# OneMacTools not working? Fixes by symptom

If OneMacTools is not working, the message it shows usually names the fix. This guide is organised by symptom: the app won’t open or asks for a key, permissions were denied, Quick Actions are missing, FFmpeg or Apple Intelligence isn’t available, a job failed, a file is in iCloud only, or an AI assistant can’t connect. Each entry quotes the app’s message and the steps that resolve it.

## Start here: read the message and check History

OneMacTools tries to say what went wrong in plain words and what to do next. When a job fails, the message appears in the tool, in a notification (for jobs from Finder, the menu bar, Shortcuts or Watch Folders, titled “*Tool name* failed”), and in **History**, where failed jobs are kept with their message. Open History, find the entry and read it in full; the [History docs](https://www.onemactools.com/docs/history-of-processed-files) explain the list.

- Make sure your Mac runs **macOS 26 or later**; OneMacTools doesn’t run on earlier versions.
- Update to the latest version: **OneMacTools › Check for Updates…**.
- Quit and reopen OneMacTools after changing any permission in System Settings; macOS only applies some permissions to a fresh launch.

## OneMacTools won’t open, or asks for a licence key

### macOS says the app can’t be opened

OneMacTools is signed and notarized by Apple, so Gatekeeper normally opens it without a warning. If macOS blocks it, download a fresh copy from the [download page](https://www.onemactools.com/download) (a partly downloaded or modified copy fails Apple’s check), drag it into Applications and open it from there. Then check your Mac is on macOS 26 or later.

### It opens to “Activate OneMacTools”

That’s expected until a key is activated on this Mac. Paste the key from your purchase email and click **Activate**. If OneMacTools was activated before and now asks again, the weekly licence check found the key was refunded, disabled or freed for this Mac (for example from the Manage Licence page). Activate it again, or see [licence key help](https://www.onemactools.com/docs/activate-onemactools-licence-key) for every activation error.

| Licence message | Fix |
| --- | --- |
| “That key wasn’t found…” | Copy the whole key again from the receipt email. |
| “…already in use on the maximum number of Macs…” | Free a Mac in Settings › Licence, or at [/licence](https://www.onemactools.com/licence). |
| “Couldn’t reach Dodo Payments…” | Check the internet connection; pause VPNs or network filters. |
| “That key has been turned off (refunded or disabled).” | Contact us if that’s unexpected. |

### The window closed but the app is still running

That’s by design: closing the window leaves OneMacTools in the menu bar so Quick Actions and Watch Folders keep working. Click the menu bar icon to reopen it, or choose **Quit OneMacTools** there. If you turned off the Dock icon, the menu bar icon is always shown.

## Permission denied: screen recording, microphone, files, automation

macOS asks before an app can record the screen, use the microphone, read protected folders or control another app. If you clicked Don’t Allow, OneMacTools says so and tells you where to change it.

| Message or symptom | Where to fix it |
| --- | --- |
| “OneMacTools needs Screen Recording permission…” | Click **Open Screen Recording Settings**, turn on OneMacTools (if it isn’t listed, click + and choose it from Applications), then quit and reopen OneMacTools. Used by Screen Recorder, Grab Text from Screen and screenshots. |
| “OneMacTools can’t use the microphone…” | System Settings › Privacy & Security › Microphone. |
| “Couldn’t record the call’s sound…” | Allow recording audio from other apps in System Settings › Privacy & Security › Screen & System Audio Recording. |
| “… couldn’t convert …: If macOS asked for permission, allow OneMacTools to control …” | System Settings › Privacy & Security › Automation (used when Keynote, Numbers or Pages convert Office files). |
| Storage screens say they need Full Disk Access | System Settings › Privacy & Security › Full Disk Access, switch on OneMacTools, then quit and reopen it. Only file sizes are read. |

The full list of permissions, what each is for and how to revoke them is in [privacy and permissions](https://www.onemactools.com/docs/mac-privacy-permissions-full-disk-access).

## Finder Quick Actions are missing

OneMacTools adds its actions to Finder’s right-click menu under **Quick Actions** and **Services**, named “OMT: …”. If you don’t see them:

1. Open OneMacTools once after installing it from Applications, so macOS registers its services.
2. In OneMacTools, go to **Settings › Anywhere on your Mac** and click **Open Services Settings…**.
3. Under **Keyboard Shortcuts › Services › Files and Folders**, tick the OneMacTools actions you want.
4. Right-click a file in Finder again. Quick Actions only appear for file types they can handle, so a PDF action won’t show for a photo.

If an action runs but nothing seems to happen, check notifications are on (**Notify me when background jobs finish**) and look in History. More in [Finder Quick Actions](https://www.onemactools.com/docs/finder-quick-actions-mac).

## FFmpeg, Apple Intelligence and language errors

### “This tool needs FFmpeg” or “FFmpeg isn’t installed”

Video and audio tools need FFmpeg. Click **Install** on the orange banner (it uses Homebrew), or set a custom path in Settings › Helpers. If you see “Homebrew isn’t installed”, install Homebrew from brew.sh first. Full guide: [FFmpeg on Mac](https://www.onemactools.com/docs/ffmpeg-on-mac-setup). The same applies to yt-dlp (Download Video), WebP tools (Convert to WebP) and Ghostscript (PDF to PDF/A).

### “Apple Intelligence isn’t available on this Mac right now”

Summaries, rewriting, meeting notes, Ask a Document and other writing features use Apple Intelligence. Turn it on in System Settings › Apple Intelligence & Siri, on a Mac that supports it, and wait for the models to finish downloading. Transcription, text recognition and translation use other on-device frameworks. See [on-device AI](https://www.onemactools.com/docs/on-device-ai-mac-apple-intelligence).

