Macbook Device Is Write Locked

Summary

• Macbook Device Is Write Locked Protected
• Macbook Device Is Write Locked To Google Account

Latest operating system for macbook air. Aug 08, 2017 Apple Footer. This site contains user submitted content, comments and opinions and is for informational purposes only. Apple may provide or recommend responses as a possible solution based on the information provided; every potential issue may involve several factors not detailed in the conversations captured in an electronic forum and Apple can therefore provide no guarantee as to the. I booted up my recovery HD using single user verbose, entered the commands: /sbin/fsck -fy and /sbin/mount -uw / only to get the alert 'disk2s1: device is write locked.'

When your USB flash drive or pen drive is locked, it's officially said to be write protected, read only or encrypted. To unlock the USB drive, there are two ways to go: ask for permission to receive the password and edit StorageDevicePolicies. Any behavior that causes data loss in the midst of write protection removal, use EaseUS Data Recovery Wizard to get data back.

Check two practical methods to unlock the USB drive. The table below gives an outline. Read the content for details.

How Is Your USB Flash Drive Locked?

Being unable to add, write, copy, or transfer files on a USB drive because it is locked? You need to determine the real causes so as to find the corresponding troubleshooting solutions.

• Re-connect the flash drive in different USB ports on the same computer, or on the other one. Make sure that it's not the USB port problem that locks the storage drive.
• Check if there is a lock switch on the portable USB drive. SD cards are always with a lock switch, it's easy to change the Lock to Unlock position. See how to unlock a memory card.

How to Unlock USB Drive

After excluding the two facts that would lock a storage device, you can now focus on the write protection removal solutions in the coming part. Most of the case is caused by the disk is write protected in Windows 10/8/1/8/7.

Solution 1. Ask for the permission with a password

This solution is suitable for users who have administrator passwords for unlocking the encrypted USB drive, partition or even write-protected files. Follow the next steps to unlock the USB drive with a password.

• Step 1: Connect the USB drive to your PC and go toComputer/This PC.
• Step 2: Right-click the USB drive and choose 'Properties'and then 'Security'.
• Step 3: Click 'Edit'and enter your administrator password.
• Step 4: Next, select your username in 'Group and Usernames', click the 'Allow' radio button alongside the 'Full' and 'Write' settings in the 'Permissions for Authenticated Users' section.
• Step 5: Click 'Apply' and choose 'OK'.

Then you'll be able to access the encrypted USB drive and use those important files again.

Solution 2. Make changes in Regedit

If you have forgotten the password of an encrypted USB drive or files, what can you do to decrypt the write-protected USB drive? Follow the path to locate StorageDevicePolicies in all versions of Windows, and change the WriteProtect value as instructed.

• Step 1: Press Windows + R keys to bring up the Run dialogue, type regedit in the search box and hit Hit.
• Step 2: In the Registry editor, navigate to the key:
• ComputerHKEY_LOCAL_MACHINESYSTEMCurrentControlSetControlStorageDevicePolicies
• Step 3: Double-click on the WriteProtect value in the right-hand pane of Regedit.exe. Change the Value data from 1 to 0 and click OK to save the change.
• Step 4: Close Regedit and restart your computer.

This time check your USB drive status. Are you now able to access data and use the drive again?

How to Recover Lost Data from Unlocking USB Drive

After this, if you find data in your USB are not accessible, you may need to use professional data recovery softwareto securely restore them. Here you can try EaseUS Data Recovery Wizard which is fully compatible with all Windows systems, enabling users to restore data from an encrypted USB drive or storage devices after unlocking.

Download this USB recovery tool and follow the next steps to recover data from an encrypted/write-protected USB drive after removing the encryption.

Step 1. Run USB data recovery software.

Connect the USB flash drive to your computer and launch EaseUS USB data recovery software on your PC. Select your USB drive which marks as a removable disk, and click 'Scan' to start finding your lost files.

Step 2. Scan all lost files from USB.

