Contextual Task Bar missing in Photoshop 25.6

Forum|Forum|1 year ago
March 30, 2024
3 replies
3048 views

The Contextual Task Bar disappeared while working with Photoshop 25.6 (Mac). The menu entry in the 'Window' menu is no longer available, it is missing. Re-starting PS or my computer won't solve the problem. Using the PS-integrated search function gives grayed-out results for the Contextual Task Bar. If I click on those results anyway, the blue result / help box appears beneath the Window menu and says "Window > Contextual Task Bar (currently unavailable)".

That reads to me almost like a deliberate, determined act, rather than a random glitch. Can someone help?

macOS

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Jeff Arola

Community Expert

PhotoCollectorAuthor

Participant

Thanks, Jeff. Now I had a little more time to investigate the problem.

Upon opening Photoshop, I can position the Contextual Task Bar anywhere I want. I always place it exactly like you did for your screenshot. When working with basic tools (like selections, crop tool), the Contextual Task Bar changes its width, which is normal. But it also wanders to the left, and significantly so. Even though the checkmark to pin the position is activated. So I drag it back in place. There is still quite some space to the right border of the Photoshop frame.

At some point the Contextual Task Bar 'disappears'. In fact, it has wandered off significantly to the right, on my second monitor. It is hidden behind other applications, usually Lightroom Classic, the source of my Photoshop workflow. I do not use Photoshop on two monitors, never have. (I don't even know if that's possible.) It's really not obvious that the tiny Contextual Task Bar is stranded on a different monitor which has never seen a pixel of my Photoshop application.

Also, from time to time I am not able to drag it back to its position at all, it's like there is an invisible wall near the 'Search' / 'Share' icons. This happens when the Contextual Task Bar has moved to the left, inside of Photoshop.

Can you tell me how you managed to embed your screenshot to be seen without having to click on it?

Thanks!

PhotoCollectorAuthor

Participant

Here is a 23-second screen recording, where I demonstrate the invisible wall problem.

Contextual Task Bar missing in Photoshop 25.6.mov

(a new tab opens, no download necessary, click to play in browser)

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Jeff Arola

Community Expert

I don't have any issues dragging the Contextual Task Bar to any position in Photoshop 25.6 on macOS Sonoma 14.4.1

Perhaps a Photoshop preferences reset is in order.

https://helpx.adobe.com/photoshop/using/preferences.html

PhotoCollectorAuthor

Participant

OK, the problem has been mitigated: The Contextual Task Bar was stranded arbitrarily on my second monitor, the allegedly missing menu entry under the 'Windows' menu was my fault: I didn't know it sat in a different section at the bottom.

What remains is the random movement of the Contextual Task Bar, even though the checkmark to pin the position is activated. Also, the manual movement is quite restricted: I can't drag the Contextual Task Bar close to the 'Search' / 'Share' icons any more. With the previous versions of Photoshop these problems did not occur, I could easily place it over those icons.

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