>I'm glad to see that they not only support, but require the use of multiple keys.
Yes, and also that they support up to 6 of them. That's a very solid number enabling a lot of decent (if basic) backup practices. A number of keys for regular use, a few put in a safe deposit box or safe or the like. Or if (as I'd assume) keys can be reused between accounts, then a family could each have a key, with all keys registered to all accounts, and then 1 or 2 in a safe spot as backup. Everyone still is protected by their password, but if they lose keys/devices then any other family member could be their live backup (and having the majority of keys constantly under control and in active use is good in terms of immediately noticing if one is lost or breaks and so on).
While I know it's definitely not Apple to add extra complexity, if anything it'd be cool if they leveraged this a bit farther even. Would be neat for example to support m of n restore, where if key/password are lost (somebody dies in an accident for example) then any 4 of 6 (or 3 of 6 or whatever) remaining keys can be used to get access. That would be a useful hedge, while not needing to offer unlimited trust to any single person (there could also be a few other safety measures like it taking a week and sending the account owner alerts in the mean time).
>During set up, you're signed out of inactive devices, which are devices associated with your Apple ID that you haven't used or unlocked in more than 90 days. To sign back into these devices, update to compatible software and use a security key. If your device can't be updated to compatible software, you won't be able to sign back in.
My only real disappointment with this is that Apple didn't implement some sort of "Purchases Only"/"iCloud Lite" functionality for old devices. I've still got an iPhone 6 and a few others because a lot of cool apps (both productivity and games) I love were dropped by iOS quite a long time ago. The devices are dedicated app runners, no communications, no syncing needed, but not having them attached to the same Apple ID means the old purchases would all be gone which kinda negates the point. And you can't transfer purchases between IDs, nor purchase now gone apps, so there isn't anyway to just setup a new one not even for money. Maybe it's possible to remove them from the iCloud side while they have WiFi disabled and then keep them offline forever? Still, kinda shitty :(. Though perhaps that's more a symptom of continued from-the-start weaknesses in the Apple ID system. Not being able to move and consolidate purchases has been a huge damn stupid thorn in people's sides almost since it became possible to start purchasing stuff with them.
I found a somewhat solution to the latter problem. If you have an Apple One Family Plan, and an empty slot, you can just create a legacy user with a new Apple ID and add it as a family member. This account will inherit all the purchases and subscriptions, but it can have a different security policy.
Can you not just sign into the iTunes Store without signing into iCloud? They’ve always supported that for legacy users that shared a single Apple ID for all their purchases with their family.
Nope. With E2EE, and I believe with Security Keys, you must be running a supported OS on supported hardware or you can’t sign in with your Apple ID for anything.
Yes, and also that they support up to 6 of them. That's a very solid number enabling a lot of decent (if basic) backup practices. A number of keys for regular use, a few put in a safe deposit box or safe or the like. Or if (as I'd assume) keys can be reused between accounts, then a family could each have a key, with all keys registered to all accounts, and then 1 or 2 in a safe spot as backup. Everyone still is protected by their password, but if they lose keys/devices then any other family member could be their live backup (and having the majority of keys constantly under control and in active use is good in terms of immediately noticing if one is lost or breaks and so on).
While I know it's definitely not Apple to add extra complexity, if anything it'd be cool if they leveraged this a bit farther even. Would be neat for example to support m of n restore, where if key/password are lost (somebody dies in an accident for example) then any 4 of 6 (or 3 of 6 or whatever) remaining keys can be used to get access. That would be a useful hedge, while not needing to offer unlimited trust to any single person (there could also be a few other safety measures like it taking a week and sending the account owner alerts in the mean time).
>During set up, you're signed out of inactive devices, which are devices associated with your Apple ID that you haven't used or unlocked in more than 90 days. To sign back into these devices, update to compatible software and use a security key. If your device can't be updated to compatible software, you won't be able to sign back in.
My only real disappointment with this is that Apple didn't implement some sort of "Purchases Only"/"iCloud Lite" functionality for old devices. I've still got an iPhone 6 and a few others because a lot of cool apps (both productivity and games) I love were dropped by iOS quite a long time ago. The devices are dedicated app runners, no communications, no syncing needed, but not having them attached to the same Apple ID means the old purchases would all be gone which kinda negates the point. And you can't transfer purchases between IDs, nor purchase now gone apps, so there isn't anyway to just setup a new one not even for money. Maybe it's possible to remove them from the iCloud side while they have WiFi disabled and then keep them offline forever? Still, kinda shitty :(. Though perhaps that's more a symptom of continued from-the-start weaknesses in the Apple ID system. Not being able to move and consolidate purchases has been a huge damn stupid thorn in people's sides almost since it became possible to start purchasing stuff with them.