The solution I have found to work every time is to set a "hot corner" of the screen to put the display to sleep. Then, when this screensaver bug occurs, simply mouse to the corner, let the screen sleep for a few seconds, and then move the mouse again to wake it up. The screensaver will stop. Hope this helps.
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Some M1 Macs Affected By Fast User Switching Screensaver Bug
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Next OS...it will take a minimum of 4-5 years for a non Intel version, people will go wild if macOS will be arm only in the next OS, there are still millions of Intel Macs.
Had this issue since day 1... still occurring. Like someone else mentioned, I always set up a hot corner anyhow, so easy enough to work around
Macrumors a little slow on the news there. This has been discussed here for weeks. It's not the M1 machines, it's Big Sur, and there is already Terminal fix for it (sudo defaults write /Library/Preferences/com.apple.screensaver loginWindowIdleTime 0), and it is fixed in 11.2 beta.
This has to be a Big Sur bug, but m1 specific. I have the same issue on an Intel OpenCore Hackintosh. Ctrl+Shift+Eject (or Ctrl+Shift+Power on laptops) is the workaround when it happens.
Same is happening to me with a new M1 Mac mini.
I used another combo to "force quit" the screen saver, I think it is cmd-opt-esc to force quit the screen saver.
Problem with this is that some actions start being unusable, some gestures in trackpad and active corners. I will try your solutions, but in my case the other day the Mac was stuck on the screen saver screen, and the "hot corners" were not working either.
BR!
ISO
I used another combo to "force quit" the screen saver, I think it is cmd-opt-esc to force quit the screen saver.
Problem with this is that some actions start being unusable, some gestures in trackpad and active corners. I will try your solutions, but in my case the other day the Mac was stuck on the screen saver screen, and the "hot corners" were not working either.
BR!
ISO
This (cannot exit screen saver) is a "feature" going all the way back to HighSierra. Cannot reproduce, but happens more often if turn on the Mini before the display (the Samsung complains it cannot find a tuner, so we actually power it off).
I’ve seen something quite similar myself, but prior to Big Sur. I was never able to track it down.
One workaround I found was to remote into the machine from another Mac via Screen Sharing. I could sometimes then switch users again and unfreeze the screensaver.
I don't use a screen saver. I just have display preferences set to turn the monitor off after x amount of time. Hopefully, Apple will patch the bug quickly for those affected. Sounds like a real pain in the butt.
I’ve run into this issue a few times. Closing the lid and reopening it seems to solve the issues (at least for that instance). Still an obnoxious and frustrating bug.
There are always going to be bugs. If you wait until there are no bugs, you will never have a Mac, iPad, or iPhone etc.Ugh. I never buy 1st gen Apple products. Wait for them to work the bugs out. Remember the *amazing* 2016 MBP with Touchbar and butterfly keyboard? I'm still typing on it.
Edited to add: Glad to see MR finally covering this problem.
The symbiosis of hardware and software.![]()
A growing number of user reports online suggest some of Apple's M1 Mac models are susceptible to a Fast User Switching bug that spontaneously activates the screensaver and leaves the user unable to dismiss it.
![macbook-pro-screensaver-table.jpg]()
In macOS Big Sur, Fast User Switching allows users to quickly switch between user accounts without having to completely log out. Based on posts in the MacRumors forums, Apple Community forums, and on Reddit, however, a screensaver can sometimes take over the screen of Apple Silicon Macs without notice, rendering the desktop workspace completely unavailable.
While the screensaver appears on the screen, the mouse pointer is still on top and moving, but nothing else works, and users have to close and re-open the lid on their MacBook Air or MacBook Pro, or light press the Power/Touch ID key or use the Alt-Command-Q key combination to get back to the login page.
Video shared by MacRumors forum member dawideksl
Disabling Fast User Switching prevents the issue from happening, but that obviously leaves the login feature inaccessible. Having the screensaver disabled in System Preferences for all users doesn't seem to make a difference either.
The issue has been reported on M1 MacBook Air, M1 13-inch MacBook Pro, and M1 Mac mini models, and occurs on all versions of macOS Big Sur, including the latest 11.1 update. Affected users are advised to submit feedback to Apple to hopefully facilitate a fix.
(Thanks, Chris!)
Article Link: Some M1 Macs Affected By Fast User Switching Screensaver Bug
I know, I was being sarcastic in an effort to bring comical attention to the author’s faux par.
Yep, this was the same solution that Apple Support gave me when I called 'em up about the problem on the phone. Seems to have resolved the issue nicely on my M1 MacBook Air.
It isn’t architecture, it’s just another bug on top of the thousands that make macOS unpleasant to use. A free fall since 2010. Zero internal beta testing. They probably rely on people downloading public beta and reporting bugs but majority of people who download betas do it for the sake of saying they have a new version and do not report anything.
Then on the flip side of the coin, out of the 23 bugs I reported during the past years, most of them are still there.
The hardware department is flying software team is digging a hole really.
Tron: The M1 is so fast that the users have become too fast to switch.
Clu: This is a Fast User Switching problem.
Clu: This is a Fast User Switching problem.