AltTab showing windows that are not open anymore on macOS Sequoia dev beta (24A5331b) #3589

chadlavi · 2024-09-07T16:55:13Z

Describe the bug

When I use AltTab, windows that are no longer open appear in the window switcher

Screenshots / video

Open windows	What AltTab shows

Steps to reproduce the bug

Turn on AltTab
Use your computer for a while, making sure to open and close some windows
Use AltTab to switch windows
See windows that are no longer open in the AltTab switcher

Your environment

AltTab version: 6.72.0
macOS version: macOS Sequoia dev beta (24A5331b)

lwouis · 2024-09-07T17:51:30Z

Hi,

This is surprising. We usually wait until the end of macOS betas to take actions. Most bugs come and go, on Apple-side, and there is nothing to fix often after the Beta.

Let's see what happens once it's out 👍

Thank you

Allsochen · 2024-09-08T13:03:31Z

Thank you very much for your feedback. We usually observe whether there are bugs when the new version of Apple is stable.👍

chadlavi · 2024-09-17T00:03:05Z

Just following up on this -- the public release of macOS Sequoia is now out, and this problem persists in AltTab. After a short period of time using it, it becomes unusably clogged with windows that are no longer open.

leander-hass · 2024-09-21T12:37:06Z

Hello, using the final macOS Sequoia this problem still persists. Expecially I have this problem with finder. Only quitting finder works to remove the windows. They cant be closed or showed through Alt Tab.
I hope this problem is fixed soon, thanks to the maintainer in advance!

lwouis · 2024-09-21T13:08:16Z

Hi,
I have updated to Sequoia, and can't reproduce this issue.
Could you please help me reproduce it?
Do you reproduce it on demand? Like if you open a Finder window, and close it, it always remain listed in AltTab?
Could you please share a video?
Thank you 🙇

chadlavi · 2024-09-23T02:47:03Z

Do you reproduce it on demand? Like if you open a Finder window, and close it, it always remain listed in AltTab?

Yes that's exactly what happens. AltTab seems to keep every window that has been open while it's running.

Here is an example video. In the video I quit and restart AltTab, then confirm that only my browser (Arc) is appearing in AltTab. I then open a finder window and confirm that the finder window appears in AltTab. I then close the finder window, but it still appears in AltTab.

EDIT: GitHub is terrible about video attachments, here's a link to the video:

https://gitlab.com/-/project/61644620/uploads/b588e7f31994a1c1d7b53dcab65853cc/Screen_Recording_2024-09-22_at_22.37.49.mov

lwouis · 2024-09-23T08:15:37Z

Thank you @chadlavi! The video shows the bug very clearly.

It's very surprising to me because the code dealing with removing windows hasn't been touched in years. It's the essentially the same since the beginning of the project 4 years ago.

Could you please try the following?

Run this command in Terminal.app: /Applications/AltTab.app/Contents/MacOS/AltTab
Open an close a Finder window
Share the logs in Terminal.app here

Thank you 🙇

geoffrobinson · 2024-09-23T12:59:58Z

I came looking for a resolution to the same issue - this is the output after running the suggested command:

2024-09-23 06:54:13.497 AltTab[78095:1482547] +[IMKClient subclass]: chose IMKClient_Legacy
2024-09-23 06:54:13.497 AltTab[78095:1482547] +[IMKInputSession subclass]: chose IMKInputSession_Legacy

lwouis · 2024-09-23T14:17:28Z

Thank you @geoffrobinson
This output seems too short. Normally AltTab will print all sorts of things. It should be more like 50 lines. Could you perhaps screenshot the Terminal.app window so we can see what went wrong?
Thank you

geoffrobinson · 2024-09-24T00:11:46Z

Here's the screenshot.

Running the command re-prompted authorization in System Settings. AltTab already had the required permissions toggled on, but I removed them, restarted the app and then re-added the required permissions.

~~I haven't noticed the issue recurring yet.~~ I'll repost if it does.

