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MacBook Freezes and every apps becomes unresponsive

I've this strange issue.

  • While browsing, I suddenly see that the connection is dead.

  • All apps stops working, even Atom Editor where I'm middle of coding and FileZilla, to connect the server.
  • Then, when trying to open any other apps, it shows warning "Apps can't be opened".
  • Suddenly, after sometime, it freezes and have to force restart my MacBook with power button.

This is happening every one or two days after using for some 20-40 hours.

I tried to search about this issue but couldn't find any helpful options.


Any help/suggestion is appreciated.


Here's my LaunchDaemons and LaunchAgents Snippets:



EtreCheck Report attached.


LMK, if further details needed.

MacBook Air 13", macOS 10.15

Posted on Dec 24, 2019 9:47 AM

Reply
Question marked as Top-ranking reply

Posted on Dec 25, 2019 10:06 AM

Unfortunately, I could not access the PDF file. It says "gone." As I stated before, you need to be sure you have no 32-bit processes trying to run. From the first EtreCheck report it seems you are running out of memory which forces the system to swap out memory to the disk. This is not only slower than RAM but also can become corrupted, thus causing crashes.


Meanwhile, you should look through the report as well as the Console app for information that may lead you to what is causing the problem. Also, see the following:


A Troubleshooting Procedure that may Fix Problems with macOS El Capitan or Later


You should try each, one at a time, then test to see if the problem is fixed before going on to the next.


    Be sure to backup your files before proceeding if possible.


  1. Shutdown the computer, wait 30 seconds, restart the computer.
  2. Disconnect all third-party peripherals.
  3. Resetting your Mac's PRAM and NVRAM
  4. Reset the System Management Controller (SMC)
  5. Reset your Startup Disk and Sound preferences, if needed, after resetting the PRAM.
  6. Test in safe mode to see if the problem persists, then restart normally.  Use safe mode to isolate issues with your Mac and Playing Safe - what does Safe mode do?
  7. Repair the disk by booting from the Recovery HD. Immediately after the chime hold down the Command and R keys until the Utility Menu appears. Choose Disk Utility and click on the Continue button. Select the indented (usually, Macintosh HD) volume entry from the side list.  Click on the First Aid button in the toolbar. Wait for the Done button to appear. Quit Disk Utility and return to the Utility Menu. Restart the computer from the Apple Menu.
  8. Repair permissions on the Home folderResolve issues caused by changing the permissions of items in your home folder.
  9. Create a New User Account Open Users & Groups preferences. Click on the lock icon and enter your Admin password when prompted. On the left under Current User click on the Add [+] button under Login Options. Setup a new Admin user account. Upon completion log out of your current account then log into the new account. If your problems cease, then consider switching to the new account and transferring your files to it - Transferring files from one User Account to another.
  10. Reinstall OS X by booting from the Recovery HD using the Command and R keys. When the Utility Menu appears select Install OS X then click on the Continue button.
  11. Erase and Install OS X Restart the computer. Immediately after the chime hold down the Command and R keys until the Apple logo appears. When the Utility Menu appears:


     1. Select Disk Utility from the Utility Menu and click on the Continue button.

     2. When Disk Utility loads select the drive (out-dented entry) from the Device list.

     3. Click on the Erase button in Disk Utility's toolbar. A panel will drop down.

     4. Set the Format type to APFS (for SSDs only) or Mac OS Extended (Journaled.)

     5. Click on the Apply button, then wait for the Done button to activate and click on it.

     6. Quit Disk Utility and return to the Utility Menu.

     7. Select Install OS X and click on the Continue button.


Similar questions

11 replies
Question marked as Top-ranking reply

Dec 25, 2019 10:06 AM in response to mit2sumit

Unfortunately, I could not access the PDF file. It says "gone." As I stated before, you need to be sure you have no 32-bit processes trying to run. From the first EtreCheck report it seems you are running out of memory which forces the system to swap out memory to the disk. This is not only slower than RAM but also can become corrupted, thus causing crashes.


Meanwhile, you should look through the report as well as the Console app for information that may lead you to what is causing the problem. Also, see the following:


A Troubleshooting Procedure that may Fix Problems with macOS El Capitan or Later


You should try each, one at a time, then test to see if the problem is fixed before going on to the next.


