mhutson

Q: macOS Sierra keeps freezing

I installed Sierra on my MacBook Pro a few days ago, and several times it has frozen. First the computer stops responding to my external mouse. About 30 seconds later it stops responding to the trackpad and keyboard. I have to force a restart. Why is this?

 

Perhaps relevant: According to Activity Monitor, kernel_task now frequently uses several hundred (and sometimes more than 2,000) percent of my CPU. Who knew that was possible?

MacBook Pro with Retina display, macOS Sierra (10.12)

Posted on Sep 24, 2016 9:38 PM

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Q: macOS Sierra keeps freezing

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  • by gypsyaura,

    gypsyaura gypsyaura Oct 4, 2016 7:41 AM in response to macalicious
    Level 1 (4 points)
    Oct 4, 2016 7:41 AM in response to macalicious

    My rMBP 13" 2012 has been hanging and freezing since upgrading to MacOS Sierra, too! It does seem like a kernel panic - similar to when I upgraded to Mavericks few years back. I had to hard-restart it for god knows how many times in a span of 2 weeks.

     

    How can I downgrade to El Capitan? EC was a lot more stable for me, I never had to deal with this problem with EC.

     

    Thanks!

  • by guy_moreillon,

    guy_moreillon guy_moreillon Oct 4, 2016 9:56 AM in response to mhutson
    Level 1 (14 points)
    Mac OS X
    Oct 4, 2016 9:56 AM in response to mhutson

    Same here. MacBook Pro (Retina, 15-inch, Mid 2015). Connected to an external monitor and a USB Hub.

    Has been working fine with El Capitan with this setup since purchase.

    Since Sierra install, I get about 1-2 freezes per day, exactly like described above.

  • by cocolero,

    cocolero cocolero Oct 7, 2016 12:03 AM in response to mhutson
    Level 1 (4 points)
    Mac OS X
    Oct 7, 2016 12:03 AM in response to mhutson

    Yup exact same freeze happening here, external USB keyboard and wireless mouse stops working, then a few seconds afterward, the laptop keyboard and trackpad also stops. There is still activity on the screen (as indicated by Little Snitch Apple Menu widget) but the keypads and mouse do not respond.

     

    Hard restart is the only fix so far but happens intermittently throughout the day.

     

    • MacBook Pro (Retina, 15-inch, Mid 2014)
    • 2x external monitors (thunderbolt and HDMI connected)
    • USB Apple extended keyboard
    • USB Logitech VX Nano Mouse
  • by gypsyaura,

    gypsyaura gypsyaura Oct 8, 2016 6:14 AM in response to cocolero
    Level 1 (4 points)
    Oct 8, 2016 6:14 AM in response to cocolero

    It happened again - Yesterday and Today. I keep hard-resetting my rMBP, because the video would freeze and the audio would leave a 'bzzzz' sound. I'd really like to downgrade to El Capitan. This is getting frustrating.

  • by db4378,

    db4378 db4378 Oct 8, 2016 6:54 AM in response to ARB-82
    Level 1 (8 points)
    Mac OS X
    Oct 8, 2016 6:54 AM in response to ARB-82

    I have followed advise on one of the forums and ran EtreCheck... would love it if some of you who are more techncial talented could provide feedback and guidance for me please... the spinning ball and response times are driving me around the bend

     

    Thanks...

     

    EtreCheck version: 3.0.6 (315)

    Report generated 2016-10-08 09:44:48

    Download EtreCheck from https://etrecheck.com

    Runtime 4:47

    Performance: Good

     

    Click the [Support] links for help with non-Apple products.

    Click the [Details] links for more information about that line.

     

    Problem: Computer is too slow

     

    Hardware Information: ⓘ

        MacBook Air (13-inch, Early 2015)

        [Technical Specifications] - [User Guide] - [Warranty & Service]

        MacBook Air - model: MacBookAir7,2

        1 1.6 GHz Intel Core i5 CPU: 2-core

        4 GB RAM Not upgradeable

            BANK 0/DIMM0

                2 GB DDR3 1600 MHz ok

            BANK 1/DIMM0

                2 GB DDR3 1600 MHz ok

        Bluetooth: Good - Handoff/Airdrop2 supported

        Wireless:  en0: 802.11 a/b/g/n/ac

        Battery: Health = Normal - Cycle count = 131

     

    Video Information: ⓘ

        Intel HD Graphics 6000

            Color LCD 1280 x 800

     

    System Software: ⓘ

        macOS Sierra  10.12 (16A323) - Time since boot: about one hour

     

