Brian Williams2

Q: 10.11.6 update has crippled my Mac Pro

Having trouble after update to 10.11.6 - System preferences panes won't open, can't seem to find any app that will open - reports of apps damaged, including disk utility, console, etc. Restart and shut down/restart don't clear it. Came looking for reports - problem seems not universal. Had successful update on my MacBook Pro, but my Mac Pro now seems in dire straits. Went the Recovery route and re-inatalled OS X . 10.11.6 was installed. Still no joy. Application folder shows only a bare few, and not the Apple applications. Cannot open any System Preferences panes. Safe Boot does not complete. Hardware OK - can boot successfully to a clone (CCC) of only a few days ago. Could do a restore (from Time Machine BU), but that is a last resort. Looking for others facing similar challenges and their success at resolving the issues.

Mac Pro, OS X El Capitan (10.11.6), 3.2 GHz Quad Xeon 16GB RAM, 12TB HD

Posted on Jul 18, 2016 2:58 PM

Close

Q: 10.11.6 update has crippled my Mac Pro

  • All replies
  • Helpful answers

first Previous Page 8 of 10 last Next
  • by ATGD,

    ATGD ATGD Jul 29, 2016 9:10 AM in response to Brian Williams2
    Level 1 (4 points)
    Jul 29, 2016 9:10 AM in response to Brian Williams2

    FIXED:

    After 2 failed updates, my 3rd attempt worked after rebuilding Lunch Services with OnyX and removing login items. Since I tried more than one fix at the same time, I can't be sure which action was the true hero, but I'm suspecting it's the Launch Services.

     

    I was having the same problem with 10.11.6 update from 10.11.5 on a fairly new iMac 17,1. After the update it's an almost totally unresponsive, constant pinwheel, and no dock. All apps are missing from the apps folder at first. Eventually the dock shows up with generic icons, and the apps slowly begin to appear in the apps folder with generic icons but won’t run, incomplete. I had iStat Menus installed, so I was able to see the activity monitor and it showed "lsd" running over 100%. My iMac was trippin' hard!

     

    So I reformatted the drive, restored TM backup and tried again, same result.

     

    After reading some of the responses here, I ran OnyX using the Automation function to rebuild the LaunchServices.

     

    I also (very unscientifically) tried a 2nd fix at the same time based on other responses here: I removed a bunch of login items, but not all, I left iTunes Helper, Dropbox, AdobeResourceSynchronizer and SizeUp, removed all the others I had added manually.

     

    I ran the update again and it completed with no problem. I'm now running 10.11.6.

     

    CONCLUSION:

    As far as isolating my specific issue, I'm still not totally sure which fix made the difference, but I'm suspecting that it was the Launch Services rebuild. The other possibility would be the login items I removed, but I think that's unlikely. Also when I ran ONYX I did have the verify structure and execute maintenance scripts checked, so maybe one of the scripts did something but I'm still leaning towards the Launch Services rebuild as the real hero.

     

    I'd love to see someone with the issue and the time to test see if ONLY rebuilding the Launch Services will fix the issue. I have 2 older macs that still need the update, so if it happens again I'll be more scientific about it and only try one fix at a time and I'll let you all know.

     

    Screen Shot 2016-07-29 at 9.38.51 AM.png

    OnyX is available free at http://www.titanium.free.fr/onyx.html

  • by mcems1,

    mcems1 mcems1 Jul 29, 2016 9:42 AM in response to Brian Williams2
    Level 1 (4 points)
    Jul 29, 2016 9:42 AM in response to Brian Williams2

    Same problem with my Mac Air 2015 I7 2.2 Ghz, 500 gb HD SSD.  Crashed on install after reboot and stuck near the end of the install. Unable to escape from install.  Had to reinstall backup from recent TM.  Downloaded the combo backup and performed First Aid on my SSD. Tested the combo backup on previous Mac Airs successfully (2011 Air, 2013 Air). Finally took the jump to install on Air 2015 install and it installed successfully.

  • by MirkoW,

    MirkoW MirkoW Jul 29, 2016 3:20 PM in response to Brian Williams2
    Level 1 (8 points)
    Jul 29, 2016 3:20 PM in response to Brian Williams2

    Re: El Capitan update 10.11.1 freezes at login

     

    Login with another admin user an set another UUID

    Fixed it for me

  • by explorephilly,

    explorephilly explorephilly Jul 30, 2016 5:43 PM in response to Brian Williams2
    Level 1 (4 points)
    Mac OS X
    Jul 30, 2016 5:43 PM in response to Brian Williams2

    I have this same problem. 2010 mac pro still messed up, though I got it started again in 10.11.5 through many hours of effort. The 10.11.6 upgrade worked just fine on my 2012 macbook pro.

     

    I see no solutions to the mac pro problem online. I have trouble starting up on any drive, even the drives not updated. Be nice if apple worked on this. Never had this kind of serious problem in 20 years of using macs.

