Cannot view thumbnails on my Mac Studio in Search

Eric

Eric

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This problem was inherited from my older Mac Studio as a result of restoring it seems. It works on my other MBP just fine and my current Mac Studio with a different profile.

When I search with the Icon view, it shows large icons instead of actual thumbnails, as it does properly when I simply view the directory. What I have tried with no success:
  • Force quitting the com.appple.quicklook.ThumbnailsAgent and then force quitting Finder
  • Deleting ~/Library/Preferences/com.apple.finder.plist
  • Going into View > Show View Options > toggling "show icon preview"
It's a frustrating issue with so much media not to be able to see what I'm searching for and filetype doesn't seem to matter, they show a default application icon.

icons.png
 
Last edited:
Could be a quicklook extension causing havoc. Other than that I can’t think of many causes for this. But would try disabling the extensions
 
casperes1996 said:
Could be a quicklook extension causing havoc. Other than that I can’t think of many causes for this. But would try disabling the extensions
Click to expand...
Also just realizing it's only on the external SSD drives, found an informative post here but there is still no resolution from the looks of it. TLDR it worked before a Sonoma update, then resolved but still not working for some (like me) regardless of formatting, etc.
 
Eric said:
Also just realizing it's only on the external SSD drives, found an informative post here but there is still no resolution from the looks of it. TLDR it worked before a Sonoma update, then resolved but still not working for some (like me) regardless of formatting, etc.
Click to expand...
Interesting. I’m on latest Tahoe beta and haven’t noticed this issue on my external drives. That said I’m not by my Macs this weekend and am not sure if the issue exists and I just haven’t noticed cause I don’t keep that much on external or if the issue isn’t there
 
casperes1996 said:
Interesting. I’m on latest Tahoe beta and haven’t noticed this issue on my external drives. That said I’m not by my Macs this weekend and am not sure if the issue exists and I just haven’t noticed cause I don’t keep that much on external or if the issue isn’t there
Click to expand...
Upgrading to Tahoe now and will report back.
 
Just wanted to follow up that upgrading to Tahoe didn't make any difference. I've asked on MR and Reddit and there doesn't seem to be any answers, it doesn't seem like the sort of thing that doesn't have a workaround of some sort.

Still open to ideas.
 
Eric said:
Just wanted to follow up that upgrading to Tahoe didn't make any difference. I've asked on MR and Reddit and there doesn't seem to be any answers, it doesn't seem like the sort of thing that doesn't have a workaround of some sort.

Still open to ideas.
Click to expand...
Do you have any quick look extensions that could potentially be the culprit?
All is good with me on Tahoe and a SanDisk Extreme portable ssd
 
If you create a guest account and try it from there, does it still not work?
 
casperes1996 said:
Do you have any quick look extensions that could potentially be the culprit?
All is good with me on Tahoe and a SanDisk Extreme portable ssd
Click to expand...
In Tahoe I can't find "quick look" extensions 🤷‍♂️

Cmaier said:
If you create a guest account and try it from there, does it still not work?
Click to expand...
Tested with a new account and it also does not work, this includes about 6 external SSD drives, even my SD cards plugged in won't work. It has to be on a local drive for me to see the thumbnails in search.

I also seem to recall it working before I restored my backup on the new M4 Studio, this same problem has existed for years on my old M1 Studio so whatever it is I inherited it back to this machine with the restore.
 
Eric said:
In Tahoe I can't find "quick look" extensions 🤷‍♂️
Click to expand...
You can get an exhaustive list with the command

qlmanage -m plugins

This will include first party plugins like from iWork. It also shows where they are installed to, most likely always /System/Library/QuickLook, but possibly other locations too like ~/Library/QuickLook

QuickLook plugins can be installed alongside apps like Office or iWork to support their file formats, or standalone as qlgenerator files. They are responsible for generating thumbnails and previews, and feasibly, if one crashes the quicklookd process, it could prevent the other generators from working too
 
Okay, here's my list. How would I know what to look for here? I do have MS Office installed as well. FYI I also tried a force quit on com.apple.quicklook.thumbnails.agent which didn't make any difference.

plugins:


org.openxmlformats.wordprocessingml.document -> /System/Library/QuickLook/Office.qlgenerator (47)


com.apple.iwork.keynote.sffkey -> /System/Library/QuickLook/iWork.qlgenerator (247)


com.apple.iwork.keynote.kth -> /System/Library/QuickLook/iWork.qlgenerator (247)


org.openxmlformats.presentationml.slideshow -> /System/Library/QuickLook/Office.qlgenerator (47)


com.apple.iwork.numbers.sfftemplate -> /System/Library/QuickLook/iWork.qlgenerator (247)


com.apple.iwork.keynote.sffkth -> /System/Library/QuickLook/iWork.qlgenerator (247)


com.apple.rtfd -> /System/Library/QuickLook/Text.qlgenerator (1018.1.6)


org.openxmlformats.spreadsheetml.sheet -> /System/Library/QuickLook/Office.qlgenerator (47)