    Disk Information: ⓘ

        APPLE SSD SM0128G disk0 : (121.33 GB) (Solid State - TRIM: Yes)

            EFI (disk0s1) <not mounted> : 210 MB

            Recovery HD (disk0s3) <not mounted>  [Recovery]: 650 MB

            Macintosh HD (disk1) /  [Startup]: 120.11 GB (37.83 GB free)

                Encrypted AES-XTS Unlocked

                Core Storage: disk0s2 120.47 GB Online

     

    USB Information: ⓘ

        Apple Inc. BRCM20702 Hub

            Apple Inc. Bluetooth USB Host Controller

        Apple Inc. iPhone

     

    Thunderbolt Information: ⓘ

        Apple Inc. thunderbolt_bus

     

    Gatekeeper: ⓘ

        Mac App Store and identified developers

     

    System Launch Agents: ⓘ

        [not loaded]    6 Apple tasks

        [loaded]    168 Apple tasks

        [running]    64 Apple tasks

        [killed]    33 Apple tasks

        33 processes killed due to insufficient RAM

     

    System Launch Daemons: ⓘ

        [not loaded]    40 Apple tasks

        [loaded]    157 Apple tasks

        [running]    81 Apple tasks

        [killed]    25 Apple tasks

        25 processes killed due to insufficient RAM

     

    Launch Agents: ⓘ

        [running]    com.brother.LOGINserver.plist (2015-10-13) [Support]

     

    Launch Daemons: ⓘ

        [failed]    com.adobe.fpsaud.plist (2016-05-09) [Support]

        [loaded]    com.microsoft.autoupdate.helpertool.plist (2016-08-03) [Support]

        [loaded]    com.microsoft.office.licensingV2.helper.plist (2016-02-12) [Support]

     

    User Launch Agents: ⓘ

        [loaded]    com.citrixonline.GoToMeeting.G2MUpdate.plist (2016-07-13) [Support]

        [loaded]    com.google.keystone.agent.plist (2016-07-11) [Support]

     

    User Login Items: ⓘ

        iTunesHelper    Application  (/Applications/iTunes.app/Contents/MacOS/iTunesHelper.app)

        Dropbox    Application  (/Applications/Dropbox.app)

     

    Internet Plug-ins: ⓘ

        FlashPlayer-10.6: 21.0.0.242 - SDK 10.6 (2016-05-12) [Support]

        QuickTime Plugin: 7.7.3 (2016-09-13)

        Flash Player: 21.0.0.242 - SDK 10.6 (2016-05-12) Outdated! Update

     

    User internet Plug-ins: ⓘ

        CitrixOnlineWebDeploymentPlugin: 1.0.105 (2013-04-25) [Support]

        WebEx64: 1.0 - SDK 10.6 (2016-01-19) [Support]

     

    Safari Extensions: ⓘ

        Instapaper - Instapaper Holdings Inc. - http://www.instapaper.com (2016-04-28)

     

    3rd Party Preference Panes: ⓘ

        Flash Player (2016-05-09) [Support]

     

    Time Machine: ⓘ

        Time Machine not configured!

     

    Top Processes by CPU: ⓘ

            94%    soagent

            90%    callservicesd

            51%    kernel_task

            40%    Google Chrome Helper(12)

             9%    WindowServer

     

    Top Processes by Memory: ⓘ

        729 MB    kernel_task

        299 MB    Google Chrome Helper(12)

        217 MB    callservicesd

        213 MB    soagent

        78 MB    mdworker(9)

     

    Virtual Memory Information: ⓘ

        31 MB    Free RAM

        3.97 GB    Used RAM (258 MB Cached)

        5.00 GB    Swap Used

     

    Diagnostics Information: ⓘ

        Oct 8, 2016, 09:28:39 AM    ~/Library/Logs/DiagnosticReports/syncdefaultsd_2016-10-08-092839_[redacted].cra sh

            /System/Library/PrivateFrameworks/SyncedDefaults.framework/Support/syncdefaults d

        Oct 8, 2016, 08:34:40 AM    ~/Library/Logs/DiagnosticReports/AppleSpell_2016-10-08-083440_[redacted].crash

            com.apple.AppleSpell - /System/Library/Services/AppleSpell.service/Contents/MacOS/AppleSpell

        Oct 8, 2016, 08:28:27 AM    /Library/Logs/DiagnosticReports/soagent_2016-10-08-082827_[redacted].cpu_resour ce.diag [Details]

            /System/Library/PrivateFrameworks/MessagesKit.framework/Resources/soagent.app/C ontents/MacOS/soagent

