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copy/paste and drag/drop not working in Mt. Lion

After two weeks of searching, I can not find the hangup which is causing my iMac 27" 10.8 to stop copy/paste and drag/drop following successfully doing the same shortly after startup. In Safe Mode, it doesn't happen, so I'm wondering how to track down this problem (extension?). I have to restart in order to get it functioning again after a short time of working. There has to be some kind of timing, like a program installed with a time limit which probably was forgotten in Lion and then reared its ugly head in Mt. Lion. Any suggestions for tracking this puppy? Or is there a program I could buy to do so?

iMac, Mac OS X (10.7.1), wireless keyboard, trackpad, mouse

Posted on Aug 10, 2012 8:42 AM

Reply
27 replies

Jan 17, 2017 9:50 AM in response to olddrjake

Hey Linc Davis,


could you please have a look at my Terminal output for your 5 Steps? My issues is: drag and drop is not working since I upgraded from 10.7 to 10.8 (coming from 10.7 update from 10.6).


When I drag a file on to a folder, that folder does not open so I am not presented any sub folders thus can place the file where I need it to be.


Copy paste is working fine.


Here's the terminal output:


Step 1

kextstat -kl | awk '!/com\.apple/{printf "%s %s\n", $6, $7}'


at.obdev.nke.LittleSnitch (3857)

com.rogueamoeba.InstantOn (6.0.0)

com.iospirit.driver.rbiokithelper (1.21)

com.rogueamoeba.InstantOnCore (6.0.0)

com.Cycling74.driver.Soundflower (1.5.3)

net.telestream.driver.TelestreamAudio (1.0.5)

com.paceap.kext.pacesupport.snowleopard (5.8)

org.virtualbox.kext.VBoxDrv (4.1.18)

org.virtualbox.kext.VBoxUSB (4.1.18)

org.virtualbox.kext.VBoxNetFlt (4.1.18)

org.virtualbox.kext.VBoxNetAdp (4.1.18)



Step 2

sudo launchctl list | sed 1d | awk '!/0x|com\.(apple|openssh|vix)|edu\.mit|org\.(amavis|apache|cups|isc|ntp|postfi x|x)/{print $3}'


com.paceap.pacesupport

org.macosforge.xquartz.privileged_startx

org.glimmerblocker.proxy

com.sheepsystems.BookMacster

com.paceap.eden.licensed

com.microsoft.office.licensing.helper

com.iospirit.candelair.sync

com.iospirit.candelair.daemon

com.bresink.system.tinkertoolstartupsound

com.bresink.system.securityagent

com.bombich.ccc

com.barebones.textwrangler

com.adobe.SwitchBoard

com.adobe.fpsaud

at.obdev.littlesnitchd



Step 3

launchctl list | sed 1d | awk '!/0x|com\.apple|edu\.mit|org\.(x|openbsd)/{print $3}'


org.macosforge.xquartz.startx

org.glimmerblocker.updater

com.adobe.CS5ServiceManager

at.obdev.LittleSnitchUIAgent

ws.agile.1PasswordAgent

com.macpaw.CleanMyMac.volumeWatcher

com.macpaw.CleanMyMac.trashSizeWatcher

com.macpaw.CleanMyMac.helperTool

com.adobe.ARM.df0ab5bbe6f698196fcc21e3c1e66dcb758bd911f4d637272d9d8109

com.adobe.AAM.Scheduler-1.0



Step 4

ls -1A /e*/mach* {,/}L*/{Ad,Compon,Ex,Fram,In,Keyb,La,Mail/Bu,P*P,Priv,Qu,Scripti,Servi,Spo,Sta} * L*/Fonts 2> /dev/null


/Library/Components:


/Library/Extensions:

VBoxDrv.kext

VBoxNetAdp.kext

VBoxNetFlt.kext

VBoxUSB.kext


/Library/Frameworks:

AECore.framework

AEProfiling.framework

AERegistration.framework

Adobe AIR.framework

AudioMixEngine.framework

Compressor.framework

DSPPublishing.framework

EDCommon.framework

EDMessage.framework

EWSMac.framework

FxPlug.framework

Ghostscript.framework

MacFUSE.framework

MediaServerAPI.framework

NyxAudioAnalysis.framework

OSXFUSE.framework

PluginManager.framework

ProFX.framework

ProMetadataSupport.framework

Qmaster.framework

StuffIt.framework

StuffItCore.framework

TSLicense.framework

XSKey.framework

cisco-vpnclient.framework

iDRS.framework

iDRS14.framework

iLifeFaceRecognition.framework

iLifeKit.framework

iLifePageLayout.framework

iLifeSQLAccess.framework

iLifeSlideshow.framework

iTunesLibrary.framework

libZJBIG.dylib


/Library/Input Methods:


