10.15.1 Update - Bluetooth not available

Same issue, Bluetooth Hardware seems not to be available since Catalina 10.15.1 update (also if I check through System Report it indicates 'No bluetooth hardware available'). Tried restarts + deleting plist files.

One weird thing: I can still control my mouse pointer through my separate Apple Trackpad, which also works through Bluetooth, although it only supports movement and clicking, no gestures. It does not show anywhere as connected device though.

For me the issue is resolved, it seem to be an outdated version of SentinelOne that caused the issue (it was not working correctly as well, and while I was updating it my Bluetooth suddenly returned).

Hey,

I am also having the same problem, I am not able to connect my Airpods with my Macbook Pro (Catalina 10.15.1) since it is showing "Bluetooth not available". I have tried all the steps which everyone has already mentioned but nothing works.

This post is just to know if there are any updates on this issue or not .. !!

So my problem was solved, but I don’t have great news.

If you recall from my post above, I dropped my Mac mini off before the thanksgiving holiday. The Apple store was going to do a “deep dive” on the Bluetooth issue.

Well, they did, and they couldn’t figure it out. They ended up replacing the entire logic board under AppleCare.

I find that a little odd, but Apples repair approach of shotgun vs scalpel has always been suspicious to me.

I truly think that this was caused by one of two scenarios, both related to the Bluetooth chip requiring a DFU update.

either:

1) this was the first such update to the Bluetooth firmware since late 2018, and a batch of chips had bad flash memory for the Bluetooth ROM, or

2) A select or even random set of users received a corrupt DFU flash file with the 10.15.1 update.

I don’t have any evidence that leans one way or the other, but there’s clearly a pattern here and yet again, Apple is following their own all too common pattern of not recognizing / denying the problem (I cant tell which.)

My Mac mini was one week out of the standard warranty; without AppleCare the repair would have cost me $452 according to the invoice.

I truly hope Apple does the right thing in both acknowledging this problem and repairing the machines that are just now coming out of warranty coverage.

Unfortunately it seems it’s following the standard Apple pattern of pretend the problem doesn’t exist until people get upset.. So I highly suggest bringing your machines in.

The other curiosity is that Apple HAS released end-user DFU device patches before; this leads me to believe the problem is still firmware related but slightly bigger. They tried to restore BridgeOS on my Mac mini in the store and it failed repeatedly.

Also curious, even with the new logic board, I’m still seeing all the old classic 2018 Mac Mini problems of monitors not waking up and WiFi mysteriously failing randomly.

I have an older 2013 Macbook Pro and am intermittently facing this "Bluetooth: Not available" issue after upgrading to Catalina 10.15.2 from El Capitan. In my use case this only occurs after I have left my laptop unattended for a couple of hours and waking up from power save mode. Sometimes I am able to turn Bluetooth off and on again, sometimes I have to reboot. Bluetooth and Apple are not happy marriage. Oddly enough my Microsoft BlueTooth mouse 3600 performs better under Catalina. More responsive and in general less connectivity issues when compared to El Capitan. Well, apart from the Not available issue, that is...

I am having the same issue with my mac mini and bluetooth. i upgraded, and none of my bluetooth connections would work. at the same time, it didn't want to allow my USB mouse to work either. so i was really stuck, since i couldn't do anything. somehow i rebooted and returned to OS 14.6, and then tried to use my Time Machine backup i have on an external drive to things up the way they were before. now i find i can't do that, since something won't allow backup to work from that drive. i spent all day yesterday trying to return to the state it was in and can't. i got my USB connections going again, but still can't use Time Machine on the external.

I also upgraded my MacBook Pro, which for some reason seems to be more receptive. i have connected a Bluetooth keyboard that works

I have a Macbook Pro Mid 2012 experiencing the same issues. The mouse/keyboard disconnects from bluetooth then reconnects after 10-15 secs. Then is does it all over again. Eventually, Bluetooth turns off and I can't turn it on. I can reboot then the cycle begins again.

Very frustrating. I've contacted Apple support and gone through the known fixes all to no avail. In fact, I've had to retype this a couple of time because I lost the keyboard. I've sent Apple logs but they haven't gotten back to me.

This is definitely an OS issue.

I've also tested diagonostic verification through 'press D' during boot, but there was no hardware error on its result. But still bluetooth is not working and even can't see the icon from system setting menu.

So there are two issues being discussed in this thread. It seems like you’re running into the serious issue some others have been seeing and this the genesis of this discussion. Unfortunately, there’s not a good solution for that issue that anyone’s found, and Apple needs to get on the ball.

One issue being discussed here is general Bluetooth issues, I.e keyboards not working intermittently or dropouts / disconnects. That is not what this thread is about.

This thread is concerning a specific issue where the Bluetooth hardware disappears completely, and is shown as “not available” to OS X. No restores, software tricks, or diagnostics seem to help. In fact, running diagnostics shows Bluetooth not present.

This is not a software issue, and it’s a recent issue mostly associated with Catalina. It seems to affect the 2018 Mac Mini more than others.

I had this problem, and did extensive diagnostics myself and at the Genus Bar. Nothing could recover it.

