When you purchase a digital content from the iTunes Store, App Store or iBooks Store, you can access it from your computer only if it has been authorized to use your iTunes account.

You can authorize as many computers as you’d like, but it also means that anyone using that computer can access your purchased content. So it’s a good idea to deauthorize the computers that you no longer use or which is going to be sold. When you deauthorize a computer, you will not lose any content on that computer, only the protected content cannot be accessed.

To find out how to deauthorize a computer using iTunes, read the guide below.

Find out the Number of Computers Associated with your Apple ID

Step 1: Open iTunes on your computer.

Step 2: Sign in to your Apple ID if you haven’t done so.

Step 3: From the menu bar at the top of the screen, choose Account -> View My Account.

Step 4: Enter your Apple ID password if required.

Step 5: Your account information will be displayed. Next to Computer Authorizations, you can view the number of computers that have been authorized to access your purchased content.

How to Deauthorize a Computer

Step 1: On the computer you want to deauthorize, open iTunes.

Step 2: From the menu bar at the top of your screen, choose Account -> Authorizations -> Deauthorize this computer.

Step 3: Enter your Apple ID password if required.

Step 4: Next, click Deauthorize.

How to Deauthorize All Computers

If you want to deauthorize all your computers, an important thing to note is that this can be done only once per year. This option is useful if you’ve sold a computer but forgot to deauthorize it first.

Step 1: Launch iTunes on your computer.

Step 2: Sign in to your Apple ID account.

Step 3: From the menu bar at the top of your computer screen, click on Account -> View My Account.

Step 4: When prompted, enter your Apple ID password.

Step 5: Your account information will be displayed. From the Apple ID Summary section, click on the Deauthorize All button. This button will only appear if you have authorized at least 2 computers or more.

Step 6: All your authorized computers will now be deauthorized.

Once you deauthorize a computer, you will not lose any of your content. Only your purchased content can no longer be accessed from that computer. If you ever want to reauthorize that computer, simply launch iTunes and go to Account -> Authorizations -> Authorize this Computer.

Did you ever forget to deauthorize your computer before selling it? Let us know in the comments below.