Resolved watchOS 7 Beta 5 - unlock mac doesn't work

[trifero]

Did you go through the fix mentioned on this thread? Did you have to reactivate each mac with your watch? Just trying to understand what's involved. Appreciate your help

Yes. I followed the steps exactly as

watchOS 7 Beta 5 - unlock mac doesn't work

I've finally fixed it! I found a bunch of errors related to "AutoUnlock" in the Console that was hinting to me that there was some invalid state on my Mac with keys and plists not being reset properly. After clearing/resetting them, I can now successfully pair my watchOS 7 Series 3 to macOS...

forums.macrumors.com

I had to reactivate in three macs, one Macbook an two Mac Pro. And activate, at last!, in two Macbooks Pro that it was impossible to activate before the fix.

 

[cortega88]

Ok so this wasn’t working for me, I tried 8 times and nothing at all till I read some comments about restating between step 11 and 12. Did that and after 7 clicks it finally worked. Thank you.

 

[jasonefmonk]

Ok so this wasn’t working for me, I tried 8 times and nothing at all till I read some comments about restating between step 11 and 12. Did that and after 7 clicks it finally worked. Thank you.

Thank-you for recommending persistence!

I had to repeatedly delete the Keychain Access items from steps 4-5 and 7-8, as well as the Finder items from steps 10-11.

I can't thank you folks enough, this problem was killing me and I had exhausted every other possible effort.

 

[trifero]

Thank-you for recommending persistence!

I had to repeatedly delete the Keychain Access items from steps 4-5 and 7-8, as well as the Finder items from steps 10-11.

I can't thank you folks enough, this problem was killing me and I had exhausted every other possible effort.

I think that simply Icloud propagation needs his time. That´s all.

 

[guzman]

Thanks, I did all steps, and after 7-8 clics, it finally is enabled =)

 

[joedec]

Anyone else have watchOS 7.0.2 installed? I had this problem with watchOS 7.0.1 and this was a solution, since the update watch unlock seems to work without intervention.

 

[tekhlikidi]

Anyone else have watchOS 7.0.2 installed? I had this problem with watchOS 7.0.1 and this was a solution, since the update watch unlock seems to work without intervention.

Yep, I have 7.0.2 but there is no solution anyway( And I don’t understand how you solve it. I did the entire cycle of actions ten times according to 'Auto Unlock delete' instruction, including deleting in safe mode - nothing has changed, the function is not activated ((

I turned off FileVault, turned off Apple ID on all devices, rebooted all devices and even reset my iPhone and watch to factory settings. No result

What can I do else?

Devices (with all the latest current firmware):
- MacBook Pro 15 "2013
- iPhone XR
- Apple Watch SE

 

[joedec]

Yep, I have 7.0.2 but there is no solution anyway( And I don’t understand how you solve it. I did the entire cycle of actions ten times according to 'Auto Unlock delete' instruction, including deleting in safe mode - nothing has changed, the function is not activated ((

I turned off FileVault, turned off Apple ID on all devices, rebooted all devices and even reset my iPhone and watch to factory settings. No result

What can I do else?

Devices (with all the latest current firmware):
- MacBook Pro 15 "2013
- iPhone XR
- Apple Watch SE

I used the method in this thread while on 7.0.1 to get it working. From your experience sounds like 7.0.2 doesn't fix anything. Strangely enough I still get a couple of errors.

Nearby advertising failed to start of type: 16 with error: Unknown error.
Advertising failed to start for client sharingd type 16 with error: Unknown error.
IDS device not cloud paired ...

But it works.

Mac mini 2014
MacBook Pro 13 2016
Watch Series 5 GPS
iPhone 8

Hopefully they resolve this in 7.1

 

[melman101]

Yep, I have 7.0.2 but there is no solution anyway( And I don’t understand how you solve it. I did the entire cycle of actions ten times according to 'Auto Unlock delete' instruction, including deleting in safe mode - nothing has changed, the function is not activated ((

I turned off FileVault, turned off Apple ID on all devices, rebooted all devices and even reset my iPhone and watch to factory settings. No result

What can I do else?