public.comma-separated-values-text -> /System/Library/QuickLook/Office.qlgenerator (47)


com.apple.ical.bookmark -> /System/Library/QuickLook/iCal.qlgenerator (1018.1.6)


org.openxmlformats.spreadsheetml.template -> /System/Library/QuickLook/Office.qlgenerator (47)


com.microsoft.word.stationery -> /System/Library/QuickLook/Office.qlgenerator (47)


com.microsoft.powerpoint.pot -> /System/Library/QuickLook/Office.qlgenerator (47)


public.xml -> /System/Library/QuickLook/Text.qlgenerator (1018.1.6)


public.vcard -> /System/Library/QuickLook/Contact.qlgenerator (1018.1.6)


com.apple.iwork.pages.template -> /System/Library/QuickLook/iWork.qlgenerator (247)


com.rsa.pkcs-12 -> /System/Library/QuickLook/Security.qlgenerator (55210.40.2)


com.microsoft.powerpoint.pps -> /System/Library/QuickLook/Office.qlgenerator (47)


com.apple.private.live-photo-bundle -> /System/Library/QuickLook/LivePhoto.qlgenerator (1018.1.6)


com.apple.property-list -> /System/Library/QuickLook/Text.qlgenerator (1018.1.6)


org.openxmlformats.wordprocessingml.template.macroenabled -> /System/Library/QuickLook/Office.qlgenerator (47)


com.apple.iwork.pages.sfftemplate -> /System/Library/QuickLook/iWork.qlgenerator (247)


com.microsoft.powerpoint.ppt -> /System/Library/QuickLook/Office.qlgenerator (47)


com.adobe.pdf -> /System/Library/QuickLook/PDF.qlgenerator (1018.1.6)


com.apple.ical.ics.todo -> /System/Library/QuickLook/iCal.qlgenerator (1018.1.6)


org.openxmlformats.spreadsheetml.sheet.macroenabled -> /System/Library/QuickLook/Office.qlgenerator (47)


com.apple.tv.movpkg -> /System/Library/QuickLook/Movie.qlgenerator (1018.1.6)


com.apple.iwork.numbers.numbers -> /System/Library/QuickLook/iWork.qlgenerator (247)


com.apple.iwork.keynote.key-tef -> /System/Library/QuickLook/iWork.qlgenerator (247)


com.microsoft.word.dot -> /System/Library/QuickLook/Office.qlgenerator (47)


com.apple.iwork.numbers.numbers-tef -> /System/Library/QuickLook/iWork.qlgenerator (247)


com.apple.finder.pictclipping -> /System/Library/QuickLook/Clippings.qlgenerator (1018.1.6)


com.apple.iwork.numbers.sffnumbers -> /System/Library/QuickLook/iWork.qlgenerator (247)


org.openxmlformats.presentationml.slideshow.macroenabled -> /System/Library/QuickLook/Office.qlgenerator (47)


com.apple.package -> /System/Library/QuickLook/Package.qlgenerator (1018.1.6)


public.rtf -> /System/Library/QuickLook/Text.qlgenerator (1018.1.6)


com.apple.localized-pdf-bundle -> /System/Library/QuickLook/LocPDF.qlgenerator (1018.1.6)


com.apple.ical.bookmark.todo -> /System/Library/QuickLook/iCal.qlgenerator (1018.1.6)


com.apple.systempreference.prefpane -> /System/Library/QuickLook/StandardBundles.qlgenerator (1018.1.6)


com.apple.iwork.pages.pages-tef -> /System/Library/QuickLook/iWork.qlgenerator (247)


public.image -> /System/Library/QuickLook/Image.qlgenerator (1018.1.6)


com.adobe.illustrator.ai-image -> /System/Library/QuickLook/Illustrator.qlgenerator (1018.1.6)


com.apple.ichat.ichat -> /System/Library/QuickLook/iChat.qlgenerator (5500)


com.apple.internet-location -> /System/Library/QuickLook/Clippings.qlgenerator (1018.1.6)


com.microsoft.excel.xls -> /System/Library/QuickLook/Office.qlgenerator (47)


org.oasis-open.opendocument.text -> /System/Library/QuickLook/Text.qlgenerator (1018.1.6)


com.apple.iconset -> /System/Library/QuickLook/Icon.qlgenerator (1018.1.6)


com.apple.iwork.numbers.template -> /System/Library/QuickLook/iWork.qlgenerator (247)


org.openxmlformats.spreadsheetml.template.macroenabled -> /System/Library/QuickLook/Office.qlgenerator (47)


com.microsoft.excel.xlt -> /System/Library/QuickLook/Office.qlgenerator (47)


public.html -> /System/Library/QuickLook/Web.qlgenerator (1018.1.6)


public.audio -> /System/Library/QuickLook/Audio.qlgenerator (1018.1.6)


com.apple.keychain -> /System/Library/QuickLook/Security.qlgenerator (55210.40.2)


public.xhtml -> /System/Library/QuickLook/Web.qlgenerator (1018.1.6)