EaseUS Data Recovery Wizard will thoroughly scan your USB flash drive and find all your lost data on it. After the scanning process, use the Filter feature to filter a specific file type. You can check and preview found USB files in this program.

Step 3. Restore all lost files from USB.

A double-click will allow you to preview the file results. Choose the target files and click 'Recover' to save them to a secure location on your PC or other external storage devices.

macOS provides multiple methods to protect the data on a Mac: a user account password, encryption via FileVault, and optional low-level security measure that prevents starting up from storage devices other than the selected startup disk. That's known as the firmware password or EFI (Extensible Firmware Interface) lock, which will also block the user's ability to use all startup key combinations, except the NVRAM or PRAM reset combinations. This command (Option + Command + P + R), however, will initiate the machine from macOS Recovery instead.

The Lost Mode feature of Find My Mac will remotely lock the Mac with a firmware password for one-time use. The user's Mac receives the lock instruction from iCloud, restarts, and asks for the system lock PIN code that they set up. After entering the passcode the Mac starts up from the designated startup disk and disables the passcode.

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A firmware password is not the same as the administrator password or login password. It's a separate password that appears immediately after boot and must be entered into the system lock screen, which appears as a lock symbol on either a black or a gray background.

Firmware Passcode Security

Low-level passwords are quite secure, which also means there is potentially a headache if the password is forgotten. If you or any of your users can't remember the firmware password or passcode, know that Apple doesn't allow for any workarounds, but instead recommends scheduling a service appointment with an Apple Store or Apple Authorized Service Provider. The process requires the original receipt or invoice as proof of purchase.

Earlier versions of macOS required manual installation of the firmware but, starting in 2015, Apple began bundling EFI updates with the macOS updates in order to deliver security patches to all users. But as security firm Duo Labs discovered in late 2017, some Macs aren't getting the right firmware, which makes them vulnerable to hackers. They recommend checking the firmware version and updating if needed.

Macbook Device Is Write Locked Protected

Firmware Passcode Location

On Intel-based Macs shipped before 2011, the firmware password was stored in the PRAM and read by the system EFI firmware before other PRAM variables. That lead to a serious security issue, allowing the firmware to be revealed in a native macOS app and weakening the enhanced security Apple had hoped to introduce with the addition of the firmware password.

In 2011, however, Apple added an important change to the system: the firmware password was moved to a separate programmable controller from Atmel. This component contains lockable flash memory to store the password and requires special programming with identifier numbers for both the Mac's motherboard and the Atmel chip to access and reset it.

Since the controller is an independent component, the only way to bypass it is to manually remove it from the motherboard, but this requires highly precise reflow soldering tools and techniques.

Bypassing the Mac Firmware Password on MacBooks With Upgradeable RAM

This hardware hack works on both Intel- and Motorola-based MacBooks and requires users to remove the RAM and reinstall it. You can check our guide on how to remove the RAM on MacBooks for further reading.

1. Shut down your computer and remove the battery.
2. Locate your RAM, remove one of the RAM modules and put it aside.
3. Put the battery in, and boot your computer while holding the Command + Option + P + R keys to reset the parameter RAM.
4. Wait for the chime to sound three times.
5. Release the keys and shut down the computer.
6. Remove the battery again, and reinsert the RAM module.
7. Put the battery back in.
8. Boot up your Mac, and you should not see the firmware lock again.

Disable the Password With Firmware Password Utility

1. Restart your Mac while holding down the Command + R keys to enter Recovery Mode.
2. When the Utilities screen appears, go the Utilities menu bar, and select 'Firmware Password Utility'.
3. Choose to turn the Firmware Password off.

If none of the above methods worked, there are still two more options to try: either have Apple do it for you, so long as you have the original receipt or invoice, or alternatively use any of the EFI lock bypass hardware kits available for sale on various sites. In using one of these EFI lock hardware bypass methods you'll almost certainly void your warranty, so it is down to you whether you want to risk the procedure.

Macbook Device Is Write Locked To Google Account

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