Q: Solution - iMac AirPlay Mirroring to Apple TV stops working on Yosemite

I run current version of Yosemite on a brand-new iMac 21”. And I was happy to use the AirPlay Mirroring from the iMac to my Apple TV. Later I installed DuetDisplay on the iMac. It worked fine with my iPad Air. No problem. But I decided not to use DuetDisplay on this particular iMac (I have more than one). So I deleted the DuetDisplay app using CleanMyMac2. - After that, the AirPlay menu icon on my iMac would not let me choose the mirroring option. It was not greyed out, it just didn't react. AirPlay kept wanting to extend the display rather than mirroring to my Apple TV. - Then I reinstalled the DuetDisplay on the iMac and used the DuetDisplay uninstall option. Then the mirroring option in AirPlay worked again. - Usually CleanMyMac2 is perfect when it removes apps. So this surprised me. Other apps that mingle with the display also seem to create this problem. So it seems from Apple Discussion Forums. - My guess is that the display-changing apps make some internal parameter setting in Yosemite and that this parameter needs to be revoked before Airplay Mirroring to Apple TV is available again. And that simply deleting all the files from an app does not revoke this parameter setting. - Perhaps one of the Guru-people can find a command we can use in the terminal window to reset parameters back to the original state. A “Repair Yosemite” option.

iMac, OS X Yosemite (10.10.1), 21,5" 2,9 GHz, 8 GB, Nvidia Geforce

Posted on Jan 22, 2015 4:18 AM

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Q: Solution - iMac AirPlay Mirroring to Apple TV stops working on Yosemite

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  • by Eric Root,

    Eric Root Eric Root Jan 22, 2015 1:59 PM in response to torben4711
    Level 9 (71,487 points)
    iTunes
    Jan 22, 2015 1:59 PM in response to torben4711

    You do not need to use cleaning programs. They can destroy your computer operation as they may already have done.

                                      

    CleanMyMac - Uninstall

     

    CleanMyMac2 Un-install

     

    After un-installing, run this program to make sure you got all the pieces.

     

    EasyFind – Spotlight Replacement


    Do a backup. Boot to the Recovery Volume (command - R on a restart or hold down the option/alt key during a restart and select Recovery Volume). Run Disk Utility Verify/Repair and Repair Permissions until you get no errors. Then re-install the OS.

     

    OS X Recovery

     

    OS X Recovery (2)

  • by torben4711,

    torben4711 Jan 22, 2015 3:20 PM in response to Eric Root
    Level 1 (0 points)
    Jan 22, 2015 3:20 PM in response to Eric Root

    Wow! Surely you cannot propose this enormous activity list as a solution to such a small matter. A matter where I actually describe how to solve the issue quite easily. And have verified that my simple solution works. - I have used CleanMyMac for about five years and are quite impressed with its performance. It does absolutely NOT destroy anything or ruin my computer. - So the point I tried to make was, that within some Yosemite file there may be some parameter which is changed by programs working with the display functionality in Yosemite. So even if God Himself deleted all the files from the DuetDisplay app or similar apps, then the changed parameter value would remain within its Yosemite file. - My opinion is that some sort of design error exists. Either in the DuetDisplay type apps or in the way Yosemite operates. Also, I think that CleanMyMac2 should be aware of this situation. So I have described the incidence to both DuetDisplay and CleanMyMac2 support. - I also think that Apple should provide a “reset all parameters” feature or a “Repair Yosemite” feature. - To do all the enormous amount of things you suggest surely must be an extreme overkill in small situations like this. - But if for some reason I were to take my iMac back to square one, I would do so using my TimeCapsule backup. - The purpose of my post was to explain to others with similar problems here in the forum that no drastic measure is necessary. There is an easy fix instead of the big solution you propose.

  • by iW00,

    iW00 iW00 Jan 22, 2015 3:50 PM in response to torben4711
    Level 4 (1,349 points)
    Jan 22, 2015 3:50 PM in response to torben4711

    torben4711 wrote:

     

    My opinion is that some sort of design error exists. Either in the DuetDisplay type apps or in the way Yosemite operates. Also, I think that CleanMyMac2 should be aware of this situation. So I have described the incidence to both DuetDisplay and CleanMyMac2 support. - I also think that Apple should provide a “reset all parameters” feature or a “Repair Yosemite” feature.

    Apple has nothing to do with this. DuetDisplay is modifying default behaviour of the mac (never used this app but it looks like, this app is adding some extensions to the system) which CleanMyMac (both versions) is unable to detect. It looks like CleanMyMac only removes app file but doesn't really look for other files, which are deeply integrated in the system. If you want to remove the app (not installed via app store) then you should (next part is very important) always use steps provided by the app manufacturer.

