File saved from Photoshop appears on the desktop with a delay. (macbook pro)

[Trygaios]

Hello,

After updating my MacBook Pro to macOS Tahoe (26), I’ve frequently noticed that files saved from Photoshop take a long time to appear on the desktop — often more than 10 seconds. I can only see them immediately if I manually relaunch Finder.

Has anyone else experienced this issue or found a possible solution?
Thanks!

[ExUSA]

Are you syncing your desktop with iCloud?

[Trygaios]

Thank you very much. I don’t use iCloud, Drive, Adobe Cloud, or any other cloud system — only the local storage on my device.

[D Fosse]

Just the desktop, or folders on disk in general?

[Trygaios]

Let me explain the process.
I’m working in Photoshop and using Save As (usually as TIFF) to save the file to the Desktop — not into any folder.
Then I switch to InDesign to place that file, but the file I just saved doesn’t appear.
I minimize InDesign to check the desktop, and the file isn’t visible there either.
So I either have to wait — sometimes more than 10 seconds — for it to appear on its own, or I restart Finder.
The moment I restart Finder, the TIFF file immediately appears on the desktop, and I can continue working.
This happens only on the desktop.
I experience this cycle quite often.
It’s not consistent — sometimes it works fine, and sometimes I get stuck in this loop.

[Trygaios]

This issue didn’t happen before the Tahoe (26) update — it started right after installing Tahoe.
Along with it, I’ve noticed about seven other problems, such as the Mail app receiving but not sending messages.
However, since the issue above severely disrupts my workflow, I’m mainly looking for a solution to that one.

[D Fosse]

Well, I still think it would be useful to know if this only affects the desktop, or other directories as well.

BTW - is it even still possible to keep the desktop on local disk, and not in the cloud? I'm on Windows, but it's a never-ending struggle to keep off the cloud.

[Trygaios]

Why should I use the cloud? My work should stay my work. Why would I share my own files with a system that says “deleted” when I say so, yet never lets me know if it truly deleted them? And honestly, being able to access my files from another device at a café or wherever—there’s nothing appealing about that. It’s pure marketing illusion.

Photoshop on my computer isn’t the same as Photoshop on my iPhone or iPad. I already pay a thousand or two dollars for a Mac, and now I’m supposed to pay again for iCloud, even though the SSD in my machine is sitting right there? Double payment, double exploitation—like roasted twice for good measure.

I want to own my device, not be Apple’s servant. I should decide which of my files leave my computer and which stay, not Apple. Take the iPad and iPhone, for instance—nothing outside the App Store can be installed. Apple decides what’s allowed on my device. So am I really the owner? It’s absurd. Imagine buying a house, but the seller tells you which furniture you’re allowed to use.

The best way is simple: I save files on my device, back them up on an external hard drive, and if I need to share something, there are other ways. I work alone anyway; I don’t have shared projects with anyone. I don’t need the so-called “digital servitude” of the cloud.

[D Fosse]

It's not about what you want. It's about how your machine user account is set up by default during OS installation.

I know that the default now on Windows is to have your entire user account, including the desktop, in the cloud. A true local account is getting harder and harder to maintain.

[ExUSA]

Apple makes not syncing to iCloud pretty easy to enable/disable. I don't sync any of my Macs. I just know that iCloud can cause issues with file updates.

[ExUSA]

I'm using Tahoe and Adobe apps on multiple Macs, both Intel and Apple Silicon, and not seeing performance problems.

You may be seeing an unrelated problem with crummy Electron apps though.

https://mjtsai.com/blog/2025/09/30/electron-apps-causing-system-wide-lag-on-tahoe/

[Thepaint_3d3310]

Yes, this seems to be a Finder refresh delay issue in macOS Tahoe (26), not Photoshop itself.

Try this:
 Restart Finder: Option + Right-click Finder → Relaunch. Disable and re-enable iCloud Desktop & Documents in System Settings → Apple ID → iCloud → iCloud Drive (this often fixes sync lag).If you use any Finder extensions or antivirus tools, temporarily disable them — they can delay file updates. <After that, files should appear instantly again.

[Trygaios]

Thanks, I already tried relaunching Finder and I’m not using iCloud Desktop/Documents or any sync tools — it’s a fully local setup. The refresh delay still happens intermittently, so it seems more like a Finder event notification issue in Tahoe.

Honestly, the best solution seems to be getting rid of Tahoe — at least until they fix its bugs, whenever that may be. This issue didn’t exist before Tahoe. Right now, I’m just trying to downgrade. Apple Support couldn’t solve it either: they first blamed Adobe, but I proved it wasn’t, and then they gave up and told me to wait for future updates :)) The best fix so far — delete Tahoe and move on.

[Thepaint_3d3310]

Yeah, I totally agree — this really does sound like a Finder event notification bug in Tahoe. Apple clearly broke something in how Finder updates desktop items.

If Apple Support couldn’t help and it’s fully local, then you’re probably right  the cleanest fix for now is downgrading until they push a patch. Tahoe’s been buggy for a lot of users lately, so hopefully the next update sorts this out. 🤞

Hope you get stable performance again soon!

[Trygaios]

Yes :)) I’ve already started scraping Tahoe off my Mac :))
Thanks to you and everyone who read and replied :))

[Thepaint_3d3310 · Accepted solution]

Aww, that honestly made my day! 😊 You’ve got such a great attitude about it — turning a frustrating bug into a fresh start. Really glad the thread helped even a little. Wishing you smooth sailing (and zero Finder delays!) ahead.

[Stephen Marsh]

I have seen such behaviour with different versions of the Mac and Photoshop for many years. Usually pressing Esc to cancel then reopening the dialog seems to resolve the issue.