My Mac Pro spontaneously restarts

My Mac Pro just started doing this too. I'm adding my name here and reposting to keep the thread current. Any reliable help?

OK, I'm back, with a fresh nose dive. After my last one, I reset the SMC controller as per the instructions here:

http://support.apple.com/kb/ht3964

It seemed to be OK for a few days until tonight.... another instant shutdown. Here's the last bits of a crash report. The crash was circa 6:54. Is there anything in here that suggest software vs. hardware? Any thoughts, suggestions?


10/7/10 6:36:26 AM PreferenceSyncClient[2372] Preference plist was NOT a dictionary.
10/7/10 6:36:26 AM PreferenceSyncClient[2372] Preference plist was NOT a dictionary.
10/7/10 6:53:38 PM com.apple.launchd[1] * launchd[1] has started up. *
10/7/10 6:54:19 PM com.apple.launchd.peruser.501[99] (com.apple.ReportCrash) Falling back to default Mach exception handler. Could not find: com.apple.ReportCrash.Self
10/7/10 6:54:28 PM com.apple.launchd.peruser.501[99] (com.apple.Kerberos.renew.plist[116]) Exited with exit code: 1
10/7/10 6:54:38 PM com.apple.launchd[1] (com.wacom.pentablet[94]) Exit timeout elapsed (20 seconds). Killing
10/7/10 6:54:38 PM com.apple.launchd[1] (com.wacom.pentablet[94]) Job has overstayed its welcome. Forcing removal.
10/7/10 6:54:38 PM com.apple.launchd[1] (com.wacom.pentablet) Bug: launchd corelogic.c:1114 (24108):0
10/7/10 6:54:51 PM com.apple.ReportCrash.Root[102] 2010-10-07 18:54:51.761 ReportCrash[102:2803] Saved crash report for PenTabletDriver[94] version ??? (???) to /Library/Logs/DiagnosticReports/PenTabletDriver 2010-10-07-185451localhost.crash
10/7/10 6:54:59 PM com.wacom.pentablet[119] TabletDriver[119]: Finish launching /Library/Application Support/Tablet/PenTabletDriver.app/Contents/Resources/ConsumerTouchDriver.app
10/7/10 6:55:00 PM com.wacom.pentablet[119] TabletDriver[119]: Finish launching /Library/Application Support/Tablet/PenTabletDriver.app/Contents/Resources/TabletDriver.app
10/7/10 6:58:07 PM com.apple.WindowServer[78] Thu Oct 7 18:58:07 macpro WindowServer[78] <Error>: kCGErrorFailure: Set a breakpoint @ CGErrorBreakpoint() to catch errors as they are logged.
10/7/10 6:59:28 PM Safari[163] CFPropertyListCreateFromXMLData(): Old-style plist parser: missing semicolon in dictionary.
10/7/10 6:59:28 PM Safari[163] CFPropertyListCreateFromXMLData(): Old-style plist parser: missing semicolon in dictionary.

I've had this random restarting issue for about 6 months. Sometimes it's fine for several weeks and then the restarts start again. Usually the problem is first thing in the morning and eventually goes away.

I've tried various things but not the resetting of the energy saver settings, so I'll report back.

Same issues here with my Mac Pro at work. Ideas?


Interval Since Last Panic Report: 2241979 sec
Panics Since Last Report: 1

Mon Nov 1 09:53:44 2010
Machine-check capabilities (cpu 0) 0x0000000000000806:
family: 6 model: 15 stepping: 11 microcode: 180
Intel(R) Xeon(R) CPU X5365 @ 3.00GHz
6 error-reporting banks
threshold-based error status present
Machine-check status 0x0000000000000005:
restart IP valid
machine-check in progress
MCA error-reporting registers:
IA32 MC0STATUS(0x401): 0x1000000020000000 invalid
IA32 MC1STATUS(0x405): 0x0000000000000000 invalid
IA32 MC2STATUS(0x409): 0x0000000000000000 invalid
IA32 MC3STATUS(0x40d): 0x0020000000000000 invalid
IA32 MC4STATUS(0x411): 0x0000000000000011 invalid
IA32 MC5STATUS(0x415): 0xb200001084200e0f valid
MCA error code: 0x0e0f
Model specific error code: 0x8420
Other information: 0x00000010
Threshold-based status: No tracking
Status bits:
Processor context corrupt
Error enabled
Uncorrected error
panic(cpu 6 caller 0x2a7c84): Machine Check at 0x011f4421, thread:0x134b23d4, trapno:0x12, err:0x0,registers:
CR0: 0x8001003b, CR2: 0x14356868, CR3: 0x00100000, CR4: 0x00000660
EAX: 0x00000000, EBX: 0x0ce0ecc0, ECX: 0x00000001, EDX: 0x00000000
ESP: 0x85003b00, EBP: 0x85003b38, ESI: 0x0cdd2000, EDI: 0x011ffbe8
EFL: 0x00000006, EIP: 0x011f4421

