System cannot be restored on this device

Hi uk5am,

You're correct that restoring your Mac in DFU mode should resolve personalization errors. The restore process should be fail-safe and work regardless of what software condition the Mac is in. (Hardware or Internet issues can cause restore errors, though.)

Use the steps in this article to revive or restore your M1 MacBook Pro: Revive or restore a Mac with Apple silicon using Apple Configurator 2 - Apple Support (CA)

A couple of things that can prevent restore errors:

• Make sure that your bricked Mac is truly in DFU mode. When it is, your healthy Mac will display a large dotted DFU square in Apple Configurator 2.

• Use the USB-C to USB-C charge cable that came with your bricked Mac. Any other USB-C to USB-C cable should work as well, but I've never experienced issues with the original charge cable.

• If your Internet connection is slow or unreliable, try downloading the IPSW restore file in advance, as described below:

1. Go to ipsw.me and select your Mac model.
2. Select the latest signed IPSW, then click Download. (This particular site is safe; the download link fetches the restore file directly from Apple servers. To verify this, right-click the Download button, and select Copy Link. Paste it into a new tab; it should start with: https://updates.cdn-apple.com)
3. Once the 14 GB IPSW file is downloaded on your Mac, put your bricked Mac into DFU mode and open Apple Configurator 2.
4. Drag the IPSW file onto the DFU rectangle in Apple Configurator 2. You'll then have the option to restore or revive that Mac.
5. Apple Configurator 2 will skip the download process and immediately start restoring or reviving your bricked Mac.

Is there any particular reason you're using Configurator 2 to restore?

"Apple Configurator 2 makes it easy to deploy iPad, iPhone, iPod touch, and Apple TV devices in your school or business.

Use Apple Configurator 2 to quickly configure large numbers of devices connected to your Mac via USB with the settings, apps, and data you specify for your students, employees, or customers."

What device is having a problem and what are you trying to restore?

https://apps.apple.com/us/app/apple-configurator-2/id1037126344?mt=12

EDIT: I found this interesting: https://support.apple.com/guide/apple-configurator-2/revive-or-restore-an-intel-based-mac-apdebea5be51/mac

Hi uk5am,

Sorry to hear that. Unfortunately you might need to get your Mac serviced by Apple. A component on the logic board or M1 chip might be at fault.

Macs with the T2 Security Chip (and probably yours as well) can only really be serviced by Apple for the time being. If a replacement part is put in, it must be paired to the Secure Enclave inside your Mac before your Mac will successfully start up.

I'm really hoping that Apple's new self service program lets us (end-users) be able to complete these repairs later on for a much lower price.

Curious, exactly how are you invoking the Recovery Panel?

If you're there, the selection you want of the four choices is "Reinstall MacOS".

The Recovery Panel looks like this:

You can't erase Macintosh HD while you're booted up using that drive.

Of course I'm just guessing; if you need to restore your system there is likely a better method.

What exactly do you want your restoration efforts to yield? If you're trying to reinstall your OS, the Recovery Panel is actually quite easy to use once you get the hang of invoking it at startup.

What exactly are you attempting to do? Which restoration process are you trying?