        Oct 8, 2016, 08:28:27 AM    /Library/Logs/DiagnosticReports/callservicesd_2016-10-08-082827_[redacted].cpu_ resource.diag [Details]

            /System/Library/PrivateFrameworks/TelephonyUtilities.framework/callservicesd

        Oct 8, 2016, 08:25:14 AM    Self test - passed

        Oct 8, 2016, 08:14:28 AM    /Library/Logs/DiagnosticReports/soagent_2016-10-08-081428_[redacted].cpu_resour ce.diag [Details]

            soagent

        Oct 8, 2016, 08:04:48 AM    /Library/Logs/DiagnosticReports/soagent_2016-10-08-080448_[redacted].cpu_resour ce.diag [Details]

        Oct 8, 2016, 03:27:24 AM    /Library/Logs/DiagnosticReports/callservicesd_2016-10-08-032724_[redacted].cpu_ resource.diag [Details]

        Oct 7, 2016, 08:00:25 AM    /Library/Logs/DiagnosticReports/mds_2016-10-07-080025_[redacted].crash

            /System/Library/Frameworks/CoreServices.framework/Versions/A/Frameworks/Metadat a.framework/Versions/A/Support/mds

        Oct 7, 2016, 07:06:11 AM    /Library/Logs/DiagnosticReports/ABAssistantService_2016-10-07-070611_[redacted] .cpu_resource.diag [Details]

            /System/Library/Frameworks/AddressBook.framework/Versions/A/Helpers/ABAssistant Service.app/Contents/MacOS/ABAssistantService

        Oct 7, 2016, 12:29:46 AM    /Library/Logs/DiagnosticReports/callservicesd_2016-10-07-002946_[redacted].cpu_ resource.diag [Details]

        Oct 7, 2016, 12:07:21 AM    /Library/Logs/DiagnosticReports/callservicesd_2016-10-07-000721_[redacted].cpu_ resource.diag [Details]

        Oct 6, 2016, 11:56:56 PM    ~/Library/Logs/DiagnosticReports/AppleSpell_2016-10-06-235656_[redacted].crash

        Oct 6, 2016, 10:20:16 PM    /Library/Logs/DiagnosticReports/callservicesd_2016-10-06-222016_[redacted].cpu_ resource.diag [Details]

        Oct 6, 2016, 09:52:52 PM    /Library/Logs/DiagnosticReports/callservicesd_2016-10-06-215252_[redacted].cpu_ resource.diag [Details]

        Oct 6, 2016, 09:50:56 PM    /Library/Logs/DiagnosticReports/soagent_2016-10-06-215056_[redacted].cpu_resour ce.diag [Details]

        Oct 6, 2016, 09:44:14 PM    /Library/Logs/DiagnosticReports/soagent_2016-10-06-214414_[redacted].cpu_resour ce.diag [Details]

        Oct 6, 2016, 09:37:20 PM    /Library/Logs/DiagnosticReports/soagent_2016-10-06-213720_[redacted].cpu_resour ce.diag [Details]

        Oct 6, 2016, 09:24:04 PM    /Library/Logs/DiagnosticReports/soagent_2016-10-06-212404_[redacted].cpu_resour ce.diag [Details]

        Oct 6, 2016, 09:21:59 PM    /Library/Logs/DiagnosticReports/callservicesd_2016-10-06-212159_[redacted].cpu_ resource.diag [Details]

        Oct 6, 2016, 08:09:20 PM    /Library/Logs/DiagnosticReports/soagent_2016-10-06-200920_[redacted].cpu_resour ce.diag [Details]

        Oct 6, 2016, 02:56:53 PM    /Library/Logs/DiagnosticReports/callservicesd_2016-10-06-145653_[redacted].cpu_ resource.diag [Details]

        Oct 6, 2016, 02:04:29 PM    /Library/Logs/DiagnosticReports/callservicesd_2016-10-06-140429_[redacted].cpu_ resource.diag [Details]

        Oct 6, 2016, 01:11:38 PM    ~/Library/Logs/DiagnosticReports/AppleSpell_2016-10-06-131138_[redacted].crash

        Oct 6, 2016, 01:10:55 PM    /Library/Logs/DiagnosticReports/callservicesd_2016-10-06-131055_[redacted].cpu_ resource.diag [Details]

        Oct 6, 2016, 12:19:26 PM    /Library/Logs/DiagnosticReports/ABAssistantService_2016-10-06-121926_[redacted] .cpu_resource.diag [Details]

