Resolved watchOS 7 Beta 5 - unlock mac doesn't work

[CyberGene]

Man, that fixed it for me too! Thanks a lot. Also had to click twice and it worked the second time. BTW, I've been having this issue since the first beta and as always reported it to Apple and they requested all the logs (Mac, iPhone, watch) and I sent to them as instructed and their conclusion was "can't diagnose with the provided data". They are getting more and more pathetic. I'm now on official releases of iOS14, watchOS 7 and the latest firmware of AirPods Pro and "Hey Siri" is not working from the AirPods, that has been reported by my very early and was listed as an issue that "more than 10 reports" but it's still here. I like Apple but it gets harder and harder to swallow the appalling lack of quality and ability to diagnose issues. This instance where LongZheng was able to correctly solve an issue whereas their own engineers couldn't is significant in how bad their processes currently are

 

[jck1634]

I followed your instructions, LongZheng, and at first it didn’t seem to work. I would still get the error message about not being able to communicate with the Watch. Then I rebooted, tried again, still the error message. Trying a second time after rebooting it worked!

Thank you so much for posting these instructions! This has been so frustrating to me not having the Apple Watch Mac unlock feature.

This extra step was what I needed to get the workaround to work. Thank you both so much! It was driving me insane since I had to reset my watch yesterday

 

[sosiskin]

I've finally fixed it! I found a bunch of errors related to "AutoUnlock" in the Console that was hinting to me that there was some invalid state on my Mac with keys and plists not being reset properly. After clearing/resetting them, I can now successfully pair my watchOS 7 Series 3 to macOS 10.15.6.

Steps (follow at your own discretion)

1. Open "Keychain Access"
2. In "View", enable "Show Invisible Items"
   View attachment 954412
3. Search for "Auto Unlock"
4. You should see a whole bunch of application passwords for "Auto Unlock: XXXX's ..."
   View attachment 954403
5. Select all records and delete (this will reset/disable auto unlock on other Macs if you use multiple Macs)
6. Whilst still in "Keychain Access", search for "AutoUnlock" (no space)
7. There should be 4 entries for "tlk" "tlk-nonsync" "classA" "classC"
   View attachment 954382
8. Select 4 records and delete (don't worry if they re-appear, the system repairs this automatically)
9. Open "Finder" and navigate to "~/Library/Sharing/AutoUnlock"
10. There should be two files "ltk.plist" and "pairing-records.plist"
    View attachment 954386
11. Delete both files
12. Open "System Preferences" and try enabling auto unlock. You may need to enable it twice, the first attempt mightwill fail.

Excellent! Your method is working. Thank you!

 

[brisson2135]

I've finally fixed it! I found a bunch of errors related to "AutoUnlock" in the Console that was hinting to me that there was some invalid state on my Mac with keys and plists not being reset properly. After clearing/resetting them, I can now successfully pair my watchOS 7 Series 3 to macOS 10.15.6.

Steps (follow at your own discretion)

1. Open "Keychain Access"
2. In "View", enable "Show Invisible Items"
3. Search for "Auto Unlock"
4. You should see a whole bunch of application passwords for "Auto Unlock: XXXX's ..."
5. Select all records and delete (this will reset/disable auto unlock on other Macs if you use multiple Macs)
6. Whilst still in "Keychain Access", search for "AutoUnlock" (no space)
7. There should be 4 entries for "tlk" "tlk-nonsync" "classA" "classC"
8. Select 4 records and delete (don't worry if they re-appear, the system repairs this automatically)
9. Open "Finder" and navigate to "~/Library/Sharing/AutoUnlock"
10. There should be two files "ltk.plist" and "pairing-records.plist"
11. Delete both files
12. Open "System Preferences" and try enabling auto unlock. You may need to enable it twice, the first attempt mightwill fail.

This worked for me as well, thanks for the great write up!

