Icons won't stay in Dock

[Ryq W]

I always manage to have odd problems. This started with MacOS 10 or 11 I have a MacBook Air (Retina, 13-inch, 2019).

When I boot up, icons get deleted from the dock.

(I like finder, Preferences, Messages, Mail, Evernote, Calendar, Firefox, Contacts in my dock)

If I open the app, it's on the wrong side of the line, so I will select Options/Keep in Dock.
I have also dragged the app.

I was directed to completely re-install the Op System after cleaning. A lot of time and it did nothing.
I have no viruses/malware.
Etrecheck shows no major problems.

I've posted on the forums at Apple with no success. The have told me to see if it happens in Safe Mode or with another ID, but once I log in those, there's nothing I can do. I need 1password on Firefox constantly, use mail with multiple accounts, and have documents I need to access. I can get into Safe Mode or use another account but can do very little. I can't see any patterns.

Any ideas? It's driving me crazy, and that's not a long drive.

 

[hg.wells]

Sounds very strange, when you boot up, open Finder and drag the applications from the Application folder to your dock. Do not open the application and then add them.

Then open the application, fully close the app and see if it stays.

 

[KALLT]

Did the problem also occur while using a different user account? It might be an issue particular to the user account, so that it won’t be fixed by reinstalling macOS or safe mode.

 

[DeltaMac]

When you reboot, which of those apps that you listed are still in the Dock?
I know Finder will be there, but which apps are still in your Dock after a reboot?

When I boot up, icons get deleted from the dock.

(I like finder, Preferences, Messages, Mail, Evernote, Calendar, Firefox, Contacts in my dock)

...

 

[hg.wells]

The only thing I can think is you maybe running the apps from a disk image folder, but then you mentioned some standard apps.

 

[Gregg2]

I've posted on the forums at Apple with no success. They have told me to see if it happens in Safe Mode or with another ID, but once I log in those, there's nothing I can do.

What does that mean?

 

[darngooddesign]

...They have told me to see if it happens in Safe Mode or with another ID, but once I log in those, there's nothing I can do.

You can do the only thing they wanted you to do, which is verify if the problem still exists.

If problem goes away with a different user account then start moving all your files (do not use migration assistant), and rebooting periodically, into that new user account. If the problem goes away then once finished delete the old user account, but if the problem reappears you will have some idea of which apps or modifications caused the problem because you will be aware of what you installed after the previous reboot.

PS. I highly suggest you make a backup of your computer before starting this process.