Backtrace (CPU 6), Frame : Return Address (4 potential args on stack)
0x7bc79fb8 : 0x21b455 (0x5cf328 0x7bc79fec 0x2238b1 0x0)
0x7bc7a008 : 0x2a7c84 (0x591330 0x59141d 0x11f4421 0x134b23d4)
0x7bc7a0f8 : 0x29f912 (0x1 0x3c3e676e 0x3e79656b 0x2e6d6f63)
0x85003b38 : 0x11e9fc0 (0x7bb860a4 0x1 0xcdd2000 0x0)
0x85003c28 : 0x11eb51c (0xc7ac1a2b 0x800001c1 0x0 0x0)
0x85003ce8 : 0x2a9a88 (0xffffffff 0x7fffffff 0x10 0x286)
0x85003d08 : 0x2256d2 (0x0 0xc6f8bb40 0x1c1 0x7bb95488)
0x85003d68 : 0x2264bc (0x1 0x134b23d4 0xcdfec58 0x23
Model: MacPro2,1, BootROM MP21.007F.B08, 8 processors, Quad-Core Intel Xeon, 3 GHz, 8 GB, SMC 1.15f3
Graphics: NVIDIA GeForce 7300 GT, NVIDIA GeForce 7300 GT, PCIe, 256 MB
Memory Module: global_name
AirPort: spairport wireless_card_type_airportextreme (0x14E4, 0x87), Broadcom BCM43xx 1.0 (5.10.91.27)
Bluetooth: Version 2.3.3f8, 2 service, 12 devices, 1 incoming serial ports
Network Service: Ethernet 1, Ethernet, en0
PCI Card: NVIDIA GeForce 7300 GT, Display, Slot-1
Serial ATA Device: ST3250820AS P, 232.89 GB
Parallel ATA Device: OPTIARC DVD RW AD-7170A
USB Device: USB2.0 Hub Controller, 0x0409 (NEC Corporation), 0x0058, 0xfd400000
USB Device: Bluetooth USB Host Controller, 0x05ac (Apple Inc.), 0x8206, 0x5d200000
USB Device: Hub in Apple Pro Keyboard, 0x05ac (Apple Inc.), 0x1003, 0x3d100000
USB Device: Dell USB Optical Mouse, 0x413c (Dell Inc.), 0x3012, 0x3d120000
USB Device: Apple Pro Keyboard, 0x05ac (Apple Inc.), 0x020b, 0x3d130000
FireWire Device: built-in_hub, Up to 800 Mb/sec

Hi folks. Registered so I can add my experience here. Tried everything suggested and problem won't go away. Sometimes I get multiple restarts in a row, occasionally with fans kicking-off at nearly 3000rpm. Sometimes okay for a couple of weeks then problem starts again. New installed drive with fresh install of OSX 10.5.8 didn't help.

stevenaps - you mentioned on March 1 that you were going to have your PSU replaced, but you never got back here (as promised) to let everyone know whether that fixed it. Did that fix it for you (or anyone else)?

thanks

Hi all,
this problem is really serious and I hope for a signal from Apple as soon as possible.
I have an early 2008 mac pro with 10.6.5, but the 10.5.x is affected too, although I don't remember the exact version number that introduced the bug.
I've noted some of interesting: when I plug a USB connector on the back of my mac, a restart suddenly happens.
It's the same for you?
Power management is strongly suspect...

Hi chaoticModels

Yes that happened for me too recently, i.e. I got a restart when I plugged in a USB device.

I find it really strange that I can get quite a few restarts in quick succession, usually in the morning when I switch on, and it then usually settles down with no problem, sometimes for a few weeks, sometimes for a day or two ... and then the problem can start again!

Also, this thread start in July 2009 and we still have no explanation or solution for this.

Apple, are you there? Do you care?

Contact AppleCare; we're all just fellow users here.

Add me to the list. This has been happening for me since mid-2009. It is almost always within 2-20 minutes after waking from sleep or starting up. No blue screen or kernel panic, just an immediate restart. Sometimes the computer restarts completely, other times it gets stuck on the restart cycle and I have to manually power off.

I took it in to Apple, they couldn't find a problem.

