Can I disable iCloud?

[dcs.79c]

I recently changed the iCloud password. Every time that I start my mini, iCloud asks for a password. I put in the recent password & iCloud refuses it! I don’t understand that. I go to System Preferences & click on iCloud & try to sign out ,& again, iCloud refuses the new password.

How do I disable iCloud? Is there a Terminal command? Can I call iCloud & ask someone to disable iCloud? This is really frustrating & annoying. Why does iCloud refuse the correct password? Are there files that I can delete or a Keychain that I can delete to stop iCloud from nagging me?

 

[MacInWin]

System Preferences/iCloud, uncheck everything, then click sign-out. It may ask for your administrator password, but that should disable it for you.

 

[dcs.79c]

System Preferences/iCloud, uncheck everything, then click sign-out. It may ask for your administrator password, but that should disable it for you.

That doesn't work. I've already tried that. I open System Preferences, click on iCloud, & "Sign Out" appears. I put in the password & iCloud refuses it.

Can I start from scratch?

If I rid the hard drive of all traces of Mavericks & do a clean install & make sure that "iCloud" is unchecked, will that stop iCloud from nagging me?

 

[MacInWin]

What password are you putting in? I think it takes an administrator password, not the iCloud password. Yes, you can nuke/pave the hard drive and never activate iCloud, but that's a bit like using a shotgun to kill a fly.

 

[dcs.79c]

What password are you putting in? I think it takes an administrator password, not the iCloud password. Yes, you can nuke/pave the hard drive and never activate iCloud, but that's a bit like using a shotgun to kill a fly.

I'm still learning the Mac. I got my first Mac last year because I had a laptop with Vista & a hand-me-down Dell desktop with XP. I tried Windows 8 at a Best Buy store & I hated it. I consider myself computer savvy. But, OS X still confuses me a bit since I grew up in a Windows world. I've changed passwords so many times.There are a lot of passwords for me to remember. That's why I want to nuke the hard drive & start fresh.

I frequently see the spinning beach ball & I frequently have to force quit applications. When Yosemite comes out next month, I want to nuke the hard drive on my mini & laptop & do a clean install of Yosemite.

So, are you basically telling me that the only solution to the frequent iCloud password popups is to nuke the hard drive & start fresh? Isn't there a less drastic solution like deleting iCloud system files or deleting iCloud Keychain files or a Terminal command?

 

[MacInWin]

Do you have it set up to ask you for a password when you boot? If so, that is most likely an administrators password and has sufficient authority to disable iCloud. If not, then the password may be just nothing, it depends on what you did when you set up your account. Nuke/pave is not the ONLY way to fix the problem, but it is A way to do it, just like you can use a shotgun to kill a fly. It's overkill, but works. The non-nuke way is to just go through the disable process and provide the RIGHT password. There may be terminal commands, but I personally don't know them.

Out of curiosity, I think the iCloud password and your AppleID password are the same (not sure about that, but I think so). Can you log into your AppleID account? If you can, try that password to kill iCloud.

 

[dcs.79c]

Do you have it set up to ask you for a password when you boot.

No.

If so, that is most likely an administrators password and has sufficient authority to disable iCloud.

That hadn't occurred to me. I can change the administrator password, right? How do I do that? Maybe that will solve the problem.

 

[MacInWin]

Alright, just to find out I just went into System Preferences/iCloud and de-selected one of the sync'd items. I was prompted for a system administrator's password, which is my login (I'm an administrator on my system). So, it's not your AppleID, it's your OSX login password iCloud seems to want to make changes. If you don't have your system set up to make you log in (and that's a very bad practice, by the way), you'll need put in that login request box your login name and password that you gave way back when you created your account when you first got your Mac. If you don't remember that password, there may be ways to reset it, but I'm not the person to ask how to do that, sorry. I don't know.

But if you DO remember what you gave as password back then, put it in now and you should be able to disable iCloud. BTW, the password you give to allow software to install is the same password you can use here.

 

[jennymac]

"How do I disable iCloud? Is there a Terminal command? Can I call iCloud & ask someone to disable iCloud?"

If you find out iCloud's phone number, let us know, ok?

 

[dcs.79c]

Alright, just to find out I just went into System Preferences/iCloud and de-selected one of the sync'd items. I was prompted for a system administrator's password, which is my login (I'm an administrator on my system). So, it's not your AppleID, it's your OSX login password iCloud seems to want to make changes. If you don't have your system set up to make you log in (and that's a very bad practice, by the way), you'll need put in that login request box your login name and password that you gave way back when you created your account when you first got your Mac. If you don't remember that password, there may be ways to reset it, but I'm not the person to ask how to do that, sorry. I don't know.

But if you DO remember what you gave as password back then, put it in now and you should be able to disable iCloud. BTW, the password you give to allow software to install is the same password you can use here.

There is a way to reset the administrator password. I found out about it by talking to someone at an Apple store. I tried it in the past, but I haven't tried it since iCloud started complaining.
Hold down "command" & "R" to boot into Recovery mode. Click on Utilities & then on Terminal. Type in "resetpassword". Reset the password & reboot.

How do I remember all of the passwords? I know that there's software that can remember the passwords. Can Keychain remember the passwords?

 

[MacInWin]

Keychain should remember passwords, but not your logon password, obviously. You can ope keychain and look at what it has stored (you'll need an admin password to do that).

 

[dcs.79c]

Doesn't iCloud only upload Apple-related files? Does it upload non-Apple related files? For example, I have Libre Office on both my mini & MacBook Pro. Can I upload Libre Office documents to iCloud?
I don't use Safari or Apple Contacts. I don't have an iPhone or an iPad. So, I really don't need iCloud.

 

[dcs.79c]

Would someone please answer my previous post?
Doesn't iCloud only upload Apple-related files? Does it upload non-Apple related files? For example, I have Libre Office on both my mini & MacBook Pro. Can I upload Libre Office documents to iCloud?

 

[chscag]

No. When Yosemite is released you can use iCloud Drive (must be activated first). For now if you wish to upload your Libre Office documents, you can use Dropbox or one of the other free services that are available.

 

[dcs.79c]

No. When Yosemite is released you can use iCloud Drive (must be activated first). For now if you wish to upload your Libre Office documents, you can use Dropbox or one of the other free services that are available.

Why does iCloud limit uploads to ONLY Apple-related files?

 

[chscag]

Why does iCloud limit uploads to ONLY Apple-related files?

Because Apple has set it up that way.

 

[dcs.79c]

Because Apple has set it up that way.

That's like discrimination. There are programs like Libre office that will run on Apple & Linux & Windows. Limiting files to ONLY Apple-related files is basically discrimination. I don't have an iPhone or an iPad & I don't plan on buying one. I don't use Apple Mail so I don't have contacts to save. I don't use Safari. I bought my mini in June of last year & I haven't used iCloud. Yet it keeps nagging me for a password. Unfortunately, the only way to find out if iCloud & Keychain are an optional install on Yosemite is to wait until it comes out & see. If both are required, I'll have to come up with a solution.

 

[chas_m]

I'm not sure you understood one of the earlier replies. When iCloud Drive is formally opened with the release of Yosemite, you will be able to store any kind of document you want. And indeed, you can do that now with the help of third-party apps. But Yosemite is like two whole days away, maybe just wait and do it then.

I assure you that iCloud is entirely optional, I know several people who do not use it at all because they do not have mobile phones and thus can't take advantage of its primary features.

The problem here is that you changed your iCloud password, but either did not do so successfully or you haven't properly updated things. A phone call to Apple would probably clear up the mess.