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"?
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(obviously while on stable internet connection)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.
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.