Why is Disable trackpad missing or not taking effect?

Check why the switch is missing

1. Check whether your Mac has a built-in trackpad. An external Magic Trackpad does not get this switch.
2. Confirm a mouse is connected and has a row in Radar Mouse.
3. Find the Built-in Trackpad block. The switch belongs there rather than in a separate section.
4. If you see Open Trackpad Setting…, use it to manage the native option in System Settings.

A wireless trackpad alone can qualify for the native macOS option, but it does not make Radar Mouse show this shortcut. Use the system setting directly.

If the trackpad still works when the switch is on

1. Confirm the input comes from the built-in trackpad rather than an external one.
2. Open System Settings → Accessibility → Pointer Control.
3. Check the native ignore-built-in-trackpad option described in the setup article. Turn it on there if it is off.
4. Check whether the built-in trackpad is ignored while the external device remains connected.
5. If the native setting itself does not work, note your mouse-driver software and consult the mouse maker’s documentation. Apple notes that some non-Apple mouse drivers can affect this option. Apple’s Pointer Control guide.

Radar Mouse does not display a success check or error after writing this system option. The switch’s visual state is not a separate test that the trackpad has actually stopped accepting input.

If the switch disagrees with System Settings

The panel can retain an old value after you change the native option elsewhere. Check System Settings as the reference for what is selected.

1. Set the native option to the state you want in System Settings.
2. Quit and reopen Radar Mouse.
3. Open the panel and compare the switch again, with a mouse connected.
4. Check the built-in trackpad’s actual behavior.

Closing and reopening only the panel is not a guaranteed refresh. If the switch still disagrees after a relaunch, include both states and your macOS version in a report.

If the trackpad stays off after quitting or disconnecting

Quitting Radar Mouse leaves the native trackpad option as it was. To use the internal trackpad while a mouse remains connected, turn the option off in System Settings or reopen Radar Mouse and turn Disable trackpad off.

If you expected disconnecting the mouse to restore input, check for other connected pointing devices or a receiver that remains connected. macOS’s option also includes a wireless trackpad. When no qualifying external device remains, input is intended to return without turning the saved option off. Radar Mouse does not reset that option when its mouse row disappears. Turn the native option off directly if you need the built-in trackpad available now.

If the built-in trackpad still does not work with the native option off, that result is outside the intended effect of Radar Mouse’s shortcut. Report the devices, drivers, and actual system-setting state rather than repeatedly changing scroll direction; scroll direction is a separate feature.

What to include in a trackpad report

Include your Mac model, exact macOS version, Radar Mouse version or download, every connected pointing device and its connection method, and any input-driver software. Say whether Disable trackpad, Open Trackpad Setting…, or neither appears. Include the state in System Settings, the switch state in Radar Mouse, and whether relaunching changes either one.

State whether the issue is missing controls, continued built-in trackpad input, or input that does not return. Those symptoms need different checks.