DazzaG

Q: 24" iMac Screen Freezes since 10.6.3 update - pls help!

I don't know if this is just coincidence or not, but since updating my iMac to 10.6.3 it keeps on crashing. On 3 separate occasions today, whilst using my Mac the screen has gone completely black with thin white lines down it.....see pic below:

http://picasaweb.google.com/lh/photo/6SYzhCgVYEU5TBKqRfOQ1Q?feat=directlink

The fans and hard disk are still running but it will not respond to any keyboard or mouse presses - I simply have to turn it off by holding the power button in.
It will then restart as usual.

Anyone got any ideas? Do you think that if I was to re-install Mac OS X from my original install disk it could solve the issue?

Thanks

Darren

24" intel imac 2.8Ghz, Mac OS X (10.6.3)

Posted on Mar 31, 2010 2:43 PM

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Q: 24" iMac Screen Freezes since 10.6.3 update - pls help!

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  • by mert,

    mert mert Aug 6, 2010 7:57 PM in response to R C-R
    Level 3 (880 points)
    Aug 6, 2010 7:57 PM in response to R C-R
    R C-R wrote:
    Thanks for sharing this. It is a good example of how a hardware problem can appear to be a software one. I'm not saying it is true for everyone posting about this issue, but for some the problem may not be the OS update itself; instead that it exposes a hardware problem earlier versions of the OS do not.


    I agree that some may be dealing with actual hardware issues, but some may not, which means a likely-cheaper software "fix" could correct the problem by stopping the new OS from doing whatever the old OS wasn't doing. I'd probably prefer a software fix, if that was indeed possible, rather than being without my machine for several days.

    Message was edited by: mert
  • by DanShilstone,

    DanShilstone DanShilstone Aug 17, 2010 5:20 PM in response to mert
    Level 1 (0 points)
    Aug 17, 2010 5:20 PM in response to mert
    Eager to hear if the Snow Leopard Graphics Update released today has had any effect on this problem.
  • by mert,

    mert mert Aug 17, 2010 5:41 PM in response to mert
    Level 3 (880 points)
    Aug 17, 2010 5:41 PM in response to mert
    mert wrote:
    OK. I found someone with a 10.6.0 retail DVD (mine had 10.6.3 on it), and I've reverted my iMac7,1 to 10.6.2 (10.6.0 from DVD, 10.6.2 Combo update, Software Update to latest of everything else).

    The clock is ticking (started Aug 3). I hope this returns my iMac to its freeze-free, month-plus uptimes of 10.5.8. Will report back in a couple weeks - sooner if it's still freezing. (see my previous posts for what I've done to try to deal with the 10.6.3/10.6.4 freezes)


    As promised... it's been 2 weeks. Not a single freeze since reverting back to 10.6.2.

    Wonder if the just-released "Snow Leopard Graphics Update 1.0" will have any affect on this issue. I won't be trying it any time soon (at least without hearing positive results from folks in this thread).
  • by Rick Lang,

    Rick Lang Rick Lang Aug 18, 2010 6:32 AM in response to mert
    Level 4 (1,230 points)
    Aug 18, 2010 6:32 AM in response to mert
    Mert, looking at the knowledge base article, it would imply this Snow Leopard Graphics Update 1.0 is intended for 10.6.4 systems. I applied it and noticed improvements so no harm done to my iMac.

    http://support.apple.com/kb/HT4286
  • by mert,

    mert mert Aug 18, 2010 9:56 AM in response to Rick Lang
    Level 3 (880 points)
    Aug 18, 2010 9:56 AM in response to Rick Lang
    Rick Lang wrote:
    Mert, looking at the knowledge base article, it would imply this Snow Leopard Graphics Update 1.0 is intended for 10.6.4 systems. I applied it and noticed improvements so no harm done to my iMac.

    http://support.apple.com/kb/HT4286


    Were you having this freeze issue under 10.6.4?

    I won't be applying it to my machine, since I've given up on 10.6.4 (problems started with 10.6.3) and reverted back to 10.6.2. If other folks in this thread are still on 10.6.4, and this update made this issue go away, I'd go back to 10.6.4 and apply the update. Maybe 10.6.5 will have a positive affect on the freeze issue.
  • by Rick Lang,

    Rick Lang Rick Lang Aug 18, 2010 4:07 PM in response to mert
    Level 4 (1,230 points)
    Aug 18, 2010 4:07 PM in response to mert
    No, I didn’t have a freezing issue on 10.6.4. Never hurts to wait a while as you plan to do to see what others experience.
  • by Matthew Yohe,

    Matthew Yohe Matthew Yohe Aug 19, 2010 4:45 PM in response to DazzaG
    Level 2 (180 points)
    Aug 19, 2010 4:45 PM in response to DazzaG
    iMac 8,1 here (24") and no the graphics update did not seem to resolve this issue.

    Either all white screen, or slight blue banding/striping and of course, freezing.
  • by DKisling,

    DKisling DKisling Aug 19, 2010 8:20 PM in response to DanShilstone
    Level 1 (0 points)
    Aug 19, 2010 8:20 PM in response to DanShilstone
    No the Graphics Update did not help for me, it made my finder freezes worse. So much so, that what was a once a day or so problem became so frequent since the graphics update, that I finally called AppleCare Support tonight.

    To my surprise the Tech had NEVER heard of this issue and was unaware of this thread. I gave him the thread ID number and he was reading it as he work thru the "normal suspects" (zapping Pram, repairing permissions, deleting cache, etc, etc) with me.