I went to TekServe and the tech said there was faulty RAM. I replaced the RAM and everything was OK for about 9 months. Now it has started happening again.

I wonder now if the problem wasn't actually the RAM but maybe the tech did something like re-setting the preferences or settings that caused the problem to go away for a while.

Amazing that the problem seems quite widespread and there is still no acknowledgment or fix from Apple. Of course, I'm out of warranty now.

Did you buy your Mac Pro 2008 before, or after, the firmware updates were provided to deal with this? there was back then (March-April '08) widespread wake from sleep, such that folks disabled sleep.

There was I think an EFI update as well as SMC one.

2008 was the first time Apple used the EFI64 (Unified EFI 2.x), probably not but maybe just getting the bugs out, too.

And yes, RAM can do mischief. Sometimes show up as half (marginal and need to be replaced, though in some cases, a clean install - perhaps corrupt file). Even though it is ECC you can still write a file with bad values.

Apple's RAM has 1 yr, and I replaced mine after 2nd year. Crucial (Micron), Kingston and top tier memory.

FBDIMMs run hot, and keeping 3 fans running even 400 rpm higher can help a lot to keep them cooler (cooler = longer better life).

I bought the computer before the firmware updates were provided, and subsequently installed the updates back when they were available.

My issue has never been wake from sleep, it's been as described elsewhere on this thread -- spontaneous restart soon after waking the computer from sleep (presumably when everything is cool).

I'm lucky that I still have a couple of months left on my Applecare extended warranty, and my machine will go in for repair next week.

What concerns me is that when I phoned Apple they didn't know what the cause might be. Thanks to suggestions on this thread I had already tried everything Apple suggested, and more. The guy I spoke to ended up learning a lot more from me than visa-versa.

I was hoping that Apple would have a central data-base of all repairs ever done, so that a likely cause could be pinpointed. Unfortunately that was not the case.

Now I fear that it'll come back from 'repair' and the problem will resurface again .. maybe months later ... and I will be out of warranty.

Are there not consumer rights (in UK at least) that covers us for design faults even after warranties have expired? I guess that a 'design fault' would be hard to prove, and I wonder how sympathetic Apple might be to this kind of claim?

There must be someone who can explain how/why these restarts can happen a few times in quick succession ( usually soon after the first switching-on for the day), and then not happen again perhaps for days, weeks or months .. ?

Occasionally, I also get a freeze in the middle of the restart, and have to force the power off. And sometimes, as mentioned, I also get the fans kick in at nearly 5000rpm in conjunction with a random restart.

The very first reply to this thread suggested that replacing the motherboard or PSU might be solve the problem. Can anyone who has actually tried that (and I know there has been at least one person here who has) please report back as to whether that worked?

That is what I meant by a sleep issue, instant restart on wake.

Yours is different in not being immediate.

The problem I suppose was/is more about PSU and power, and the issue with inrush current described more often when talking about UPS and how large is needed. These systems do have excessive draw or inrush on waking.

@zoomyzoomy,

I have had every problem you describe:

these restarts can happen a few times in quick succession ( usually soon after the first switching-on for the day);

Occasionally, I also get a freeze in the middle of the restart, and have to force the power off

sometimes, as mentioned, I also get the fans kick in at nearly 5000rpm in conjunction with a random restart.

When I took my machine into the Apple store last year, they were able to reproduce the problem but unable to determine that anything was wrong. They ran several days of hardware tests with no problem.

@The hatter,

I just spoke to an Apple support person who was very nice and checked with his supervisor, but neither of them were familiar with the problem. I pointed him to this thread and he mentioned something similar to what you said about power. He said something about the capacitor needing more power upon first waking up, but was unable to offer any specific help other than to take it into the store again (not a trivial matter with this machine).

I would say you are better off with:

1500VA using pure sine wave output - APC and CyberPower both have those.

an electrician - to see if you are getting and providing proper current, and not sharing or using other equipment on the same circuit that might interfere.

I added two outlets just to my 'office' - and was told my circuit breaker can't take any more for what I have coming in.

You can look for threads on UPS, and check Wikipedia on what it has to say about what an inrush current is. Plus there are some people here and tech articles.

http://www.jetcafe.org/npc/doc/ups-faq.html
http://web.me.com/pondini/AppleTips/UPS.html
http://forums.macrumors.com/showthread.php?t=692097
http://nam-en.apc.com/app/answers/detail/a_id/727/kw/line%20conditioner
http://nam-en.apc.com/app/answers/detail/a_id/1493/kw/sine%20wave
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Inrush_current