Malwarebytes spawns another Dock item when launched

[wP9y5Dcf]

We have Malwarebuyes.app in the macOS Dock. 

But, when we launch the app from the existing Dock item a new Dock item called "Malwarebytes" appears in right side of the Dock where unDocked items typically appear. 

Is this normal?

Screencaps attached:

[Amaroq_Starwind]

No, that isn't normal I'm afraid. But it is common on both macOS and Windows, regardless of the program in question. The cause is usually the presence of duplicate shortcuts in the file directory where application shortcuts are stored. I actually had to fix that issue again on my Windows machine this morning, but I'm afraid I don't know the folder path you need to use on macOS.

If you'd to automate cleanup of duplicate shortcuts, it shouldn't be too difficult to create a script that runs in the background.

[alvarnell]

I would recommend you temporarily remove the left (launch) icon from your dock by either click and hold on it then drag it up so that it goes "poof" when you release the mouse click or hold down the Control -key then click and hold until the menu pops up and select Options->Remove from Dock.

Now click and hold on the running icon until the menu pops up and select Options->Keep in Dock.

But I don't find this to be common with macOS and have never experienced it in the two decades that I've used Macs, so there could be a deeper issue.

Edited March 8, 2019 by alvarnell

[Amaroq_Starwind]

In the case of my Windows machine, this always usually started happening around the same time that programs started forgetting their settings (for example, Discord and Firefox forgetting my sign-in) and icons/thumbnails got scrambled, so probably a result of stuff in AppData (which is also where your taskbar is stored) getting corrupted. This isn't a big surprise seeing as my computer has a dying HDD. Again, I'm not sure what the macOS version of the AppData folder is, but maybe you can try my same troubleshooting approach.

[wP9y5Dcf]

I wonder if MB is using some sort of a non-standard app configuration.

Typically we put an item in the dock by dragging it there from the /Applications folder. This is how we placed the Malawrebytes.app in the Dock initially.

But when I use Control+Click 'Show in Finder' on the Dock item for the running Malwarebytes icon the Finder shows the path not as /Applications/Malwarebytes.app but as /Library/Application\ Support/Malwarebytes/MBAM/Engine.bundle/Contents/PlugIns/FrontendApplication.app 

So, in my screncaps from my original post - the left Malwarebytes icon leads to /Applications/Malawrebytes.app while the right (running) icon leads to /Library/Application\ Support/Malwarebytes/MBAM/Engine.bundle/Contents/PlugIns/FrontendApplication.app

Is that consistent with what other macOS users are seeing when running Malwarebytes?

 

[alvarnell]

I suspect you are correct. I've never had Malwarebytes in my Dock, so I tried that and can confirm the same behavior you are seeing.

When I followed my own instructions for app removal and keeping the Engine.bundle Plugin, I found that I can launch the "app" by using the new icon, without spawning a new running icon. So it does appear that a non-standard method here.

[alvarnell]

34 minutes ago, Amaroq_Starwind said:

I'm not sure what the macOS version of the AppData folder is

It's in a preference file that is at

/Users/<UserName>/Library/Preferences/com.apple.dock.plist

and would not be a good idea to manually edit it, especially when the Finder already provides adequate controls to do so.

[Amaroq_Starwind]

Oh, it uses a file? That is so much better than the way Windows does it! Now I'm jealous. Worse, Windows doesn't even have a Finder equivalent, all because Microsoft decided to kill the WinFS project 😢

[wP9y5Dcf]

54 minutes ago, alvarnell said:

I suspect you are correct. I've never had Malwarebytes in my Dock, so I tried that and can confirm the same behavior you are seeing.

When I followed my own instructions for app removal and keeping the Engine.bundle Plugin, I found that I can launch the "app" by using the new icon, without spawning a new running icon. So it does appear that a non-standard method here.

Thanks for testing this @alvarnell

I've followed your suggestion and Docked the running Malwarebyte icon rather than the one from /Applications!

[treed]

It seems like the question is answered, but just to confirm, this is completely normal. To keep the size of the software down, the app resides in /Library/Application Support, so that resources can be shared between the application and other related processes. The app that is in the Applications folder is just a "stub" that launches the full app.

