MacBook Air: Second login password fails

BorisHolleman wrote:

In Dutch it tells me that the password is necessary to activate Touch ID.

Try using an external keyboard to see if that makes any difference just in case one of the keys may not be working properly.

Also, check the keyboard language selection at the top right on the menubar. When macOS Tahoe was first released I saw some posts on this forum where certain keyboard layouts/languages had issues logging into the system.

but could it help to reinstall the system software? Like the operating system?

Reinstalling macOS over top of itself won't help with this problem since you would still need the password. Only erasing the Mac & restoring from a backup will get you past this problem unless you can figure out the password it is looking for here. I would hold off on this option unless you are sure you have good current backups, otherwise you risk losing data.

I suspect Filevault is enabled and is out of sync with your login password, or your system is booting into Safe Mode for some reason which will also present you with two logins phases....one to unlock Filevault, and the second one to unlock your macOS user account. With the changing of passwords to attempt to fix the problem, it is very hard to know which password will be needed to here. I would try all the passwords you have used to unlock this Mac starting with the most recent one. Be careful because it could trigger a lockout timer if you are unsuccessful too many times.

So, just to confirm when you reboot the Mac, you are presented with a normal login screen. You are able to successfully get past this first login and macOS has a progress bar while it continues to boot. Then you are presented with a second login screen where it won't accept your password?

Also confirm that the laptop does not reboot between successfully entering the first password and when presented with the second login screen.

Try booting into Safe Mode to see if that makes any difference.

What is the exact model of this Mac and version of macOS? You can get the exact model by using the Apple check coverage page here:

View Coverage - AppleCare & Warranty

Do you have any other macOS admin user accounts on this laptop? If so, then try logging into one of them & report back. Chances are you can reset the main user account's password. If the other macOS user accounts are just standard users, then you can still try logging into them, but you won't be able to make any system modifications....it will just confirm that it is possible to login.

What happened between the last successful login and the time where you were presented with two login screens?

You can try booting into Recovery Mode to see if you can authenticate there. I'm not sure what to expect here. You may be asked to authenticate twice here as well where I would expect the first. You can try running Disk Utility First Aid on the hidden Container. Within Disk Utility click "View" and select "Show All Devices" so that the hidden Container appears on the left pane of Disk Utility. Even if the First Aid summary says everything is "Ok", click "Show Details" and scroll back through the report to see if there are any unfixed errors or warnings. If there are, then run First Aid again until they are gone. If after several scans the errors remain, then they cannot be fixed and they may be the reason you cannot log into the system.

BorisHolleman wrote:

How can I see if filevault is active? I think it’s not but I don’t know for sure.

You first confirm question is yes.

I see the progress bar after the first login. And then after the progress bar is full I go to a new inlog screen and have to fill in a password that he doesn’t accept. I tried my new password, my old, my Apple ID.

This behavior suggests Filevault is enabled. Unfortunately I don't believe Recovery Mode has the command line utility for Filevault. You can try using the following command in the Terminal app while booted into Recovery Mode to check the status of Filevault.....more than likely you will receive an error for "command not found".

fdesetup  status

I know when people have upgraded to macOS 26.x Tahoe, that Filevault is enabled automatically without any notice to the user & without asking permission from the user.

What version of macOS is installed?

Recovery mode:

first aid

https://discussions.apple.com/content/attachment/2523b5db-3e5d-45e7-b054-4de80a1975f4

https://discussions.apple.com/content/attachment/13540cc4-0627-4892-a000-1ee5e6f02974

https://discussions.apple.com/content/attachment/6f7429ca-a031-4f8b-9913-187ad07f2b1a

Can I help to dismount a disk?

Yes, try unmounting the "Data" volume as well as the "Macintosh HD" volume. Then you should be able to run First Aid.

Also, re-read the last paragraph of my previous post for instructions so you can run First Aid on the hidden Container.

When you booted into Recovery Mode, did you have to authenticate before you saw the utilities screen showing Disk Utility, Reinstall macOS, Restore from Time Machine, Safari? If so, did you have to authenticate more than one time? And which password did you use......the old one, new one

Backup & Data Information:

The following questions are regarding your data so we know how best to proceed.

Do you have a good backup of your system?

If not, do you need to attempt to recover the data on the internal SSD?

Do you have access to another working Mac even if it is older?

Do you have access to an SSD that has at least 2TB of Free storage space?

