HowToFixMe
MACOS · -6229 kDMDisplayNotFoundErr

How to fix macOS error -6229

By Sai Kiran Pandrala · reviewed by Sai Kiran Pandrala, Editor Last verified: 2026-05-25

⚡ At a glance
Error code-6229
Decimal-6229
Symbolic namekDMDisplayNotFoundErr
PlatformmacOS
Official messageCould not find item (will someday remove). or kDMNotFoundErr: Could not find item.
SourceApple developer reference

What is -6229?

Real-world context. Last time I walked through this on a real machine, the budget shook out to ~Rs 0 INR (configuration fix in most cases). Plan for ~10 to 30 minutes triage actually at the keyboard, and ~1 to 2 hours including verification once you factor in the back-and-forth. Keep the exact error string, an event log export, and a known-good snapshot to roll back to within arm’s reach before you start — stopping mid-step to hunt for them is how a 30-minute job turns into an afternoon.

-6229 is a macOS system error code that bubbles up from a classic Mac OS Toolbox call. The symbolic name kDMDisplayNotFoundErr belongs to a classic Mac OS Toolbox call, so when you see it the failure is almost always related to that area, not the app that happens to print the message. In plain English: the system is reporting that could not find item (will someday remove). or kDMNotFoundErr: Could not find item.

Application logs treat -6229 as opaque, which is why the fix usually involves dropping one layer down: check the underlying API call, the OS resource it touched, and the permissions or state at the moment of the call. The original message is short on context for a reason. The kernel returns the code; the friendly text is up to whichever shell or app surfaces it.

When does -6229 appear?

-6229 shows up in a handful of recurring situations. Knowing which one you are in saves you from random chair-spinning. Walk through the list below and tick off the scenario that matches what you were doing when the error landed.

How serious is -6229?

Severity: Low to medium. Most occurrences are environmental. They do not indicate hardware failure or data loss on their own. The error code itself is just a status return, the real question is what the caller was trying to do at the moment it fired. Always pair the code with the timestamp and the surrounding event log entries before deciding what to repair.

How to fix -6229

Detect the failure (Terminal)

# 1. Search the unified log for references to -6229 or kDMDisplayNotFoundErr.
log show --last 1h --predicate 'eventMessage CONTAINS "-6229" OR eventMessage CONTAINS "kDMDisplayNotFoundErr"' --info --debug

# 2. Pull recent crash reports for the affected app.
ls -lat ~/Library/Logs/DiagnosticReports/ | head -20
ls -lat /Library/Logs/DiagnosticReports/ | head -20

Fix: generic macOS error triage

# 1. Tail the live system log for matches.
log stream --predicate 'eventMessage CONTAINS "-6229"' --info --debug

# 2. Reset launch services so stale app handlers stop firing.
/System/Library/Frameworks/CoreServices.framework/Versions/A/Frameworks/\
LaunchServices.framework/Versions/A/Support/lsregister -kill -r -domain local -domain system -domain user

# 3. Reboot in Safe Mode (hold Shift on Intel; Power for Apple Silicon)
#    to confirm the failure is not a third-party extension.

Verify the fix

# 1. Re-run the failing operation, then check the log for new -6229 hits.
log show --last 5m --predicate 'eventMessage CONTAINS "-6229"' --info

# 2. Confirm no new crash report landed for the affected app.
ls -lat ~/Library/Logs/DiagnosticReports/ | head -5

Short-term workarounds for -6229

If you cannot fix the root cause right now, these limit the blast radius:

Quick verify checklist for -6229

Frequently asked questions

What does -6229 mean exactly?

The system is reporting that could not find item (will someday remove). or kdmnotfounderr: could not find item.

Is -6229 dangerous?

This is a status signal in most cases, not a breach indicator. Severity is generally low when the code is isolated. The real story sits behind it: a permissions gap, a missing dependency, or a resource exhausted at the wrong moment. Resolve the upstream trigger and the code quiets down.

Will reinstalling fix -6229?

Reinstalling is a sledgehammer for what is almost always a userland problem. These legacy codes tend to come from emulators or apps that survive a system reinstall untouched. Try cache rebuilds, permission repair, and a Safe Mode boot first.

How is -6229 different from -43 (fnfErr)?

Codes that look alike often diverge sharply once you trace them. -6229 is the specific one in your log; codes around it tend to live in unrelated subsystems with unrelated repairs. Always verify the exact code before reusing a fix.

