Strange lines on screen only in Time Machine

I have the exact same problems on a 2016 rMB after update to Sierra.

Black vertical and horizontal lines when using Time Machine. They move with the windows while scrolling through the backups. When I take a screenshot they disappear. If I take a screenshot while the windows are moving the screenshot shows a big grey box left and bottom.

Furthermore, when I use Spotlight for the first time after reboot, I get white pixels in the dropdown shadow. They even move with the shadow when I drag the spotlight bar to an other position. Next time I open Spotlight they are gone.

SMC, NVRAM reset, boot in safemode and changing resolution did not help.

You could consider running Apple diagnostics to see if it reports any errors that give you options to consider…

Using Apple Diagnostics - Apple Support

It should test the graphics card & other hardware & report any errors, personally I would ensure the Mac is cold, then run the test multiple times to see if it appears. Some issues can be related to temperature.

Already did a Apple Diagnostic, no errors.

On macrumors there is an other user with the same problem. He even did a clean install of Sierra, problem stayed.

Apple may not be happy with second hand 'another user on the internet said…' results so I would backup & clean install OS X to see the results for yourself. If you take it to a store they may do a clean install as a test if you have full a backup.

If Time Machine shows that issue on a clean install contact Apple & arrange a repair - you can still 'browse time machine' without having an active backup, hold alt (or option) and select the option to 'Browse other backup disks' from the Time Machine menu.

Since it is a late 2015 model you probably want to hurry & raise an issue as the warranty may expire depending on when you purchased & if you have Apple care too.

I have similar issue too on a new 27" inch 5K retina 2TB imac. Thin vertical lines appearing in Time Machine.

Specs

• 3.3GHz quad-core Intel Core i5 processor
• Turbo Boost up to 3.9GHz
• 8GB
• 2TB Fusion Drive
• AMD Radeon R9 M395 with 2GB video memory
• Retina 5K 5120x2880 P3 display

I use the 2TB Time Capsule.

On the first imac I did a comp'ete TM restoration. On the second imac I transferred the files from my old imac using Migration Assistance via ethernet.

The lines do not appear in El Capitan only Sierra. I also get an array of multicoloured pixels on shut down from time to time. I have tried two different identically spec'd (is that a word?) imacs.

I have tried the following with no success:

• resetting PRAM and SMC
• deleting all data from the Time Capsule; reinstalling El Capitan using Internet Recovery and then updating to Sierra
• used different accounts.
• booted up in safe mode.
• cleaned the imac for malware etc
• changed the display settings - I have not recalibrated.

I suspect the problem lies with the GPU and Sierra.

i have same issue on new early 2016 rMB when only i time machine; only vertical lines along the left of the animated windows. graphics are perfect everywhere else. i really think all the animation and full screen refresh is causing tis lil thing to get behind and we see some "tearing?" if that is the right term. but that wouldn't explain the original poster issue though since it was on a much more powerful machine than this rMB with the base config.

will wait and see....

This appears to be a common issue with Sierra, which I also have. You may also notice that you are also getting a screen with multicolours when shutting down as reported here (as well as the lines in TM):

iMac 27" 5K Late 2015 screen artefacts on shutdown

Apparently rolling back to the previous OS fixes the issue, I believe it is a graphics driver glitch which will hopefully get sorted in an update. As well as the issue with the App store and the other TM issue being reported!

Wow, I am very happy to have found this thread!

I have exactly the same issue with my MacBook Pro 2016 (Iris 540 graphics). These lines appear in Time Machine as well as in Civilization VI, where are a bit thicker, and even perspectively correct.

Interestingly, my computer shipped with version 10.12 installed, and this problem appeared on 10.12.1 after updating. I believe, downgrading is the only option for those who cannot wait for a fix.

I also created another thread here. I hope, somebody has an idea to resolve this issue - it is quite annoying, and definitely a software issue.

I have the same issue as well on a new 13" touch bar Macbook Pro...

Black lines appearing in Time Machine around the window.

Interesting!

I ordered a replacement unit from Apple which arrived today! And even though it is still on the base version 10.12, the issue appears as well. Tomorrow, I have an appointment with Apple Ireland. Maybe it is due to the 16 GB configuration, do you have configured as well?

Yeah I have a 16GB also...

Hmm. It appears other devices which I find probably means a software issue...

Yes, that seems to be the issue. Maybe the 8GB models are untroubled. Do you have any other glitches as well? Fullscreen in Powerpoint or 3D games? I will talk to Apple tomorrow, and will report back.

No, no other issues with it thus far besides that!

Apple Support contacted me. They believe it is a software issue, and all people who are encountering this problem should report that to Apple, as they will prioritise bugs with high report rates.

Can anyone with an 8GB model verify this issue as well?

Hi,

I have an 8gb 27 inch 5k iMac and have this issue, in addition the the strange graphic artifacts when shutting down - the latter has been reported lots in other threads and seems to be picking up momentum this week, I can only assume as more people are installing Sierra.

I did report this, which I hope helps.