Mojave Spinning Multi-Color Pizza of Death

I only recently "upgraded" to Mojave. Since, I've frequently gotten the spinning multi-color pizza/wheel of death. Seems to happen most often with Safari.


My processors aren't overloaded. My RAM isn't taxed. I have plenty of disk space.


I also noticed that when I get the SMCPoD, that if I select another application and switch back, sometimes the locked up page clears. It's as if context switching, from one app to another, helps clear up the problem... temporarily.


This has become such a nuisance, I am seriously considering downgrading back to High Sierra.


I usually update the MacOS an iteration (or a year) behind, just to let all the bugs get sorted out - but in this case, it appears I haven't waited long enough.


Any insights to possible causes?

MacBook Pro 13", macOS 10.14

Posted on Nov 18, 2019 2:17 PM

Reply
Question marked as Top-ranking reply

Posted on Dec 12, 2019 11:51 PM

If the problem appears to be isolated to Safari here are a few fundamental troubleshooting steps that may help. Some of the information will be redundant but review everything to determine if there is something you may have overlooked. Recommendations to remove all non-Apple "anti-virus" products remain.



If you don't get anywhere, you can use the following procedure to determine if the problem is internal or external to your Mac. Causes may involve your router, your ISP, the DNS Server(s) it uses, or certain user-configurable options.


  1. Shut down your Mac.
  2. Load macOS Recovery by holding and r (two fingers) while you start your Mac with a third finger.
  3. At the macOS Utilities screen, release those two fingers.
  4. Choose Get Help Online.
  5. Safari will launch, but it will lack your bookmarks, favorites, history and other preferences.


Determine if the problem persists while using Safari in that mode. After that, restart your Mac normally, and reply with your observations.

5 replies
Question marked as Top-ranking reply

Dec 12, 2019 11:51 PM in response to ktame

If the problem appears to be isolated to Safari here are a few fundamental troubleshooting steps that may help. Some of the information will be redundant but review everything to determine if there is something you may have overlooked. Recommendations to remove all non-Apple "anti-virus" products remain.



If you don't get anywhere, you can use the following procedure to determine if the problem is internal or external to your Mac. Causes may involve your router, your ISP, the DNS Server(s) it uses, or certain user-configurable options.


  1. Shut down your Mac.
  2. Load macOS Recovery by holding and r (two fingers) while you start your Mac with a third finger.
  3. At the macOS Utilities screen, release those two fingers.
  4. Choose Get Help Online.
  5. Safari will launch, but it will lack your bookmarks, favorites, history and other preferences.


Determine if the problem persists while using Safari in that mode. After that, restart your Mac normally, and reply with your observations.

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Mojave Spinning Multi-Color Pizza of Death

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