Edit - issue persists

chadlavi · 2024-09-24T00:53:40Z

@lwouis I see the same thing in Terminal as @geoffrobinson. This problem with permissions was happening all along with the macOS Sequoia betas. It doesn't happen when I open AltTab normally, but I get stuck when trying to actually run the binary from Terminal like this. The permission toggles are already turned on when I go to Settings, but even turning them off and on again I can't get AltTab to think it has permissions when run directly from the Terminal.

Unlike Geoff, after trying to toggle the permissions I am still seeing the bug with ghost windows showing in AltTab happening.

lwouis · 2024-09-24T06:27:18Z

Thank you

I think that when running AltTab from the Terminal, you need to give permissions to the Terminal.

Could you please share the logs after the app is running and you open then close a Finder window?

Thank you

mayur491 · 2024-09-24T07:05:52Z

I ran the command on terminal -> then I opened finder on Alfred -> then closed the finder window (nothing got printed on this close action on terminal) -> then selected terminal window again.

➜  ~ /Applications/AltTab.app/Contents/MacOS/AltTab
"Current space" 1
"Adding app" 479 "com.apple.loginwindow"
"Adding app" 971 "com.apple.WindowManager"
"Adding app" 969 "com.apple.coreservices.uiagent"
"Adding app" 1000 "com.apple.talagent"
"Adding app" 973 "com.apple.backgroundtaskmanagement.agent"
"Adding app" 988 "com.apple.CoreLocationAgent"
"Adding app" 1030 "com.apple.AppSSOAgent"
"Adding app" 1046 "com.google.Chrome"
"Adding app" 1042 "com.apple.notificationcenterui"
"Adding app" 1098 "com.apple.ScreenContinuity"
"Adding app" 1103 "com.apple.dock"
"Adding app" 1104 "com.apple.controlcenter"
"Adding app" 1106 "com.apple.systemuiserver"
"Adding app" 1113 "com.apple.wallpaper.agent"
"Adding app" 1108 "com.apple.finder"
"Adding app" 1142 "com.apple.Spotlight"
"Adding app" 1114 "com.apple.universalcontrol"
"Adding app" 998 "com.apple.wifi.WiFiAgent"
"Adding app" 1133 "com.apple.security.Keychain-Circle-Notification"
"Adding app" 1234 "com.apple.LocalAuthentication.UIAgent"
"Adding app" 1408 "com.sindresorhus.One-Thing"
"Adding app" 1389 "com.apple.AirPlayUIAgent"
"Adding app" 1393 "com.apple.TextInputMenuAgent"
"Adding app" 1381 "com.apple.Siri"
"Adding app" 1410 "eu.exelban.Stats"
"Adding app" 1414 "org.p0deje.Maccy"
"Adding app" 1420 "com.lujjjh.LinearMouse"
"Adding app" 1428 "com.knollsoft.Rectangle"
"Adding app" 1412 "com.apple.TextInputSwitcher"
"Adding app" 1443 "com.figma.agent"
"Adding app" 1447 "com.runningwithcrayons.Alfred"
"Adding app" 1397 "com.paloaltonetworks.cortex.agent"
"Adding app" 1376 "com.websense.endpoint.helper"
"Adding app" 1483 "com.dwarvesv.minimalbar"
"Adding app" 1508 "com.apple.SoftwareUpdateNotificationManager"
"Adding app" 1766 "com.google.drivefs"
"Adding app" 2025 "com.tinyspeck.slackmacgap"
"Adding app" 3805 "com.tinyspeck.slackmacgap.helper"
"Adding app" 3855 "com.apple.accessibility.universalAccessAuthWarn"
"Adding app" 1394 "com.amazon.codewhisperer"
"Adding app" 3836 "com.vmware.assist.core"
"Adding app" 4188 "com.apple.PasswordManagerBrowserExtensionHelper"
"Adding app" 4257 "com.apple.PasswordManagerBrowserExtensionHelper"
"Adding app" 4354 "com.google.Chrome.helper.plugin"
"Adding app" 4793 "com.airwatch.mac.agent"
"Adding app" 7152 "com.apple.AquaAppearanceHelper"
"Adding app" 9450 "com.apple.nbagent"
"Adding app" 16097 "com.apple.mail"
"Adding app" 16648 "com.googlecode.iterm2"
"Adding app" 20252 "com.apple.UserNotificationCenter"
"Adding app" 21395 "com.lwouis.alt-tab-macos"
"Accessibility event" "AXFocusedWindowChanged" "Alfred"
"Accessibility event" "AXWindowCreated" "Alfred"
"Accessibility event" "AXMainWindowChanged" "Finder"
"Accessibility event" "AXFocusedWindowChanged" "Finder"
"Accessibility event" "AXApplicationActivated" "Finder"
"Adding window" 4288 "/Applications/AltTab.app/Contents/MacOS/AltTab" "com.googlecode.iterm2"
"Adding window" 90 "iPhone Mirroring" "com.apple.ScreenContinuity"
"Accessibility event" "AXFocusedWindowChanged" "Downloads"
"Accessibility event" "AXFocusedWindowChanged" "Finder"
"Accessibility event" "AXMainWindowChanged" "Downloads"
"Accessibility event" "AXMainWindowChanged" "Finder"
"Accessibility event" "AXWindowCreated" "Downloads"
"Adding window" 4797 "Downloads" "com.apple.finder"
"Accessibility event" "AXTitleChanged" "Documents"
"Accessibility event" "AXApplicationActivated" "iTerm2"

