Cannot add AirDrop to Finder sidebar in Sequoia

Oh, and just one more thing I forgot to say: the only action I found to solve this temporarily, is to force the finder's restart. Then, I can be able to add the airdrop into finder's favorites.

I hope we can see some update on this issue. Thanks again.

Does not work for me. Each time I have to force quit Finder, relaunch and Airdrop will reappear.

Just did a little more tests.

I added all the available folders to favorites, and AirDrop dropped from the sidebar as expected. However, after I unchecked those folders, AirDrop still wouldn't add back. I performed multiple shutdown/restarts to no avail.

I ended up relaunching Finder from Force Quit and was able to add AirDrop and 1 extra folder to sidebar without AirDrop disappearing.

The default favorites are recents, airdrop, applications, desktop, documents, and downloads.

I did a lot more tests and made a bug report using feedback assistant, these are the tests I have done:

1. Removed my com.apple.finder.plist file in ~/Library/Preferences. A: When I restarted Finder with the Opt+Shift+Esc dialogue it works but once I restart the issue persists NOTE: After testing again I found out that just force restarting the Finder temporarily fixes the issue.

2. Restarted, Shutdown, Sleep mode, Logout, Etc after temporally fixing the issue by restarting Finder, and it seems only shutdown and restart cause the issue

3. I created a new user called “Test” and logged into the account. A: After restarting and logging into the account the AirDrop on the finder sidebar disappears, but once I log out and switch to my main account the AirDrop reappears, and if I log out of the account with the broken AirDrop and log back in the issue will still be present

4. I thought it may be an update issue so I waited until Sequoia 15.1 and updated A: After updating my issue is fixed, until I then restart and the issue reappears, the same thing occurred when upgrading to Sequoia 15.1.1 (the version I ran the other tests on), the Airdrop worked, I restarted, and the issue persisted.

also I have lots of old devices in my house, some not able to update past IOS 16 and @dalek2000 said that he had to turn off his homes devices for it to work so it may be a bug with AirDrops communication and MacOS Sequoia, also to use AirDrop without adding it to the sidebar, you can hold CMD+Space to bring up spotlight, search AirDrop, and use the app instead of the finder ui

dalek2000 wrote:

I noticed that after updating to Sequoia, AirDrop has disappeared from the Finder sidebar. If I try to add it back from the settings, it appears for a fraction of a second, then the checkbox deselects itself again. If I navigate to AirDrop from the Go menu, all appears normal and it works correctly so I am unsure why this is happening

Shutdown the computer

Pause maybe 30 seconds

Restart in Safe Mode.

This will perform a Disk Repair, clear cache files and only load Apple Software, extensions and fonts.

The boot up will be slow and can take some time - Normal.

Safe Mode will also eliminate Third Party Software, extensions and drivers from loading.

It will only load the Minimum amount of Core Apple Processes to allow the the computer to function at a reduced Level of Performance 

Does the issue present in this mode ?

VirusBarrier Scanner_Helper (App Store - installed 2024-03-05)

        Modern Login Item

        /Applications/VirusBarrier Scanner.app/Contents/Library/LoginItems/VirusBarrier Scanner_Helper.app

Once this type of software is installed.

You can spend hours or days hunting down all the bits and pieces of this software and never really get it all off the computer 

➡️ Start Over from Scratch  ⬅️

For Apple Silicon computer >> Use Disk Utility to erase a Mac with Apple silicon.

For Apple Intel computers >>   Use Disk Utility to erase an Intel-based Mac followed by How to reinstall macOS

Always make a Time Machine Backup  before  proceeding 

If going this route - I suggest Not using Startup Assist to migrate everything back.

This will probably Re-Introduce ( Intego VirusBarrier ) back into the Operating System 

Shall leave this as per below.

There are no known Windows-like Viruses in the wild that self replicate and affect macOS, because of the underling UNIX  Foundation and Permission Limitation. 

The Operating System resides in a Sealed and Read Only Volume that cannot be opened by the User nor by Third Party Applications.

The Only thing this Antivirus software is protecting is the Bank Account of the Developers and for zero return to the User aside from the problems this software creates.

AntiVirus Developers purposefully Market their product to create a “ Fear Factor “. In so doing, creating a False Need for their Product.

Security. Built right in

Mac app security enhancements

 The Built in Security  is all that is required to protect the computer.

Protecting against malware in macOS

There is Adware & Malware which will affect the computer and is generally downloaded from “ Shady “ Websites or Developers who Inject this software into the download.

From a well written User Tip from @Kurt Lang

What is malware? - Apple Community

I had the exact same issue and it was driving me crazy. Then I read this post from OP (Cannot add AirDrop to Finder sidebar in S… - Apple Community) where he wrote he switched of all iPads and iPhones. So I switched off my iPhone and iPad and restarted my Macbook and it started to work again like a charm. Really weird, but maybe this really depends on interfering devices (maybe running on the same Apple-ID)? After my Mac worked again, I switched my iPhone and iPad back on and it still works.

I can say, using 1 M1, 1 M2 and 1 M3 machines each upGraded from Sonoma 14.6.1 to macOS 15.0 Sequoia

It is not a normal behaviour.

The fact it will work in Safe Mode and Not in Normal Mode

Tends to indicate, there must have been or are some serious System Modifications at play

Download the Application Etrecheck  ( External Link ) directly from the Developer.

The Application is Not a " Silver Bullet "  and is  only a tool to examine the Hardware / Software used on this computer 

This is a Diagnostic Tool that makes no changes to the computer Hardware / Software used on this computer 

The application is free or paid from added features. 

The Report will Not Reveal Any Personal Information. 

Post back the Full Report - copy and paste - >>>> using the Additional Text Icon ( 3rd Icon to last ) <<<<

Thx

We see the report

Will get back to you shortly

Hi to all,

This is happening to me also, but only in iMac 24". I just installed a clean installation of Sequoia and this issue remains, but on MacBook Pro, everything is fine. Maybe this can be fixed when Apple launches a new Sequoia update?

Thanks.

I have this same issue since upgrading to Sequoia on M1 MacBook Pro 14. Airdrop disappears from the Finder sidebar, when re-adding it immediately disappears again.

Force quitting Finder can resolve the issue but it seems to come back later, even after restarting.