Alfred is not finding apps on Catalina

rwz · June 9, 2020

I'm using Alfred 4.0.9 [1144], which is the newest version available at the time of writing. My computer is running Catalina 10.15.4.

Alfred is only finding apps located in /System/Applications/Utilities, but not other applications.

Spotlight is enabled and finding all applications no problem.

I've tried all steps from the troubleshooting guide to no avail. Specifically,

- resetting search scopes and reloading

- rebuilding all indexes using reindexdel.sh script

I use Alfred on multiple computers with Catalina and this issue only exists on one of them. I really don't know what makes this current setup so special. Will take any recommendations and debugging steps needed.

Edited June 9, 2020 by rwz

rwz · June 17, 2020

After not working for this whole time, it just randomly fixed itself without me doing anything today. This is really bizarre and I have no idea what happened behind the scenes that made it work.

Edited June 17, 2020 by rwz

Vero · June 18, 2020

@rwz Did you give your Mac sufficient time to complete the reindex? It may be that you're finally seeing the results of macOS completing the reindexing.

Cheers,
Vero

rwz · June 18, 2020

I have a strong muscle memory of using Alfred daily for years and this whole time I've been accidentally trying to use it every day, so I can confirm that it wasn't working until yesterday. I also haven't touched any settings in spotlight or alfred itself since the creation of this post. Spotlight was working the whole time.

I really have no idea what happened here. ¯\_(ツ)_/¯

If it was the issue of indexing, it took over a week for my computer to resolve it.

Alitejawi · August 7, 2020

I'm having the same. Using it on a MacBook Pro 16-inch, 8-core i9, 64GB RAM and a 1TB SSD, running macOS 11 Big Sur (developer beta 4). How long do you reckon the indexing to take? I've found the following for Safari.app. It has worked in the past on the exact same configuration, using Alfred 4.1.1.

Check mdls file metadata...

❌ Metadata missing essential items

kMDItemFSContentChangeDate = 2020-01-01 08:00:00 +0000
kMDItemFSCreationDate = 2020-01-01 08:00:00 +0000
kMDItemFSCreatorCode = ""
kMDItemFSFinderFlags = 0
kMDItemFSHasCustomIcon = 0
kMDItemFSInvisible = 0
kMDItemFSIsExtensionHidden = 0
kMDItemFSIsStationery = 0
kMDItemFSLabel = 0
kMDItemFSName = "Safari.app"
kMDItemFSNodeCount = 1
kMDItemFSOwnerGroupID = 0
kMDItemFSOwnerUserID = 0
kMDItemFSSize = 1
kMDItemFSTypeCode = ""

-----------------------------------------------------------

❌ Troubleshooting failed

Edited August 7, 2020 by Alitejawi

Vero · August 8, 2020

@Alitejawi This is a sign that indexing is broken or disabled on your Mac. Did you tinker with this? This will mean that Spotlight, Alfred and any other apps that rely on the metadata index will be unable to return results.

In the future, please post Big Sur issues in the Big Sur bugs forum specifically rather than replying to a thread for an older OS version.

Cheers,
Vero

Nurou · September 2, 2020

Hey,

I'm experiencing a similar issue (can't find applications & many folders), but this is on Catalina.

I've ran through all the troubleshooting steps. Here's what it spits out when trying to locate an app:

Check mdls file metadata...

❌ macOS metadata missing essential items

kMDItemFSContentChangeDate = 2020-08-20 12:30:11 +0000
kMDItemFSCreationDate = 2020-08-19 07:48:18 +0000
kMDItemFSCreatorCode = ""
kMDItemFSFinderFlags = 0
kMDItemFSHasCustomIcon = 0
kMDItemFSInvisible = 0
kMDItemFSIsExtensionHidden = 0
kMDItemFSIsStationery = 0
kMDItemFSLabel = 0
kMDItemFSName = "Brave Browser.app"
kMDItemFSNodeCount = 1
kMDItemFSOwnerGroupID = 80
kMDItemFSOwnerUserID = 501
kMDItemFSSize = 1
kMDItemFSTypeCode = ""

---------------------------------------------------------

If my indexing is broken - can you suggests ways to fix it? Thanks.

Joel

Gad · September 3, 2020

Hello everybody,

Is there any fix for this Catalina indexing problem?

Same issue on my computer...

Catalina version 10.15.6

Alfred version 4.1 [1167]

I have tried all troubleshooting fix...

Reset the search scope to default
Checked the correct Spotlight Search Results
Rebuilt my Mac's index
Verified that indexing is enabled
Reloaded the application cache after Re-Indexing is complete
Verified that Spotlight finds the applications (and it does)

But indexing is still not working...

Starting Diagnostics...

File: 'Google Chrome.app'
Path: '/Applications'

-----------------------------------------------------------

Check file cache database...

✅ File cache integrity is ok

-----------------------------------------------------------

Check if file is readable...

✅ Alfred has permissions to read this file.

-----------------------------------------------------------

Check file is in search scope...