 

[Michael Shvets]

I've finally fixed it! I found a bunch of errors related to "AutoUnlock" in the Console that was hinting to me that there was some invalid state on my Mac with keys and plists not being reset properly. After clearing/resetting them, I can now successfully pair my watchOS 7 Series 3 to macOS 10.15.6.

Steps (follow at your own discretion)

1. Open "Keychain Access"
2. In "View", enable "Show Invisible Items"
   View attachment 954412
3. Search for "Auto Unlock"
4. You should see a whole bunch of application passwords for "Auto Unlock: XXXX's ..."
   View attachment 954403
5. Select all records and delete (this will reset/disable auto unlock on other Macs if you use multiple Macs)
6. Whilst still in "Keychain Access", search for "AutoUnlock" (no space)
7. There should be 4 entries for "tlk" "tlk-nonsync" "classA" "classC"
   View attachment 954382
8. Select 4 records and delete (don't worry if they re-appear, the system repairs this automatically)
9. Open "Finder" and navigate to "~/Library/Sharing/AutoUnlock"
10. There should be two files "ltk.plist" and "pairing-records.plist"
    View attachment 954386
11. Delete both files
12. Open "System Preferences" and try enabling auto unlock. You may need to enable it twice, the first attempt mightwill fail.

Thank you! Solved for me as well.

 

[Nyulak]

I've finally fixed it! I found a bunch of errors related to "AutoUnlock" in the Console that was hinting to me that there was some invalid state on my Mac with keys and plists not being reset properly. After clearing/resetting them, I can now successfully pair my watchOS 7 Series 3 to macOS 10.15.6.

Just wanted to say I created an account purely to offer my thanks! This worked for me on my mini (required clicking the box twice) and my MBP, which required manual deleting of files, but no need to enter keychain again.

 

[T-BR]

It worked for me once, then it unchecked the box by itself, and now I can’t activate it anyhow.

 

[petterihiisila]

It worked for me once, then it unchecked the box by itself, and now I can’t activate it anyhow.

Same here, but then I repeated the process and did a reboot between step 11 and 12. I think I tried a total of 3 times, and finally it worked. Don't give up!

 

[T-BR]

Same here, but then I repeated the process and did a reboot between step 11 and 12. I think I tried a total of 3 times, and finally it worked. Don't give up!

I did what you said, but had no luck... thank you anyway.

I’ve tried a few times just checking the box and now it’s working. Let’s hope it stays that way now, haha!

 

[a.y.n]

I don't use my 16mbp a ton, it's Big Sur mostly for testing, this morning I opened it and tried to setup watch unlock, and it just worked lol. I then walked over to my iMac and tried, it worked again, wtf. Maybe it took a little bit of time for iCloud keychain to sync up with my watch. cc and thx @LongZheng.

 

[arfung]

I've finally fixed it! I found a bunch of errors related to "AutoUnlock" in the Console that was hinting to me that there was some invalid state on my Mac with keys and plists not being reset properly. After clearing/resetting them, I can now successfully pair my watchOS 7 Series 3 to macOS 10.15.6.

Steps (follow at your own discretion)

1. Open "Keychain Access"
2. In "View", enable "Show Invisible Items"
   View attachment 954412
3. Search for "Auto Unlock"
4. You should see a whole bunch of application passwords for "Auto Unlock: XXXX's ..."
   View attachment 954403
5. Select all records and delete (this will reset/disable auto unlock on other Macs if you use multiple Macs)
6. Whilst still in "Keychain Access", search for "AutoUnlock" (no space)
7. There should be 4 entries for "tlk" "tlk-nonsync" "classA" "classC"
   View attachment 954382
8. Select 4 records and delete (don't worry if they re-appear, the system repairs this automatically)
9. Open "Finder" and navigate to "~/Library/Sharing/AutoUnlock"
10. There should be two files "ltk.plist" and "pairing-records.plist"
    View attachment 954386
11. Delete both files
12. Open "System Preferences" and try enabling auto unlock. You may need to enable it twice, the first attempt will fail.

You're a genius. This totally worked for me.