Devices (with all the latest current firmware):
- MacBook Pro 15 "2013
- iPhone XR
- Apple Watch SE

I'm in the same boat. I can't get mine working either.

MacBook Pro 16"
Apple Watch Series 5
iPhone 11 Pro

Just won't activate.

I've reset my Apple Watch numerous times tonight. No dice. And I've done the steps listed in this thread twice.

Edit: In my console I'm still seeing

error 08:59:14.770076-0400 sharingd Watch missing LTK and is unable to communicate with Companion to potentially sync it

 

[Student of Life]

I tried it and im having trouble getting it to work with my MacBook 8.1 on Big Sur 11 Beta. It says finish setting up iCloud to allow your Apple Watch to unlock, im not sure what to do now

 

[carlsson]

I have tried all possible combinations mentioned in this thread to no avail.
Today i changed my Apple ID password, and then SMS sending started to work again (it broke when I reinstalled Catalina over the bug heavy Big Sur)!
However, AW pairing does still not work.

FWIW i reported this to Apple Feedback a week ago, and they got some exta diagnostics file from me to look into. Haven't heard back from them yet though.

All I can say is this; When you have been getting used to unlock your computer automatically, it's *very* annyoing when it doesn't work! 🤪

 

[melman101]

Ok I got it work!!!

This was about the 4th or 5th time I tried it.

Here's the deal. I DID NOT REBOOT THE COMPUTER.

I followed these exact steps.

1. Open "Keychain Access"
2. In "View", enable "Show Invisible Items”
3. Search for "Auto Unlock"
4. You should see a whole bunch of application passwords for "Auto Unlock: XXXX's ..."
5. Select all records and delete (this will reset/disable auto unlock on other Macs if you use multiple Macs)
6. Whilst still in "Keychain Access", search for "AutoUnlock" (no space)
7. There should be 4 entries for "tlk" "tlk-nonsync" "classA" "classC"
8. Select 4 records and delete (don't worry if they re-appear, the system repairs this automatically)
9. Open "Finder" and navigate to "~/Library/Sharing/AutoUnlock"
10. There should be two files "ltk.plist" and "pairing-records.plist"
11. Delete both files
13. Open "System Preferences" and try enabling auto unlock. You may need to enable it twice, the first attempt will fail

Those were my exact steps. If everything is working, in your Keychain you'll see an Auto Unlock - Your Watch Name.... Previously, that never showed up. Notice how it's missing step 12. Step 12 was when I rebooted the computer the first 3 times. The only time it worked was when I didn't reboot the computer.

The other thing is, previously, my ltk.plist and pairing-records.plist would be empty every time I tried it. This time, I saw information (encrypted I think), in them.

Hope this helps someone.

 

[tekhlikidi]

Ok I got it work!!!

This was about the 4th or 5th time I tried it.

Here's the deal. I DID NOT REBOOT THE COMPUTER.

I followed these exact steps.

1. Open "Keychain Access"
2. In "View", enable "Show Invisible Items”
3. Search for "Auto Unlock"
4. You should see a whole bunch of application passwords for "Auto Unlock: XXXX's ..."
5. Select all records and delete (this will reset/disable auto unlock on other Macs if you use multiple Macs)
6. Whilst still in "Keychain Access", search for "AutoUnlock" (no space)
7. There should be 4 entries for "tlk" "tlk-nonsync" "classA" "classC"
8. Select 4 records and delete (don't worry if they re-appear, the system repairs this automatically)
9. Open "Finder" and navigate to "~/Library/Sharing/AutoUnlock"
10. There should be two files "ltk.plist" and "pairing-records.plist"
11. Delete both files
13. Open "System Preferences" and try enabling auto unlock. You may need to enable it twice, the first attempt will fail

Those were my exact steps. If everything is working, in your Keychain you'll see an Auto Unlock - Your Watch Name.... Previously, that never showed up. Notice how it's missing step 12. Step 12 was when I rebooted the computer the first 3 times. The only time it worked was when I didn't reboot the computer.