    So what good are these forums if Apple doesn't read them?
  • by tommie_c,

    tommie_c tommie_c Aug 19, 2010 11:46 PM in response to DKisling
    Level 1 (0 points)
    Aug 19, 2010 11:46 PM in response to DKisling
    Indeed, it took me two months to get me iMac repaired. Apple en my AASP looked at each-other to solve this issue, but none of the two parties took initiative. Apple said it wasn't aware of this issue (but I've sent them loads of information, including these Apple Discussions-topics). Two months of unworkable and unacceptable lockups... Most amazing for an A-brand!

    I finally contacted my insurance company so I could bring it to court. Which was about to happen. I also contacted a consumer organization to make these problems available for the public.

    Next, I have informed Apple and my AASP about the steps I was about to take. The iMac was repaired in about 2 days after! The problem was a simple faulty video card.

    The iMac has been doing great since the repair! No more lockups and freezes.

    Anyway, court is suspended. But I'm absolutely publishing this with my consumer organization.

    My hints for this issue: be assertive: demand a repair! And go further when needed.

    Hope this helps.

    Message was edited by: tommie_c
  • by mert,

    mert mert Aug 20, 2010 4:21 AM in response to tommie_c
    Level 3 (880 points)
    Aug 20, 2010 4:21 AM in response to tommie_c
    tommie_c wrote:
    ...
    The iMac was repaired in about 2 days after! The problem was a simple faulty video card.

    The iMac has been doing great since the repair! No more lockups and freezes.
    ...


    In your case, did the freezes not occur in 10.6.2, started in 10.6.3 and continued in 10.6.4. And, the hardware issue was not detectable by Apples hardware test suite that comes on the DVDs that ship with it?
  • by Colin Fox1,

    Colin Fox1 Colin Fox1 Aug 20, 2010 1:18 PM in response to Joseph Blass
    Level 1 (0 points)
    Aug 20, 2010 1:18 PM in response to Joseph Blass
    Wow I hope Apple come out with a fix soon, since I went to 10.6.4 I've had frequent freezing issues. Really annoying and denting my confidence in Apple.

    If I was to go back to 10.6.2, could I go back to this software version yet keep all my current files/pictures in place (e.g. have loaded a bunch of new photos on Aperture, new songs to iTunes etc.) Can one go back to a older version without much hassle ? Any help is appreciated, as I'm still a Apple software Noob...

    On that note I ran on 10.5.8 without any problems for a long time, then I made the "upgrade" to Snow Leopard.

    What I have:
    iMac
    Model Identifier: iMac8,1
    Processor Name: Intel Core 2 Duo
    Processor Speed: 2.8 GHz

    I have 4GD RAM memory.

    Graphics is:
    Chipset Model: ATI Radeon HD 2600 Pro


    Joseph Blass wrote:
    (Just discovered this topic.) I just got back from the Apple store Genius bar. I had the same problem. They told me to install 10.6.2 and not go to 10.6.3. I had to reinstall from the Snow Leopard disk, then upgrade. They said Apple knows about the problem and is working on it. (I hope this works!)
  • by R C-R,

    R C-R R C-R Aug 20, 2010 7:19 PM in response to Colin Fox1
    Level 6 (17,700 points)
    Aug 20, 2010 7:19 PM in response to Colin Fox1
    FWIW, I have two 8,1 iMac's, one a 20" 2.8 GHz with ATA graphics & the other a 24" 3.06 GHz with NVIDIA graphics. Both have run all versions of 10.6, including 10.6.3 & 10.6.4, with no screen or any other kind of freezes.

    I don't know why some iMacs have problems & others don't, but I suspect there is more involved than just the update itself. You might want to try the steps suggested in your user manual in the troubleshooting section (optimistically named "Problem, Meet Solution") to see if they help. If you can't find your copy of the manual, it is online at http://manuals.info.apple.com/enUS/iMac_Early2008UG.pdf.
  • by T-squared,

    T-squared T-squared Aug 21, 2010 4:34 PM in response to mert
    Level 1 (10 points)
    Aug 21, 2010 4:34 PM in response to mert
    Mert, I posted the same problem in this thread on June 17th. I had the same problems that you did with the freezing on 10.6.3 and 10.6.4, but stable on 10.6.2. I've been working with AppleCare (yes, I made them aware of this thread) and sending them logs, etc. They were unable to reproduce the problem in the lab. I then sent them pictures of the screen when it would freeze. From the pictures they decided it was a video card issue. AppleCare replaced the video card and my iMac has been freeze-free for 17 days on 10.6.4. Keeping my fingers crossed.
  • by scm133,

    scm133 scm133 Aug 21, 2010 5:08 PM in response to T-squared
    Level 1 (0 points)
    Aug 21, 2010 5:08 PM in response to T-squared
    T-squared, I had same issues. See my old posts. My Tech Tool app did not pick up the problem.
    The video replacement on my iMac 24" solved the problem. It has now been a month with absolutely no screen freezes. At first, Applecare thought it was a third party software issue. I had to be persistent, until they finally admitted it was their video card. They sent a repair guy out, and he changed the card. The updates just brought on the issue with the faulty video card.
  • by tommie_c,

    tommie_c tommie_c Aug 22, 2010 9:20 AM in response to mert
    Level 1 (0 points)
    Aug 22, 2010 9:20 AM in response to mert
    mert wrote:
    In your case, did the freezes not occur in 10.6.2, started in 10.6.3 and continued in 10.6.4. And, the hardware issue was not detectable by Apples hardware test suite that comes on the DVDs that ship with it?


    Indeed, the system was somewhat stable with 10.6.2. A lot of hardware testing was done by myself and this was once repeated by the AASP. No hardware issue detected by Apple Hardware Test nor by the AASP. But it seemed to be a hardware problem after all.
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