BorisHolleman wrote:

In recovery mode I tried the command and it was not found.

Thanks for confirming that we cannot check or modify Filevault from Recovery Mode.

The questions:

Yes, I have a good backup. But I can’t get to it till 18 February because it’s at the other side of the country I’m travelling in right now.

What about any new data (new files or old files with new edits/changes)? Have those changes been backed up since you last had access to the backup drive at the other side of the country?

If you are syncing any new or changed files to the cloud, then you should confirm the versions available in the cloud are the correct ones.

The only thing I’m loosing is some backups from my phone/photo’s but this is still on my phone so it’s not lost.

That's good.

We can do a extra backup of the internal SSD but it’s not necessary.

Yes, I have access to another Mac Pro but it’s from 2017

And yes, I have access to a 8 tera SSD if I get to it on the 18ed. And my backup is on the same SSD.

Since you can access Recovery Mode, then you may be able to use the "Share Disk" option on this "broken" laptop so you can connect it to the 2017 Mac. That way you can try transferring your important files from the "broken" laptop to the 2017 Mac or an external HD/SSD connected to that 2017 Mac.

The easiest way to transfer those files would be to use Carbon Copy Cloner (CCC) on the 2017 Mac and create a DMG archive of the whole home user folder of your "broken" laptop. You could transfer the files to a folder instead, but a DMG archive is nice because it keeps everything inside a single DMG archive file instead of being exposed in a folder where things may get confusing.

Whether this extra backup is necessary is up to you & your confidence with your existing backup.

Ok, at least we know the file system is clean & was mounted which is good. This implies your actual macOS admin user account password has a problem.

Resetting the macos user account login password has become very complicated in recent years and things may be a bit different with an M-series Mac. I still think & hope that Filevault is enabled and the two passwords have gotten out of sync.

While reviewing the Apple documentation for resetting the login password, I had an idea. At the second login prompt, have you tried changing the keyboard/location layout since you have used English & Dutch to test your passwords? And have you clicked the "?" mark next to the password box to see what password hint may be shown?

Since you already tried resetting the login password, I think we may need to try resetting the login password a bit differently since you have two login prompts. I have no idea if this will work and it could possibly be catastrophic for any future attempts.....I've seen a couple recent posts on this forum where the technique I'm about to present made things worse, but I think your situation may be different here & I think you may be out of options.

The password technique I'm suggesting is one of the oldest options and will be performed by using the Terminal command line while booted into Recovery Mode. While in Recovery Mode, launch Disk Utility and make sure that your "Data" volume (may be "Macintosh HD - Data") and the actual "Macintosh HD" volumes are both mounted....this ensures Filevault is unlocked if it is indeed being used. If the "Data" volume cannot be mounted, then resetting the password with this technique won't work.

Once both of these volumes are mounted, quit Disk Utility and launch the Terminal app from the Utilities menu located on the menu bar. Then issue the following command:

resetpassword

I'm hoping with the internal volumes being mounted & unlocked, that this may change the actual login password for your macOS user account unlike the other options. If successful, hopefully when you reboot the laptop you will be able to login (it is possible you may still have two login prompts.....try the new password first, but if not accepted, then try the password which has allowed you to get past the first prompt. If presented with a second login prompt, then use the new password. If you successfully log into the system & were presented with two login prompts, then we can fix that issue so you only need to login once.

FYI, if your photos are properly oriented, then change their rotation before posting. I know the iPhone pictures are a huge pain since they always seem to randomly rotate 90º regardless how the iPhone is held when taking the pictures. With macOS you can use the Preview app to rotate the pictures properly, or you can rotate the pictures on your iPhone/iPad by using the information in the following Apple article:

Crop, rotate, flip, or straighten photos and videos on iPhone - Apple Support

BorisHolleman wrote:

Hi,

The command resetpassword worked to reset the password but still the same problem with the second login.

Disappointing, but not unexpected. It was definitely a long shot.

I’m now in Sri Lanka and the nearest Apple Store is in India so I hope to figure it out with you guidance 😅

I only have two other ideas and both are longshots as well.

• One option would be to try & perform a DFU Firmware Revive which would reset the security enclave chip which has ties into nearly all aspects of an M-series Mac including authentication. Unfortunately this requires access to another Mac currently running macOS 26.x Tahoe, or macOS 15.7.3 Sequoia.

