Cannot "disable remote control infrared receiver"

Current OS is 10.8.2.

Mid 2009 MacBook Pro 17 Inch

I checked the plist entry (com.apple.driver.AppleIRController.plist) and it is indeed set correctly to:

DeviceEnabled -- Boolean -- NO

When we get home next week, I will check my AppleTV (original) and see if the remote is doing the same thing, (I don't use it much anymore). But in any case this, as I said, is not the only thing that has not been addressed or corrected in the recent OS update.

I am having this same problem. It is maddening! I don't have any software that would mess with the IR (I don't think). I have confirmed that the setting is off in Mountain Lion. I've even uninstalled the kernel driver for the IR at the recommendation of soem other posts:

sudo kextunload /System/Library/Extensions/AppleIRController.kext

This command generated an error, because the driver wasn't loaded!

Any help on this would be appreciated. C'mon, Apple: What gives?

Thanks. I am running OS 10.7.5 on a Mac mini in a room where I just intalled an Apple TV and this was the answer for me.

Having exactly the same problem here on MacBook Pro, running 10.8.2, responds to EVERY and ANY Mac remote control, no matter whether it's turned off or on. I got so fed up of it I put the various remote controls out of reach but then I got an AppleTV and am back where I started. It interferes with my MacBook (waking it from sleep) and my iMac desktop. I've tried unpairing, pairing and unpairing (on both Macs), rebooting, checked for presence of Plex or any other likely suspect, all to no effect.

The really headwrecking thing is that the remote of my old (2008) iMac also controls the AppleTV, I've just accidentally discovered. So, clearly, they're all just working on the same wavelength. There must be a way to sort them out, but it beats me. I even ended up trying to obstruct the IR on the MacBook by sticking electrical tape across the 'eye', but this machine doesn't want to give up without a fight!

Any ideas?

Not sure about 10.8.2, but I run 10.7.5 and the Jeff Nitschke post of 10/11/12 worked for me. In 10.7.5 the Privacy & Security Preferences panel -> General Settings tab -> Advanced settings has a check box to turn off the infared receiver.

No, thought I'd made that clear 🙂 The option is there, both on my MacBook Pro under Mountain Lion and on my iMac running Lion, but ON or OFF neither makes any difference and both remote controls continue to control both Macs and the AppleTV. Thats the problem, clear as I can put it.

Any suggestions very welcome.

If you have Candelair installed check its preferences it can throw a wrench into the system. Otherwise, a low tech solution is a small piece of electrical tape (it's what I did before I realized I could turn off the IR Sensor).

Thanks for the interest. I've never had Candelair installed on either Mac (MacBook or iMac) and when I tried electrical tape across the IR 'eye', as reported above, it didn't work either. As I say, all of the remotes seems to operate all of the devices. I've seen a couple of reports of similar problems online but so far no solution.

BTW it happens even if I set up a new account on either of the Macs, so it's unlikely any kind of customisation I've made myself. Head-stratching, to say the least.

Sincere apologies, and thanks. Looks like I did, after all, have Candelair on my systems. I was looking for it in Applications folder but realise now it's a preference. I have no recollection of installing it (perhaps it's been there for years, back since Snow Leopard days?) but uninstalling it now has solved the problem.

Many, many thanks 🙂 Now I can work in the same room as the kids when they're 'in control'.

Not a problem. If you were ever running Plex Media Server that is probably where it came from.

Yes, that's likely it. I did look at Plex a long time ago but decided it wasn't worth the bother. Then AppleTV came along, etc.

Cheers again.

Given the timeline of posts in this string, this is obviously a problem Apple has decided to ignore and not post a fix. Another nail in the coffin, Cupertino!

Thank you. This actually worked! This has been anoying me for years. Thank you so much!

Unless I'm mistaken, pairing a device with a remote results in the device only paying attention to that particular remote but does NOT mean that the remote only sends commands to that one paired device. The remote continues to send commands out into the room and any device, paired or not, will respond to the commands. I'm going to look for some black tape right now and try that.

It would be more elegant for each device to have the ability to disable IR input signals within System Preferences or to disable IR commands from within the iTunes preferences, but if the tape works, I have no problem with that.