Apple Watch does not unlock Mac

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Level 1

12 points

Apple Watch does not unlock Mac

It was working...now it does not work. Mac says it is unlocking, Gear Spins on Login as if it is unlocking and then the normal password prompt shows up. This might have started with the most recent Apple Watch OS update 6.1.

Have tried all the fixes suggested by Apple. I've now spent far more time trying to fix this than it will ever save me. Thanks, Apple for a great (NOT) feature.

Mac mini. Most recent version of Catalina, 10.15.1. Apple Watch Series 5. All up to date and zilch for satisfaction.

Apple Watch Series 5, watchOS 6

Posted on Nov 15, 2019 12:19 PM

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Answer 1

Nov 24, 2019 11:29 AM in response to DSC22

Have a slightly different issue. My watch will unlock my Mac and the password settings in Safari.

When I try the padlock icon for System Preferences I get the prompt on my watch, double click, but a password box immediately pops up. The Apple ID and iCloud websites don't trigger a watch prompt at all.

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Answer 2

DSC22

Level 1

8 points

Nov 24, 2019 1:01 PM in response to quavacado

Interesting, I'm going to guess it's all related. Contacted Apple Support the other day. They confirmed it's a known issue - problems with Apple Watch unlocking Macs. So, we wait for the engineers to roll out a fix. They way it sounded, the senior tier tech said they'd 'pile on' my issue. I'm guessing it's a pretty big issue and hopeful they'll release a fix soon.

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Answer 3

DSC22

Level 1

8 points

Dec 14, 2019 1:31 PM in response to Retina13Bear

Yep, me too. I revisited with my Apple tech that's been working on it. They reconfirmed it's a known issue and engineers continue to resolve. It's a great feature that we've gotten used to and it's so frustrating that it's taking so long to resolve!

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