Desktop & documents disappear after 13.4 update

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Level 1

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Desktop & documents disappear after 13.4 update

Since the update my wallpaper, screensaver pics and 3 years of business accounting files have disappeared from my Mac Mini. I can find the business file via search. Same for the folder with my wallpaper and screensaver.

However I do not have the personalized wallpaper and screensaver automatically in use at startup anymore. Since everything has shifted to iCloud this has all become a huge pain.

I've gone into Apple ID, iCloud Drive. Sync This Mac is selected. The toggle below that for Desktop and Document folders does not work. I click it on and it immediately clicks itself off. Per another article that I saw, I made sure that there are no Profiles set up.

So now I'm stuck with a generic desktop and all the folders that used to be on the desktop no longer appear. There were folders for each year up to current with business accounting in them. Now it stops at 2020 unless I manually search them out. This update has been a major inconvenience.

Mac mini, macOS 13.3

Posted on May 24, 2023 10:48 AM

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Answer 1

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Old Toad

Level 10

207,955 points

May 24, 2023 11:24 AM in response to goldensx2

Try the following:

1 - first go into the Finder's Sidebar settings and make sure iCloud Drive is checked.

2 - open a new Finder window and click on iCloud drive in the sidebar.

If you get the iCloud drive and folders for both your Desktop and Documents folders you've inadvertently enabled iCloud drive and Documents & Desktop during the update. It's usually asked during an upgrade, not an update.

If you do find that you have that enabled you can go into the System/Apple ID/iCloud/iCloud Drive settings pane and disable the two folders. You'll be asked if you want to keep copies on your Mac.

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Answer 2

goldensx2 Author

Level 1

5 points

May 24, 2023 11:36 AM in response to Old Toad

OK, so I followed your instructions (to the best of my ability!) When I get to your last paragraph where I'm in the iCloud Drive settings pane I see that Sync This Mac is turned on for iCloud Drive and Desktop & Documents Folders is toggled off. If I try to toggle that one on, it automatically reverts to off. And that's kind of where I've been with it today.

Along the way, in your step 2 I did indeed find the desktop folder with the files in it that were previously always on my desktop.

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Answer 3

Old Toad

Level 10

207,955 points

May 24, 2023 12:26 PM in response to goldensx2

That means you're syncing the Desktop and Documents to the iCloud Drive. Unless you purchase additional iCloud storage you could run out of space (5 GB is free) and start losing files when you try to save.

See if you cn turn this slide switch off.

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Answer 4

goldensx2 Author

Level 1

5 points

May 27, 2023 4:07 PM in response to goldensx2

I never did recover everything. Some business accounting files for 2021 and 2022 have gone to the Bermuda Triangle. May 2023 had 2 entries in it and the rest had disappeared. Fortunately there are paper copies of all income and expenses for this month so I manually entered those into the accounting app today and at least got that aspect of things back to normal.

I also manually tracked down the files that used to sit on the desktop and put them back there. No more iCloud for me after this experience.

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Answer 5

goldensx2 Author

Level 1

5 points

May 24, 2023 12:52 PM in response to Old Toad

I think we're OK on the storage end of things. I clicked off Sync This Mac at your suggestion. I'll restart and see what happens.

I appreciate your time with this.

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Desktop & documents disappear after 13.4 update

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