 

[a.y.n]

So earlier I got one of my AWs to work, the battery on that brand new watch has already gone down to 15% after just a few hours, so I put on my other one, and can't get Mac unlock setup with this watch, oh well.

 

[daniesy]

[automerge]1600369135[/automerge]

I've finally fixed it! I found a bunch of errors related to "AutoUnlock" in the Console that was hinting to me that there was some invalid state on my Mac with keys and plists not being reset properly. After clearing/resetting them, I can now successfully pair my watchOS 7 Series 3 to macOS 10.15.6.

Steps (follow at your own discretion)

1. Open "Keychain Access"
2. In "View", enable "Show Invisible Items"
   View attachment 954412
3. Search for "Auto Unlock"
4. You should see a whole bunch of application passwords for "Auto Unlock: XXXX's ..."
   View attachment 954403
5. Select all records and delete (this will reset/disable auto unlock on other Macs if you use multiple Macs)
6. Whilst still in "Keychain Access", search for "AutoUnlock" (no space)
7. There should be 4 entries for "tlk" "tlk-nonsync" "classA" "classC"
   View attachment 954382
8. Select 4 records and delete (don't worry if they re-appear, the system repairs this automatically)
9. Open "Finder" and navigate to "~/Library/Sharing/AutoUnlock"
10. There should be two files "ltk.plist" and "pairing-records.plist"
    View attachment 954386
11. Delete both files
12. Open "System Preferences" and try enabling auto unlock. You may need to enable it twice, the first attempt will fail.

Worked! Thank you!!!

 

[ghostface147]

I've finally fixed it! I found a bunch of errors related to "AutoUnlock" in the Console that was hinting to me that there was some invalid state on my Mac with keys and plists not being reset properly. After clearing/resetting them, I can now successfully pair my watchOS 7 Series 3 to macOS 10.15.6.

Steps (follow at your own discretion)

1. Open "Keychain Access"
2. In "View", enable "Show Invisible Items"
   View attachment 954412
3. Search for "Auto Unlock"
4. You should see a whole bunch of application passwords for "Auto Unlock: XXXX's ..."
   View attachment 954403
5. Select all records and delete (this will reset/disable auto unlock on other Macs if you use multiple Macs)
6. Whilst still in "Keychain Access", search for "AutoUnlock" (no space)
7. There should be 4 entries for "tlk" "tlk-nonsync" "classA" "classC"
   View attachment 954382
8. Select 4 records and delete (don't worry if they re-appear, the system repairs this automatically)
9. Open "Finder" and navigate to "~/Library/Sharing/AutoUnlock"
10. There should be two files "ltk.plist" and "pairing-records.plist"
    View attachment 954386
11. Delete both files
12. Open "System Preferences" and try enabling auto unlock. You may need to enable it twice, the first attempt will fail.

This worked for me on Big Sur Beta 7 and WatchOS 7. It did fail the first time. Second time it worked like a charm. FYI, Big Sur had a third TLK called piggy. So five in total.

 

[a.y.n]

I just put 7.2 on the watch that didn't work earlier, tried to turn on watch unlock again, the second time I clicked that box it worked, on both of my Macs!

 

[locoboi187]

I've finally fixed it! I found a bunch of errors related to "AutoUnlock" in the Console that was hinting to me that there was some invalid state on my Mac with keys and plists not being reset properly. After clearing/resetting them, I can now successfully pair my watchOS 7 Series 3 to macOS 10.15.6.

Steps (follow at your own discretion)

1. Open "Keychain Access"
2. In "View", enable "Show Invisible Items"
   View attachment 954412
3. Search for "Auto Unlock"
4. You should see a whole bunch of application passwords for "Auto Unlock: XXXX's ..."
   View attachment 954403
5. Select all records and delete (this will reset/disable auto unlock on other Macs if you use multiple Macs)
6. Whilst still in "Keychain Access", search for "AutoUnlock" (no space)
7. There should be 4 entries for "tlk" "tlk-nonsync" "classA" "classC"
   View attachment 954382
8. Select 4 records and delete (don't worry if they re-appear, the system repairs this automatically)
9. Open "Finder" and navigate to "~/Library/Sharing/AutoUnlock"
10. There should be two files "ltk.plist" and "pairing-records.plist"
    View attachment 954386
11. Delete both files
12. Open "System Preferences" and try enabling auto unlock. You may need to enable it twice, the first attempt will fail.