/Library/InputManagers:

1PasswdIM


/Library/Internet Plug-Ins:

AdobePDFViewer.plugin

AdobePDFViewerNPAPI.plugin

Flash Player.plugin

JavaAppletPlugin.plugin

Quartz Composer.webplugin

QuickTime Plugin.plugin

RealPlayer Plugin.plugin

Scorch.plugin

SharePointBrowserPlugin.plugin

SharePointWebKitPlugin.webplugin

Silverlight.plugin

flashplayer.xpt

nsIQTScriptablePlugin.xpt


/Library/Keyboard Layouts:


/Library/LaunchAgents:

at.obdev.LittleSnitchUIAgent.plist

com.adobe.AAM.Updater-1.0.plist

com.adobe.CS5ServiceManager.plist

com.teamviewer.teamviewer.plist

com.teamviewer.teamviewer_desktop.plist

org.glimmerblocker.updater.plist

org.macosforge.xquartz.startx.plist


/Library/LaunchDaemons:

PACESupport.plist

at.obdev.littlesnitchd.plist

com.adobe.SwitchBoard.plist

com.adobe.fpsaud.plist

com.apple.aelwriter.plist

com.apple.qmaster.qmasterd.plist

com.barebones.textwrangler.plist

com.bombich.ccc.plist

com.bresink.system.securityagent.plist

com.bresink.system.tinkertoolstartupsound.plist

com.iospirit.candelair.daemon.plist

com.iospirit.candelair.sync.plist

com.microsoft.office.licensing.helper.plist

com.paceap.eden.licensed.plist

com.sheepsystems.BookMacster.plist

com.teamviewer.teamviewer_service.plist

org.eyebeam.SelfControl.plist

org.glimmerblocker.proxy.plist

org.macosforge.xquartz.privileged_startx.plist


/Library/Mail/Bundles:


/Library/PreferencePanes:

Apple Qmaster.prefPane

Flash Player.prefPane

GlimmerBlocker.prefPane

NIUSBAudio.prefPane

Perian.prefPane

RDUSB0074Pref.prefPane


/Library/PrivilegedHelperTools:

TinkerToolStartupSound

com.barebones.textwrangler

com.bombich.ccc

com.bresink.system.securityagent

com.microsoft.office.licensing.helper

com.sheepsystems.BookMacster

licenseDaemon.app

org.eyebeam.SelfControl

scheckup


/Library/Privoxy:

AUTHORS

ConfigPrivoxyURL.webloc

LICENSE

Privoxy-postflight-log.txt

Privoxy.StartupItem

Privoxy_3.0.6_post_install_log.txt

StartPrivoxy.command

StopPrivoxy.command

config

config.new

default.action

default.filter

developer-manual

faq

index.html

man-page

p_doc.css

privoxy

standard.action

templates

trust

uninstall.command

user-manual

user.action

user.action.new

user.filter


/Library/QuickLook:

Archive.qlgenerator

Finale.qlgenerator

Folder.qlgenerator

GBQLGenerator.qlgenerator

iBooksAuthor.qlgenerator

iWork.qlgenerator


/Library/QuickTime:

AC3MovieImport.component

AppleAVCIntraCodec.component

AppleHDVCodec.component

AppleIntermediateCodec.component

AppleMPEG2Codec.component

AppleProResCodec.component

DVCPROHDCodec.component

DVCPROHDMuxer.component

DVCPROHDVideoDigitizer.component

DVCPROHDVideoOutput.component

DVCPROHDVideoOutputClock.component

DVCPROHDVideoOutputCodec.component

DesktopVideoOut.component

FCP Uncompressed 422.component

IMXCodec.component

LiveType.component

Perian.component

iChatTheaterPreview.component


/Library/ScriptingAdditions:

Adobe Unit Types.osax

Glims.osax


/Library/Spotlight:

Finale.mdimporter

GBSpotlightImporter.mdimporter

Microsoft Office.mdimporter

iBooksAuthor.mdimporter

iMovie.mdimporter

iWork.mdimporter


/Library/StartupItems:

