Issue Description
When attempting to install an OS update, the user encounters an "Authentication is disabled" message, preventing them from proceeding with the update.
The issue appears to be due to a corrupted Secure Token associated with the user account. A Secure Token is required to authenticate system updates and other security-sensitive actions on macOS. If the token becomes corrupted, authentication can be disabled, preventing the user from entering their credentials during updates.
One potential cause of this issue is inconsistent authentication states between different login attempts. In an observed instance, a user was unable to log in at home but was able to log in at the office using a local admin account. After logging in successfully, the user attempted to update macOS, which then resulted in the "Authentication is disabled" message.
Troubleshooting Steps
To resolve this issue, reset the Secure Token for the affected user account by performing the following steps:
Check the Secure Token status for the user:
sysadminctl -secureTokenStatus <username>If the Secure Token is enabled but corrupted, disable it:
sysadminctl -secureTokenOff <username> -password - -adminUser <adminusername> -adminPassword -Re-enable the Secure Token for the user:
sysadminctl -secureTokenOn <username> -password - -adminUser <adminusername> -adminPassword -Update the preboot partition to ensure the changes take effect:
diskutil apfs updatePreboot /Restart the computer and attempt the OS update again.
This process should restore authentication functionality and allow the user to proceed with the OS update without encountering the "Authentication is disabled" error.