It is very easy to create a custom icon for any file or folder on your Mac. Changing the appearance of different file or folder icons will help you easily locate and identify your files and folders.
Causes of Flashing Mac Folder with Question Mark. There are several reasons why the folder with a. The Simple Folder Icon Pack allows you to give an original touch to your desktop no matter the file types or applications you choose to associate. To learn more about changing your default Mac OS X icons you can access the Apple Support page HERE. Simple folder Colorful folder Gradient. Folder Icon Creator is an app to customize the icons on your Mac. The program comes pre-bundled with hundreds of icons that you can use to create custom folder icons and custom file icons on your Mac. Get free icons of Mac os x folder in iOS, Material, Windows and other design styles for web, mobile, and graphic design projects. The free images are pixel perfect to fit your design and available in both png and vector. Download icons in all formats or edit them for your designs.
Do you see wrong document icons instead of the icon associated with the app / file etc? Sometimes, the icons for your files and folders may appear as generic white documents (blank page image with folded down corner). Sometimes, not all, but some of your folder icons may appear as generic document icons. Some users said that this problem they discovered this problem after upgrading to the latest version of macOS. If you are having this problem, this article teaches you how you can restore your icons.
How to fix Mac file icon problem
Best torrent software for mac. Please try each step until your issue is fixed.
1. Update your Mac if there is an update available.
2. The first thing you should try is to restart your Mac in Safe Mode. This will do some system cache cleaning and that may solve your issue. Here is how:
- Turn off your Mac
- Turn on your Mac and immediately press and hold the Shift key
- Release the key when you see the login screen
- Enter your password to log in (you may have to log in a few times)
- Now you are in Safe Mode.
- Are your file icons still generic? Either case, restart your Mac. This time start your Mac normally, without pressing the Shift key.
3. If you are still having this problem, try the steps below. Here is how:
- Open the Terminal app (Applications / Utilities) and enter the following command:
- Press enter
- It may take some time, wait for the cursor to return normal.
- And then restart your Mac.
4. If Safe Mode does not work, let’s try to rebuild macOS’s Launch Services. This is because what Launch Services do is to manage app and document associations. Free download converter mp4 to mp3 for mac. Here is how:
- Open the Terminal app. (Applications / Utilities, or you can use Spotlight)
- Enter the following command and hit enter:
- It may take a few minutes so just wait.
- When it is done, restart your Mac
5. If you are having this problem with apps, meaning if you see generic icons for some apps, here is what you can do:
- Go to Finder
- Click Go and then Go to Folder
- Type the following command and then hit go
- ~/Library/Caches/com.apple.finder/Cache.db
- Drag Cache.db to the Trash and then restart your Mac.
If you are still having issues, contact Apple Support.
Few things are as frustrating as trying to start your Mac and ending up with the dreaded Mac folder with a question mark. You’ve probably tried using keyboard shortcuts like CTRL+R, CTRL+Option+R, or Shift+CTRL+Option+R, but you still get the flashing folder icon on startup.
While this may strike fear into your heart as a Mac user, there are known causes for it, and tried and tested solutions that will help you get your Mac back to normalcy.
Follow along to find out why you’re getting the folder with the question mark in the middle of the screen, and how you can resolve the problem. While this is issue is more prevalent among older Macs, we shall try to address the same for new Mac models as well.
Also on Guiding Tech
#macbook
Click here to see our macbook articles pageCauses of Flashing Mac Folder with Question Mark
There are several reasons why the folder with a question mark appears on your Mac’s screen:
- Your Mac can’t find a bootable volume. That means it can’t find its startup disk, so it can’t boot or start up. Probably you previously started up your Mac from an external disk and later unplugged it, or its hard drive just failed terribly, so it’s having trouble locating its system folder or boot directory.
- Corrupt macOS.
- Corrupt system files.
- Hard disk drive has failed catastrophically.
- The external disk you boot from may be off or disconnected.
- The ribbon cable connecting the drive to the motherboard may be damaged. This cable sits between the bottom case and optical drive, and if the case has indentations in the same area, the cable may be the problem.