ArcanaStartupSound

CandelairPrefsTool

HWNetMgr

HWPortDetect

VirtualBox


/etc/mach_init.d:


/etc/mach_init_per_login_session.d:


/etc/mach_init_per_user.d:


Library/Address Book Plug-Ins:

AdiumAddressBookAction_AIM.scpt

AdiumAddressBookAction_ICQ.scpt

AdiumAddressBookAction_Jabber.scpt

AdiumAddressBookAction_MSN.scpt

AdiumAddressBookAction_SMS.scpt

AdiumAddressBookAction_Yahoo.scpt

SkypeABDialer.bundle

SkypeABSMS.bundle


Library/Fonts:

071MKSD-01Bold.bmap

071MKSD-02Bold.bmap

071MKSD-KTBold.bmap

071MKSD01Bol

071MKSD02Bol

071MKSDKTBol

078MKSD-MediumCondensed.suit

176MKSD-AL.suit

AirplAL

AirplKT

Airplane2-AL.bmap

Airplane2-KT.bmap

Angle-AL.bmap

AngleAL

Bobo-BlackAl.bmap

Bobo-WhiteAl.bmap

BoboBlaAl

BoboWhiAl

BuildAL

BuildKT

Building2-AL.bmap

Building2-KT.bmap

BusinessAsUsual.ttf

Callie Hand Full Version.ttf

CollaAL

Collage-AL.bmap

CrayoAlp

Crayon-Alphabet.bmap

CulDeSac.ttf

Gallonigher.ttf

Google Cantarell bold italic.ttf

Google Cantarell bold.ttf

Google Cantarell italic.ttf

Google Cantarell.ttf

Google Cardo.ttf

Google Crimson Text.ttf

Google Droid Sans Mono.ttf

Google Droid Sans bold.ttf

Google Droid Sans.ttf

Google Droid Serif bold italic.ttf

Google Droid Serif bold.ttf

Google Droid Serif italic.ttf

Google Droid Serif.ttf

Google IM Fell DW Pica SC.ttf

Google IM Fell DW Pica italic.ttf

Google IM Fell DW Pica.ttf

Google IM Fell Double Pica SC.ttf

Google IM Fell Double Pica italic.ttf

Google IM Fell Double Pica.ttf

Google IM Fell English SC.ttf

Google IM Fell English italic.ttf

Google IM Fell English.ttf

Google IM Fell French Canon SC.ttf

Google IM Fell French Canon italic.ttf

Google IM Fell French Canon.ttf

Google IM Fell Great Primer SC.ttf

Google IM Fell Great Primer italic.ttf

Google IM Fell Great Primer.ttf

Google Inconsolata.ttf

Google Josefin Sans Std Light.ttf

Google Lobster.ttf

Google Molengo.ttf

Google OFL Sorts Mill Goudy TT italic.ttf

Google OFL Sorts Mill Goudy TT.ttf

Google Old Standard TT bold.ttf

Google Old Standard TT italic.ttf

Google Old Standard TT.ttf

Google Rennie Beanie.ttf

Google Tangerine bold.ttf

Google Tangerine.ttf

Google Vollkorn bold.ttf

Google Vollkorn.ttf

Google Yanone Kaffeesatz 200.ttf

Google Yanone Kaffeesatz 300.ttf

Google Yanone Kaffeesatz 400.ttf

Google Yanone Kaffeesatz 700.ttf

H2D2Left.ttf

HandTIMES.ttf

ManiaAL

ManiaKT

Maniac2-AL.bmap

Maniac2-KT.bmap

MksdoAL

Mksdot-AL.bmap

MondaMelAl

MondaNorAl

MondaOutAl

Monday-MeltAl.bmap

Monday-NormalAl.bmap

Monday-OutlineAl.bmap

OmiyaAL

OmiyaHR

OmiyaKT

Omiyage-AL.bmap

Omiyage-HR.bmap

Omiyage-KT.bmap

ParadAL

ParadKT

Parade20-AL.bmap

Parade20-KT.bmap

QuidProQuo.ttf

REFURBIS.otf

RibboAL

Ribbontic-AL.bmap

SpaghCarAl

SpaghIkaAl

SpaghPepAl

Spaghettini-CarbonaraAl.bmap

Spaghettini-IkasumiAl.bmap

Spaghettini-PeperoncinoAl.bmap

TekutRouAl

Tekuteku-RoundAl.bmap

TypoBokan-KT.suit

YAKITORI

encodings.dir

fonts.dir

fonts.list

fonts.scale

handsean.ttf


Library/Frameworks:

