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Expanded control strip only responsive when pressed hard, MBP Touch Bar

Hello!


I have a 2017 13 inch MacBook Pro Touch Bar, running on Catalina 10.15.4


A few days ago I have noticed that the expanded control strip is having some issues. In default, the touch bar is working perfectly fine, responds immediately, but when I expand the control strip and try to adjust keyboard brightness/screen brightness, or just about anything that you can control from there, it only responds when I press down and hold on for 1-2 seconds. This is where it gets funny: the above described functions work perfectly at the login screen, but once my macbook starts and the desktop opens, the expanded control strip starts "lagging".

I have tried the following, but the problem still persists:

  • force quitting all applications
  • killing the Touch Bar Agent in the Activity Monitor
  • killing the touch bar agent and the control strip in the Terminal
  • resetting the NVRAM
  • resetting the SMC

I even ran Apple Diagnostics, but there were no issues found.


Any ideas what could be the problem and how could I solve it?


Thanks!

MacBook Pro 13", macOS 10.15

Posted on May 12, 2020 9:43 AM

Reply
Question marked as Best reply

Posted on May 12, 2020 10:06 AM

effysmith wrote:

• Hello!

I have a 2017 13 inch MacBook Pro Touch Bar, running on Catalina 10.15.4

A few days ago I have noticed that the expanded control strip is having some issues. In default, the touch bar is working perfectly fine, responds immediately, but when I expand the control strip and try to adjust keyboard brightness/screen brightness, or just about anything that you can control from there, it only responds when I press down and hold on for 1-2 seconds. This is where it gets funny: the above described functions work perfectly at the login screen, but once my macbook starts and the desktop opens, the expanded control strip starts "lagging".
I have tried the following, but the problem still persists:
force quitting all applications
• killing the Touch Bar Agent in the Activity Monitor
• killing the touch bar agent and the control strip in the Terminal
• resetting the NVRAM
• resetting the SMC
I even ran Apple Diagnostics, but there were no issues found.

Any ideas what could be the problem and how could I solve it?

Thanks!



It is an interesting glitch I have not heard prior to this post.


You have done all the right trouble shooting vectors.



To trouble shoot further you can:


—Try a SafeBoot https://support.apple.com/en-us/HT201262

Takes noticeable longer to get to the login screen, does a 5-15 minute disk repair before it fully boots up, and certain system caches get cleared and rebuilt, including dynamic loader cache, etc. Login and test. Reboot and test as caches get rebuilt.


In Safe mode third party system modifications and system accelerations are disabled, it removes malware, etc hampering smooth operation, however a reboot will put it back to normal mode.


This test will tell you if third party interference; extensions etc are not loaded in safe boot mode.



—Test issue in another user (or guest user) account  https://support.apple.com/en-us/HT204443

This will tell you if it a universal issue or isolated to your user/admin account. 


--------------------------------------


You might just try reinstalling the Combo update macOS 10.15.4 https://support.apple.com/kb/DL2037?locale=en_US

on top of your existing macOS 10.15.4. This has been known to sort one-off anomalies like you describe.


--------------------------------------


I will add to make it easier on yourself if you see fit—make a change to your >System Preferences>Keyboard>>Keyboard





Customize the Touch Bar on Mac - Apple Support

Use the Touch Bar on Mac - Apple Support


3 replies
Question marked as Best reply

May 12, 2020 10:06 AM in response to effysmith

effysmith wrote:

• Hello!

I have a 2017 13 inch MacBook Pro Touch Bar, running on Catalina 10.15.4

A few days ago I have noticed that the expanded control strip is having some issues. In default, the touch bar is working perfectly fine, responds immediately, but when I expand the control strip and try to adjust keyboard brightness/screen brightness, or just about anything that you can control from there, it only responds when I press down and hold on for 1-2 seconds. This is where it gets funny: the above described functions work perfectly at the login screen, but once my macbook starts and the desktop opens, the expanded control strip starts "lagging".
I have tried the following, but the problem still persists:
force quitting all applications
• killing the Touch Bar Agent in the Activity Monitor
• killing the touch bar agent and the control strip in the Terminal
• resetting the NVRAM
• resetting the SMC
I even ran Apple Diagnostics, but there were no issues found.

Any ideas what could be the problem and how could I solve it?

Thanks!



It is an interesting glitch I have not heard prior to this post.


You have done all the right trouble shooting vectors.



To trouble shoot further you can:


—Try a SafeBoot https://support.apple.com/en-us/HT201262

Takes noticeable longer to get to the login screen, does a 5-15 minute disk repair before it fully boots up, and certain system caches get cleared and rebuilt, including dynamic loader cache, etc. Login and test. Reboot and test as caches get rebuilt.


In Safe mode third party system modifications and system accelerations are disabled, it removes malware, etc hampering smooth operation, however a reboot will put it back to normal mode.


This test will tell you if third party interference; extensions etc are not loaded in safe boot mode.



—Test issue in another user (or guest user) account  https://support.apple.com/en-us/HT204443

This will tell you if it a universal issue or isolated to your user/admin account. 


--------------------------------------


You might just try reinstalling the Combo update macOS 10.15.4 https://support.apple.com/kb/DL2037?locale=en_US

on top of your existing macOS 10.15.4. This has been known to sort one-off anomalies like you describe.


--------------------------------------


I will add to make it easier on yourself if you see fit—make a change to your >System Preferences>Keyboard>>Keyboard





Customize the Touch Bar on Mac - Apple Support

Use the Touch Bar on Mac - Apple Support


May 13, 2020 3:26 AM in response to leroydouglas

wow, thank you for the detailed answer!


I have logged into my guest user, and the issue did not appear there. i've created another admin user just to be sure, and the control strip issue has appeared there as well.

I've also tried the safe mode and the problem is still there


I'll install the combo update, and if all else fails, I might as well reinstall the OS altogether

Expanded control strip only responsive when pressed hard, MBP Touch Bar

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