Cannot remove a second iCloud account from iMac (macOS 13.4)

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Level 1

4 points

Cannot remove a second iCloud account from iMac (macOS 13.4)

I added a relatives iCloud email account to my iMac to give her a hand sorting an issue. That's now all done but I can't delete the account. I f I try to remove the account from the Mail/Calendar/Contacts apps I get a message saying the iCloud account is shared by other applications on this Mac and tells me to delete it from Internet accounts in system settings. When I try that it does delete for a few moments but then reappears.

I've gone through Keychain and deleted any reference to the account there but entries just restore themselves when the account reappears. I've trying booting into safe mode and deleting but still the same.

I've asked my relative to look on their iPhone, iPad etc to see if my device is mentioned - they did see it and delete it but that hasn't made a difference either.

Any suggestions before I have to erase and reload my Mac? It's a nuclear option I would like to avoid.

iMac (2017 – 2020)

Posted on Jun 1, 2023 2:46 PM

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Answer 1

bruno75

Community Specialist

Jun 3, 2023 8:34 AM in response to swampsnake

Hey there swampsnake,

While we're unsure of what steps you took regarding signing into someone else's Apple ID, this is never recommended to do. Any device that you use should be signed into your own Apple ID.

With the above in mind, it does sound like you've tried the steps we'd normally recommend. That being said, we'd like to rule out some other possible causes, along with learning more about what's happening:

You mentioned that your relative did remove your Mac from their devices list, but does your Mac show up later under their devices list?
Has your Mac been restarted since she removed your Mac from their devices list? Sometimes unexpected behavior can be resolved with a restart. Check out the section ‘Restart your Mac' here: Shut down or restart your Mac
As it may pertain to what's happening, what was the reason for which you signed into your relative's Apple ID on your own Mac?

Cheers!

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Answer 2

ManJor

Community Specialist

Jun 3, 2023 2:02 PM in response to swampsnake

We appreciate the update swampsnake,

In that case, we'd recommend reaching out to Apple directly regarding this matter. They have the tools needed to take a deeper look. You can reach them using: Get Support

Have a lovely day!

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Answer 3

swampsnake Author

Level 1

4 points

Jun 3, 2023 1:24 PM in response to swampsnake

Thanks for the reply. I didn’t plan to add the whole iCloud account to my Mac, just to add the email account. She is migrating from Google Mail to iCloud , and as she is using a windows laptop I thought it would be easier for me to copy the folders over for her using the Mail program on my Mac. I have rebooted several times, including into safe mode, but account will not delete.

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Answer 4

Jul 12, 2023 6:09 PM in response to bruno75

Did you get any help resolving this? I have the exact same situation. Was trying to help my dad with some email sorting and now can't delete the iCloud account from Internet Accounts. It just goes to "Inactive"

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Answer 5

swampsnake Author

Level 1

4 points

Jul 12, 2023 11:44 PM in response to Stephen K Mack

Sorry no I didn’t. I’ve had lots of’ you shouldn’t have done that’ messages but nothing to help fix it. It looks like the only proper fix might be to reformat the computer back to factory and start again, then pray that nothing from the other account has attached itself to mine.

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Answer 6

Jul 13, 2023 3:49 AM in response to swampsnake

"Shouldn't have done that" is such an odd response given the fact that macOS allows you to add additional iCloud accounts. It could simply not give users the option. Also, when you do add one it knows should be handled differently compared to the primary one and only adds things like Mail, Contacts, Calendar. This has to be a bug that will hopefully get fixed in the future.

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Cannot remove a second iCloud account from iMac (macOS 13.4)

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