Why do I have to enter my Apple ID password every time I restart?

Read up on FileVault. If you still want to disable it, here's how:

System Settings..., Privacy & Security, FileVault, turn it off

I've seen this question asked before here. I believe the answer is because File Vault is enabled on your drive.

I suggest you Google your question for a quick response. This is user-to-user support here, NOT Apple Support!

Roger Lier1 wrote:

Every time I restart my Mac I get the following message: "This Mac can’t connect to iCloud because of a problem with '[Apple ID]'”.

"Open Apple Account settings to fix this problem."

Then I click on Apple Account Settings. Enter my Apple ID password, enter the code provided on my phone and all seems to be right until I restart and have to do it all over again. Why is that?

I don't agree with the responder who indicated this was due to FileVault. Apple configures computers with Tahoe by default to have FileVault activated (it can easily be turned off). But this "problem with Apple ID" is not normal, it typically happens when Apple's servers detect something not right related to security. This could be someone repeatedly trying to log in to your Apple ID and failing. Or another device attached to your Apple ID not successfully connecting. Or another device using an old password that had been automatically saved.

Some say you can "fix" this by logging all devices out of the Apple ID account and rebooting them all, then logging back in. I don't know if that will work, however.

My wife used to get that same error repeatedly and it went away forever after we switched her to two-factor security for the Apple ID.

Johne154 wrote:

MrHoffman wrote:

Johne154 wrote:

Read up on FileVault. If you still want to disable it, here's how:

System Settings..., Privacy & Security, FileVault, turn it off

Could you point to some doc where FileVault asks for an Apple Account, with or without iCloud?

FileVault asks for a login password.

Not the “This Mac can’t connect to iCloud because of a problem with '[Apple ID]'” message reported.

And while FileVault can be disabled, encryption of internal storage cannot. For a Mac with Apple silicon, enabling or disabling FileVault selects the password, and not whether internal storage is encrypted. It’s always encrypted.

His question was, "Why do I have to enter my Apple ID password every time I restart?"

When you login to Tahoe it expects the User password setup when the OS was installed or altered via Users and Groups. It doesn't ask for your Apple ID password.

So, yes, I presumed he stated Apple ID password, when in fact he meant his User password.

And, as I said initially, I've seen the FileVault suggestion here before. I didn't just make that up.

I double checked and Googled it and sure enough it's one of the causes along with a weak battery and some other security setting issues in the OS.

Why be condescending instead of welcoming help here, even when/if you disagree with someone's suggested solution? That doesn't encourage people to participate in these Forums.

I asked for doc, as I was unclear about how an Apple Account prompt referencing an iCloud error was related to FileVault.

I make mistakes, and I try to learn from them. (Usually. I’m still posting here in ASC, so some wags might posit that the learning part is somewhat dubious.) I’m also active to learn about macOS. Which is, again, why I asked for documentation about what was being reported.

A weak battery is certainly possible too, but seems unlikely on an M4, as most coin cells last seven or ten years.

Johne154 wrote:

Read up on FileVault. If you still want to disable it, here's how:

System Settings..., Privacy & Security, FileVault, turn it off

Could you point to some doc where FileVault asks for an Apple Account, with or without iCloud?

FileVault asks for a login password.

Not the “This Mac can’t connect to iCloud because of a problem with '[Apple ID]'” message reported.

And while FileVault can be disabled, encryption of internal storage cannot. For a Mac with Apple silicon, enabling or disabling FileVault selects the password, and not whether internal storage is encrypted. It’s always encrypted.

MrHoffman wrote:

Johne154 wrote:

Read up on FileVault. If you still want to disable it, here's how:

System Settings..., Privacy & Security, FileVault, turn it off

Could you point to some doc where FileVault asks for an Apple Account, with or without iCloud?

FileVault asks for a login password.

Not the “This Mac can’t connect to iCloud because of a problem with '[Apple ID]'” message reported.

And while FileVault can be disabled, encryption of internal storage cannot. For a Mac with Apple silicon, enabling or disabling FileVault selects the password, and not whether internal storage is encrypted. It’s always encrypted.

His question was, "Why do I have to enter my Apple ID password every time I restart?"

When you login to Tahoe it expects the User password setup when the OS was installed or altered via Users and Groups. It doesn't ask for your Apple ID password.

So, yes, I presumed he stated Apple ID password, when in fact he meant his User password.

And, as I said initially, I've seen the FileVault suggestion here before. I didn't just make that up.

I double checked and Googled it and sure enough it's one of the causes along with a weak battery and some other security setting issues in the OS.

Why be condescending instead of welcoming help here, even when/if you disagree with someone's suggested solution? That doesn't encourage people to participate in these Forums.

Do you have any add-on security or add-on anti-malware apps, add-on cleaner apps, add-on VPN apps, or similar, installed?

The wording of the question is very important and everyone focused on Apple ID, forgetting that we're not asked for our Apple ID password when we login to our Macs. It's always a User name and User Password.

If you Google his original question, there's the docs you requested in its answer.

I believe the answer is because File Vault is enabled on your drive.

It’s not.