Quick Look not working for cloud-based files

[chaunce322]

So I'm running macOS Montery (v12.3) on a new 14" MacBook Pro (M1 Max), and I noticed an odd bug...

I have a bunch of STL files for 3D printing, which I largely keep in my iCloud storage.

When the files are in the cloud, the Quick Look function does not generate a preview of the file. Instead, it shows the app icon for the application I use to open the files (Lychee Slicer - the strawberry-looking icon).

But when the files are downloaded to my local machine, the Quick Look function opens a preview image of the actual STL file.

Does anyone know why this is or how to fix it?

Thanks in advance.

Sean

 

[Raz0rEdge]

You can't Quick Look something that you don't have, i.e., when the cloud icon with the down arrow is present, that file ONLY exists on the cloud and isn't present locally as to not take up space unnecessarily.

If you wish to preview it, you have to first download it and then preview it.

This is how it's meant/designed to work.

 

[chaunce322]

You can't Quick Look something that you don't have, i.e., when the cloud icon with the down arrow is present, that file ONLY exists on the cloud and isn't present locally as to not take up space unnecessarily.

If you wish to preview it, you have to first download it and then preview it.

This is how it's meant/designed to work.

Thanks for the reply!

So why do the cloud-based files show my slicer program icon? Somehow, the OS is able to identify the file type and map it to an application...

Sean

 

[IWT]

So why do the cloud-based files show my slicer program icon? Somehow, the OS is able to identify the file type and map it to an application...

Because your Mac recognises data that has been sent to the cloud by you. It shows up in different ways depending on the file type. If you didn't see the "icon" as you call it, then you wouldn't know which file or data you wanted to download and review/change/use.

It's mapped to an application because you used that application to create the file - eg Pages, Word, Keynote etc - and it also recognises the file type by its ".x ending" - eg .pdf .jpeg. .mov and so on.

Ian

 

[Raz0rEdge]

Thanks for the reply!

So why do the cloud-based files show my slicer program icon? Somehow, the OS is able to identify the file type and map it to an application...

Sean

The iCloud drive folder is a special folder that behaves differently than a local folder on your Mac. When a file is created of a particular type, if there is a default app that is assigned to handle that app, the icon of the app will show up on that file. The actual contents of the file shuttles between iCloud and your Mac based on use/age. However, the type of the file is always know..