Your instructions worked perfectly. This was bugging me for a while, thanks man.

 

[Stephen ONeal]

I've finally fixed it! I found a bunch of errors related to "AutoUnlock" in the Console that was hinting to me that there was some invalid state on my Mac with keys and plists not being reset properly. After clearing/resetting them, I can now successfully pair my watchOS 7 Series 3 to macOS 10.15.6.

Steps (follow at your own discretion)

1. Open "Keychain Access"
2. In "View", enable "Show Invisible Items"
   View attachment 954412
3. Search for "Auto Unlock"
4. You should see a whole bunch of application passwords for "Auto Unlock: XXXX's ..."
   View attachment 954403
5. Select all records and delete (this will reset/disable auto unlock on other Macs if you use multiple Macs)
6. Whilst still in "Keychain Access", search for "AutoUnlock" (no space)
7. There should be 4 entries for "tlk" "tlk-nonsync" "classA" "classC"
   View attachment 954382
8. Select 4 records and delete (don't worry if they re-appear, the system repairs this automatically)
9. Open "Finder" and navigate to "~/Library/Sharing/AutoUnlock"
10. There should be two files "ltk.plist" and "pairing-records.plist"
    View attachment 954386
11. Delete both files
12. Open "System Preferences" and try enabling auto unlock. You may need to enable it twice, the first attempt will fail.

Thanks so much. I had tried everything and this worked perfectly. I even called Apple today. They informed me that it was an iOS or watchOS issue and that they are aware of it. Should be fixed in an upcoming update. Really appreciate you figuring it out. Was driving me crazy!

 

[sw00p]

I've finally fixed it! I found a bunch of errors related to "AutoUnlock" in the Console that was hinting to me that there was some invalid state on my Mac with keys and plists not being reset properly. After clearing/resetting them, I can now successfully pair my watchOS 7 Series 3 to macOS 10.15.6.

Steps (follow at your own discretion)

1. Open "Keychain Access"
2. In "View", enable "Show Invisible Items"
   View attachment 954412
3. Search for "Auto Unlock"
4. You should see a whole bunch of application passwords for "Auto Unlock: XXXX's ..."
   View attachment 954403
5. Select all records and delete (this will reset/disable auto unlock on other Macs if you use multiple Macs)
6. Whilst still in "Keychain Access", search for "AutoUnlock" (no space)
7. There should be 4 entries for "tlk" "tlk-nonsync" "classA" "classC"
   View attachment 954382
8. Select 4 records and delete (don't worry if they re-appear, the system repairs this automatically)
9. Open "Finder" and navigate to "~/Library/Sharing/AutoUnlock"
10. There should be two files "ltk.plist" and "pairing-records.plist"
    View attachment 954386
11. Delete both files
12. Open "System Preferences" and try enabling auto unlock. You may need to enable it twice, the first attempt will fail.

Worked perfectly. Thank you.

 

[davgomes95]

I've finally fixed it! I found a bunch of errors related to "AutoUnlock" in the Console that was hinting to me that there was some invalid state on my Mac with keys and plists not being reset properly. After clearing/resetting them, I can now successfully pair my watchOS 7 Series 3 to macOS 10.15.6.