Also on Guiding Tech
How To Create a Bootable Backup of Your Mac for Free
Read MoreBoot Your Mac From an Install DVD (For Older Macs)
This process forces your Mac to boot from the install DVD placed in the optical drive. For that, you must follow these steps:
Step 1: Place the install DVD that came with your Mac in the optical drive and reboot. You can use that disc, or if you have a later macOS version, use a newer disc for the same purpose.
Step 2: Once you hear the boot chime, hold down C key on your keyboard or the Option key until you see the Install Disk or Apple logo show up.
Note: Boot from the recovery partition if you’re on 10.7 Lion, 10.8 Mountain Lion or 10.9 Mavericks, and then repair the OS 10.7 or 10.8 partition using Disk Utility.Step 3: When your Mac starts up, choose the language you’ll use, press Return on your keyboard, and an Installation window will open. Ignore this window and click Utilities and then click Disk Utility.
Step 4: If you see your hard disk on the list, click your macOS partition for the hard drive, and then select First Aid tab.
Step 5: Next, run Repair Disk. To enable this button, click on your hard drive’s macOS partition. If this fixes any issues, run it all over again until you see the green OK, and then run Repair Permissions.
Step 6: Finally, use the Startup Disk to select your hard drive to restart your Mac from the hard drive. If it’s not recognized under Disk Utility, it’s probably dead.
Also on Guiding Tech
How to Sync Folders Anywhere on Mac with Multiple Backup Services like Dropbox, Google Drive and More
Read MorePut Your Mac in Recovery Mode
If you’re trying to boot from your Mac’s internal drive, you need to shut down the computer and then start it up while holding down Command+R keys until the globe or Apple logo appears. That will put your Mac in Recovery Mode, and then you can change the startup disk by selecting the option from the Apple Menu.
Recovery Mode comes handy when your Mac won’t boot normally because the startup disk is damaged or corrupted.
That could be caused by corrupt files or mild power surges you’re not aware of, but it fixes the issue without you having to go to extreme lengths, such as performing a reinstall of your macOS.
Note: You can boot using an external Mac startup disk or bootable installer if macOS Recovery doesn’t work.Replace the Disk
If the Mac folder with a question mark appears because of your disk has failed, the only thing you can do is to replace the disk and use the time capsule or another backup device you’ve been using to recover your data to the new disk.
Backup Data and Reinstall macOS
If Disk Utility can’t repair your startup disk, you may have to reformat it. Before doing that, take a backup of any important data from the disk before erasing everything stored on it. You can take the steps below to take a backup of your data to an external drive if you don’t have a recent data backup for your startup disk:
Step 1: Connect an external drive that’s similar in size or larger than your startup disk. Erase the external drive using macOS Recovery and then install macOS to it. Select the external disk that you want to erase, not your startup disk.
Step 2: Once macOS is installed, your Mac will restart automatically from the external drive. When you see the Setup Assistant, choose the option you want to use to move data from another disk, and select the startup disk on your Mac as the source from which to migrate data.
Step 3: After migration, follow the setup assistant instructions to the end, and when you see your desktop, confirm that all your data is present on the external drive.
Step 4: Erase your startup disk using macOS Recovery and reinstall macOS (don’t select your external drive). After erasing the disk and installing macOS, your Mac will restart automatically, and the setup assistant will appear. Copy your data to your startup disk by selecting the option to migrate data from a Time Machine backup or another disk, in this case your external drive.
Note: If you can’t erase the startup disk or reinstall macOS, take your Mac for repair to an Apple Genius or authorized service provider.Get Your Mac Back
We hope you now know what to do when you find the flashing Mac folder with a question mark on your screen. Try the fixes above and let us know what worked for you.
Next up:Want to reduce boot time for your Windows PC? Our next article shows you how to do that using Quick Startup.
The above article may contain affiliate links which help support Guiding Tech. However, it does not affect our editorial integrity. The content remains unbiased and authentic.Read NextHow to Use Quick Startup to Reduce Windows Boot Time
Mac Change Folder Icon
Also See/DesktopIcons-57991d913df78c3276da26cb.jpg "Mac")
Mac Os Folder Icon Pack
#apple #folderDid You Know
In December 2009, the Apple version of WhatsApp was updated to include photo sharing features.
Mac Os Icon For Folder Deze
More in Mac
Change File Icon Mac
Top 4 Ways to Fix Mac Desktop Icons Missing or Not Showing