lwouis · 2024-09-24T08:08:46Z

Thank you @mayur491

It is very surprising. Here's how it looks on my machine, for comparison. I've highlighted the lines about the window being closed, in bold:

"Accessibility event" "AXFocusedWindowChanged" "lwouis"
"Accessibility event" "AXMainWindowChanged" "lwouis"
"Accessibility event" "AXWindowCreated" "lwouis"
"Accessibility event" "AXApplicationActivated" "Finder"
"Adding window" 3301 "lwouis" "com.apple.finder"
"Accessibility event" "AXFocusedWindowChanged" "Finder"
"Accessibility event" "AXMainWindowChanged" "Finder"
"Accessibility event" "AXUIElementDestroyed" "nil"
"Deinit window" "lwouis" "com.apple.finder"
"Accessibility event" "AXFocusedWindowChanged" "Finder"
"Accessibility event" "AXMainWindowChanged" "Finder"
"Accessibility event" "AXApplicationActivated" "Terminal"

I find it crazy that the event **"Accessibility event" "AXUIElementDestroyed" "nil" isn't printing on your setup.

It seems that people have reported similar issues on the yabai project. Here they point at Contexts as the root cause. Do you use Contexts perhaps?

Thank you

mayur491 · 2024-09-24T10:48:03Z

I don't use Contexts, but I identified AmazonQ as the cause of the problem. Once I closed AmazonQ and restarted AltTab, it started working as expected. Thanks!!

lwouis · 2024-09-24T13:09:13Z

Good news 🎊
@chadlavi @leander-hass @geoffrobinson do you also have an such an app creating the problem on your system?

I find it a bit crazy that another app can make it so AltTab doesn't receive Accessibility Events from the OS. It's clearly a macOS regression introduced with Sequoia. I hope Apple fixes that shortly.

chadlavi · 2024-09-24T14:58:14Z

Wow, I do actually have Amazon Q. Weird and a bit concerning that it could cause this kind of problems.

I just deleted Amazon Q and restarted my mac, and now I am not able to reproduce this bug.

chadlavi · 2024-09-24T14:59:19Z

Note though that even without Amazon Q, I still can't run AltTab directly from the terminal because it doesn't think it has permissions when run that way (even though the permissions are already toggled on).

mayur491 · 2024-09-24T15:31:25Z

@chadlavi When running the command from the terminal, you need to toggle permissions for the terminal (ex. iterm), along with AltTab. This worked for me.

lwouis · 2024-09-24T16:03:04Z

Please note that running AltTab from the Terminal is only to get debug logs. If the issue was from Amazon Q, and you stopped it, then you can go back to running AltTab normally. No need to run from the Terminal if there is no debugging going on 👍

chadlavi · 2024-09-24T17:17:32Z

oh yeah I know, just noting that running it that way for diagnostic purposes runs into a roadblock. The point about needing to give terminal permissions makes sense for this!