✅ File exists within Alfred's default search scope

-----------------------------------------------------------

Check if volume '/' is indexed by macOS...

✅ Indexing is enabled on this drive

-----------------------------------------------------------

Check direct file metadata...

✅ Direct metadata available

Display Name: Google Chrome.app
Other Names:
Content Type: com.apple.application-bundle
Last Used: 2020-08-23 04:16:28 +0000

-----------------------------------------------------------

Check mdls file metadata...

❌ Metadata missing essential items

kMDItemFSContentChangeDate = 2020-08-23 04:16:28 +0000
kMDItemFSCreationDate = 2020-08-23 04:16:28 +0000
kMDItemFSCreatorCode = ""
kMDItemFSFinderFlags = 0
kMDItemFSHasCustomIcon = 0
kMDItemFSInvisible = 0
kMDItemFSIsExtensionHidden = 0
kMDItemFSIsStationery = 0
kMDItemFSLabel = 0
kMDItemFSName = "Google Chrome.app"
kMDItemFSNodeCount = 1
kMDItemFSOwnerGroupID = 80
kMDItemFSOwnerUserID = 503
kMDItemFSSize = 1
kMDItemFSTypeCode = ""

-----------------------------------------------------------

❌ Troubleshooting failed

Edited September 3, 2020 by Gad

Vero · September 3, 2020

@Nurou @Gad Could you please launch Alfred to the General preferences > Request Permissions... and check that Alfred has been granted Full Disk Access?

If you've recently upgraded macOS to Catalina, please remove Alfred from the permissions and re-add, as Catalina seems to forget previously granted permissions upon upgrade.

You will then need to run the reindex again from Alfred's Advanced preferences, ensuring that you keep a close eye on any error messages in Terminal. (Terminal will also need to be granted Full Disk Access as above).

Let me know how you get on.

Cheers,
Vero

Gad · September 9, 2020

Thanks for the feed back...

I did remove alfred permissions and re-added it.

But impossible to give permissions into the Automation panel (picture3)

I rebuilt the index and waited for its achievement...

Terminal did not make any error

***************************************************

* *

* This script will reindex your metadata by *

* running the command 'sudo mdutil -E -i on /' *

* *

* Indexing can take up to an hour *

* and Alfred won't work during this time. *

* *

* You can see the progress of the reindexing *

* by performing a search in Spotlight. *

* *

***************************************************

Close this window to cancel, or press any key to continue...

Password:

/:

Indexing enabled.

You can see the progress of the reindexing by performing a search in Spotlight

Press any key to finish...

[Opération terminée]

***************************************************

But Alfred is still not working and is unable to find my applications...

Vero · September 9, 2020

@Gad In your second screenshot, I can see that Terminal hasn't been granted Full Disk Access. This is necessary for Terminal to be able to run the indexing process, so please check the box next to Terminal and go through the process again.

Cheers,
Vero

Gad · September 9, 2020

20 minutes ago, Vero said:

@Gad In your second screenshot, I can see that Terminal hasn't been granted Full Disk Access. This is necessary for Terminal to be able to run the indexing process, so please check the box next to Terminal and go through the process again.

Cheers,
Vero

@Vero I have checked the Terminal checkbox, rebuilt the index again, reloaded Alfred after reindexing was complete.

But... Still not working 😅

What i find strange is that certain Apple apps (like Photobooth.app and Photos.app) are found, but not all of them (Mail.app for instance is not found), and none that I installed myself (like Chrome, Photoshop, and so on). While Spotlight finds them, on the other hand...

Vero · September 9, 2020

@Gad If you use the file troubleshooting tool, are files still showing as lacking metadata?

Gad · September 9, 2020

@Vero Yes... Still missing metadata

I even tried to uninstall Chrome, re-install a brand new version and relaunch the indexing process.

But stiill, metadata are missing, unfortunately.

Gad · September 10, 2020

@Vero Mail is found now, Troubleshooting passed. Yes! One step further...

But Google Chrome does not pass the test:

Check mdls file metadata...

❌ macOS metadata missing essential items

kMDItemFSContentChangeDate = 2020-09-04 22:59:58 +0000
kMDItemFSCreationDate      = 2020-09-04 22:59:58 +0000
kMDItemFSCreatorCode       = ""
kMDItemFSFinderFlags       = 0
kMDItemFSHasCustomIcon     = 0
kMDItemFSInvisible         = 0
kMDItemFSIsExtensionHidden = 0
kMDItemFSIsStationery      = 0
kMDItemFSLabel             = 0
kMDItemFSName              = "Google Chrome.app"
kMDItemFSNodeCount         = 1
kMDItemFSOwnerGroupID      = 80
kMDItemFSOwnerUserID       = 503
kMDItemFSSize              = 1
kMDItemFSTypeCode          = ""

-----------------------------------------------------------

❌ Troubleshooting failed

Neither does Photoshop :

Check mdls file metadata...