[Amaroq_Starwind]

Should probably create an automated script that checks the file where icons are pinned to the dock and automatically corrects it, replacing the shortcut for the stub app with the correct one 

[Togs101]

On 3/8/2019 at 1:55 PM, treed said:

To keep the size of the software down, the app resides in /Library/Application Support, so that resources can be shared between the application and other related processes. The app that is in the Applications folder is just a "stub" that launches the full app.

I assume this is the reason that if I ask Siri to "Launch Malwarebytes" she replies with "Which app would you like to use?" and offers the options of Malwarebytes or Malwarebytes.

Not a problem for me (I normally use Spotlight to launch apps), but I wonder if this may cause Accessibility problems for disabled users.

Regardless, it looks like you may have also answered a different but similar question. Many thanks.

[ALN]

I recently had this after updating BBEdit, showing two icons on the Dock. Firts tome appeared after updating to macOS 10.14.3. I suspect macOS problem.

Cheers

ALN

[alvarnell]

I'm running macOS 10.14.3 and BBEdit 12.6.1 and don't see that problem. BBEdit is a normal application located in the /Applications directory (folder). When I click on the icon and select Options->Show in Finder it only goes to that app. I can only guess you have two copies of BBEdit somewhere and you should view each icon in Finder to figure out where the older one is located.

[ALN]

Thank you for yor attempt to help but you should not assume everybody you talk to is technically declined. If a second app would have been somewhere I would have noticed it, believe me.

It has to do with macOS internal settings, a configuration mishap (maybe it got confused with trashcan.) Immediately after triggering an auto-update BBEdit will ask to quit itself, install it and relaunch. After proceeding a second icon appeared and the original, which was permanently pinned, was inactive. Deleteing old icon and making new icon permanent solved the problem. It has nothing to do with physical instances and locations. And it didn‘t happen all the years.

I just wanted to inform about this which may happen to other apps as well.

Cheers

ALN

[alvarnell]

Thanks, I'll put put a BBEdit in the dock and see what happens with the next update.

But the Malwarebytes situation is unique in that the icon shown in the /Applications folder is not where the application is actually located. It is a stub used to launch the actual application located in the /Library/Applications Support/Malwarebytes/... folder. I've never run across a similar setup, but it has been confirmed that this was the reason for two icons in this particular discussion.

[ALN]

I would not count on it. I believe you will need more time consuming investigation. All these double „instances“ are mostly configuration mishaps, always happened with LaunchServices, Dock etc. whenever settings storage was involved (e.g. Open with... showing multiple apps no more installed etc.)

I wouldn’t take much comfort into the stub incident either. How was this confirmed? Is it proved that both icons point to different locations on disk? As the UI does not show you what‘s actually happening, you can be tricked into believing you are confronted with two different apps. macOS is keen to hide „system“ data, so showing the inerts of Engine.bundle via Siri and the like won‘t happen, in my experience. Although, Spotlight is the backbone of any search for the system itself, only proper constructed queries in Spotlight‘s own querie language will uncover these. Besides porgramming, there are some tools which allow the send these queries where you can test (e.g. Quicksilver.)

Testing this is equally hard, as the order of appearance can vary and you find yourself launching the same app over and over again. After all this is not really something to worry about. I just wanted to turn the attention to such a problem in macOS. And everybody can go by his business. 

[alvarnell]

7 minutes ago, ALN said:

I wouldn’t take much comfort into the stub incident either. How was this confirmed?

The developer @treed confirmed that the OP's analysis (and my confirmation) was correct. 

Quote

Is it proved that both icons point to different locations on disk?

Yes, by using the technique outlined above by the OP (control-click on the Dock icons and select Options->Show in Finder) the static one pointed to /Applications while the active on to  /Library/Application\ Support/Malwarebytes/MBAM/Engine.bundle/Contents/PlugIns/FrontendApplication.app

[ALN]

Sorry I missed that it is already proved.

[ALN]

By the way, it is also new if I‘m not mistaken, that internal processes spawned off are displayed in Dock etc. I recognized this recently in different apps which should not happen. Maybe this can play a role too. I still see such incidents as an OS related problem.

[ALN]

Now hopefully for the last time.

I‘m sorry, I fully misunderstood the problem. I was talking about a completly different but similar looking incident.

Now after testing this, I realized my mistake, sorry to confuse everybody. Dragging the MB app to dock from /Applications is of course a seperate app as in Engine.bundle and Dock shows it correctly as two seperate files.

Again, very sorry.

ALN