EWSMac-GC.framework

EWSMac.framework


Library/Input Methods:

.localized


Library/Internet Plug-Ins:

PSPlugin.plugin

SheepSystemsNPAPIPlugin.plugin


Library/Keyboard Layouts:


Library/LaunchAgents:

Verbindungsassistent

com.adobe.AAM.Updater-1.0.plist

com.adobe.ARM.df0ab5bbe6f698196fcc21e3c1e66dcb758bd911f4d637272d9d8109.plist

com.apple.FolderActions.enabled.plist

com.apple.FolderActions.folders.plist

com.macpaw.CleanMyMac.helperTool.plist

com.macpaw.CleanMyMac.trashSizeWatcher.plist

com.macpaw.CleanMyMac.volumeWatcher.plist

com.victorpimentel.TVShowsHelper.plist

de.metaquark.appfresh.plist

org.virtualbox.vboxwebsrv.plist

ws.agile.1PasswordAgent.plist


Library/Mail/Bundles:

DEVONMailConduit-SnowLeopard.mailbundle


Library/Mail/Bundles (deaktiviert):


Library/PreferencePanes:

.VJO8GBAFIMOVID79QLS0

Candelair.prefPane

GPGPreferences.prefPane

TVShows.prefPane


Library/ScriptingAdditions:


Library/Services:

GPGServices.service

NoteBookHelper.service

QuickSyncServices.service


Library/Spotlight:

NoteBook.mdimporter



Step 5

osascript -e 'tell application "System Events" to get name of every login item' 2> /dev/null


no output




Hope we can fix this. Looks like otherwise I'll have to do a new install. But then if I migrate the user, the issue might reappear... so having to setup everything, would mean what, days(?) of work.

Aug 10, 2012 10:02 AM in response to macjack

Entered Safe Mode and followed your suggestions, wiping out Adobe and Dropbox login items (but not Apple's Airport Base Station Agent or Mail), and also did a Verify Permissions again, with no repairs needed. Disk verifies fine. Restarted but no help, still unable to function with copy/paste and drag/drop. Any other suggestions? I saw a MacFixit suggestion to delete NAPAPI and did so but again, did not help.

Aug 10, 2012 11:45 AM in response to olddrjake

No, plists that aren't associated with running apps can do no harm.

It's some item in your User, either a Login Item (might delete them all restart and try, you can always add them back), or a preference but I'm not sure which, if it isn't Finder.


Others have reported problems with drag & drop, so you're not alone. I know that doesn't help...

Aug 10, 2012 1:01 PM in response to macjack

Well, I appreciate your taking the time. It's strange but this must be some kind of time-out problem, because no matter what volume I'm in, everything works -- for about 10-15 mintues -- then suddenly nada.Text won't copy, even when it's available in the edit menubar, but Cmd-C or pulled down, Copy won't place a copy in Show Clipboard and the Paste won't be available any more than Cmd-V. Also, the files/folders in the Finder won't be selectable for moving, ditto for the files/folders on the desktop, not movable or selectable for drag/drop. Weird, but it must be timing out somehow.


Anyway, thanks for the support. It's great to know that although I left bug reports and comments in various help sites, especially Apple, I've only gotten two reactions, one here in the Support Communities, and one from Macintouch (told me all is well and it's just my system). I can't figure out how this old man, whose been computing since the Apple IIe and knows better than to load up his system with timed extensions or freebie crapola, would get caught like this.

Aug 10, 2012 1:10 PM in response to olddrjake

Please read this whole message before doing anything.


This procedure is a diagnostic test. It won’t solve your problem. Don’t be disappointed when you find that nothing has changed after you complete it.


The purpose of this exercise is to determine whether the problem is localized to your user account. Enable guest logins* and log in as Guest. For instructions, launch the System Preferences application, select Help from the menu bar, and enter “Set up a guest account” (without the quotes) in the search box. Don't use the Safari-only "Guest User" login created by "Find My Mac."


While logged in as Guest, you won’t have access to any of your personal files or settings. Applications will behave as if you were running them for the first time. Don’t be alarmed by this; it’s normal. If you need any passwords or other personal data in order to complete the test, memorize, print, or write them down before you begin.


Test while logged in as Guest. Same problem(s)?


