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User profile for user: glennoearwig32
glennoearwig32 Author
User level: Level 1
6 points

Unstable USB after downgrading to Mojave

I am having issues with my Macbook pro 2.3 GHz Intel Core i7, 2012 model, with 16 GB 1600 MHz DDR3, NVIDIA GeForce GT 650M, running OS Mojave 10.14.6 and USB 2.0


A few days ago I downgraded from Catalina to Mojave due to hardware issues (could not run Catalina without crashing, lagging and graphics card issues) , and I am now experiencing temporary freezing on connected external USB drives. When accessing the drives it can take up to a minute to display the contents, and when viewing videos stored on the drives they randomly freeze for 30 sec to a minute before continuing playback. When saving large files I regularly experience disk freezing and disks ejecting mid transfer. Disks then remount themselves after a few minutes. These are not issues I experienced with Catalina or any previous OS, it began specifically after the downgrade.


MacBook Pro 15", macOS 10.14

Posted on Feb 12, 2020 9:46 PM

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User profile for user: Ingo2711
Ingo2711
User level: Level 9
70,149 points

Feb 13, 2020 4:34 AM in response to glennoearwig32

You can do that as a second step, but the macOS will test some things automatically:

...

Safe mode (sometimes called safe boot) is a way to start up your Mac so that it performs certain checks and prevents some software from automatically loading or opening. Starting your Mac in safe mode does the following:

  • Verifies your startup disk and attempts to repair directory issues, if needed
  • Loads only required kernel extensions
  • Prevents startup items and login items from opening automatically
  • Disables user-installed fonts 
  • Deletes font caches, kernel cache, and other system cache files

If your Mac has an issue that goes away when you start up in safe mode, you might be able to isolate the cause.

...

copied from the article mentioned above

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User profile for user: Ingo2711
Ingo2711
User level: Level 9
70,149 points

Feb 13, 2020 12:32 PM in response to glennoearwig32

Did you already check this article?

...

How to turn off a firmware password

  1. Start up from macOS Recovery: Press and hold Command (⌘)-R immediately after turning on your Mac, and release the keys when you see the lock icon  and password field.
  2. Enter the firmware password.
  3. When the Utilities window appears, click Utilities in the menu bar, then choose Firmware Password Utility or Startup Security Utility.
  4. Click Turn Off Firmware Password.
  5. Enter the firmware password again when prompted.
  6. Quit the utility, then choose Apple () menu > Restart.

...


copied from: How to set a firmware password on your Mac – Apple Support

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User profile for user: glennoearwig32
glennoearwig32 Author
User level: Level 1
6 points

Feb 13, 2020 12:03 PM in response to Ingo2711

ok, Mac failed to reboot into safe mode when restarting with shift held down, so I checked why this might be. Two reasons were give, either FileVault was turned on or there was a firmware password that needed to be turned off, either of which could prevent safe mode. Filevault is not turned on, but when restarting with command-R held down as requested to disable firmware password I was presented with a login pane which only accepted my old FileVault password and presented me with disk utility. Nowhere was there any way to turn off a firmware password, if there was even one activated. So now I am just confused.

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Unstable USB after downgrading to Mojave

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