The closest thing I can surmise, after 25 years working with both PC and Mac hardware, is that a firmware update to the Bluetooth portion of the combined Wireless chip fails during the Catalina upgrade and bricks that portion of the chip. If you look carefully at all OS X Updates, they contain one or more firmware updates - (DFUs, or Device Firmware Updates in Mac parlance) - which get applied at upgrade time.

Looking at the PCI ID after these upgrades on a failed machine, it appears something fails mid-upgrade in the firmware upload, and leaves the chip in an inoperable state.

Apple has released firmware patch utilities for these types of issues in the past, but as is per typical recent Apple, if it’s under a certain occurrence threshold they ignore it and deal with it case-by-case.

Luckily my 2018 Mac Mini was still within AppleCare, and the solution was to replace the logic board. Overkill, but seems to be Apple’s go-to fix at the GB these days.

If you’re having a true non-recoverable failure - indicated by “Bluetooth Not Available”, no Bluetooth device shown in system configuration or diagnostics, and no recovery even with a SMC reset or OS restore, this is likely your problem - I’d contact Apple support ASAP.

If you’re having generic Bluetooth issues like disconnects or dropouts, that’s really not the severe issue that’s being discussed in this thread - that can usually be solved by deleting Bluetooth prefs and .plists, and appears to be a software issue.

I think you’re correct. I have a 2012 MacBook Pro so I guess I’ve been abandoned by Apple. I was considering the Mini but I won’t be buying Apple due to error. I’ve gone old school going to usb keyboard/mouse.

Very disappointed!

I have the similar issue where the Bluetooth does not now work with my wireless headphones but the magic keyboard and mouse still operate.

I contacted my headphones manufacturer for a warranty claim and they and many other Bluetooth manufacturers now have a big issue with Bluetooth connectivity with their devices. Apple seems to have changed something with the Bluetooth functionality and also removed the functionality of apxT low latency support which is the issue worldwide with Catalina. I contacted Apple and they say the manufacturers have to update their firmware for all their devices. My question is why did Apple do this as it’s a major issue. Some guys are taking their devices for repair as they think it’s hardware. Personally I think it’s just faulty software and Catalina programming is the issue. Many are paying to get their iMac etc fixed for no reason. Apple should come clean as to what’s happened.

Again, there are two issues being discussed in this thread. One is a major one where the Bluetooth chip stops working entirely after the Catalina update. Another is with people having compatibility issues with specific devices, but the Bluetooth device itself on the Mac still exists and works.

The first issue isn’t major and is not fixable by the user. The second issue is more minor and is workable through things like device updates.

I’m not trying to be a jerk, but I wish people would stop conflating the second issue with the first major issue.

The issue that I had and the OP of the thread is that the Bluetooth chip on the Mac failed completely. After getting my logic board replaced the conclusion was that the firmware update -for the Bluetooth chip on the main logic board itself- failed during the Catalina upgrade, therefore bricking the chip on the motherboard.

This is not the same as “my headphones don’t work but my keyboard does.”

Apple needs to acknowledge the first issue, and if it keeps getting conflated with updates for 3rd party devices, they never will.

My Buetooth keyboard connected fine, but the iMac refused to acknowled the existence of the Magic-Mouse2. After reading a substantial number of posts with no success, I tried the following, with positive results. However I have yet to reboot my system. (iMac Retina 27" Late 2014 with Mac OSX 10.15.4) I disconnected ALL Bluetooth devices, keyboard and Magic-Mse 2 (MM2),& rebooted 4-5 times, with Bluetooth turned OFF. To navigate the screen I used my B&W 2008 iMac mse. I rebooted again with MM2 connected by cable to the computer, with MM2 turned OFF. I then turned on Bluetooth and located MM2 in Bluetooth window. Next I turned on MM2. Bluetooth recognized MM2. (it was the only device connected, since the keyboard was still turned off.) I then reconnected the keyboard via blue tooth, as per Apple's instruction in the HELP Menu (Connect an Apple Wireless Accessory ...), and it worked. So far, I have a functional mouse and keyboard, therefore, so far all’s well. I’m afraid to turn off my system. - If it does not reboot as it shoud i shall repost, and hopefully Apple will come iup with a cure. THIS IS RIDICULOUS that hundreds of their customers should have to waste their time going through this ridiculous excercise. Thanks for ALL your help (ON & OFF this particular topic!)

SOLVED: Turn on the MBP, and immediately hold Shift, Control, Option. I let go after 10-15 seconds. This was probably the 6th method I tried. The Mac booted up, I signed in, and BlueTooth was there! According to the link below, this resets the SMC, "System Management Controller." Hope this helps someone.

Note, the blog said to hold all 3 buttons and turn on the MBP at the same time, but it wouldn't turn on for me while I had those 3 buttons held in. Instead, I pushed the power button and then immediately after held those 3 buttons down.

Don’t bother going in for service. Had same issue with MCP. The issue is software related within Mojave . Apple doesn’t seem interested in fix. I updated to Catalina, and problem gone. MCP works just fine. On Mojave’s I reset everything, SMC, NVRAM, Bluetooth module , yet problem persisted. I’d open my lid and Bluetooth not available , unless reboot. Once updated to Catalina, problem gone, my Bluetooth has not ONCE been unavailable...