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I’m seeing a “Failed to activate” notification for device-based Activation Lock on an Apple device managed in Hexnode. In Device Info > Activation Lock, the status was showing as disabled even after I clicked Retry. Is there something specific that needs to be done from the Apple Business Manager side before retrying?
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Replies (4)
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Hexnode Expert
17 hours ago
Jun 23, 2026
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This can happen if Apple Business Manager has pending Terms and Conditions that have not been accepted. When Apple updates ABM agreements, certain MDM-related actions may be blocked until an administrator signs in to Apple Business Manager and accepts the new terms. To resolve this:
- Sign in to Apple Business Manager with an administrator account.
- Check whether a Terms and Conditions prompt appears.
- Accept the pending terms if prompted.
- Return to Hexnode.
- Go to the device page and open Device Info > Activation Lock.
- Click Retry for the Activation Lock action.
If the earlier failure was caused by pending ABM terms, the retry should complete successfully after the terms are accepted.
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Participant
14 hours ago
Jun 23, 2026
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Where exactly would I see the pending terms in Apple Business Manager? I don’t usually go into ABM unless I’m adding devices.
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Hexnode Expert
10 hours ago
Jun 24, 2026
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In most cases, the prompt appears immediately after signing in to Apple Business Manager with an admin account. If there are pending Terms and Conditions, ABM displays a banner or pop-up that must be accepted before MDM communication continues normally.
A useful indicator in Hexnode is the device Action History. If the Activation Lock retry failed with an error like 403 Forbidden (T_C_NOT_SIGNED), it means Apple rejected the request because the ABM terms had not been signed.
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Participant
42 minutes ago
Jun 24, 2026
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Thanks that fixed it!
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