MacOS seems to be corrupt on my iMac

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MacOS seems to be corrupt on my iMac

My iMac is on Monterey 12.4.

Issue initially started a couple of days ago when FaceTime required me to sign in using my Apple ID, but the sign in failed.
iMessage followed suit - messages were not synching so I signed out of my account but was then unable to sign back in.
Handoff has stopped working from my iMac to my other Apple devices only. Handoff works fine between my other devices though (laptop and phone).
I can't add any internet accounts regardless of provider (a number of articles assume that the issue is on Google's side but I get the same error for Yahoo and AOL). Error is "Authentication Failed. Failed to authenticate with <xxx>, please try again later".
Calendar no longer synchs with events from my Google calendar.
When I log on I shouldn't need to enter a password because my watch authenticates me. This has stopped working on my iMac (still works on my laptop).
Files updated on my iCloud drive on this machine still work fine thankfully
When I go into recovery mode to reinstall the operating system I get an error stating that there's a problem contacting the Apple servers (my network is fine and I've even connected via ethernet cable)
I signed out of my Apple ID, restarted etc and that had no effect
I've tried to delete keychains related to the above but that had no effect
I've signed out of my Apple ID, created a brand new user profile, and then signed in to that profile with my Apple ID. Same issues as above.
I can't download the latest OS from the MacStore as I get an error that's similar to the previous ones; namely that there's a network type issue (which there clearly isn't as my network access is fine).
I created a partition to use as a boot disk and managed to download the latest OS using an application called MDS by twocanoes. Reinstalling from this boot disk was successful but....the issues above still exist.

I don't want to format my whole machine as that's an ultimate last resort. I will try to download and install an older version of the OS to see if that fixes the issues I see.

Is there anything else that anyone can suggest?

Posted on Jun 23, 2022 2:10 AM

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Answer 1

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ku4hx

Level 7

23,460 points

Jun 23, 2022 5:30 AM in response to manjinder216

If you feel your OS is damaged, reinstall it. Takes maybe 40 minutes and doesn't touch apps, data or settings.

First option (Reinstall macOS) here: How to reinstall macOS - Apple Support

Be sure you do it from the Recovery Panel (Command + R) as that way will not disturb your data.

Reinstallation does not involve reformatting. But if that's called for ultimately, that's what you'll have to do.

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Answer 2

manjinder216 Author

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Jun 26, 2022 1:44 AM in response to manjinder216

I carried out a whole load of actions (including completely wiping the hard drive and carrying out a fresh installation of MacOS) but the issue still existed.

I've isolated the problem down to the ethernet connection - there' either a problem with the cable or the port on the network card is frazzled. What's weird is that even after I unplugged the ethernet cable, the WiFi connection still could not i) synch my messages, ii) connect me to my iCloud account for FaceTime, iii) use HandOff or iv) connect to my internet accounts.

Solution:

Disconnect the ethernet cable, connect via iPhone and then connect via WiFi.

By using my iPhone as a personal hotspot (via USB) the 4 issues mentioned above began working as expected. Switching to the WiFi did not break anything.

I did this 12 hours ago and am pleased to say that everything is still working as expected (and the ethernet cable has been left disconnected). And as an added bonus the machine feels like new after the clean install :-)

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Answer 3

manjinder216 Author

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Jun 24, 2022 2:12 AM in response to manjinder216

Interesting update which I think will make my issue unique. The problems I experienced are almost certainly related to how this machine connects to Apple's servers via my network card (WiFi or LAN) when authenticating my Apple ID. Any time I need to connect the servers to authenticate services like iMessage and FaceTime, I run into issues.

I did a bunch of tests last night that proved this - the key attribute being that once I tethered my iPhone's connection via USB I was able to get iMessage, FaceTime and HandOff up and running again. E.g. I could send text messages and see them synch to my other devices, and Handoff works when I copy text from my phone and paste to this machine.

Now that I am back on WiFi I am still able to use iMessages and HandOff, but the FaceTime app is not working. It was not signed in to my account for some reason. And as I need to authenticate on Apple servers via WiFi it runs into whatever the underlying problem is.

As a test I carried out some actions that would also require authentication on Apple's servers via WiFi.

I tried to download the latest version of the OS from the App Store - this fails
From System Preferences I ran a check for the latest software updates - this fails ("please check if you're connected to the internet" - such a poor message!)
I'm pretty sure that if I also sign out of iMessages then it will run into issues when I try to sign back in.

iCloud itself is working fine on this machine. I updated my iCloud profile photo and this successfully synched to my other devices.

Next steps: I'm going to remove the connection to my home router, restart my machine and add it back in. Maybe create a new WiFi service and delete the other one. Or it might require something as easy as changing my Apple password to get things working!

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Answer 4

ku4hx

Level 7

23,460 points

Jun 23, 2022 9:34 AM in response to manjinder216

I doubt seriously an older version will help. And, that's going to involve doing the reformatting you want to avoid.

How old a Mac are we talking about? Given all your problems, the inability to correct them and a failed OS reinstallation, I'd say there's a good chance your Mac has reached end of life.

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