Q: Two-finger scroll not working on MacBook Pro

Any idea why I am unable to scroll up and down in Safari and in other applications using the laptop's trackpad? I have to move the pointer on top of a scroll bar, click and hold with one finger, then scroll with another finger. Looking to scroll pages without dragging the scroll bar.

I have already checked the Trackpad settings in System Preferences.

Thanks.

MacBook Pro (Retina, Mid 2012), OS X Mountain Lion (10.8.2)

Posted on Nov 26, 2013 4:58 PM

I have this question too

Solved

tstanfield1

Level 1 (10 points)

n most cases, various multifingered gestures seem to work just fine, with only the two-finger scrolling not functioning properly.

This problem seems to happen only when people are migrating, and not with new hardware or when fresh system software is installed on the newer computers, which indicates the problem is a software setting and not a faulty trackpad. More than likely this is from the global preferences (which hold trackpad information) for the old computer being on the new one with a setting or some other format that is preventing the trackpad from working properly. Apple has made the global preferences file hidden by default, but you can use the terminal to enable the preference settings needed for two-finger scrolling.

Fix:

1. Use the Terminal to enable proper scrolling behavior.

If you have just transferred your software and data to a new MacBook or MacBook Pro and are having troubles with two-finger gestures, then entering the following command in the Terminal should re-enable it:

defaults write -g com.apple.trackpad.scrollBehavior 2

After entering this command, either restart the computer or log out and log back in for the changes to take effect.

Posted on Apr 4, 2014 10:15 AM

Q: Two-finger scroll not working on MacBook Pro

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first Page 3 of 3

by Michael Priestley,

Michael Priestley Mar 28, 2015 1:36 PM in response to tstanfield1
Level 1 (35 points)

Mar 28, 2015 1:36 PM in response to tstanfield1

Hi Your fix for the scrolling worked superbly after i had a new motherboard installed on my MacBook Pro late 2011 after return from the Apple repair program for the graphics issues. I'll certainly keep this command in my folder of favourite terminal commands
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by applegirl0207,

applegirl0207 Jul 20, 2015 8:40 AM in response to PhilBoston
Level 1 (4 points)

Wireless

Jul 20, 2015 8:40 AM in response to PhilBoston

I encountered this problem and did everything attempting to fix it - including the terminal command found earlier in this forum. Nothing was working. Am thrilled I came across your posting....IT WORKS! Thank you!
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by hamzafromdenhaag,

hamzafromdenhaag Jul 21, 2015 4:42 AM in response to ILLS
Level 1 (0 points)

Jul 21, 2015 4:42 AM in response to ILLS

Thank you... I had the very same issue with two finger scrolling and now it's solved
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by themixscientist,

themixscientist Sep 24, 2015 3:02 PM in response to PhilBoston
Level 1 (0 points)

Sep 24, 2015 3:02 PM in response to PhilBoston

You hit the nail right on the head PhilBoston! I would have never looked there because I have never used accessibility or should I say I never needed to because this never came up before.
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by DaddieMac,

DaddieMac Sep 29, 2015 12:54 AM in response to Cleveland
Level 1 (39 points)

Sep 29, 2015 12:54 AM in response to Cleveland

What worked for me was to go to System Preferences > Accessibility > Mouse & Trackpad > Trackpad Options... and then make sure [ ] Scrolling is checked. On mine, it was unchecked, which is why it wasn't working.
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by Leweeze,

Leweeze Oct 3, 2015 6:27 PM in response to Apple-Pie Order
Level 1 (0 points)

Oct 3, 2015 6:27 PM in response to Apple-Pie Order

I use Safari but tried this anyway and it seems to have worked. I actually turned off several of the swipe functions since I don't really use them anyway. Thanks for the help!
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by shunyacetas,

shunyacetas Oct 6, 2015 12:33 AM in response to tstanfield1
Level 1 (0 points)

Oct 6, 2015 12:33 AM in response to tstanfield1

The Teminal command worked for me too. Just launching the command on Terminal didn't work. I had to run it by prefixing "sudo" to "defaults write -g com.apple.trackpad.scrollBehavior 2". MacBookAir, 11', now running El Capitan. Two-finger scrolling is back, and I didn't have to reboot.
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by cedartree84,

cedartree84 Nov 3, 2015 11:01 AM in response to Cleveland
Level 1 (0 points)

Nov 3, 2015 11:01 AM in response to Cleveland

I ran into this problem after migrating a user that had a Mid 2010 MacBook Pro to a brand new Retina MacBook Pro. I tried all the steps above to no avail. Finally I called Apple Support and they had me reset the System Management Controller (SMC). That fixed my issue immediately. The link below has those instructions.

https://support.apple.com/en-us/HT201295
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by kristof461,

kristof461 Dec 6, 2015 5:34 PM in response to cedartree84
Level 1 (18 points)

iPhone

Dec 6, 2015 5:34 PM in response to cedartree84

Unfortunately for me terminal fix and SMC PRAM reset didn't work. I saw that after turn off javascript everything is ok. But that's not a solution. Also swipe with two fingers not working not on all sites. And with 3 fingers I can make every swipe properly.
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by xooxer,

xooxer Jan 28, 2016 1:32 PM in response to tstanfield1
Level 1 (0 points)

Jan 28, 2016 1:32 PM in response to tstanfield1

Bravo! worked perfectly Thanks!
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by Ooh2b,

Ooh2b Feb 15, 2016 12:53 AM in response to Apple-Pie Order
Level 1 (0 points)

Feb 15, 2016 12:53 AM in response to Apple-Pie Order

Thank you Apple-Pie, you fixed this for me. Very grateful because that had been annoying me.
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by anna90,

anna90 Mar 23, 2016 7:20 AM in response to Apple-Pie Order
Level 1 (0 points)

Mar 23, 2016 7:20 AM in response to Apple-Pie Order

Thanks, very helpful
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by dreamwolf,

dreamwolf Jun 9, 2016 9:17 PM in response to ILLS
Level 1 (4 points)

Jun 9, 2016 9:17 PM in response to ILLS

Thank you Cleveland! When my MBP 2011 Early Spring had screwed up on the original trackpad I got fed up and turned off everything having to do with trackpad. I totally forgot about the accessibility portion!
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by pdir,

pdir Jul 19, 2016 10:48 PM in response to Cleveland
Level 1 (4 points)

Notebooks

Jul 19, 2016 10:48 PM in response to Cleveland

PhilBoston's solution worked for me, too. In case you missed it... go to System Preferences --> Accessibility. Choose "Mouse & Trackpad" from the left column, and click on the "Trackpad Options..." button in the right window. Make sure that the box called "Scrolling" is checked. In my case this was not checked and I couldn't use two-finger scrolling in any window or application.
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by rachelbwood,

rachelbwood Aug 19, 2016 9:16 PM in response to pdir
Level 1 (4 points)

Aug 19, 2016 9:16 PM in response to pdir

FINALLY! At school I hooked up a wireless mouse (for no known reason) and after using that for a couple months decided to go back to the trackpad and couldn't scroll with two fingers. I had to go to the scroll bar, click and drag to move in all my applications (first-world problems). But this worked for me. If you are having issues after using any kind of mouse, this is where you can fix it!
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