    Be sure to backup your files before proceeding if possible.


  1. Shutdown the computer, wait 30 seconds, restart the computer.
  2. Disconnect all third-party peripherals.
  3. Resetting your Mac's PRAM and NVRAM
  4. Reset the System Management Controller (SMC)
  5. Reset your Startup Disk and Sound preferences, if needed, after resetting the PRAM.
  6. Test in safe mode to see if the problem persists, then restart normally.  Use safe mode to isolate issues with your Mac and Playing Safe - what does Safe mode do?
  7. Repair the disk by booting from the Recovery HD. Immediately after the chime hold down the Command and R keys until the Utility Menu appears. Choose Disk Utility and click on the Continue button. Select the indented (usually, Macintosh HD) volume entry from the side list.  Click on the First Aid button in the toolbar. Wait for the Done button to appear. Quit Disk Utility and return to the Utility Menu. Restart the computer from the Apple Menu.
  8. Repair permissions on the Home folderResolve issues caused by changing the permissions of items in your home folder.
  9. Create a New User Account Open Users & Groups preferences. Click on the lock icon and enter your Admin password when prompted. On the left under Current User click on the Add [+] button under Login Options. Setup a new Admin user account. Upon completion log out of your current account then log into the new account. If your problems cease, then consider switching to the new account and transferring your files to it - Transferring files from one User Account to another.
  10. Reinstall OS X by booting from the Recovery HD using the Command and R keys. When the Utility Menu appears select Install OS X then click on the Continue button.
  11. Erase and Install OS X Restart the computer. Immediately after the chime hold down the Command and R keys until the Apple logo appears. When the Utility Menu appears:


     1. Select Disk Utility from the Utility Menu and click on the Continue button.

     2. When Disk Utility loads select the drive (out-dented entry) from the Device list.

     3. Click on the Erase button in Disk Utility's toolbar. A panel will drop down.

     4. Set the Format type to APFS (for SSDs only) or Mac OS Extended (Journaled.)

     5. Click on the Apply button, then wait for the Done button to activate and click on it.

     6. Quit Disk Utility and return to the Utility Menu.

     7. Select Install OS X and click on the Continue button.


Dec 28, 2019 10:21 AM in response to Kappy

Hello again @Kappy.

In the past couple of days the issue happened thrice and I had to force restart all those time.

On following your suggestions, I tried Troubleshooting the steps from 1 to 5 and then on 6, I booted on safe mode. However, I couldn't wait for the issue to be tracked/replicated as safe mode is very slow to use and I need browsing and run developing apps for my work. I then didn't thought to followup other steps (specially 9, 10 and 11) as all of them are just basic troubleshoot method. I can't risk my work and time and I know it won't going to fix. Because, I've already tried updating my OS X from 10.15.1 to 10.15.2 and even during update, the issue doesn't get fixed.


I wonder, if you can suggest me with something that I could try to trace the issue in more proper way.

Thanks.



Dec 30, 2019 10:16 AM in response to mit2sumit

This is not Apple Support. I do not have access to the 100 or so helpers that may stumble onto your posted problem.


FYI: These are user-only forums. You are not speaking to Apple. if you need to speak with Apple Support, then contact product and tech support:  Contacting Apple for support and service including international calling numbers.


Thank you for your understanding and support.

Dec 24, 2019 12:26 PM in response to mit2sumit

You have one 32-bit app still installed - may be Flash and/or something else. You cannot run 32-bit apps in Catalina.


You haven't sufficient RAM - only 4GBs installed. To run all the apps you have running contiguously requires more RAM. If you cannot upgrade the RAM, then reduce the workload to one or two apps.


I assume you did not bother to read or check the output of your EtreCheck report. It has so many unprintable characters as to make it difficult to read.

Dec 24, 2019 11:24 PM in response to Kappy

Thanks @Kappy for your quick response.


I removed/uninstalled Flash Player and some unwanted Adobe Apps.


Yes, I can't upgrade the RAM, but, I don't think this issue is related to it. Its all of sudden happening since 20-30 days and I've updated to Catalina earlier, during its release, itself.