❌ macOS metadata missing essential items

kMDItemFSContentChangeDate = 2020-08-19 13:04:45 +0000
kMDItemFSCreationDate      = 2020-08-19 13:04:45 +0000
kMDItemFSCreatorCode       = ""
kMDItemFSFinderFlags       = 0
kMDItemFSHasCustomIcon     = 0
kMDItemFSInvisible         = 0
kMDItemFSIsExtensionHidden = 0
kMDItemFSIsStationery      = 0
kMDItemFSLabel             = 0
kMDItemFSName              = "Adobe Photoshop 2020.app"
kMDItemFSNodeCount         = 1
kMDItemFSOwnerGroupID      = 0
kMDItemFSOwnerUserID       = 0
kMDItemFSSize              = 1
kMDItemFSTypeCode          = ""

-----------------------------------------------------------

❌ Troubleshooting failed

I tried to check Disk problem with "Disk Utilities", but my Volume seems to be in a perfect state:

Exécution de S.O.S. sur « Conteneur disk1 »

Cet ordinateur ne répondra plus si vous vérifiez le volume de démarrage.

Vérification du système de stockage
Mode en direct actif.
Exécution de fsck_apfs -n -x -l /dev/disk0s2
Checking the container superblock.
Checking the EFI jumpstart record.
Checking the space manager.
Checking the space manager free queue trees.
Checking the object map.
Checking volume.
Checking the APFS volume superblock.
The volume Macintosh HD was formatted by newfs_apfs (1412.11.6) and last modified by apfs_kext (1412.141.1).
Checking the object map.
Checking the snapshot metadata tree.
Checking the snapshot metadata.
Checking the extent ref tree.
Checking the fsroot tree.
Checking volume.
Checking the APFS volume superblock.
The volume Macintosh HD - Data was formatted by asr (1412.11.6) and last modified by apfs_kext (1412.141.1).
Checking the object map.
Checking the snapshot metadata tree.
Checking the snapshot metadata.
Checking the extent ref tree.
Checking the fsroot tree.
Checking volume.
Checking the APFS volume superblock.
The volume Preboot was formatted by asr (1412.11.6) and last modified by apfs_kext (1412.141.1).
Checking the object map.
Checking the snapshot metadata tree.
Checking the snapshot metadata.
Checking the extent ref tree.
Checking the fsroot tree.
Checking volume.
Checking the APFS volume superblock.
The volume Recovery was formatted by asr (1412.11.6) and last modified by apfs_kext (1412.141.1).
Checking the object map.
Checking the snapshot metadata tree.
Checking the snapshot metadata.
Checking the extent ref tree.
Checking the fsroot tree.
Checking volume.
Checking the APFS volume superblock.
The volume VM was formatted by apfs.util (1412.41.1) and last modified by apfs_kext (1412.141.1).
Checking the object map.
Checking the snapshot metadata tree.
Checking the snapshot metadata.
Checking the extent ref tree.
Checking the fsroot tree.
Verifying allocated space.
The volume /dev/disk0s2 appears to be OK.
Le code de sortie de la vérification du système de stockage est 0.

L’opération a été effectuée.

srg · October 24, 2020

I had the same issue. Resolved with the following:

1. Disable indexing

sudo mdutil -a -i off

2. Enable again

sudo mdutil -a -i on

Gordon Firemark · November 2, 2020

I'm having the same issue ever since upgrading to Alfred4

For me, it seems mainly to be Apple's apps that aren't showing up in the index...

Safari, Pages, Keynote and Numbers are fine.

But Terminal, Activity Monitor, Music, Photos, PhotoBooth, Quicktime, etc... no luck. Did apple lock them down somehow, or move them... or ?

Also... I notice that under Security and Privacy - "Automation", Alfred 3 is still showing up, but Alfred 4 is not... and there's no+- button to add it manually.

Vero · November 2, 2020

@Gordon Firemark Alfred will ask for Automation permissions as and when necessary and there's no need to manually add anything there. This also won't have any impact on whether or not apps are found on your Mac.

In macOS Catalina, Apple moved the apps to a new location. First, make sure you're using Alfred 4.2, then go to Features > Default Results, and make sure that "macOS Applications folder" is ticked next to the Search Scope section.

If your issue persists, go to Alfred's Help tab in the preferences, click "Troubleshooting" and run the File Search Troubleshooting tool. Drag in some of your apps and check the report for any error messages. This should help you work out whether there might be some indexing issues on your Mac. You can then run the reindexing from Alfred's Advanced preferences if necessary.

Cheers,
Vero

Gad · November 5, 2020

On 10/24/2020 at 10:42 PM, srg said:
I had the same issue. Resolved with the following:

1. Disable indexing
sudo mdutil -a -i off
2. Enable again
sudo mdutil -a -i on

Oh yes !!

Thanks a lot. It worked for me too. Finally !

Have a good day

Luqqas66 · May 11, 2023

On 10/24/2020 at 4:42 PM, srg said:
I had the same issue. Resolved with the following:

1. Disable indexing
sudo mdutil -a -i off
2. Enable again
sudo mdutil -a -i on

Man, thank you, this solved my problem, this was driving me crazy.

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