### Translation and transcription languages

- “Download the … languages in System Settings › General › Language & Region › Translation Languages.” Translate needs those languages downloaded once.
- “Speech recognition isn’t available for this language.” or “On-device transcription doesn’t support …” Choose another language in the tool.
- “Couldn’t tell what language … is in.” Translate detects the source language from the text, so try a file with more text in it, or paste a longer passage.

## A job failed: file and format problems

| Message | Cause and fix |
| --- | --- |
| “… is in iCloud only; download it first.” | The file is a placeholder. In Finder, right-click it and choose Download Now, wait for the cloud icon to go, and run the tool again. |
| “… is password-protected. Remove the password first.” | Use [Remove Password](https://www.onemactools.com/tools/remove-pdf-password) with the password, then retry. |
| “… has no readable text. Try Extract Text first.” | It’s a scan. Run [Make PDF Searchable](https://www.onemactools.com/tools/make-pdf-searchable) or Extract Text, then retry. |
| “… has no video track macOS can read. Convert it to MP4 first.” | Run [Convert Video](https://www.onemactools.com/tools/convert-video) to MP4, then use the original tool. |
| “This Mac can’t convert that video.” | The format isn’t supported by macOS; convert it with an FFmpeg tool first. |
| “… is too long to fit in … MB. Pick a larger size or trim it first.” | Compress to Size can’t reach that target at a watchable quality; raise the limit or [trim](https://www.onemactools.com/tools/trim-video). |
| “The end time must be after the start time.” | Check the Start and End fields, e.g. 0:12 and 1:30. |
| “Nothing was produced.” | The tool found nothing to do with these files. Check the options and the input. |
| “The site refused the download (HTTP 403)…” | Usually clears in minutes; otherwise run `brew upgrade yt-dlp` in Terminal. |

Most other messages ask for a missing input (“Paste some text first.”, “Add the PDF you want to sign.”) or a value in the inspector. Fill it in and run again. Nothing is moved into your output folder unless the whole batch succeeds, so a failed job never leaves half a set of results or touches your originals.

## An AI assistant can’t connect over MCP

- “OneMacTools isn’t letting AI assistants in.” Turn on **Let AI assistants use OneMacTools** in Settings › AI Assistants.
- “OneMacTools isn’t activated yet.” Activate the app first.
- The assistant doesn’t list OneMacTools. Use **Add to Claude Desktop…**, **Add to Claude Code…**, **Add to Cursor…** or **Add to Codex…**, then do what the confirmation says: quit and reopen Claude, start a new Claude Code or Codex session (Cursor loads it straight away). A greyed-out button means that app wasn’t found; use **Copy Setup Snippet** instead.
- “The user didn’t answer, so nothing was done.” Actions wait for you to click Allow in OneMacTools; no answer within five minutes counts as no.
- “OneMacTools didn’t open, so the request couldn’t be shown to the user.” Open OneMacTools from Applications, then ask again.
- “OneMacTools Files is off.” Turn on Index My Files in Files to let assistants search files.

See [MCP server setup](https://www.onemactools.com/docs/mcp-server-mac-claude-cursor-codex) for the full walkthrough.

## How to reset OneMacTools and contact support

### Resetting

There’s no single reset button, and you rarely need one. Put individual settings back using the defaults in the [settings reference](https://www.onemactools.com/docs/onemactools-settings-reference); the output folder has its own **Reset** button. **Clear History** in the History screen empties the job list (your result files stay where they are), and **Delete History…** in Settings removes Mac Health history. Reinstalling the app doesn’t remove your settings or licence, so if you’re giving the Mac away, use **Free This Mac…** first.

### Contacting support

If nothing here helps, [contact us](https://www.onemactools.com/contact) and choose **Report a problem**. Include:

- Your macOS version (Apple menu › About This Mac) and OneMacTools version (OneMacTools › About OneMacTools).
- The tool, and how you started it: the window, Finder, the menu bar, Shortcuts, a Watch Folder or an assistant.
- The exact message, copied from History, and the type and rough size of the file (for example “a 1.4 GB MOV from an iPhone”).
- Whether it happens every time, and with other files.

For licence and refund questions, choose **Refund or licence key** and include your order number from the receipt email. We reply by email.

## Questions

**Why is OneMacTools asking for my licence key again?**
About once a week it re-checks the key online. If the key was refunded, disabled or this Mac was freed from the Manage Licence page, it locks until a key is activated again. Being offline never causes this.

**Why don’t OneMacTools Quick Actions show in Finder?**
They have to be switched on once in System Settings › Keyboard › Keyboard Shortcuts › Services › Files and Folders. OneMacTools’ Settings has an Open Services Settings… button that takes you there.

**OneMacTools says Apple Intelligence isn’t available. What do I do?**
Turn on Apple Intelligence in System Settings on a Mac that supports it and let the models finish downloading. Only the writing features need it; every other tool works without.

**Where can I see why a OneMacTools job failed?**
Open History in the sidebar or top bar. Failed jobs are listed with the full message, along with the tool and where you started it, such as Finder or Shortcuts.

**Does a failed job damage my original files?**
No. Tools write their results to a temporary folder and only move them into your output folder once the whole batch succeeds. Originals are left untouched.

**How do I completely remove OneMacTools?**
First use Free This Mac… in Settings › Licence so the activation can be used elsewhere. Then quit OneMacTools and move it from Applications to the Trash. Remove any Admin Helper from Settings before deleting the app.

**Why does OneMacTools say it needs Screen Recording permission?**
Screen Recorder, Grab Text from Screen and screenshots need it, and it’s off or wasn’t applied yet. Turn on OneMacTools in System Settings › Privacy & Security › Screen & System Audio Recording, then quit and reopen OneMacTools.

Source: https://www.onemactools.com/docs/onemactools-troubleshooting (updated 2026-10-24)