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daijholt

macrumors 65816
Jun 14, 2013
1,113
343
Wales, UK
Same issue here. Refurbished 2019 MacBook Air.

clearly an issue with the refurb devices.

this thread really needs to be pinned up top so people see it first.

Waiting on the phone now to get the unlock process started.
 
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rdejaegher

macrumors newbie
Original poster
Sep 24, 2019
13
10
My unlock email came today, submitted on Tuesday. Back up and running :oops:
Same mine just unlocked.

Just to confirm for anyone interested this process can be done remotely. After I got the email confirmation from Apple I was able to sign in with my Apple ID and was able to reinstall Catalina (unfortunately erased the disk) in previous attempts to fix it.
 

daijholt

macrumors 65816
Jun 14, 2013
1,113
343
Wales, UK
Yeah, I couldn't get any info about why this might happen, all questions dodged
If I were to hazard a guess, I’d say the T2 chips in the 2019 models probably had some sort of code change, and when they get flashed and repurposed something sticks around unintentionally.

I don’t think it’s retaining previous user activation lock data, I just think it just retains the fact that it’s locked, so when you enter your actual info it tries to match your data with what’s essentially an empty container, so technically it’s right to say it doesn’t match because there’s nothing actually there to match.

This used to happen with iCloud when a user changed their email online before signing out of their iPhone. They fixed it around iOS 12 though.

But that’s Just my speculation.
 

neodude237

macrumors member
Mar 2, 2008
65
43
Apple finally unlocked my machine today. Anyone stupid brave enough to try this again after being a victim of this?
 

Jaymee

macrumors newbie
Jun 24, 2020
16
12
After MacBook has been unlocked, has anyone tried to install Big Sur again?
I'm tempted to try but concerned it would happen again lol
 

felix_schwarz

macrumors newbie
Dec 27, 2018
4
3
Got bitten by the same issue (also a refurbished 16“) and currently waiting for Apple to unlock it.

Super curious about your experience trying to install BS again @Jaymee.

Wishing you luck!
 
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Jaymee

macrumors newbie
Jun 24, 2020
16
12
Got bitten by the same issue (also a refurbished 16“) and currently waiting for Apple to unlock it.

Super curious about your experience trying to install BS again @Jaymee.

Wishing you luck!

decided to wait until July's Public Beta as it says on the website "Configure your Mac to receive beta software updates." so wondering if there was something else we was meant to do or download. So just gonna wait until July its only 4 weeks or less :) an best get direct from apple
 

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felix_schwarz

macrumors newbie
Dec 27, 2018
4
3
decided to wait until July's Public Beta as it says on the website "Configure your Mac to receive beta software updates." so wondering if there was something else we was meant to do or download. So just gonna wait until July its only 4 weeks or less :) an best get direct from apple

I think that "Configure your Mac to receive beta software updates" just refers to installing the configuration profile that tells macOS Software Update to download the BS installer.
 
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aeikenberry

macrumors newbie
Jan 13, 2020
18
21
decided to wait until July's Public Beta as it says on the website "Configure your Mac to receive beta software updates." so wondering if there was something else we was meant to do or download. So just gonna wait until July its only 4 weeks or less :) an best get direct from apple

Aw man, was hoping someone was going to try it
 
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Macdctr

macrumors 6502a
Nov 25, 2009
969
664
Ocean State
I wish I would have read this thread before updating both my 2015 MacBook Air 11-inch and Retina MacBook Pro -13 inch. I might have been hesitant to do the install. Fortunately for me in both cases the install went smoothly and I haven't had any issues running the new OS... yet...
 

daijholt

macrumors 65816
Jun 14, 2013
1,113
343
Wales, UK
Apple unlocked mine this morning so I’m back in business.

Is anyone unable to use Apple Pay now though?

When I Try to turn it on after reinstalling Catalina it tells me “Apple Pay has been disabled because the security settings of this Mac were modified”.

Any ideas?

EDIT:

never mind, erasing the disk in recovery and reinstalling Catalina again solved it. Guess something was left behind from the big sur update attempt.
 
Last edited:

TiggrToo

macrumors 601
Aug 24, 2017
4,205
8,838
Same thing happened to 2019 MBP 16 Refurb as well. Called Apple and had to speak with a senior advisor. They walked me through the usual troubleshooting steps (erasing it, removing it from my iCloud account) and it remained locked. I’m in the same position as OP now and have to wait 4 days for the iCloud activation lock team to respond after submitting proof of purchase for my own laptop. I fully expect data loss/bugs in an upgrade to a developer beta, but rendering the machine bricked with a ridiculous 4 day ETA is pretty unacceptable.

It's a developer beta. If you're not prepared for anything, including totally hosing your machine, then don't use it.
 
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