1.fc43.x86_64
    path: /usr/libexec/podman/netavark
    version: netavark 1.17.1
  ociRuntime:
    name: crun
    package: crun-1.24-1.fc43.x86_64
    path: /usr/bin/crun
    version: |-
      crun version 1.24
      commit: 54693209039e5e04cbe3c8b1cd5fe2301219f0a1
      rundir: /run/user/501/crun
      spec: 1.0.0
      +SYSTEMD +SELINUX +APPARMOR +CAP +SECCOMP +EBPF +CRIU +LIBKRUN +WASM:wasmedge +YAJL
  os: linux
  pasta:
    executable: /usr/sbin/pasta
    package: passt-0^20250919.g623dbf6-1.fc43.x86_64
    version: |
      pasta 0^20250919.g623dbf6-1.fc43.x86_64
      Copyright Red Hat
      GNU General Public License, version 2 or later
        <https://www.gnu.org/licenses/old-licenses/gpl-2.0.html>
      This is free software: you are free to change and redistribute it.
      There is NO WARRANTY, to the extent permitted by law.
  remoteSocket:
    exists: true
    path: unix:///run/user/501/podman/podman.sock
  rootlessNetworkCmd: pasta
  security:
    apparmorEnabled: false
    capabilities: CAP_CHOWN,CAP_DAC_OVERRIDE,CAP_FOWNER,CAP_FSETID,CAP_KILL,CAP_NET_BIND_SERVICE,CAP_SETFCAP,CAP_SETGID,CAP_SETPCAP,CAP_SETUID,CAP_SYS_CHROOT
    rootless: true
    seccompEnabled: true
    seccompProfilePath: /usr/share/containers/seccomp.json
    selinuxEnabled: true
  serviceIsRemote: true
  slirp4netns:
    executable: /usr/sbin/slirp4netns
    package: slirp4netns-1.3.1-3.fc43.x86_64
    version: |-
      slirp4netns version 1.3.1
      commit: e5e368c4f5db6ae75c2fce786e31eef9da6bf236
      libslirp: 4.9.1
      SLIRP_CONFIG_VERSION_MAX: 6
      libseccomp: 2.6.0
  swapFree: 0
  swapTotal: 0
  uptime: 0h 13m 23.00s
  variant: ""
plugins:
  authorization: null
  log:
  - k8s-file
  - none
  - passthrough
  - journald
  network:
  - bridge
  - macvlan
  - ipvlan
  volume:
  - local
registries:
  search:
  - docker.io
store:
  configFile: /var/home/core/.config/containers/storage.conf
  containerStore:
    number: 0
    paused: 0
    running: 0
    stopped: 0
  graphDriverName: overlay
  graphOptions: {}
  graphRoot: /var/home/core/.local/share/containers/storage
  graphRootAllocated: 106769133568
  graphRootUsed: 4244336640
  graphStatus:
    Backing Filesystem: xfs
    Native Overlay Diff: "true"
    Supports d_type: "true"
    Supports shifting: "false"
    Supports volatile: "true"
    Using metacopy: "false"
  imageCopyTmpDir: /var/tmp
  imageStore:
    number: 0
  runRoot: /run/user/501/containers
  transientStore: false
  volumePath: /var/home/core/.local/share/containers/storage/volumes
version:
  APIVersion: 5.7.1
  BuildOrigin: 'Copr: packit/containers-podman-27732'
  Built: 1765238400
  BuiltTime: Mon Dec  8 16:00:00 2025
  GitCommit: f845d14e941889ba4c071f35233d09b29d363c75
  GoVersion: go1.25.4 X:nodwarf5
  Os: linux
  OsArch: linux/amd64
  Version: 5.7.1

Podman in a container

No

Privileged Or Rootless

Rootless

Upstream Latest Release

No

Additional environment details

Additional environment details

Additional information

Additional information like issue happens only occasionally or issue happens with a particular architecture or on a particular setting

[jdmarshall]

By scrubbing podman off the machine and reinstalling it in from the second, non-admin account, it can successfully start machines. In both accounts. Even after a restart. I don't know what this means.

[baude]

please tell us how you installed podman and from where

[github-actions]

A friendly reminder that this issue had no activity for 30 days.

[jdmarshall]

Okay, I figured out what the real problem is here. I'll open a separate issue for it.

Trying to set up a launchctl for MacOS. I thought I had it working right, but it's failing on startup and not giving me a decent diagnostic output.

Something about it trying to start over and over again in a loop is giving the CLI some indications that podman is running even though it isn't, so partway through trying to do things it errors out.