        Oct 6, 2016, 12:00:04 PM    /Library/Logs/DiagnosticReports/callservicesd_2016-10-06-120004_[redacted].cpu_ resource.diag [Details]

        Oct 6, 2016, 11:49:04 AM    ~/Library/Logs/DiagnosticReports/cloudd_2016-10-06-114904_[redacted].crash

            /System/Library/PrivateFrameworks/CloudKitDaemon.framework/Support/cloudd

        Oct 6, 2016, 11:44:31 AM    /Library/Logs/DiagnosticReports/Microsoft Outlook_2016-10-06-114431_[redacted].hang

            /Applications/Microsoft Outlook.app/Contents/MacOS/Microsoft Outlook

        Oct 6, 2016, 10:23:50 AM    /Library/Logs/DiagnosticReports/soagent_2016-10-06-102350_[redacted].cpu_resour ce.diag [Details]

        Oct 6, 2016, 10:16:54 AM    /Library/Logs/DiagnosticReports/soagent_2016-10-06-101654_[redacted].cpu_resour ce.diag [Details]

        Oct 6, 2016, 10:11:44 AM    /Library/Logs/DiagnosticReports/soagent_2016-10-06-101144_[redacted].cpu_resour ce.diag [Details]

        Oct 6, 2016, 09:53:39 AM    /Library/Logs/DiagnosticReports/Messages_2016-10-06-095339_[redacted].cpu_resou rce.diag [Details]

            /Applications/Messages.app/Contents/MacOS/Messages

        Oct 6, 2016, 09:47:42 AM    /Library/Logs/DiagnosticReports/soagent_2016-10-06-094742_[redacted].cpu_resour ce.diag [Details]

        Oct 6, 2016, 09:28:23 AM    /Library/Logs/DiagnosticReports/soagent_2016-10-06-092823_[redacted].cpu_resour ce.diag [Details]

        Oct 6, 2016, 09:28:15 AM    /Library/Logs/DiagnosticReports/ABAssistantService_2016-10-06-092815_[redacted] .cpu_resource.diag [Details]

        Oct 6, 2016, 08:59:50 AM    /Library/Logs/DiagnosticReports/callservicesd_2016-10-06-085950_[redacted].cpu_ resource.diag [Details]

  • by macalicious,

    macalicious macalicious Oct 8, 2016 10:37 PM in response to gypsyaura
    Level 1 (4 points)
    Mac OS X
    Oct 8, 2016 10:37 PM in response to gypsyaura

    Same here, this is where I'm at with support :

     

    Safe Mode:

     

    1. Shut down your Mac and wait 10 seconds.

     

    2. Press the power button.

     

    3. Immediately after you hear the startup tone, hold down the Shift key.

    You should press the Shift key as soon as possible after you hear the startup tone, but not before.

     

    4. Release the Shift key when you see the gray Apple logo

     

    To leave safe mode, restart your Mac normally without holding down any keys during startup.

     

     

    SMS Reset”

     

    1 Shut down the Mac.

    2 Plug in the MagSafe or USB-C power adapter to a power source and to your Mac.

    3 Using the built-in keyboard, press Shift-Control-Option on the left side of the keyboard, then press the power button at the same time.

    4 Release all keys, then press the power button again to turn on your Mac

     

    To start your computer from Recovery, restart your Mac and hold down the Command and R keys at startup.

     

    Hold these keys until the Apple logo appears. After your computer finishes starting up, you should see a desktop with an OS X menu bar and an OS X Utilities window with the options listed above. If you see a login window or your own desktop instead of the Utilities window, it's possible that you didn't press Command-R early enough. Restart your computer and try again.


  • by mhutson,Helpful

    mhutson mhutson Oct 11, 2016 8:09 AM in response to mhutson
    Level 1 (13 points)
    Mac OS X
    Oct 11, 2016 8:09 AM in response to mhutson

    I pinpointed my problem to the Logitech Control Center (LCC): https://community.logitech.com/s/question/0D53100005UytQy

     

    They released an update last week and I have not had a problem since.

     

    Though others may have similar problems caused by other things.

  • by Bownse,

    Bownse Bownse Oct 11, 2016 8:39 AM in response to mhutson
    Level 1 (8 points)
    iOS Apps
    Oct 11, 2016 8:39 AM in response to mhutson

    Would this hold true for Logitech Gaming Software? I don't have the LCC software but do have the LGS for controlling features in my G303 mouse.  I deny it access to controlling the OS though.