  • by ckahn,

    ckahn ckahn Jul 30, 2016 5:54 PM in response to ckahn
    Level 1 (13 points)
    Mac OS X
    Jul 30, 2016 5:54 PM in response to ckahn

    Menu bar icons came back after reboot.  Everything seems to be back.

  • by Eric.TW,

    Eric.TW Eric.TW Aug 1, 2016 12:52 AM in response to Brian Williams2
    Level 1 (4 points)
    Mac OS X
    Aug 1, 2016 12:52 AM in response to Brian Williams2

    I have the same issue.

    I tried to download the update package from the apple support website and install it again.

    And the problem is solved now.

    This worked for me.

    Hope this can help you.

  • by bnoble64,

    bnoble64 bnoble64 Aug 2, 2016 2:13 PM in response to Brian Williams2
    Level 1 (8 points)
    Mac OS X
    Aug 2, 2016 2:13 PM in response to Brian Williams2

    This is my first year using Mac in a school environment. Worked with windows for 15 years as helpdesk and sysadmin. Now an IT Coordinator for a school and if I get the chance to get away from Mac you can bet I will. I can't believe the problems I have with issues such as this. I hear Mac used to be really good but they have gone downhill the last few years. Maybe that explains why they are losing money. Chrome seems to be the trend in schools and I can see why.

  • by Csound1,

    Csound1 Csound1 Aug 2, 2016 2:20 PM in response to bnoble64
    Level 9 (50,871 points)
    Desktops
    Aug 2, 2016 2:20 PM in response to bnoble64

    Why, because Google it way for free?

  • by Thejoker010,

    Thejoker010 Thejoker010 Aug 4, 2016 9:20 PM in response to Brian Williams2
    Level 1 (4 points)
    Aug 4, 2016 9:20 PM in response to Brian Williams2

    ssame problems I'm regret that I've updated my mac because I can't use it in normal way  

  • by Zordan68,

    Zordan68 Zordan68 Aug 11, 2016 9:20 AM in response to Brian Williams2
    Level 1 (4 points)
    Aug 11, 2016 9:20 AM in response to Brian Williams2

    G'Day Brian ..... You're LUCKY ! .... I wish I had it so easy & simple as the catastrophe you've outlined. 10.11.6 COMPLETELY destroyed my machine (smoke, fire, detonations, loss of life), & I'm toning down my language !

     

    Machine = Mid 2010 Mac Pro @ 2.8GHz Quad Core & 6MB RAM

     

    Get this:

    1. Downloaded

    2. Installed

    3. Froze with two blank screens & just a mouse pointer

    4. Did the SMX fix .... Nup !

    5. Did the NVRAM fix .... Nup !

    6. Did the Safe Boot .... I'll call it a Nup

    7. Safe Boot got me to my login screen, but when I used my own identity (admin), it crashed again

    8. I had to use the Guest User account to get a full Safe Boot

    9. In the interim, I tested all the hardware associate with the screens (including the video card: all OK). I also tried the "Download OS X" option from the Restore Screen ..... Nup, crashed again ! .... I also checked the disk using the Utility Function ..... Nup, all good

    10. Restored from Time Machine; it worked

    11. When I went into Outlook 2011, it gave me an indexing issue & complained

    12. Spent 3 full days fixing the Outlook problem, but have lost all my folder structure; still got the messages (thank God; apparently me in this case ..... Microsoft, you have much to answer for)

    13. Built up the courage to try again, but changed the 2032 Battery on the board first

    14. Downloaded 10.11.6 again, installed it .... Nup, back to square one !

    15. Have Time Machined again but switched off the Auto-Update Function

    16. Am rebuilding my Outlook E-Mail AGAIN as we speak

    17. I also have a Mac-Mini; 10.11.6 upgraded fine

    18. My parents have a 2 year old i-Mac, but it won't take the 10.11.6 upgrade

     

    Apple --> watcha do'n ? .... You're starting to look like another Microsoft .... This stuff never happened to me when SJ was driving the boat

  • by Harley Davidson,

    Harley Davidson Harley Davidson Aug 11, 2016 4:22 PM in response to Zordan68
    Level 1 (4 points)
    Aug 11, 2016 4:22 PM in response to Zordan68

    This problem doesn't seem to be hardware based from what I can see here.  It's definitely a software tieup that doesn't complete properly.

    If you're afraid of this update, you should be.  But you can do a few things to avoid problems.  Check your login items in your preferences, clear everything.  Check your launch services, clear everything.  Clear caches using Onyx, or another utility (all of them; this will force any cached writes to finish, and will clear any garbage backup from kext loads or other add-ins).  Lastly, check spotlight for indexing.  If it isn't finished (and you've been working for a long time like a year), look up the "turn off Indexing" fix online, and turn it off.  Restart (do not update yet).  Check your icould programs (photos itunes etc) for any downloads needed (cached downloads can cause excess caching, which can cause issues when the paths are altered or the protocols, and you're trying to read an old one).  Once done, again, clear caches and your login items, launch services.  Run a disk verification.  If you need to, repair.  Clear caches again.  Finally, restart and do the PRAM reset.  Now update.  IF you have a problem now, then you'll know it's one of two problems:

    1. Your hardware has a compatibility issue

    2. Your user account is corrupted

    For professional environments, I usually have some applescripts or automator actions handle some terminal commands to do all of this cache clear and disk check once a week (all but the pram) and it sends me a listing of any disk issues in a text file, to an email address that's for that client only.  You'll need to be physically there for a pram reset, but you can do that with regular visits if you're in IT.

