Major bug: Cannot disable "Focus on Window"

A

Alkan

Bit poster
I just updated Parallels Toolbox and was excited to try the new Focus on Window tool (macOS 11.5). There seems to be a major bug in that it's apparently impossible to turn it off. Clicking it again does nothing, and trying to open its preferences window also doesn't work, as no window opens anywhere. Even quitting Toolbox and restarting it doesn't disable the window focus. Finally, restarting macOS doesn't even work because as soon as Toolbox is launched again, Focus on Window is reactivated.

It may be worth noting that I'd probably qualify as an expert user, as I use the Mac for software development and am comfortable with the Terminal, Activity Monitor, and UI. I've looked in every hidden corner for the preferences window for the Focus on Window utility, but it's nowhere to be found. This does appear to be a significant bug, at least on macOS 11.5.
 
Hi Alkan,
There should be the tool's icon in the status-bar from which the dimming can be switched off (using the toggle switch) or the app quit completely:Screenshot 2021-07-28 at 14.36.17.png
Also from the Preferences menu, the 'Open when Mac starts' can be switched off.
Since you are familiar with Activity Monitor, you should also be able to (Force) Quit the tool from there.
Lastly, can you please send a Technical Data Report (from Toolbox > top-right cogwheel > Help) and post the report ID here. Thanks!
 
Hi Silvan,
Oh, that was the problem! :-) I'm using a tool that hides menu bar icons, so I didn't see that this tool has one.
I did submit a technical data report (ID 374971142), but it's probably irrelevant now.
 
P.S. Does this mean that the Parallels Toolbox app is basically a launcher for the individual tools, rather than an on/off switch for each one?
 
Glad I could help!
The app functionality depends on the tool - for most tools yes the Toolbox app is just a launcher, but in some cases (eg. Airplane Mode, Do Not Sleep, etc.) the tool can be switched off by clicking on the tool icon a second time.
 
Would it make sense to have the "Focus on Window" tool turn on and off via the launcher too? I'm sure the devs have thought of this and decided against it for a good reason, though it might be worth considering anyway.
 
+1 to have this centrally turned on/off via the Toolbox app if an option
I have also run into this issue. Killing the Parallels Toolbox did not resolve the issue. I run Bartender and did not notice the new application icon was hidden away. I killed that process off and the focusing stopped.
 
I also have had major headaches with Focus on Window. It was causing my display to change brightness erratically, and seldom focusing on the correct window.
I'll consider it a work in progress, took a while to disable it, but for the time being I want to revoke the tool's system permissions. Could someone tell me how to do that? I checked accessibility preferences but couldn't find the entry there.
 
VinceP1 said:
I also have had major headaches with Focus on Window. It was causing my display to change brightness erratically, and seldom focusing on the correct window.
I'll consider it a work in progress, took a while to disable it, but for the time being I want to revoke the tool's system permissions. Could someone tell me how to do that? I checked accessibility preferences but couldn't find the entry there.
Click to expand...
Hello VinceP1,
Thank you for your message.
To find Accessibility option, kindly do the following:
Apple logo > System Settings > Privacy & Security > Accessibility > Find Parallels Toolbox and enable this function if it's disabled.
If the issue still persists, collect a technical report as per this article: https://kb.parallels.com/en/124107
Let us know about your results.
 
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