The other thing is, previously, my ltk.plist and pairing-records.plist would be empty every time I tried it. This time, I saw information (encrypted I think), in them.

Hope this helps someone.

OMG! It works! Man, God bless you! The problem why this lifehack didn't work previously was in step 12. What a strange Apple world)

 

[Dwalls90]

Ok I got it work!!!

This was about the 4th or 5th time I tried it.

Here's the deal. I DID NOT REBOOT THE COMPUTER.

I followed these exact steps.

1. Open "Keychain Access"
2. In "View", enable "Show Invisible Items”
3. Search for "Auto Unlock"
4. You should see a whole bunch of application passwords for "Auto Unlock: XXXX's ..."
5. Select all records and delete (this will reset/disable auto unlock on other Macs if you use multiple Macs)
6. Whilst still in "Keychain Access", search for "AutoUnlock" (no space)
7. There should be 4 entries for "tlk" "tlk-nonsync" "classA" "classC"
8. Select 4 records and delete (don't worry if they re-appear, the system repairs this automatically)
9. Open "Finder" and navigate to "~/Library/Sharing/AutoUnlock"
10. There should be two files "ltk.plist" and "pairing-records.plist"
11. Delete both files
13. Open "System Preferences" and try enabling auto unlock. You may need to enable it twice, the first attempt will fail

Those were my exact steps. If everything is working, in your Keychain you'll see an Auto Unlock - Your Watch Name.... Previously, that never showed up. Notice how it's missing step 12. Step 12 was when I rebooted the computer the first 3 times. The only time it worked was when I didn't reboot the computer.

The other thing is, previously, my ltk.plist and pairing-records.plist would be empty every time I tried it. This time, I saw information (encrypted I think), in them.

Hope this helps someone.

This worked for me too! I followed steps 1-13 exactly. Note that I had to check the "Allow watch to unlock Mac" box in Settings 3 times for it to stick. Not sure if this makes a difference, but before steps 1-13, I unchecked Keychain in iCloud for my iPhone and Mac, rebooted my iPhone, Mac and Watch, and then rechecked Keychain for iCloud on my iPhone and Mac. I'll report back if for any reason it stops working.

FWIW, I'm on Mac OS 10.15.7, WatchOS 7.0.2, and iOS 14.1.0.

EDIT: I rebooted my Mac, and the box checked in Settings unchecked itself. I can no longer re-enable it without manually performing these steps. I reboot my Mac daily, so this isn't a long-term fix.

EDIT 2: It's now able to be enabled and seems to be sticking after another reboot. No idea what's going on.

 

[marmiteturkey]

Solution worked perfectly for me, thanks a lot!!

I've been trying to fix this for a month without success - your solution worked perfectly. Please accept this virtual reward, thank you so much!

💰

 

[Melmanoh]

Got a new iPhone on Friday and had to repair my watch. Now I can't unlock with my watch. I tried the mentioned method 3 times now. still not working.


Edit: literally as I hit send on this it started working !!!! Thank you guys again great advice on this forum yet again !!

 

[trifero]

Deleted

 

[trifero]

Got a new iPhone on Friday and had to repair my watch. Now I can't unlock with my watch. I tried the mentioned method 3 times now. still not working.


Edit: literally as I hit send on this it started working !!!! Thank you guys again great advice on this forum yet again !!

#129

 

[DukeJockey]

Another data point:

I also just upgraded to an iPhone 12 Pro and have experienced some "whimsical behavior", as my departed mother-in-law Marge used to call it when her Mac would spontaneously do strange things.

Several third-party apps disappeared from my Apple Watch series 4, and then refused to reinstall from the iPhone Watch app. Apple and other third-party apps had no problems.