SindreMA · 2024-09-25T10:47:42Z

I've experience this as well, but I don't use Amazon Q or Contexts.

As a temp fix i've just setup a script that just restarts alt tab every 3 min. It doesn't remove the issue, but it makes it less annoying as the closed windows don't stack up anymore.

#!/bin/bash

while true
do
    # Kill AltTab if it's running
    pkill AltTab

    # Wait for a second before restarting
    sleep 1

    # Restart AltTab
    open -a "AltTab"

    # Wait 60 seconds before repeating
    sleep 180
done

geoffrobinson · 2024-09-25T21:35:34Z

I wasn't running Amazon Q or Contexts, but Sidebar was causing my issue with AltTab. As long as Sidebar is not running, then AltTab works as designed.

CNSCSQ · 2024-10-08T09:03:14Z

I have the same problem, when I use the software Wispr Flow, it applies an auxiliary function, which causes most of the windows to be always recorded in the altTab, when I disable the auxiliary function of the program or close the software it reproduces the problem, I have to choose one or the other!

mukreb · 2024-10-09T16:09:29Z

I have the same problem, but for it's conflicting with ubar (https://ubarapp.com/), a Dock replacement

ppwwyyxx · 2024-10-18T00:50:29Z

I have the same problem where it's conflicting with Phoenix

yabai seems to have implemented a workaround: koekeishiya/yabai@6f9006d

s235784 · 2024-10-18T05:42:55Z

I noticed alt-tab still shows closed Finder windows, even after I’ve closed them. However, I found that turning off 'Show tabs as windows' in the custom style settings resolves the issue.

oldpiano · 2024-10-18T06:03:09Z

I noticed alt-tab still shows closed Finder windows, even after I’ve closed them. However, I found that turning off 'Show tabs as windows' in the custom style settings resolves the issue.

That’s the answer! Thank you! I solved it thanks to you! 👍

juan-pascale · 2024-10-18T08:38:36Z

I noticed alt-tab still shows closed Finder windows, even after I’ve closed them. However, I found that turning off 'Show tabs as windows' in the custom style settings resolves the issue.

This also solved the issue for me! Thanks

lwouis · 2024-10-18T09:46:40Z

Hi,

I don't understand how it could connect to tabs. The root cause as far as I can tell is that macOS is not sending AltTab the accessibility events when some windows are destroyed.

I saw that yabai seems to have implemented Sequoia-specific workarounds. However it uses new private APIs I'm not familiar with. These could require the Dock injection that yabai does. If it's the case, it would be impossible for AltTab to use the technique. I asked a question about the private APIs here.

Thank you 🙇

chadlavi added the bug Something isn't working label Sep 7, 2024

lwouis added the macOS 15 macOS 15 Sequoia specific issue label Sep 7, 2024

lwouis added the unreproducible Need help from the author to reproduce the issue label Sep 21, 2024

lwouis mentioned this issue Sep 24, 2024

[In-app feedback] #3622

Closed

This was referenced Sep 28, 2024

[In-app feedback] #3633

Closed

Arc browser tabs remain in list of open apps in AltTab menu #3641

Open

lwouis mentioned this issue Oct 15, 2024

Few apps with no windows wont show up in switcher even if running in bg #3673

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This was referenced Oct 19, 2024

[In-app feedback] #3735

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[In-app feedback] #3742

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AltTab shows each window twice when sharing screen using Microsoft Teams #3745

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AltTab showing windows that are not open anymore on macOS Sequoia dev beta (24A5331b) #3589

AltTab showing windows that are not open anymore on macOS Sequoia dev beta (24A5331b) #3589

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AltTab showing windows that are not open anymore on macOS Sequoia dev beta (24A5331b) #3589

AltTab showing windows that are not open anymore on macOS Sequoia dev beta (24A5331b) #3589

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