com.apple.ical.ics.event -> /System/Library/QuickLook/iCal.qlgenerator (1018.1.6)


public.x509-certificate -> /System/Library/QuickLook/Security.qlgenerator (55210.40.2)


com.apple.iwork.keynote.key -> /System/Library/QuickLook/iWork.qlgenerator (247)


org.openxmlformats.wordprocessingml.document.macroenabled -> /System/Library/QuickLook/Office.qlgenerator (47)


org.openxmlformats.presentationml.presentation -> /System/Library/QuickLook/Office.qlgenerator (47)


public.json -> /System/Library/QuickLook/Text.qlgenerator (1018.1.6)


com.apple.addressbook.group -> /System/Library/QuickLook/Contact.qlgenerator (1018.1.6)


public.movie -> /System/Library/QuickLook/Movie.qlgenerator (1018.1.6)


com.apple.application -> /System/Library/QuickLook/StandardBundles.qlgenerator (1018.1.6)


org.openxmlformats.presentationml.template.macroenabled -> /System/Library/QuickLook/Office.qlgenerator (47)


com.apple.webarchive -> /System/Library/QuickLook/Web.qlgenerator (1018.1.6)


com.apple.pict -> /System/Library/QuickLook/Clippings.qlgenerator (1018.1.6)


org.openxmlformats.presentationml.presentation.macroenabled -> /System/Library/QuickLook/Office.qlgenerator (47)


public.font -> /System/Library/QuickLook/Font.qlgenerator (1018.1.6)


public.svg-image -> /System/Library/QuickLook/Web.qlgenerator (1018.1.6)


com.apple.iwork.pages.sffpages -> /System/Library/QuickLook/iWork.qlgenerator (247)


com.apple.iwork.pages.pages -> /System/Library/QuickLook/iWork.qlgenerator (247)


com.apple.ichat.transcript -> /System/Library/QuickLook/iChat.qlgenerator (5500)


com.apple.finder.textclipping -> /System/Library/QuickLook/Clippings.qlgenerator (1018.1.6)


com.apple.keynote.key -> /System/Library/QuickLook/iWork.qlgenerator (247)


public.x509-printable-encoded-archive -> /System/Library/QuickLook/Security.qlgenerator (55210.40.2)


org.openxmlformats.wordprocessingml.template -> /System/Library/QuickLook/Office.qlgenerator (47)


com.apple.ical.ics -> /System/Library/QuickLook/iCal.qlgenerator (1018.1.6)


org.openxmlformats.presentationml.template -> /System/Library/QuickLook/Office.qlgenerator (47)


public.plain-text -> /System/Library/QuickLook/Text.qlgenerator (1018.1.6)


com.microsoft.word.doc -> /System/Library/QuickLook/Office.qlgenerator (47)


com.apple.addressbook.person -> /System/Library/QuickLook/Contact.qlgenerator (1018.1.6)
Click to expand...
 
Eric said:
Okay, here's my list. How would I know what to look for here? I do have MS Office installed as well. FYI I also tried a force quit on com.apple.quicklook.thumbnails.agent which didn't make any difference.
Click to expand...
I think the only ones I don’t have are the adobe ones. This may not be the cause but what version of iilustrator/adobe do you have? Old one or up to date?
 
casperes1996 said:
I think the only ones I don’t have are the adobe ones. This may not be the cause but what version of iilustrator/adobe do you have? Old one or up to date?
Click to expand...
Before he even posted it, I wondered about adobe. One of the adobe daemons (not sure which one - I disabled them all now) was causing all sorts of strange problems for me - like, in spotlight, the clipboard history didn’t work. Disabling a bunch of adobe startup programs and rebooting finally solved all my problems.
 
casperes1996 said:
I think the only ones I don’t have are the adobe ones. This may not be the cause but what version of iilustrator/adobe do you have? Old one or up to date?
Click to expand...
I don't have Illustrator installed at all. When I open the Activity Monitor and search for com.adobe.illustrator.ai-image I get nothing, also just tried just the term Illustrator and nothing there, either.

Any way to simply disable all to test and then re-enable?
 
casperes1996 said:
I’ll look more into this when I’m back from Christmas. Don’t have a Mac handy here :)
Click to expand...
Yeah this is a really unique problem and none of the known fixes are working. I think it's obvious that I have something installed that's hijacking it somewhere but it's really hard to tell where, I have a feeling I'll have to either live with it or open a ticket up with Apple for a deep dive.
 
Eric said:
Yeah this is a really unique problem and none of the known fixes are working. I think it's obvious that I have something installed that's hijacking it somewhere but it's really hard to tell where, I have a feeling I'll have to either live with it or open a ticket up with Apple for a deep dive.
Click to expand...
Sounds like it may require looking into log files.
 
Being back at my Mac now, I take it back. I too have the Adobe Illustrator one, and I do believe it is shipped with the OS by Apple. I was also a bit surprised that a third party extension was installed to the sealed system volume.

I do not believe a quick look extension or plugin is the problem anymore. Our lists are the same.

That does however leave me none the wiser.
 
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