     

    Just did a search and they don't have anything newer than v8.83.55 for macOS v10.8.x through v10.11.x (August 3/2016 release).

     

    I went ahead and updated it since mine was 8.58.40.  Odd that, out of all the other stuff, they don't have an auto check for updates.

  • by ARB-82,

    ARB-82 ARB-82 Oct 11, 2016 12:14 PM in response to mhutson
    Level 1 (20 points)
    Mac OS X
    Oct 11, 2016 12:14 PM in response to mhutson

    As I said before I have both a MBP 13" and as well as a MBP 15". The latter is with LCC 9.3.5 (latest release), the first without. Both had the exact same problem on several external displays. Removing LCC did not change that for me unfortunately. However, I did have some success with macOS 10.12.1 PB3. Since installing it on the 15" I haven't had a single freeze. The 13" MBP without LCC and macOS 10.12 just froze on me again a couple of hours ago, so I decided to also update it to 10.12.1.

     

    Please be advised that beta's should not be used on production machines. I am not in any way suggesting you should update to the public beta to get rid of the problem, just indicating that 10.12.1 might actually solve the problem.

  • by guy_moreillon,

    guy_moreillon guy_moreillon Oct 15, 2016 5:09 AM in response to mhutson
    Level 1 (14 points)
    Mac OS X
    Oct 15, 2016 5:09 AM in response to mhutson

    I updated LCC and haven't had a crash in a few days. Looks like that's the solution. Thanks

  • by hendrix1975,

    hendrix1975 hendrix1975 Oct 16, 2016 8:23 AM in response to mhutson
    Level 1 (29 points)
    Mac OS X
    Oct 16, 2016 8:23 AM in response to mhutson

    I had the same problem on my late 2009 iMac. I tried everything. EVERYTHING.

    • Reset SMC
    • Run Etrecheck and clean up all the old "junk"
    • Reinstall Sierra three times
    • Boot in safe mode
    • Delete Finder plist files


    It came to the point that Finder was crashing every time my Mac woke up after sleep. The only thing that solved the problem was to do a full system restore from Time Machine back to El Capitan.

  • by ARB-82,

    ARB-82 ARB-82 Oct 17, 2016 4:55 AM in response to ARB-82
    Level 1 (20 points)
    Mac OS X
    Oct 17, 2016 4:55 AM in response to ARB-82

    Unfortunately I have to report the freeze happened again on the MBP 13" just a few minutes ago. I am running PB4, but clearly it has not solved the issue. I have yet to have a freeze with the MBP 15", but I assume this will be just a matter of time.

     

    PS: no external Logitec software/drivers installed at all.

  • by jyaworsky,

    jyaworsky jyaworsky Oct 17, 2016 8:56 AM in response to guy_moreillon
    Level 1 (4 points)
    Oct 17, 2016 8:56 AM in response to guy_moreillon

    Same here. Nothing else worked. Update to the Logitech software did the trick!

  • by Rolltack,

    Rolltack Rolltack Oct 18, 2016 7:40 AM in response to mhutson
    Level 1 (12 points)
    Mac OS X
    Oct 18, 2016 7:40 AM in response to mhutson

    I have been experiencing a very similar issue since I install Sierra on my 2015 13" MBP.  It occurs whether standalone or on my docking station with Monitor, Bluetooth keyboard/track-pad, and external drives connected.

     

    Description of issue:

    1.  If the laptop has been shutdown or in extended "Sleep" (6 hrs +), upon startup  or "awaking, it will go to the login screen and freeze for 5 minutes or so until the login box appears and is accessible.  When attempting to enter password, it will freeze again with initially the spinning ball which then itself freezes. Again after several minutes, the box becomes active and password can be entered and accepted. 

    2.  It will take 3-4 minutes for home screen to fully appear and become accessible.  Initially, only the bottom of the screen with the menu bar is loaded, but is not functional (no response to selecting).  Once the full screen is loaded, the system is usually fully accessible and functional, although on occasion, it will become very sluggish and temporarily freeze.

    3.  At times this process fails and I have to use power button to shutdown and start the process again.  This is repeatable over multiple attempts and days.  I reinstalled Sierra with no change in the issue

     

    This is beyond annoying!

  • by Lvivske,

    Lvivske Lvivske Oct 18, 2016 10:10 AM in response to macalicious
    Level 1 (8 points)
    Mac OS X
    Oct 18, 2016 10:10 AM in response to macalicious

    Personally, I never use Safari so I'd remove that from the diagnosis. Happens to me when just on Chrome or doing other work. Though it was Parallels at first but has happened with that off.

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