Opens two applications after a restart or shutdown

[danielbuubble]

Describe the bug

When ever I turn my pc on after a restart or shutdown, the app starts itself after login because I have check marked the box. But when the app is opening itself up, it opens two of the program. I can see two icons at the menu bar, so when I am alt-tabing, the program glitches itself. And I have to manually close one program down, for it to work again properly.

Steps to reproduce the bug

1. Shutdown PC
2. Log in and have it automatically open after a log in
3. Have enabled icon showing on menu bar
4. See that two icons is showing
5. Try Alt Tab, and you will se it glitches itself out

Your environment

• AltTab version: 6.56.00
• macOS version: Ventura 13.2.1
• Other relevant info: e.g. using external keyboard, multiple monitors, etc

[lwouis]

The same version of AltTab can't open twice. This means that you somehow have 2 different versions of AltTab installed on your machine at once. I suggest looking in your Downloads and Applications folder to find those. You can also locate where the apps are by using Activity Monitor, as such:

[danielbuubble]

Could not upload the screenrecording because the file was to big. But here is a screenshot from the recording. You sure alt tab cannot open two window of the same version? I have checked my application folder and download folder, and I can only see one app.

[lwouis]

You can try to reopen AltTab manually and you'll see that it only shows the Preferences panel. It doesn't start a new instance. Now we have seen this before: #1840 and we have no clue what in the OS triggers it.

Could you show in Activity monitor, which process is the parent of each of those AltTab instance? You can just click the rows in Activity monitor and get more info (like on my screenshot above, but first tab of the panel then).

[danielbuubble]

Is this the screenshot of what you were asking for? (Lifelong windows user that just switched to macos, sorry for the inconvenience)

[lwouis]

Thank you for your help @danielbuubble. This is what I was asking for.

Could you please open Terminal.app and paste this command?

ls ~/Library/LaunchAgents/com.lwouis*

Press return, then share the results here?

Thank you 🙇

[danielbuubble]

[lwouis]

To recap the situation:

You have the checkbox checked in AltTab's preferences to Launch At Login. This made AltTab add the file you see on the Terminal on the screenshot. Because that file is there, macOS knows to launch AltTab at Login.

Now somehow, macOS seems to have launched it twice. I have no idea why/how. Furthermore, it launched it in an abnormal way that allows for multiple instances at once.

In conclusion, unfortunately there is nothing more I can do / think of here. The other ticket is open, and we can continue the investigation there. I wish somebody more knowledgeable would intervene and tell us what's going on. It is also very possible that this is a macOS bug.

[jcoddaire]

I think I figured this out. I have alt-tab installed via homebrew, tested on both an intel i9 and M1 max macbook pros.

Mac OS 13.3.1
Alt Tab 6.56.0

The application checkbox General > Start automatically was checked. There was also a setting under System Settings > General > Login Items > Open at Login.

Therefore two instances was spawned each time the user logged in. Which results in odd, glitchy behavior.

To fix this I unchecked the Start at login box for the Alt Tab preferences, and left the "launch at login" setting for macos preferences.

Hopefully this helps someone else. This may resolve issue 1840 too, that's what led me from google to here.

[lwouis]

Thank you for sharing these findings @jcoddaire

You have been using AltTab for a long time, no? A long time ago, AltTab would add itself to the Login Items when the checkbox was checked. Then, i think around the arrival of Catalina, Apple broke that API, and AltTab moved to using another API which doesn't show the login item in the list.

What surprises me is that i added migration code, so that existing user got the Login Item removed and the new system used instead.