Question :

For some reason, when I started/opened my Mac today and tried to open an app by clicking on it’s icon in the Dock… nothing happened. The Dock didn’t respond… I couldn’t get any app, folder or file to open by clicking on it’s icon in the Dock…

I found a workaround by opening the search window (by clicking on the magnifier icon top right in the macOS menu bar), then typing the application’s name and starting it from there.

But, I want this fixed… what can I do to get the Dock working properly ?

Answer :

There isn’t a clear reason why the macOS Dock freezes up from time to time… so there is no solution that will work in all cases, but to get the macOS Dock working properly again try these (in this order) :

1 – try upgrading to the most up-to-date version of macOS :

• in the macOS Menu Bar, click on the Apple-icon top left
• in the pulldown menu that opens, click on “System Preferences” (or “System Settings”)
• in the System Preferences window (System Settings window) that opens, click on “Software Update” ( the gear / sprocket icon )
• in the Software Update window that opens, see if there are any new updates to macOS available
• if there are any, update a.s.a.p. by following the on-screen instructions
• if there are none, try the next option

2- try restarting your macOS :

• in the macOS Menu Bar, click on the Apple-icon top left
• in the pulldown menu that opens, click on “Restart” and follow the on-screen instructions
• after your Mac has restarted, check if your macOS Dock works now
• it the Dock now works properly ; great ! well done ! enjoy !
• if the Dock still doesn’t respond, you can try restarting your Mac by using the “Shut down” option …or try the next option

3- try resetting the Dock using the Terminal.app :

• in the macOS Menu Bar, click on the magnifier-icon top right
• in the search field that opens, type “terminal”
• click on the Terminal.app in the list that appears
• in the Terminal window that opens, don’t be distracted by the info displayed, just type the following :
• killall Dock
• then press Return
• most of the time it only takes a flash of a second to rested the Dock, sometimes it takes a few moments
• now quit the Termini.app
• then click on any app icon in the Dock to see if it starts up and the Dock behaves as expected
• if it does ; great ! well done ! enjoy !
• chances this doesn’t work are very, very low… so if this didn’t work, redo the reset of the Dock using the Terminal.app again before trying your last options : keep using a work-around (as mentioned above) until Apple releases a macOS upgrade …or reinstalling macOS on your Mac.

that’s it !

enjoy 😉