Steps (follow at your own discretion)

1. Open "Keychain Access"
2. In "View", enable "Show Invisible Items"
   View attachment 954412
3. Search for "Auto Unlock"
4. You should see a whole bunch of application passwords for "Auto Unlock: XXXX's ..."
   View attachment 954403
5. Select all records and delete (this will reset/disable auto unlock on other Macs if you use multiple Macs)
6. Whilst still in "Keychain Access", search for "AutoUnlock" (no space)
7. There should be 4 entries for "tlk" "tlk-nonsync" "classA" "classC"
   View attachment 954382
8. Select 4 records and delete (don't worry if they re-appear, the system repairs this automatically)
9. Open "Finder" and navigate to "~/Library/Sharing/AutoUnlock"
10. There should be two files "ltk.plist" and "pairing-records.plist"
    View attachment 954386
11. Delete both files
12. Open "System Preferences" and try enabling auto unlock. You may need to enable it twice, the first attempt will fail.

After 3 or 4 attempts (and adding a reboot of the Mac and Watch between steps 11 and 12), IT WORKED!!!
You're a genius, I had already rebooted my Apple Watch, my iPhone and even my Mac
Thank you!!

 

[martybird]

Thank you this worked beautifully.

 

[kevinl2048]

This worked exactly as described, thank you.

 

[marilbil]

This has not worked for me. I have deleted the Keychain Access and the plist items twice. Rebooted between Steps 11 and 12. Still getting the "unable to communicate" error after multiple attempts. When I click the lock in System Prefs, and unlock using Touch ID or password, I then check the "Use your Apple Watch to unlock..." box. It presents me with the following:

I believe this is due to File Vault being enabled. I enter my password and then it tries to enable and ultimately fails. I wanted to make sure this is normal and that most here are seeing this box. If not, could this provide a clue as to why this solution is not working for me.

Thanks in advance for any help.

 

[petterihiisila]

This has not worked for me. I have deleted the Keychain Access and the plist items twice. Rebooted between Steps 11 and 12. Still getting the "unable to communicate" error after multiple attempts. When I click the lock in System Prefs, and unlock using Touch ID or password, I then check the "Use your Apple Watch to unlock..." box. It presents me with the following:

View attachment 956364

I believe this is due to File Vault being enabled. I enter my password and then it tries to enable and ultimately fails. I wanted to make sure this is normal and that most here are seeing this box. If not, could this provide a clue as to why this solution is not working for me.

Thanks in advance for any help.

I've got FileVault enabled as well, and the procedure worked. I do see that dialog, when first enabling the checkbox. Not sure what to try next, but good luck. Sometimes this issue is fixed by time.

 

[eneisch]

I've finally fixed it! I found a bunch of errors related to "AutoUnlock" in the Console that was hinting to me that there was some invalid state on my Mac with keys and plists not being reset properly. After clearing/resetting them, I can now successfully pair my watchOS 7 Series 3 to macOS 10.15.6.

Steps (follow at your own discretion)

1. Open "Keychain Access"
2. In "View", enable "Show Invisible Items"
   View attachment 954412
3. Search for "Auto Unlock"
4. You should see a whole bunch of application passwords for "Auto Unlock: XXXX's ..."
   View attachment 954403
5. Select all records and delete (this will reset/disable auto unlock on other Macs if you use multiple Macs)
6. Whilst still in "Keychain Access", search for "AutoUnlock" (no space)
7. There should be 4 entries for "tlk" "tlk-nonsync" "classA" "classC"
   View attachment 954382
8. Select 4 records and delete (don't worry if they re-appear, the system repairs this automatically)
9. Open "Finder" and navigate to "~/Library/Sharing/AutoUnlock"
10. There should be two files "ltk.plist" and "pairing-records.plist"
    View attachment 954386
11. Delete both files
12. Open "System Preferences" and try enabling auto unlock. You may need to enable it twice, the first attempt will fail.

Thank you! I was having the same issue with a S5 that was setup as new on WatchOS 7 (due to battery life issues). I followed your instructions, rebooted both MacBook Pro and Apple Watch and now it is working again!

 

[marilbil]

I've got FileVault enabled as well, and the procedure worked. I do see that dialog, when first enabling the checkbox. Not sure what to try next, but good luck. Sometimes this issue is fixed by time.

Thanks for confirming that the File Vault dialog is normal. I thought it was, but wanted to make sure. I'm sure it will eventually get fixed.