After testing, log out of the guest account and, in your own account, disable it if you wish. Any files you created in the guest account will be deleted automatically when you log out of it.


*Note: If you’ve activated “Find My Mac” or FileVault in OS X 10.7 or later, then you can’t enable the Guest account. The "Guest User" login created by "Find My Mac" is not the same. Create a new account in which to test, and delete it, including its home folder, after testing.

Aug 10, 2012 2:00 PM in response to Linc Davis

I have done this before and found that I can copy and paste. I just tested it as you suggested and it works just fine. I waited more than 15 minutes to make sure it was still functioning right. And it was. So the test is ... positive, it does work in Guest (now the Guest login had been on my machine before and my son and grandson uses it a lot, and it has no problems. And repeating, Safe Mode allows this to work, too. It's just when I go into my personal user accounts that it gets the problem.

Aug 10, 2012 2:06 PM in response to olddrjake

Please read this whole message before doing anything.


This procedure is a diagnostic test. It won’t solve your problem. Don’t be disappointed when you find that nothing has changed after you complete it.


Third-party system modifications are a common cause of usability problems. By a “system modification,” I mean software that affects the operation of other software — potentially for the worse. The following procedure will help identify which such modifications you've installed. Don’t be alarmed by the complexity of these instructions — they’re easy to carry out and won’t change anything on your Mac.


These steps are to be taken while booted in “normal” mode, not in safe mode. If you’re now running in safe mode, reboot as usual before continuing.


Below are instructions to enter some UNIX shell commands. The commands are harmless, but they must be entered exactly as given in order to work. If you have doubts about the safety of the procedure suggested here, search this site for other discussions in which it’s been followed without any report of ill effects.


Some of the commands will line-wrap or scroll in your browser, but each one is really just a single line, all of which must be selected. You can accomplish this easily by triple-clicking anywhere in the line. The whole line will highlight, and you can then either copy or drag it. The headings “Step 1” and so on are not part of the commands.


Note: If you have more than one user account, Step 2 must be taken as an administrator. Ordinarily that would be the user created automatically when you booted the system for the first time. The other steps should be taken as the user who has the problem, if different. Most personal Macs have only one user, and in that case this paragraph doesn’t apply.


Launch the Terminal application in any of the following ways:


☞ Enter the first few letters of its name into a Spotlight search. Select it in the results (it should be at the top.)


☞ In the Finder, select Go ▹ Utilities from the menu bar, or press the key combination shift-command-U. The application is in the folder that opens.


☞ Open LaunchPad. Click Utilities, then Terminal in the page that opens.


When you launch Terminal, a text window will open with a line already in it, ending either in a dollar sign (“$”) or a percent sign (“%”). If you get the percent sign, enter “sh” and press return. You should then get a new line ending in a dollar sign.


Step 1


Copy or drag — do not type — the line below into the Terminal window, then press return:


kextstat -kl | awk '!/com\.apple/{printf "%s %s\n", $6, $7}'


Post the lines of output (if any) that appear below what you just entered (the text, please, not a screenshot.) You can omit the final line ending in “$”.


Step 2


Repeat with this line:


sudo launchctl list | sed 1d | awk '!/0x|com\.(apple|openssh|vix)|edu\.mit|org\.(amavis|apache|cups|isc|ntp|postfix|x)/{print $3}'


This time, you'll be prompted for your login password, which won't be displayed when you type it. You may get a one-time warning not to screw up. You don't need to post the warning.


Note: If you don’t have a login password, you’ll need to set one before taking this step. If that’s not possible, skip to the next step.


Step 3


launchctl list | sed 1d | awk '!/0x|com\.apple|edu\.mit|org\.(x|openbsd)/{print $3}'


Step 4


ls -1A /e*/mach* {,/}L*/{Ad,Compon,Ex,Fram,In,Keyb,La,Mail/Bu,P*P,Priv,Qu,Scripti,Servi,Spo,Sta}* L*/Fonts 2> /dev/null


Important: If you formerly synchronized with a MobileMe account, your me.com email address may appear in the output of the above command. If so, anonymize it before posting.


Step 5


osascript -e 'tell application "System Events" to get name of every login item' 2> /dev/null


Remember, steps 1-5 are all drag-and-drop or copy-and-paste, whichever you prefer — no typing, except your password. Also remember to post the output.


You can then quit Terminal.

copy/paste and drag/drop not working in Mt. Lion

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