Which user(s) can activate erased Mac with their device password after Mark As Lost?
2
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I have the following 3 users on my M1 Macbook Air 2020:
* userA: admin created during macOS installation, no AppleID connected
* userB: non-admin, its own AppleID connected, FindMy disabled
* userC: non-admin, its own AppleID connected, FindMy enabled
----
After I invoke
Mark As Lost
in Find My
iPhone app logged in with UserB's AppleID and rebooting into Activate Mac, I can Erase Mac
without providing any user credentials. After Mac is erased, I need to activate it:
* either by providing AppleID and password
* OR via Use Device Password
option
----
Now the question is:
**Which of UserA, UserB, UserC device passwords should be accepted for "Use Device Password"?**
----
**Some further details of my setup:**
UserC's AppleID is an adult, non-guardian member of family owned by UserB.
FileVault enabled during initial MacOS setup; encryption key not associated with any AppleID. Password reset using AppleID is disabled for all users.
----
**My own experiments** gave inconsistent results:
* after Mac was locked when UserC logged in, I managed to activate it with UserC's *device* password
* after Mac was locked when UserB logged in, I failed to activate it with *any of* UserA, UserB, UserC *device* passwords: error messages varied between:
* Activation lock server cannot be reached
* The password for this Mac can no longer be used to remove Activation Lock. The password was entered incorrectly too many times
Each experiment takes a couple of hours, so I hope there's official docs / third-party research on the topic.
Asked by yurkennis
(1551 rep)
Apr 1, 2022, 03:21 PM
Last activity: Mar 2, 2023, 12:12 AM
Last activity: Mar 2, 2023, 12:12 AM