jazzyful2
Level 1 (4 points)
Desktops

Q: Target display mode not working—is there anything left I haven't tried?

I'm gonna start with a long list of stuff I've done to troubleshoot getting a late 2012 21.5" iMac to work as a display for my mid 2013 13" Macbook Air source. Yes I have an Apple Thunderbolt cable.

 

I have tried...

 

  • Reading Apple's guide, Use your iMac as a display with Target Display Mode - Apple Support(nope)
  • Both Thunderbolt ports on the iMac (nope)
  • looking in System Report to make sure the iMac was registering the MBA on the other side of the cable, and vice-versa (they are)
  • A different iMac (also late 2012 21.5") and tried both ports (nope)
  • Getting my MBA to be the display for the iMac (nope, and yes I did the thing with the f2 buttons functions)
  • Going into TDM from the login screen (nope)
  • Booting up the computers in different orders (nope)
  • Resetting the SMC on the iMac (nope)
  • Pressing cmd+f2 from an onscreen keyboard on the iMac instead of its external keyboard

 

I'm at my wit's end. Why does my Apple laptop not connect to my Apple desktop with an Apple cable? Windows makes this infinitely more simple.

MacBook Air (13-inch Mid 2013), OS X El Capitan (10.11.5), other computer is running 10.10.5

Posted on Jul 25, 2016 10:03 AM

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jazzyful2

Q: Target display mode not working—is there anything left I haven't tried?

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  • Helpful answers

  • by iCare,

    iCare iCare Jul 25, 2016 2:36 PM in response to jazzyful2
    Level 4 (1,826 points)
    iLife
    Jul 25, 2016 2:36 PM in response to jazzyful2

    You mention resetting the SMC, but you make no mention of resetting the NVRAM. I'd start there first since the NVRAM stores some of the display settings.

     

    What type/model of keyboard are you using? Is it an Apple keyboard wired or wireless keyboard, or one from another company? Have you tried a different keyboard (if available)?

     

    You stated that "

    • Getting my MBA to be the display for the iMac (nope, and yes I did the thing with the f2 buttons functions)

    Please open the Keyboard preferences and confirm whether or not the 'Use all F1, F2, etc. keys as standard function keys' option is checked. Try pressing the fn+cmd+F2 keys to see if you can activate target display mode.

     

    Have you tried creating a new user account to see if it works there? Another option is to create a new partition on your hard drive and install a clean OS on the new partition to see if you can enable Target Display Mode?

     

    I can tell from your notes that you've done your research trying to resolve the issue, so I don't have a lot to add. Hopefully one of these steps will help.

  • by Mike Sombrio,

    Mike Sombrio Mike Sombrio Jul 25, 2016 6:33 PM in response to jazzyful2
    Level 6 (17,201 points)
    Apple Watch
    Jul 25, 2016 6:33 PM in response to jazzyful2

    Have you tried a different Thunderbolt cable?

  • by Duane,

    Duane Duane Jul 25, 2016 6:58 PM in response to jazzyful2
    Level 10 (124,018 points)
    Jul 25, 2016 6:58 PM in response to jazzyful2

    jazzyful2 wrote:

     

    • Getting my MBA to be the display for the iMac (nope, and yes I did the thing with the f2 buttons functions)

     

    That won't work. The MBA has NO ability to act as a display.