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FileVault2 & Smart Card - Configuration change required!

This information is already listed on page CTK - Activating the ScreenSaver when a Smart Card is removed in section (2).

If you have already activated the screensaver working with smart card already, you may disregard this information.

Currently the MacOS FileVault 2 does not support smart card usage for authentication or key storage. This requires to turn off the FileVault2 login passthrough (UserID & Password are passed from FV2 to the operating system for login).

After changing FV2 configuration and starting MacOS (cold boot) the FileVault2 will ask for your userID and password.

Thereafter (if smart card has been properly configured) the MacOS will connect to your wireless AirID reader and the smart card and will ask for the smart card PIN to log into the MacOS system.


You can turn off FV2 logon passthrough using the following command:

defaults write /Library/Preferences/com.apple.loginwindow DisableFDEAutoLogin -bool YES

This will allow you to use your usual account password for FileVault and then the our Smart Card  to login after boot.

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