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Is your MacBook camera not working? We know how frustrating it is to be in this situation. However, it doesn’t necessarily suggest that you need a professional to fix this issue. You can try some of the troubleshooting methods on your own before you opt for such a service. Let’s dive in without further ado and see what you can do if you are experiencing this issue with your MacBook.
Is your MacBook camera not working? Here are the solutions
Go through privacy preference settings
Mac doesn’t permit access to the camera straightaway for the third-party programs in order to protect your privacy. So, you will have to allow it manually by clicking the pop-up message when you open the program for the first time. However, you can do the same thing by visiting privacy preference settings as well.
This is how to do it.
From Apple menu -> system preferences -> security and privacy -> privacy -> select your MacBook’s camera. Now click the program you want to use the camera with; if prompted, enter the administrator password to confirm your action.Â
Restart the computer
Restarting computers often fixes most of the issues, and nothing different in this scenario as well. Before you reboot the Mac, make sure you are not trying to work with two programs simultaneously that ask for camera access; because Mac doesn’t allow camera access to two similar programs at the same time.
You can easily close the running programs via the activity monitor. Click here to see how to open the activity monitor (the taskbar of Mac). Reopen the program and give it another shot to see whether the camera is working. If the issue still exists, restart the Mac. Â
Update the app and MacOS
Maybe it’s bugs in the MacOS and the related app causing issues on the camera. If that is the case, you can mitigate the problem by downloading and installing the latest versions of the two.
To update the macOS, visit System Preference and click Software Update. You will have to go to the developers’ website to check on the latest update of the app if you have downloaded the program outside App Store.
Try a different user account
Yes, this deserves a try. Sign out from the existing user account and use a different account on the MacBook and see whether you can access the camera. We have seen positive results with this step; if it fixes your problem, you will have to transfer the data to the new account.
If you don’t have a different user account, follow the below steps to create one.
System Preference -> Users and Croups -> add
Switch to Safe Mode and check
It’s the same as Windows. You can fix numerous painstaking problems by switching to safe mode, including the issue of MacBook camera not working. To enter the safe mode, first, you will have to shut down the Mac (Apple -> Shut down). Now press the power on button and press and hold the Shift button immediately when the Mac gets started. You will see an option to log in to the safe mode on the screen and click on it.
See whether the camera is working properly or not. If it works, log out from the safe mode and log in to the normal mode to access the camera.
Reinstall the MacOS
Now, this may sound outrageous for most, but reinstalling MacOS tends to fix most of the software-related problems. Also, you can reinstall the MacOS without causing any losses to your personal data. That said, it would be best to back up the data before you try this step as it will keep your important data safe if something goes terribly wrong.
Follow the below steps to reinstall MacOSÂ Â Â Â Â
First, shut down the computer. Then press the power on button, now press and hold Cmd + R immediately to boot the MacBook into recovery mode. Go to MacOS utilities and click the reinstall MacOS option; from there onwards, follow the easy instructions to reinstall MacOS.
The time of reinstalling process heavily depends on the power of your internet connection. It may take up to two hours; so, be patient and concentrate on another thing!
Use Apple Diagnostics
Your MacBook has built-in software to diagnose issues on its hardware. Apple diagnostics will tell you why your camera is not working. However, if you come across any hardware issue on your camera, you will have to take your MacBook to a professional to fix it. Yes, of course, you have the luxury of contacting the Apple support team to book a repair as well.
Conclusion
We hope you don’t have to use our last suggestion to check why is MacBook camera not working? We really do. So, guys, did our solutions help you? Please take a second and let us know how you fixed your issue. Have a great day!
For more details watch the following video on YouTube.
