Mail with 'Golden Gate' not opening

Mail won’t open after macOS update

You are having trouble with Mail on your MacBook Pro after updating macOS. If Mail shows as “running in the background” but won’t open, it may be stuck. 

Let us try a few steps to get it working again.

Force quit Mail

A - Press Option (⌥) + Command (⌘) + Esc.

B - Select Mail, click Force Quit, and confirm.

C - Wait a few seconds, then try opening Mail again.

Apple’s guide: How to force an app to quit on Mac

Restart your Mac

Click the Apple menu () and choose Restart. Once your Mac starts up again, try opening Mail.

Check Activity Monitor

A- Open Applications → Utilities → Activity Monitor.

B - Search for “Mail”.

C - If Mail is still running, select its process, click the Stop (×) button, and choose Force Quit.

D - Try opening Mail again.

Check for macOS updates

Go to System Settings >> General >> Software Update and install any available updates compatible with your Mac.

Apple’s guide: How to update macOS

Try starting your Mac in Safe Mode

What does Safe Mode do?

Safe Mode starts your Mac with only the essential software needed to run macOS. It also performs certain checks and prevents some software from loading automatically. This helps determine whether a startup item, extension, or other software conflict might be stopping Mail from opening.

How to start Safe Mode:

A - Apple silicon: Shut down your Mac completely and Do Not use Restart. Press and hold the power button until startup options appear. Select your startup disk, hold Shift, then click Continue in Safe Mode.

Log in and try opening Mail.

What the result means:

A - Mail opens in Safe Mode: A software conflict or startup-related issue may be involved. Safe Mode helps narrow down the cause but does not identify it automatically.

B - Mail still won’t open: The problem may be specific to Mail, its settings or data, or the macOS installation. Further troubleshooting will be needed.

When finished, restart your Mac normally to exit Safe Mode.

Important: Protect your emails

Please do not delete Mail folders or databases, as this could put locally stored messages at risk.

If Mail still refuses to open, let us know whether you see an error message or whether it simply appears to run in the background without displaying a window. 

Hi Thanks for your suggestions.

My Mail Accounts include MS Exchange. After temporarily disabling the account, Mail would open I the found that the EWS connections were deactivated near the Golden Gate release window. requiring account(s) to be deleted and then added to trigger new authentication.

Bingo deleted MS account then re-added, alls well again.

SW