How to recover password for File Vault-encrypted local user on Mountain Lion MacBook Pro 2012?

There is no password recovery for a File Vault encrypted drive without the recovery key.

Encryption is designed to prevent unauthorized access and wouldn't be much good if it could easily be bypassed or circumvented.

The best you will be able to do is erase and reformat the drive, and then reinstall macOS.

Use Disk Utility to erase an Intel-based Mac - Apple Support

I would advise you to reinstall the latest version of the OS that will run on that 2012 Mac, macOS 10.15.3 Catalina.

If you cannot get the Mac to boot in recovery using option-command-R and offer Catalina for reinstallation, then you may have to settle for whatever is offered.

How to reinstall macOS - Apple Support

You have been requested to bypass FileVault security, and — in the absence of valid passwords or a recovery key — you’ll fail. This request is as head-on directly into the storage security as is possible.

Assuming this Mac both does not have a firmware password and the Apple Account and password holding Activation Lock is known, wipe this Mac and start over. Probably with macOS 10.15.

I’d consider swapping the internal storage for a newer and larger SSD, if you’re feeling spendy. Strongly consider that SSD, if the internal storage is HDD.

D.I. Johnson is correct. The encryption key for a drive has nothing to do with any of the users on the drive, as those user profiles cannot be accessed until the drive has been decrypted.

When you try to boot from a drive the first password entered is the disk encryption password, which may or may not be the same password as a user. If you boot from a different drive you will need the encryption password to access the encrypted disk. Without the password to decrypt the disk the only solution is to wipe the disk and reinstall MacOS.

disk encryption has nothing to do with iCloud or your Apple ID. The only way to unlock the disk is with the actual password or the recovery key that was created when File Vault was first enabled.

Rickyleroy wrote:

D.I. Johnson wrote:

There is no password recovery for a File Vault encrypted drive without the recovery key.

Encryption is designed to prevent unauthorized access and wouldn't be much good if it could easily be bypassed or circumvented.

So this procedure that is running resetpassword command, which asks Apple ID, is designed for no encrypted volumes ?

That terminal command ‘resetpassword’ process is for resetting the Mac user login password when that has been forgotten. That is the password all Macs require at startup. It is not directly related to accessing or decrypting an encrypted drive.

Rickyleroy wrote:

[...]

I add that is disk is encrypted to change user password you have to access to file system so to mount volume, so I don't agree you when you says:

It is not directly related to accessing or decrypting an encrypted drive

Probably a poor choice of wording there on my part.

So here's the current situation:

• This is your friend's obsolete Mac, possibly still with the aged, oem hdd in a potential state of failure. (We don't know).

• It has an unknown history of OS installation or attempted remedies.

• It's believed the drive is File Vault protected with an unknown password.

• It apparently has been upgraded to High Sierra or Catalina, which one is uncertain.

• Apparently there are two volumes w/ names poorly derived from the ROM based "OSX Base System".

• A recurring error message: "There are no users on this volume for whom the password can be reset".

You're a good friend for having attempted this recovery, but I'm skeptical of any chance of success other than wiping this obsolete Mac and reinstalling an OS, which is just exactly what I would do, if I didn't just recycle it first.

But watch this space for a bit longer and perhaps another user can offer something more.

Rickyleroy wrote:

Lawrence Finch wrote:

disk encryption has nothing to do with iCloud or your Apple ID. The only way to unlock the disk is with the actual password or the recovery key that was created when File Vault was first enabled.

Your answer changes menu things: disk encryption has nothing to do with iCloud or your Apple ID

Servant of Cats says:

Servant of Cats wrote:

"When you turn on FileVault, you choose how you want to unlock your startup disk if you ever forget your password: using your iCloud account and password, or using a recovery key that’s created for you. "

Password, Apple Account and password, or recovery key: Protect data on your Mac with FileVault - Apple Support

No credentials, no access.

Which leaves backup restoration as the remaining path to the data, and whether those backups are accessible.

Encrypt Mac data with FileVault - Apple Support (High Sierra version)

"When you turn on FileVault, you choose how you want to unlock your startup disk if you ever forget your password: using your iCloud account and password, or using a recovery key that’s created for you. "

"WARNING: Don’t forget your recovery key. If you turn on FileVault and then forget your login password and can’t reset it, and you also forget your recovery key, you won’t be able to log in and your files and settings will be lost forever."

Rickyleroy wrote:

Servant of Cats wrote:

"When you turn on FileVault, you choose how you want to unlock your startup disk if you ever forget your password: using your iCloud account and password, or using a recovery key that’s created for you. "

Now how can I verify this settings now from Recovery Assistant?

I'd like to know if It has been used iCloud account to unlock startup disk.

I don't know. I would assume that:

• The person who turns on FileVault is responsible for remembering which recovery method was chosen, and remembering what recovery key or Apple ID credentials must be provided.
• The prompts you are getting might give you some clue as to which method was chosen.