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InDesign blank window when switching displays

karenh74245468
Explorer ,
Feb 01, 2024 Feb 01, 2024

When having a file open in InDesign 2024 on my Macbook Pro (Sonoma 14.2.1 OS), close the lid, plug into my LG UltraFine external monitor and wake the computer up, the InDesign window is still open and all the tool bars are visible and working, but the area where the artwork is becomes black/blank and I can't see the work. I can see the bounding boxes if I select all, but no image or text. The window is entirely blank. The same thing happens if I'm working on my LG monitor, unplug the display and then open the Macbook to work. I always have my Macbook closed when plugged into the LG display and use both an external keyboard and trackpad. The solution is to always save, quit InDesign and reopen. If I go through that it works again. Is it a bug with Apple? Is it a bug with Adobe?

 

My LG firmware, OS and Adobe InDesign are all updated to the latest versions.

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Bug , Performance
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correct answers 2 Pinned Replies

Abhishek Rao Adobe Employee
Adobe Employee , Jun 12, 2025 Jun 12, 2025

Hi @JPL08 and everyone, 

 

Thanks so much for following up, and I'm really sorry you're still running into this issue. 

Just to let you know, we've logged this as a bug and our engineering team is currently investigating the root cause. I understand how disruptive it is, especially given how long you've been seeing this behavior, and I truly appreciate your patience and all the troubleshooting you've done so far.

 

I'll make sure to keep you posted here as soon as we have any updates or a fix av

...
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Abhishek Rao Adobe Employee
Adobe Employee , Oct 06, 2025 Oct 06, 2025

Hi everyone,

 

Thanks a lot for sharing your experiences and all the details here. I wanted to let you know that the product team is aware of this blank or black window issue when switching displays on macOS Sonoma and has logged it as a bug. The team is actively working on a fix to ensure smoother GPU behavior when connecting or disconnecting external monitors.

In the meantime, toggling the GPU Preview setting or reopening the file, as some of you mentioned, can serve as temporary workarounds.

...
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replies 128 Replies 128
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Angelfisch
Community Beginner ,
Jan 10, 2025 Jan 10, 2025
In Response To Adwiz

I just upgraded to a new Mac Mini with Apple Silicon chip. I have the latest Adobe software, and I'm seeing this same issue. For me, it goes away if I use CPU Preview instead of GPU Preview. I thought GPU Preview was supposed to be better, but I guess I'll stick with CPU preview.

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barriet36548854
Community Beginner ,
Feb 20, 2025 Feb 20, 2025
In Response To Angelfisch

Exactly the same problem for me – only answer seemed to be saving, closing, and re-opening the file.

 

Changing the 'View Preview' has worked like magic. 

 

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Angelfisch
Community Beginner ,
Feb 20, 2025 Feb 20, 2025
In Response To Adwiz

I was having this issue after upgrading my Mac. It would go away if I used CPU Preview, but that didn't feel like a good fix. I then read about restoring default InDesign preferences (I had copied all old preferences), and that has fixed the issue. I just had to make sure to save my workspaces and keyboard shortcuts. 

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skobe media
New Here ,
Jun 26, 2025 Jun 26, 2025
In Response To Adwiz

Having the same issue for maybe a year now. not sure what exactly triggers it but coming back to indesign from another app or plugin in or unpligin an external display seems to do it. Same issue as shown in @Laubender screenshot. I'm on a macbook air 13", M3, 2024 and InDesign 2025 20.4.1 in german language. Very annoying. But yes disabling GPU Performance makes the grey disappear for now. I'll post again should the issue reoccur.

Please join in everyone who experiences this issue to raise awareness for adobe to react to this. Just comment a simple "+1" or upvote at the top. Thanks! ❤️ 

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