Why Your New Mac or iPhone Search Takes Days to Work Again

Apple has published guidance explaining why search on iPhones, iPads, Macs and other devices can stall for hours or even days after major software updates. The company’s support document, dated August 25, 2026, targets prolonged Spotlight indexing seen by beta testers of iOS 27, iPadOS 27, macOS 27 Golden Gate and visionOS 27. Apple says the indexing duration depends on how much data is on the device, noting that later changes typically become faster once the first local catalog rebuild finishes. Three steps are recommended: leave the device alone, keep it plugged in, and connect to Wi‑Fi or Ethernet to speed background work. Apple also says the index stays only on the device and isn’t shared or uploaded to the cloud.