Then I noticed that my 2018 MacBook Pro 15 and "forgotten" it's trusting relationship with my watch. That lead to finding this thread, and I tried many, many times to apply the 12-step process (denial, depression, anger, clicking harder, jumping up and down, screaming, animal sacrifices, etc, etc).

I wiped the watch and restored it to the backup taken just before unpairing from my old iPhone. I hoped it would restore the missing apps, and by golly, it did! Guess I didn't need to sniff all that glue earlier...

So, I tried the 12 steps again (and again, and again), and finally took a break to set up the sous vide lamb chops for dinner. When I came back inside from putting them in the cold smoker, (there is a sequitur point coming along here somewhere) a notice had popped up on the MacBook that my Apple Watch could now unlock my Mac [OK] [Cancel]. I clicked [OK] and... Joyous Rapture, it worked!

Sometimes, when the Heisenberg Compensators are having a good day, computers just heal up on their own. You listening, Skynet?

 

[kamus]

I've finally fixed it! I found a bunch of errors related to "AutoUnlock" in the Console that was hinting to me that there was some invalid state on my Mac with keys and plists not being reset properly. After clearing/resetting them, I can now successfully pair my watchOS 7 Series 3 to macOS 10.15.6.

Steps (follow at your own discretion)

1. Open "Keychain Access"
2. In "View", enable "Show Invisible Items"
   View attachment 954412
3. Search for "Auto Unlock"
4. You should see a whole bunch of application passwords for "Auto Unlock: XXXX's ..."
   View attachment 954403
5. Select all records and delete (this will reset/disable auto unlock on other Macs if you use multiple Macs)
6. Whilst still in "Keychain Access", search for "AutoUnlock" (no space)
7. There should be 4 entries for "tlk" "tlk-nonsync" "classA" "classC"
   View attachment 954382
8. Select 4 records and delete (don't worry if they re-appear, the system repairs this automatically)
9. Open "Finder" and navigate to "~/Library/Sharing/AutoUnlock"
10. There should be two files "ltk.plist" and "pairing-records.plist"
    View attachment 954386
11. Delete both files
    (Some users have reported better success restarting macOS at this stage)
12. Open "System Preferences" and try enabling auto unlock. You may need to enable it twice, the first attempt will fail.

After tried a whole life, finally found this! It worked! Thank you, bro.

 

[bodzilla]

Finally! I've restored my phone and watch multiple times, cleared the keychain entries, signed in and out of iCloud and nothing worked. I decided to change my passcode on my watch and it worked instantly! Not sure if it matters, but I was using a different passcode on my watch than my phone. When I changed it, I made them both the same passcode. Thank you so much for posting this!

Thank you

kylelinn87​

The simple RESET of the password on the watch worked fine for me. You saved me. Searching since two weeks for a solution.. Thanks

 

[satinsilverem2]

I started having this issue with the later betas on my S3 and I never got it working. I upgraded to the SE when it came out expecting it to work again but no its still not working. Ive tried everything that was listed in this thread. deleted the files, changed the passcode on the watch, repaired and even wiped my laptop with no results. Im really hoping that Apple fixes this issue in the next release.

Hardware:
2014 Mac mini
2016 MacBook Pro 13"
iPhone X
Apple Watch SE

 

[Apple fanboy]

I started having this issue with the later betas on my S3 and I never got it working. I upgraded to the SE when it came out expecting it to work again but no its still not working. Ive tried everything that was listed in this thread. deleted the files, changed the passcode on the watch, repaired and even wiped my laptop with no results. Im really hoping that Apple fixes this issue in the next release.

Hardware:
2014 Mac mini
2016 MacBook Pro 13"
iPhone X
Apple Watch SE

I doubt it works on a 2014 Mac mini. Did you check?

 

[satinsilverem2]

I doubt it works on a 2014 Mac mini. Did you check?

Yes I checked. It was working prior to beta 5 and hasn't worked since then or with the new watch.

 

[satinsilverem2]

This issue may be fixed in 7.1 according to release notes