Open and Save dialog boxes intermittently not appearing in multiple programs, unable to open or save.

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Open and Save dialog boxes intermittently not appearing in multiple programs, unable to open or save.

So this has been happening to me ever since I got this M1 Mac Mini (a decision I greatly regret.)

Programs will work normally for a while, but eventually I lose the ability to open or save documents. I'll select Open or Save from the File menu (or press the keyboard shortcuts) and nothing happens, no open or save dialog boxes appear. If I close the app and restart it, the ability to get open or save dialogs returns. This behaviour doesn't seem to be limited to any particular program. For instance, it's happened in Illustrator and Photoshop, but also Pages and other programs. I can't predict when this behaviour will happen; sometimes I'll go for days without it happening. It's quite frustrating.

I've read other reports of this behaviour, but they seem to tend to be Macbook related, and have something to do with having an external display connected. People have been advised to designate the Macbook screen as their main screen. Here on the Mini, of course, I can't do that. I just have a single monitor hooked up to my Mini.

This seems to be an issue that has been around since the introduction of Monterey, and doesn't seem to have been addressed. I'm currently running 12.2.1. I'll try installing the recent 12.3 update, but I didn't see any mention of this sort of fix in the notes.

Mac mini, macOS 12.2

Posted on Mar 17, 2022 1:17 PM

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Answer 1

Top-ranking reply

Owl-53

Level 10

104,269 points

Mar 18, 2022 2:02 PM in response to Lager1

1 - Suggest restarting in Safe Mode. This will perform a Disk Repair, clear cache files and only load Apple Software, extensions and fonts. The boot up will be slow and can take some time - Normal.

2 - Does the issue present in this mode ?

3 - If not - there could be something in the main User Account playing up. To further isolate this - Set up users, guests, and groups on Mac. Then log out of the Main User account and log into the dummy account and test again if the issue persists.

4 - If the issue is present in the dummy account - then this appears to be a System Wide issue.

5 - Suggest downloading the Application Etrecheck directly from a well Respected ASC Contributor. And Safe to use.

The application is free or paid from added features.

Run the application with Full Disc Access ( Security & Privacy - Full Disc Access ).

It will take a Snap Shot - both the hardware and software.

The Report will Not Reveal Any Personal Information.

Post back the Full Report - copy and paste - using the Additional Text Icon ( 3rd Icon to last )

We can have a look at the report for possible issues and may have possible suggestions to resolve the issues.

Any Third Party Applications that will interfere with the normal operation of the OS, alter, modify, remove or delete or attempt to do so is an invitation for disaster and may require a Reinstallation of the OS.

Any of the below should be removed as per Developers Instructions

This includes AntiVirus, Disk Cleaners, Disk Optimizes, UnInstaller etc.

This will include CleanMyMac , This will include BitDefender ,

This will included Norton Antivirus , Sophos Av Software

Intego AntiVirus, McAfee, MacKeeper, Avast AntiVirus

Ad Guard, Webroot

The The Built in Security is all that is required.

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Answer 2

Lager1

Community Specialist

Mar 18, 2022 1:59 PM in response to FormerKADrinker

Hi FormerKADrinker,

Welcome to Apple Support Communities. We'd like to see if you have the same issues when you boot your Mac into safe mode. Starting up your Mac in safe mode can help you determine whether issues you’re experiencing are caused by software that loads as your Mac starts up.How to use safe mode on your Mac - Apple Support

"Shut down your Mac.Turn on your Mac and continue to press and hold the power button until you see the startup options window.Select your startup disk, then press and hold the Shift key while clicking “Continue in Safe Mode.”Log in to your Mac. You might be asked to log in again."

If the issue continues in safe mode, we do recommend updating to macOS 12.3 after you have made sure you have a recent backup.

Update macOS on Mac - Apple Support

We hope this helps.

Cheers!

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Answer 3

Owl-53

Level 10

104,269 points

Mar 28, 2022 1:28 AM in response to FormerKADrinker

Thank you for the two Etrecheck reports.

The immediate issue the appears is the Third Party Application https://www.stclairsoft.com/DefaultFolderX/

This enhancement application and Monterey my or may not work well together.

Wherein - according to their provided information Try it for FREE for 30 days

Download Version 5.6.4

For macOS 10.10 - 12

Older Version 4.7.4

For macOS 10.6 - 10.10

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Answer 4

Mar 21, 2022 3:04 PM in response to Lager1

OK, so I did end up updating to 12.3 right after I submitted the original post. The "no open or save dialog box appearing" bug is still happening, so 12.3 did nothing to help that. I think it took two or three days before the bug manifested itself. I am now running in safe mode as suggested. I will try my best to keep running in safe mode for a few days, but it's really crippling my productivity to not have my extensions or boot programs or whatever they're called these days running. I shall try my best.

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Answer 5

Mar 21, 2022 3:16 PM in response to Owl-53

Have started in Safe mode as suggested by another poster here. I'll try to stay in this mode for a few days to see if the bug reappears.

I have downloaded Etrecheck as you suggested. I will now try to post back the full report. Thank you.

Etrecheck Report

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Answer 6

Mar 27, 2022 2:44 PM in response to Owl-53

So I've been running in Safe Mode for the past week, and the issue does indeed still happen. After about 5 days, calling for an open or save in Illustrator resulted in nothing happening, the appropriate dialog box wouldn't come up. A day later, and now Chrome won't bring up open or save dialog boxes. I've been testing Pages each day, and it still seems to have no problems, but I'm pretty sure it has in the past, so I don't think this behaviour is program dependent. I'm attaching a new Etrecheck report. I'm now going to restart into the normal mode so I can be more productive.

Etrecheck Report

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Open and Save dialog boxes intermittently not appearing in multiple programs, unable to open or save.

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