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Can't Change Sidebar on Mac Mini Running 12.2.1

The contents I'd placed into the sidebar on my Mac Mini disappeared and I can no longer drag items to the sidebar to restore them. They do not stay in the sidebar when I drag them.


In the Library Preferences I removed com.apple.finder.plist but that did not fix the problem.


I'd appreciate a fix.


Thanks

Mac mini, macOS 11.2

Posted on Feb 13, 2022 7:14 PM

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Question marked as Top-ranking reply

Posted on Feb 14, 2022 4:46 PM

Thanks but I just found the solution with the help of an Apple advisor.


The problem was caused by the Finder Sidebar list for “Favorites” being hidden by a terrible interface. Favorites was listed at the top of the Finder sidebar but none of my favorites was showing. I had to hover the cursor over the word “Favorites” for a drop down arrow to appear. Once I clicked that previously invisible arrow my favorites reappeared and I was once again able to drag and drop my own favorites into my Finder Sidebar.

It made me very angry to think of all the time I wasted and the Apple advisor time wasted because of this extremely poor design of that Finder Sidebar functionality; truly TERRIBLE design!

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2 replies
Question marked as Top-ranking reply

Feb 14, 2022 4:46 PM in response to 1ssmith

Thanks but I just found the solution with the help of an Apple advisor.


The problem was caused by the Finder Sidebar list for “Favorites” being hidden by a terrible interface. Favorites was listed at the top of the Finder sidebar but none of my favorites was showing. I had to hover the cursor over the word “Favorites” for a drop down arrow to appear. Once I clicked that previously invisible arrow my favorites reappeared and I was once again able to drag and drop my own favorites into my Finder Sidebar.

It made me very angry to think of all the time I wasted and the Apple advisor time wasted because of this extremely poor design of that Finder Sidebar functionality; truly TERRIBLE design!

Feb 14, 2022 1:25 PM in response to KeepImmigrants

Hello KeepImmigrants,


From your post it appears you are having an issue placing items into a sidebar.


We would suggest restarting the Mac. While simple, this can refresh the macOS, apps and connections.


Without knowing what app is being used, and what the side bar for that particular app is capable of, we are going to suggest that you try to isolate the issue a bit further.


Safe mode can help with this. To start in safe mode, begin with the computer powered off. Follow the directions found here, depending on what type of Mac you have: How to use safe mode on your Mac - Apple Support


The computer will take longer to start in safe mode, and the screen may have some distorted video as it starts up. This is normal. Once you are logged in, use the system and test to see if the issue continues.


If everything seems to work as expected, go ahead and restart the computer normally and test again. Starting in safe mode forces the computer to run some disk checks similar to First Aid. This can resolve some issues.


Cheers.



Can't Change Sidebar on Mac Mini Running 12.2.1

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