I guess, its somekind of malware that gets installed when I was playing with some cracked version of Mac Apps. I'll wait for couple of days now and let you know if the problem persists.


Also, Here's new EtreCheck report in pdf. Please let me know, how to remove the highlighted app mentioned in that report.


Thank You!


P.S. Sorry, I didn't checked the EtreCheck report earlier after uploading and so was not sure of its unreadable characters showing. You can check it by downloading, it's a text file. 😊

Dec 28, 2019 8:00 PM in response to mit2sumit

I don't see anything in the Etrecheck report that would indicate a problem other than what I've posted earlier.


Check that Skype and Chrome are current, although I would suggest trying to use Safari rather than Chrome. Only use Skype when connecting with Windows users, otherwise use FaceTime. Both of those apps are known to cause problems for macOS.


Read through the Etrecheck report. It's pretty understandable when pointing out possible areas of concern. However, it's a moment in time snapshot. It can't catch an adverse event unless you run it as the bad event occurs. I don't think that's possible.


It seems you have insufficient RAM for all the software you run concurrently. This results in running out of memory forcing the OS to use disk space in lieu of RAM. This can cause slowdowns and other glitches that may cause the computer to be unresponsive or to crash. You cannot add RAM to the computer, so you need to reduce the number of concurrent apps/add-ons running in order to stop the system having to page memory to the disk. It's also possible that the temporary use of disk space causes a severe shortage of disk space leading to crashes.


If you are unable to devote the time for tracing all of this, then the next best thing would be to take it in to the Apple retailer for help. But you would then need another computer to use during the time it takes for repair.


When you run Etrecheck you get a report on the computer with lots of additional information that isn't included in the report such as indications about a problem and information about where the problem may be and how to fix it. I don't know what more to suggest.

Dec 30, 2019 9:40 AM in response to Kappy

Hello again,


First off, though it shows "4GB RAM" and it does seems low memory in todays context, but I can assure you, I'm very much aware of not running multiple apps at same time. My habit of using apps is very much restrained. Also, the issue occurs, even I just restart MacBook and plays iTunes and then keep the screen locked for quite a long time. It just happens all of sudden when basic browsing, after wake up.


Please don't suggest me to switch to Safari and FaceTime from Chrome and Skype. I'm myself a proud Apple user but, I doubt on those apps, both still needs to be improved.


I read the additional informations and must of them are premium service, which I don't know if its worth to try. Not sure, if how authentic they are.


If you don't have any more options to look for, I'd appreciate if you can ask some of your other support personnel to see if they can get better alternatives and have their thoughts on this.


(P.S. While writing this comment, I've already got this issue again. So, what's happening right now is, I'm unable to open new tabs (tabs are showing dead favicon). Then, none of other apps opens. It's just the existing website/tabs can be refreshed/reloaded. I don't have any other apps running, except Chrome with 4 tabs. I can't even take screenshots or check how the RAM/memory is behaving right now. So strange!!!)

Dec 30, 2019 10:25 AM in response to Kappy

Sorry Kappy,

I might have hurt you with my above messages, but my intention was just meant to ask for help.

I really appreciate your time and effort in reading through my problems and making prompt response all the time. I can understand, it's hard to engage users these days, in forums like these, to answer to the questions or issues of ours and you among few, is really doing a great job.

Please carry on your good work!


I'm really sorry for misunderstanding.

Thanks again for your support.

Dec 30, 2019 12:03 PM in response to mit2sumit

Not at all. You thought this was Apple Support; it's an honest mistake. You did not hurt my feelings in the least. I wish that I could help you more but it seems that I haven't quite nailed your problem. I have provided you with what I know about kernel panics and found in your Etrecheck report. Unfortunately, nothing helped identify what is going on. I commented on the RAM situation because I noted what processes seemed to be running and that the OS was using VM swap on the disk which indicates the system was out of RAM and was paging memory out in larger than normal size. But you said you watched what you loaded to not overtax memory. At this point the only other thing I haven't seen is the full kernel panic log in case it may offer some additional clues.


In any event, since I cannot really be of much more help, have a Happy New Year. Perhaps another helper will see this question is still unsolved and provide better help.

MacBook Freezes and every apps becomes unresponsive

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