     

    torben4711 wrote:

     

    I have used CleanMyMac for about five years and are quite impressed with its performance.

    Good for you. Unfortunately, if comes down to CleanMyMac, i share the same opinion as Eric Root. And if you try to look a bit deeper through Apple Discussions, you will be able to find some cases, where this app caused a lot of troubles. It is a waste of time and money and it is the same rubbish as Mackeeper.

  • by torben4711,

    torben4711 Jan 23, 2015 1:41 AM in response to iW00
    Level 1 (0 points)
    Jan 23, 2015 1:41 AM in response to iW00

    It is a fair point that I should have used the uninstall option in the app itself. We all know that now. And in a theoretically perfect world no cleaning or deleting would be necessary. - But.

     

    I have been working with PC machines since they were invented. I can still remember PC Dos upgrading to version 2.11 which made it possible to create folders on the floppy disk! Now we suddenly could store more than 99 files on a floppy!!

     

    So I do not scare easily when I encounter imperfect software. Also, over the cause of time I have learned that the uninstall option in a particular app (called program in the old days) cannot be expected to be reliable either. The uninstall-program code may also contain errors and omissions. The same goes for the operation systems programs, and of course for apps like CleanMyMac. So nothing is perfect (until after the next upgrade…) - My 30 years with PC computers have mostly been with Microsoft operating systems. But I also worked with the very first Apple computers and later some time with IBM OS/2. For the last five years I have worked with Apple only. So I have seen debates like this one many times before. (The stupid Apple IOS/Android war is a re-run of the debates over PC DOS and MS DOS back in the old days. We also had the same debate about IBM OS/2 and Windows.)

     

    My first iMac is a late 2009 model which I bought in 2009 when we used Snow Leopard. Now it is running the latest/final version of Mavericks. For the most of this period I have used CleanMyMac and CleanMyMac 2 for regular maintenance. On total the CleanMyMac(2) has deleted about 1,5 TB on my 1 TB harddrive. And the iMac is running just as quickly now as it did on day one. The deleted files are not just those in the trash can. It is also a vast amount of language files, cashes, broken references and large/old files (if you ask it to do so). - So the statement that CleanMyMac is useless is utter nonsense.

     

    As it was suggested I had a look on some of the posts in the discussion forum about CleanMyMac. - Yes, some users claim that CleanMyMac has caused them some problems. And many posts just want to know if it is “the best” and why it costs money. - Some posts are un-reproducable cries of panic. And probably some are quite true, although to poorly described to provide any kind of certainty.

     

    Obviously gurus in this forum can (sometimes) do better themselves than a CleanMyMac app can. But my wife cannot! And I cannot or won’t spend my time as an operating systems guru any more. I am 63 years old and have retired. So for ordinary users I still find CleanMyMac to be an easy, reliable solution to the everyday problem of deleting junk and other stuff from our iMacs. - I have deleted apps with CleanMyMac quite a few times. The cleaning is not just about deleting the app file. CleanMyMac finds all the related stuff as well and show/ask permission to delete it.  The problem with DuetDisplay is my first problem. And I don’t really think that CleanMyMac is to blame here. The problem is that one app is allowed to change the functionality of another app and its data. DuetDisplay has been allowed to modify data belonging to Yosemite.

     

    I thank you for your comments and your time. Although I have do disagree with your warnings about CleanMyMac from a practical standpoint. It works better than I could have done myself. Automatically every 2 weeks and on request. And my wife is happy!

  • by TheKracken84,

    TheKracken84 TheKracken84 Nov 14, 2015 11:38 PM in response to torben4711
    Level 1 (0 points)
    Nov 14, 2015 11:38 PM in response to torben4711

    Check it out... I have had the same airplay issue for over a year; however, it worked on my MacBook so I gave up on fixing it. Until today, several other discussions mentioned Air Display and Air Parrot, which I have never used; however, I forgot that I had tried Duet Display once. When I deleted it, I simply went to my application and moved it to the trash as you do with Apple Certified Apps, I also forgot that Duet Display was not downloaded from the App store it was done from a website.

     

    IF YOU HAVE EVER USED DUET DISPLAY AND HAVE THIS ISSUE DO THE FOLLOWING!!!

     

    THE FIX... Go to Duet Display's website, and reinstall the application. Once installed the D will be next to the airplay button. Click the D then click the option button (GEARS) and final click uninstall DUET. It will tell you that MAC will need to restart, say yes do it now... After restart your Airplay should work just fine. Took me less than 10 mins...