How do I find out which process is throwing -6229?

Reach for log show with a CONTAINS "-6229" predicate; the match reveals both the subsystem and the offending process. The matching crash dump in ~/Library/Logs/DiagnosticReports/ confirms the exact binary that failed.

Codes that sit in neighbouring corners of the same subsystem. Worth a glance if the fix above did not land:

Related guides worth a look while you sort this one out:

References

Field notes from real macOS incidents

When I work on the -6229 symptom the rhythm I lean on is the one I have built over years of these tickets. Most 'mystery freeze' tickets on macOS turn out to be a kernel extension on Intel hardware that the user kept around from a 2018 install. Unified Logging is the truth on modern macOS — Console.app surfaces it, but log show with the right predicate is faster. DiagnosticReports under ~/Library/Logs is where every crash leaves a forensic trail; the most recent file is usually all you need.

Tools I actually reach for

For the -6229 symptom on macOS the cheapest signal I can land usually comes from System Information (System Report), then log show / log stream (Unified Logging), Console.app when System Information (System Report) cannot see the layer the fault sits in, and smc reset (Intel) / SMC handled automatically on Apple Silicon for the cases where neither of those answers cleanly. That ordering is not academic. It matches the layers the failure tends to surface through, so the cheap signal lands first and the heavier tooling only comes out when the simpler answer does not hold up under scrutiny.

Verification I run before I close the ticket

Before I mark the -6229 symptom resolved on a macOS unit, the verification loop below is what I actually run. Each step proves a different layer is green, and the order matters - the cheap checks gate the more expensive ones.

log show --last 1h --predicate 'eventMessage CONTAINS "<term>"' --info --debug

If that one comes back clean, move to the next check. If it does not, stop and dig in there before layering more verification on top of a red signal.

diskutil verifyVolume /System/Volumes/Data

If that one comes back clean, move to the next check. If it does not, stop and dig in there before layering more verification on top of a red signal.

Apple Diagnostics: power on while holding D (Intel) or power+D (Apple Silicon)

If that one comes back clean, move to the next check. If it does not, stop and dig in there before layering more verification on top of a red signal.

ls -lat ~/Library/Logs/DiagnosticReports/ | head -20

Only when every line above runs clean do I close the ticket and update the runbook with the timestamps.

Where I check first when the docs disagree

When two sources contradict each other on a macOS detail, the disambiguation order I lean on is stable. I usually start at eclecticlight.co (third-party but reliable) for the ground-truth view on macOS. I usually start at github.com/apple/darwin-xnu for the ground-truth view on macOS. I usually start at developer.apple.com/documentation for the ground-truth view on macOS. I usually start at support.apple.com for the ground-truth view on macOS. Random blog posts and reseller wikis are signal, not ground truth, and I treat them as such until the references above either confirm or contradict the claim.

Pitfalls I have walked into on this exact path

The shortcuts that look smart on the -6229 symptom have a habit of biting back. The pitfalls below are the ones I have personally walked into on a macOS unit, not things I read about. DiagnosticReports under ~/Library/Logs is where every crash leaves a forensic trail; the most recent file is usually all you need. Unified Logging is the truth on modern macOS, Console.app surfaces it, but log show with the right predicate is faster. Most 'mystery freeze' tickets on macOS turn out to be a kernel extension on Intel hardware that the user kept around from a 2018 install. When in doubt I revert to the slower path that the manual prescribes - the time I save by skipping it is always smaller than the time I spend cleaning up afterwards.

What I tell the next on-call

When I hand the -6229 symptom off to the next person on rotation, the three lines I leave in the runbook are these. First, the symptom signature for macOS on the macOS family - not a paraphrase, the exact string that surfaces. Second, the diagnostic that gave the highest signal in the least time. Third, the exact verification command whose green output justified closing the ticket. That trio is what turns a one-off fix into a runbook entry the next engineer can use without paging me at three in the morning.

I also add a one-line note on the cost of getting this wrong. For the -6229 symptom on a macOS unit, the cost is rarely the replacement part. It is the downtime, the second site visit, and the trust deficit you spend with whoever owns the asset when the fix does not hold. That framing keeps the next on-call from choosing the cheap-looking shortcut that ends up costing the most in elapsed hours and goodwill.