• Another option would be to install another copy of macOS either onto a new APFS volume alongside your existing & "broken" installation on the internal SSD assuming you have at least 80GB+ of Free storage space, or to an external SSD. When setting up the new OS, just create a new user account with a completely different name & password from any you have used so far on this Mac, and do not enable AppleID or iCloud.

The only purpose for this OS installation beside your current "broken" OS is to use the command line to check if Filevault is enabled on the main system and if so try to turn it off. Then try to reset the password again. This is a very long shot to try to access the "broken" system.

Actually, installing another copy of macOS can allow you to try & access the data on the "broken" installation if there are any items you would like to retrieve to store on external media....much easier using the Finder than using the command line.

I honestly don't know which option should be tried first. There are downsides to both of them. I'm thinking the DFU Firmware Revive may be best to try first only because of the way dual booting of macOS works on the M-series Macs. Plus the second option adds another user account to the system which can complicate which user login password is being reset. Maybe once Filevault is disabled, the new APFS volume containing the new OS should be deleted (this can leave the M-series Mac in an odd state due to how dual booting works on an M-series Mac especially when the one OS won't boot all the way).

I guess one plus side to installing macOS in this manner is it will require you to authenticate with your "broken" user account in order to allow another macOS installation to proceed. It would be interesting if any of your passwords worked for that.

Otherwise, unless someone else has any other ideas, then the next step would be to erase the computer (probably will need to use the Disk Utility method to erase it, but try the "Erase All Content & Settings" option first). Since you don't have your backups with you, then you will only have access to the items stored in the cloud or on external media you have with you. Plus if you are restoring from a Time Machine backup, you will now have two user accounts where you would need to transfer any new files over to the restored user account. When setting up the new OS, it would be best to give it a different user name from the one a Time Machine backup will have so you can keep that name after restoring the backup.

I wish I could actually see your system & how things react since something very subtle could provide a clue. Without being able see the system directly & with the information you have provided, this is all I can think of to try before wiping the system out.

I know this is a lot to take in, but I hope it makes sense. I'm just glad you do have some form of backups.

The only times I've been prompted to login twice is when the Filevault password & login password have gotten out of sync where the password was changed at some point, or when booting into Safe Mode with Filevault enabled.

When the login & Filevault passwords get out of sync, the first login is usually older password, then you use the newer password on the second login (or maybe it is the other way around), but it is a mix of using old & new password. Depending on the exact model of the Mac, will depend on the easiest way to get them back into sync again.

Edit...

"MacBook Air: Second login password fails: In my macbook air I have to login twice and the second time my password is not accepted. What can I do?"

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Reset the Mac Password:

Perform a reset. Then, reset it back to waht it should be.

Use these Links:

• If you Forgot your Mac Login Password - Apple Support

• Learn what to do if you can't Reset your Password - Apple Support

“Hi, it’s about a MacBook Air, so not a iPhone or iPad. and the problem is that I can’t go past the login. It’s keeps on asking for the right login.”

———-

Sorry about that —got it mixed up with another thread at about the same time.

Getting Into your Mac with - Fingerprint:

No clue why you’re getting prompted twice for authentication at login. 2FA(Two-Factor Authentication) isn’t intended for signing into a Mac. So, where’d you get this Mac? Is it from Apple? Or is it from someone else?

Get this Reset by Apple:

If you purchased this from Apple, locate your nearest local Apple Store and take this phone in for a “Genius Bar Appointment". There, it’s hardware and settings would be looked at, and perhaps reset.

Resetting the Password Through Terminal:

1. Boot: into Recovery Mode
2. Go to: Utilities menu
3. Select: Terminal
4. Type: resetpassword
5. Press: return
6. Proceed from there with the reset.

And, if that doesn’t work, go here: Start up your Mac in safe mode - Apple Support

"Hi, I reset my password and change it back and still the same problem.: extra info: The first time I login is for the system and the second time is for the Touch ID. And the second login doesn’t work."

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Thank for the followup reply.

Go Here: If Touch ID isn't working on Mac - Apple Support

As it Reads: If Touch ID on your built-in keyboard or Magic Keyboard isn't unlocking your Mac, autofilling passwords, or otherwise working as expected, try these solutions.

Troubleshooting Touch ID:

If Touch ID has failed, then use the following links, in the order provided.

• Set Up Touch ID on iPhone - Apple Support

• Use Touch ID on iPhone and iPad - Apple Support

• If Touch ID isn't Working on your iPhone or iPad - Apple Support