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I try to use the Web Inspector to debug a remote iOS app.

The 1st time I use the Develop menu, the window does not open.

The 2nd time, the window opens but is empty.

Any idea please?

(macOS 10.12.6)

Empty window

Patrick
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    I'm having the same issue trying to connect my iPhone X (iOS 12.2) to my MBP running macOS High Sierra. After plugging in my iPhone and attempting to debug, the Web Inspector opens but has no data in any tab. The previously mentioned workaround does not work for me. I've submitted the bug to Apple, bug reporter ID# 49566471. – jberg7777 Apr 03 '19 at 19:00
  • any update on this? i am facing the same issue. – user3415011 Apr 04 '19 at 06:09
  • Same issue here – Melissa Apr 04 '19 at 23:20
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    Apple fixed this issue on macOS 11.5 Big Sur – khcpietro Jul 22 '21 at 05:43

8 Answers8

32

I ran into this with macOS 11.4 Big Sur, connecting to an iPad running iOS 14.5.1. Using Safari Technology Preview fixed it.

Josh Kelley
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14

I had the same issue. It appeared after IOS updating. MAC OS System updating helped to me. System Preferences -> Software Update. Hope it helps.

Alex Grigorenko
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    Mac OS 10.14.3 have problem, Update to Mac OS 10.14.4 solve the problem. – Zgpeace Apr 10 '19 at 08:54
  • Can confirm that updating to 10.14.4 fixed my issue – derickito Apr 26 '19 at 21:14
  • Can't update to Mac OS 10.14.4 because I have a mac from 2016??? OR what? There is no such update in Mac App Store. How to update? The latest offered was 10.13.6 (17G65) – Gregory Magarshak Aug 11 '19 at 01:18
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    Im on 10.14.6 and this problem still happens – Ronnie Apr 10 '20 at 18:20
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    The whole point of having these devices is to test my web app on older iOS devices. If you upgrade your Mac then you can't debug older devices anymore. Apple's goal is to get everyone to upgrade by making it as hard as possible for developers to support older devices. Apple also has removed the ability to download older versions of Safari than 13. – Curtis Oct 20 '20 at 16:18
  • It only took a 12GB OS update to fix this. Apple, why do you make development so hard? – 3spot Mar 04 '22 at 21:05
8

I also face this issue, but updating to Mojave is not an option since my macbookpro is too old. But another way around this, is to install "Safari Technology Preview" version of the browser: Safari - Downloads - Apple Developer

UPDATE: "Safari Technology Preview" developer window started crashing. So I got Safari 12.1.1 from https://developer.apple.com/download/more/ and it seems to work.

Jette
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    I can confirm, that if you have macOS 10.12.6, then you must update Safari to 12.1.1 for web inspector to work from iOS device. – Janiis Jul 04 '19 at 07:50
  • Safari 12.1.1 is not there in that list of downloads. Oldest is 13. – Curtis Oct 20 '20 at 16:09
3

This happened for me when my iPad automatically updated its system software overnight and suddenly Safari's inspector was blank as pictured despite it working perfectly the day before.

The solution was that I needed to install a pending macOS update on my Macbook. Apparently Apple has thrown away all attempts at backwards compatibility.

In short, make sure your iOS, macOS and Safari are all up to date.

devios1
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2

Maybe I found a workaround. If I select the Console tab, then close the Web Inspector and open it again, nothing works. But if I select the Elements tab (for example), close and open the Inspector, it works. This is silly but the only solution I found.

Patrick
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2

I found that the versions of Safari have to match on the iOS device and laptop otherwise, while you can connect the iOS device to the laptop, the tabs won't contain any data.

I originally had 12.# on the laptop and 13.# on the iPad. Update the laptop and all happy now.

K Mann
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1

I ran into this problem too and thought I would share the solution I discovered.

When the inspector stalled, I opened Activty Monitor and noticed that "Safari Web Inspector" was active (and using a lot of resources) whether it was actually visible or not. I forced that process to quit and it returned to normal functioning.

ADeweyan
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1

Have The same issue, however, I noticed this happens only on specific USB ports. If the inspector stays blank, try another port. (Behaviour observed on Macbook pro, late 2015, IOS 12.6)

Yogi
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