    OSX used to keep most relevant values for startup and networking in a Location setting, which could be rebuilt easily, without hurting the user account.  It was an advantage over windows active directory that you could quickly repair a corrupted profile from within the running profile, without affecting file placement.  They've done away with it, and it has been **** ever since.

    Steve would never have let this kind of "let the user be our beta tester in their pro environment without telling them" thing work.  It's a way to cut their costs while shoveling them back on us; and they're trying to pull back from their desktop market in favor of small computing like phones and tablets.  Jobs would've kept both, and kept them functional.  Fewer flashy-flare new features we'll never use, and more work done...

     

    May the Steve Jobs be with you...

     

    PS

    New guy in charge... ...You've failed.  Congrats, man.

  • by Lanny,

    Lanny Lanny Aug 11, 2016 4:28 PM in response to Brian Williams2
    Level 5 (7,979 points)
    Desktops
    Aug 11, 2016 4:28 PM in response to Brian Williams2

    Hardware OK - can boot successfully to a clone (CCC) of only a few days ago.

    Then, just clone it back.

  • by Harley Davidson,

    Harley Davidson Harley Davidson Aug 11, 2016 9:50 PM in response to Lanny
    Level 1 (4 points)
    Aug 11, 2016 9:50 PM in response to Lanny

    Hardware incompatibility means software no good on hardware, man.  Your hardware could be brand spanking new, but if the software changes a part of the necessary code to work with it, you'll have problems.  There's also a software on software glitch that can happen when you try to code for new processors and old ones don't handle the command structure well.  Lately, OSX does that a lot more than anybody should.  They try to push their market by using new and advanced features in memory and processing that can overtax the previous model processor, and then "forget" to put in a failsafe to prevent the use of that feature for those with one model older, forcing everybody to buy a new machine or move to a different platform. 

    I've had it happen to my MBP.  I've had to essentially hack it by replacing files in the system and locking the system out of access to them.  It's not "supported" but it works in a pinch.  It happened the second year after I got it.  Now every time I update, it succeeds when those files aren't touched.  I copy them first, and put them on another drive I can boot from.  When I update and it succeeds, no worries; otherwise, the update fails, so I simply give the system back it's file control, and run it again.  IF the system won't boot, I put the old files back.  Mainly Driver files for gfx and audio, but there are a few others.  I've used an older OS to test usb capability... ...they've made a usb port useless because it sits too close to the pathway of the Airport card antennae.  The interference causes overcurrent every time.  In the older OS, no problems. 

    When the machines are 3 years old, apple throws the hardware architecture out to pasture.  Getting closer to 2 year EOL (end of life) these days, but after 3 years, apple, IBM, Adobe, Micro$oft; they all start pulling back on support for the hardware.  A hard drive should last 2 years, an SSD 3-5 years, gfx about 3years, motherboard should last 5-10, and optical drives (becoming nonexistant) normally last about 1.5years.  That's the data on the parts.  If you get more than that out of each part, you're a lucky one.  I do it all the time by some basic maintenance, and backups on my backups, and then a backup for that.  CCC, great program.  Great for those moments when you need it all back.  I applaud your choice, sir.  Hat's off.  Try clearing the caching, PRAM, launching services... ...The new OS update has a new security thing that interferes with the old launch and caching.  Supposed to combat virus startups, but more like an overstep in the wrong kind of code.  At least run the clearing of the data first, then make the update... ...a few simple bash commands... ...and they built the DARWIN bash for cryin' out loud!!!

    May the Steve Jobs be with you...

  • by DavidS2493,

    DavidS2493 DavidS2493 Aug 14, 2016 8:42 AM in response to Detlef Schmitt
    Level 1 (4 points)
    Aug 14, 2016 8:42 AM in response to Detlef Schmitt

    You have saved me hours of frustration with this failed system X update. I am extremely grateful to you, and wish that it was not necessary to scan 8 pages of various comments before finding your excellent contribution. Someone needs to make a more structured support system. Naturally, Apple is unlikely to be interested! Regards, DIS

  • by lvlike,

    lvlike lvlike Sep 2, 2016 8:50 AM in response to Brian Williams2
    Level 1 (4 points)
    Mac OS X
    Sep 2, 2016 8:50 AM in response to Brian Williams2

    I've had this problem too. The solution is not quite simple, but much easy then reinstalling all from scratch:

    Link

first Previous Page 8 of 10 last Next