loralee74

Q: Trying to reset password and it says it can't connect to iCloud

I'm trying to do a password reset and the prompt is requesting my Apple ID and password to reset through icloud.  Problem is I'm getting a message saying "Unable to connect to iCloud. Please check your Internet connection." I have an Ethernet cord connect to my Mac and I verified I have an Internet Connection. I also tried the command +R at start up to attempt to fix this through recovery, but I still am led back to the iCloud password reset. Not sure how to get the password reset if the connection is not recognized by my Mac.

MacBook Pro (13-inch Mid 2012)

Posted on May 20, 2015 9:52 PM

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Q: Trying to reset password and it says it can't connect to iCloud

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  • by randall@conjectur,

    randall@conjectur randall@conjectur Jul 7, 2015 8:46 AM in response to loralee74
    Level 1 (0 points)
    Jul 7, 2015 8:46 AM in response to loralee74

    I apologize for not having an answer, but I wanted to say that I'm also having this problem. In my case I am able to fully use the "Forgot Apple ID or password?" link to connect to iCloud and change/recover my id and password without any problems, so clearly the internet connection (wireless) exists and works properly. When I return to the Reset Password dialog however I still get the "Unable to connect to iCloud...".

     

    I've tried connecting to different available networks, turning the Wi-Fi connection on and off, restarting and re-entering the Reset Password process, all with the same results - the Reset Password dialog will not see the internet connection.

     

    This seems like a bug rather than something we are doing wrong. Thanks in advance to anyone who can provide any information for us!

  • by randall@conjectur,

    randall@conjectur randall@conjectur Jul 7, 2015 9:03 AM in response to randall@conjectur
    Level 1 (0 points)
    Jul 7, 2015 9:03 AM in response to randall@conjectur

    Update:

    On a whim I entered an incorrect password (truth be told I just sorta banged on my keyboard in frustration and hit return) and was told "Incorrect password" instead of the "Unable to connect..." message. So it seems that the internet connection is detected just fine, but apple/osx isn't showing a sensible error message - more like "For some reason I'm unable to connect to iCloud after having verified your password" Certainly "...verify your internet connection" is an inappropriate error message here.

  • by randall@conjectur,

    randall@conjectur randall@conjectur Jul 8, 2015 8:37 AM in response to randall@conjectur
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    Jul 8, 2015 8:37 AM in response to randall@conjectur

    So this didn't help me since I have my hard drive encrypted with FileVault (which seems to also be preventing me from just wiping and reinstalling fresh, grrr...), but it seems like it might work for someone who isn't using FileVault.

     

    For reference, I read these steps from here:

    http://www.macworld.co.uk/how-to/mac/what-do-if-youve-forgotten-your-mac-passwor d-3594395/

    Use Recovery Mode to recover your Mac password

    1. Turn off your Mac (choose Apple > Shut Down).

    2. Press the power button while holding down Command-R. The Mac will boot into Recovery mode. When you see the load bar appear you can let go of the keys. It may take a few minutes to load.

    3. SKIP THIS STEP - Select Disk Utility and press Continue.

    4. Choose Utilities > Terminal.

    5. Enter resetpassword (all one word, lowercase letters) and press Return

    6. Select the volume containing the account (normally this will be your Main hard drive).

    7. Choose the account to change with Select the User Account.

    8. Enter a new password and re-enter it into the password fields.

    9. Enter a new password hint related to the password.

    10. Click Save.

    11. A warning will appear that the password has changed, but not the Keychain Password. Click OK.

    12. Click Apple > Shut Down.

     

    Hopefully this will help someone with this incredibly aggravating and productivity halting bug with the OS X Reset Password process.

  • by MegShelton,

    MegShelton MegShelton Aug 31, 2015 11:26 AM in response to randall@conjectur
    Level 1 (0 points)
    Aug 31, 2015 11:26 AM in response to randall@conjectur

    Did you ever get this resolved?  I am having the identical problem.  I was on the phone with Apple Support for over an hour, but still didn't get it resolved.  Their solution was to take it to an Apple Store.

  • by alraune666,

    alraune666 alraune666 Nov 21, 2015 6:47 AM in response to randall@conjectur
    Level 1 (0 points)
    Nov 21, 2015 6:47 AM in response to randall@conjectur

    It is a pretty rude behaviour to mess someones question for help up by posting your own problem. Pretty selfish behaviour I observe over and over again. Most times leads to the situation that the person having troubles gets no response, but the 'hijacker' of the topic gets. Well here nobody got help.

  • by Eric Root,

    Eric Root Eric Root Nov 21, 2015 10:23 AM in response to loralee74
    Level 9 (69,613 points)
    iTunes
    Nov 21, 2015 10:23 AM in response to loralee74
  • by 88Nick,

    88Nick 88Nick Jun 11, 2016 3:17 AM in response to loralee74
    Level 1 (4 points)
    Jun 11, 2016 3:17 AM in response to loralee74

    I had the same issue seems if your device Date-Time is incorrect, it will not connect to iCloud.

    You can set your time using Terminal:

     

    Date 061120152016

    Means 11/Jul/2016 20:15

  • by Rasmus.j,

    Rasmus.j Rasmus.j Aug 9, 2016 5:29 AM in response to 88Nick
    Level 1 (8 points)
    Aug 9, 2016 5:29 AM in response to 88Nick

    This is correct. The error message is a bit missleading but what happens is when the computer tries to connect to iCloud the server will use a certificate to secure the connection, if the date and time on the server, client computer and certificate doesn't match, the connection will fail.

     

    You can set time in terminal (you can use terminal on the recovery partition) with the following command:

     

    date {month}{day}{hour}{minute}{year}

    Every bracket should be replaced with a two-digit number. For example, August 9th 2016 14:29 would become the following command:

    date 0809142916
  • by PJxJ,

    PJxJ PJxJ Aug 15, 2016 6:30 AM in response to Rasmus.j
    Level 1 (11 points)
    Aug 15, 2016 6:30 AM in response to Rasmus.j

    Genius, had searched and looked for a solution for hours. Thanks Rasmus.j worked a treat.