Table of Contents


14. Troubleshooting

Basic NeoFinder troubleshooting

NeoFinder relies on the consistency of the catalog database and the directory structures containing it. If you encounter crashes, please try this:

  • Reboot your Mac. Use the Apple menu for that, it has a command named "Restart…". Yes, this sounds like advice for Microsoft Windows in 1997, but lately, a lot of weird problems in macOS suddenly went away after a regular reboot of the Mac. It is worth a try.

  • Make sure you use the most current version of NeoFinder.

  • Check and repair all of your disk drives with Apples Disk Utility.

  • Delete the file de.wfs-apps.neofinder.quicklaunch.cache in the Caches folder: /Users/yourname/Library/Caches/

  • There is a surprising large number of damaged archive files out there. If you have problems while creating a new catalog file, uncheck the several "Look inside archives" options in the Preferences window and try cataloging again.

  • Don't keep the catalog files directly in the application folder. Create a new data folder outside the Applications area, and use that as the NeoFinder database folder.


Any time NeoFinder crashes, please make sure to send us the Crash Log file.

In some cases, it might be helpful to delete the NeoFinder Preferences.



NeoFinder crashes/hangs when cataloging/updating a volume. What can I do?

Since NeoFinder must read a lot of data when cataloging, this can happen for a large number of reasons.

If the volume is a network or server volume, and you use the SMB protocol in Mac OS X 10.9 and newer (especially the very buggy Mac OS X 10.11 El Capitan), try to switch the SMB stack back to version 1 with this cool helper app: http://www.macparc.ch/apps/SMBconf/

If the volume is an externally connected local disk, check the cable. Yes, we have seen cases in which faulty USB cables have caused disks to suddenly disappear and cause all kind of other problems. Also, Apple has replaced the entire USB driver in Mac OS X 10.11 with a very unstable version, which is very unfortunate.

Any time NeoFinder actually really crashes, please make sure to send us the crash log file.

Other reasons why NeoFinder may “hang” during cataloging can be a malformed media or archive file.

NeoFinder also has a powerful tool to help you find a problematic file during cataloging quickly:

1. You can at any time catalog the disc completely when you turn off the creation of previews , or the ability to look inside archive files, using the NeoFinder Preferences, even only for that disc.

2. Open Terminal.app, and type:
defaults write de.wfs-apps.neofinder LogMediaPaths 1

3. That will cause NeoFinder to generate a text file named "NeoFinder Debug Log.txt" on your desktop, and to write in that text file the path of every single media file it catalogs.

4. If NeoFinder crashes or locks up, the last entry in that file is either the culprit, or the file just prior to the culprit.

5. Copy over the suspects into a new folder on your desktop and let NeoFinder catalog that to verify that you have indeed found the culprit.

6. Please contact NeoFinder support to send us that file for analysis.

7. Make sure to turn the "Log Media Paths" option off again for normal work, typing in Terminal:
defaults write de.wfs-apps.neofinder LogMediaPaths 0

Also, always make sure to use the current version of NeoFinder!

We will also find a better and easier way of doing that in a future version of NeoFinder.

Also, you can generate a Sample and email that to us. That will show us exactly what NeoFinder is going.



When cataloging a disk, the error -5000 is returned

Error -5000 is returned by macOS to say that NeoFinder does not have enough access privileges to write into the NeoFinder Database Folder, or one of its sub folders, or the catalog database files.

Select LIBRARY in the main window of NeoFinder, and use the "Reveal in Finder…" command in the Special menu or context menu. This will cause your NeoFinder database folder to be displayed in the Finder.

Please open the Get Info window for that folder in the Finder, (not in NeoFinder!) and check that you have write access to the folder and all subfolders. If not, change the access privileges.
Then run the "Reload Database folder" command in the Special menu in NeoFinder to make sure that NeoFinder can see the changes.

You can try to create a new folder there, and see if this creates an error message in the Finder. If yes, check the access privileges again.

If the NeoFinder Database Folder is located on a file server, talk to your network admin to make sure you have the proper privileges.



Cataloging disks with NeoFinder X.X is slower than before?

Every new version of NeoFinder is usually able to read more meta data than previous versions.

For example, NeoFinder 7.0 was the first version to read audio thumbnails. This is of course a little slower than before, but you can always turn off any new features like that, using the NeoFinder Preferences.



Why does NeoFinder not display Adobe XMP, IPTC, or EXIF info for a photo file?

NeoFinder can only display the Adobe XMP, EXIF, or IPTC data of a photo file if the option to read that info is turned on when the volume is cataloged, in the cataloging preferences for this catalog.

Please also note that NeoFinder shows the EXIF, XMP, and IPTC data in the Inspector, so make sure that the Inspector is visible in the NeoFinder window, and the proper sections are opened.



More Support Topics:

14.1 Crash me if you can - Get crash logs
14.2 What is it doing? - Get a Sample
14.3 Make it forget - Delete the Preferences, the right way
14.4 Look inside - See the Log messages
14.5 Screenshots and how to take them
14.6 Context and Action menus