
While dragging apps to your Mac’s Dock, drop them just right of the Finder icon, that is, in the 1st partition. 3rd partition (Left of the Trash can): Shows added folders, minimized app windows, etc.2nd partition (In the middle): Shows open apps not added to the Dock and recently open apps.1st partition (Right of the Finder icon): Shows open or closed apps added to the Dock.See the old Dock’s screenshot if you took one. So, you will have to manually add the apps to the Dock. But I tested it several times on the latest version of macOS Monterey and it doesn’t restore the Dock’s previous setup. In an ideal situation, it should revert your old Dock with the added apps. This will now prevent your Mac’s Dock from only showing open and active apps. Type or copy & paste the following command and hit the enter/return key.ĭefaults write static-only -bool false killall Dock.
Mac restart launchpad how to#
Here’s how to show all open and closed apps on your Mac Dock: You can easily revert the change if you find that removing non-active apps from the Dock makes it harder to launch apps and hinders your productivity. Alternatively, when you restart your Mac, that too refreshes the Dock and it will no longer show the apps that aren’t open.įurther, even with the above customization of only showing open apps, you can drag apps besides the Finder icon and keep it on the Dock until the next killall Dock refresh or restart. This will refresh the Dock and reflect the latest changes (that is, it will remove the closed app icons and only show the apps currently open). So, to get rid of once-open-but-now-closed apps from the Dock, launch Terminal, type killall Dock, and hit the enter key.

That’s because your Mac’s Dock needs to be killed or refreshed for some changes to reflect. However, if you quit an open app, its icon will continue to stay on the Dock. Any new apps you launch on your Mac from the Launchpad, Applications folder, etc., will show in the Dock as you’d expect. And Trash is an essential component of your Mac, so that will stay as well. Note: Open applications show a dot below their icon in the Dock ( System Preferences > Dock & Menu Bar > Show indicators for open applications).įinder is always running on your Mac, so that icon will stay on the Dock. The rest of the apps will be removed automatically from the Dock. Your Mac’s Dock will immediately refresh, and now it will only show the currently running apps. Type or copy & paste the following command into Terminal and hit the enter/return key.ĭefaults write static-only -bool true killall Dock.Open Terminal from the Launchpad or Applications folder.

This screenshot will serve as a helpful reference if you ever wish to add the apps again to get back your old Dock.įollow these steps to change your Dock’s behavior and have it display only running apps: Show only open, active apps on your Mac Dockīefore you begin, I recommend taking a screenshot of your Mac’s Dock. And whenever you restart your Mac, you will be greeted with a tiny Dock that just has the Finder and Trash icons.

Getting your Mac Dock to show only running apps will significantly tidy it up. Alternatively, you can even set your Mac’s Dock only to show open, running apps! However, if you feel that your Dock is cluttered and takes a lot of space, you can customize it from System Preferences to decrease its size. You have most likely already customized your Mac’s Dock with applications you use daily.
