Assistance with intermittent Kernel Panic at startup (Mid 2011 21.5" iMac)

This Mid 2011 21.5" iMac will frequently kernel panic at startup and then boot properly. I have not experienced any unexpected shutdowns once the unit boots up. I have ran Apple's EFI memory testing in loop with no failures, and done a full reformat and reinstall of the OS. I have attached 5 panic logs as additional text. There are multiple and the kernel extensions in the backtrace vary. Last loaded kext varies as well. I can post more if requested. Thank you for your time.


If it helps at all, I was restarting the device multiple times attempting to recreate the issue and one time when it booted it made an extremely loud white noise mixed in with the boot chime. I force shut it down.



Posted on Feb 21, 2020 1:05 PM

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Question marked as Top-ranking reply

Posted on Feb 21, 2020 7:32 PM

I'm leaning towards a hardware failure.


No 3rd party kernel extensions (#1 cause of kernel panics, and you do not have any to blame)


The panic reports that have text in the kernel backtrace are occurring in different areas of the kernel, which implies it is not software related (implies does not totally eliminate software, just means in my opinion it is less likely).


Do you have any 3rd party RAM installed? 3rd party RAM is the 2nd most likely cause of kernel panics. It is a distant 2nd to 3rd party kernel extensions, but still shows up enough to make me ask if you have 3rd party RAM installed. HOWEVER, the panic signature is not typical of bad RAM.


You can run Rember over night to see if finds anything bad with your RAM

<http://www.kelleycomputing.net/rember/>

.

Quit as many apps and background tasks as you can (such as menu bar items) so more RAM is available for testing.  Booting into Safe mode <http://support.apple.com/kb/ht1564> can also free up more RAM for testing, by not loading any 3rd party additions you may have installed.

.

Set Loops: [X] Maximum

and run overnight


#3 on the list of kernel panic causes is a broken USB device or just a broken USB cable. This could be a USB keyboard, a USB mouse, a USB HUB, a USB disk (or their cables).


It is generally easy to unplug external disks, printers, etc... for awhile. But if you have a wired USB keyboard or mouse, I hope you have other keyboard or mice you can use for a test period to eliminate that they are broken.


HOWEVER, if it is a broken USB device, then the kernel backtrace generally always shows that the panic is in the USB drivers, and you do not have any backtraces that point to a USB device.


You are making this difficult? 😀


Did you replace your boot device? Maybe with an SSD? Something that turns up enough to stick in my memory is that it seems replacing the internal boot device sometimes damages the SATA cable from the motherboard to the storage device. This can generate random panics because you never know when reading from the storage device will corrupt some data passing over the SATA cable.


After that we are left with some motherboard failure.


If you think it might be software, then you could backup your Mac (2 or more backups, using 2 or more backup utilities, going to 2 or more backup devices, because I'm paranoid about my data, and I think everyone should be just a paranoid). Then do a clean install of macOS and then when the clean install is starting up and asks if you have any data to restore, put at one of your backups and allow it to return you personal data and apps.


See if that stabilizes your system.


If you think hardware, you could try the user run-able hardware diagnostics

https://support.apple.com/en-us/HT202731


Or consider making a Genius Bar appointment at your local Apple Store (or authorized Apple Service Provider) and get your Mac checked out. They have some more detailed hardware diagnostics available to them.

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2 replies
Question marked as Top-ranking reply

Feb 21, 2020 7:32 PM in response to jdzindzio

I'm leaning towards a hardware failure.


No 3rd party kernel extensions (#1 cause of kernel panics, and you do not have any to blame)


The panic reports that have text in the kernel backtrace are occurring in different areas of the kernel, which implies it is not software related (implies does not totally eliminate software, just means in my opinion it is less likely).


Do you have any 3rd party RAM installed? 3rd party RAM is the 2nd most likely cause of kernel panics. It is a distant 2nd to 3rd party kernel extensions, but still shows up enough to make me ask if you have 3rd party RAM installed. HOWEVER, the panic signature is not typical of bad RAM.


You can run Rember over night to see if finds anything bad with your RAM

<http://www.kelleycomputing.net/rember/>

.

Quit as many apps and background tasks as you can (such as menu bar items) so more RAM is available for testing.  Booting into Safe mode <http://support.apple.com/kb/ht1564> can also free up more RAM for testing, by not loading any 3rd party additions you may have installed.

.

Set Loops: [X] Maximum

and run overnight


#3 on the list of kernel panic causes is a broken USB device or just a broken USB cable. This could be a USB keyboard, a USB mouse, a USB HUB, a USB disk (or their cables).


It is generally easy to unplug external disks, printers, etc... for awhile. But if you have a wired USB keyboard or mouse, I hope you have other keyboard or mice you can use for a test period to eliminate that they are broken.


HOWEVER, if it is a broken USB device, then the kernel backtrace generally always shows that the panic is in the USB drivers, and you do not have any backtraces that point to a USB device.


You are making this difficult? 😀


Did you replace your boot device? Maybe with an SSD? Something that turns up enough to stick in my memory is that it seems replacing the internal boot device sometimes damages the SATA cable from the motherboard to the storage device. This can generate random panics because you never know when reading from the storage device will corrupt some data passing over the SATA cable.


After that we are left with some motherboard failure.


If you think it might be software, then you could backup your Mac (2 or more backups, using 2 or more backup utilities, going to 2 or more backup devices, because I'm paranoid about my data, and I think everyone should be just a paranoid). Then do a clean install of macOS and then when the clean install is starting up and asks if you have any data to restore, put at one of your backups and allow it to return you personal data and apps.


See if that stabilizes your system.


If you think hardware, you could try the user run-able hardware diagnostics

https://support.apple.com/en-us/HT202731


Or consider making a Genius Bar appointment at your local Apple Store (or authorized Apple Service Provider) and get your Mac checked out. They have some more detailed hardware diagnostics available to them.

Feb 21, 2020 1:10 PM in response to jdzindzio

Dealing with Kernel Panics


Disconnect any third-party peripherals including any USB hubs. Use safe mode to isolate issues with your Mac - Apple Support then boot the computer into Safe Mode: Use safe mode to isolate issues with your Mac - Apple Support and Playing Safe- what does Safe mode do? See Diagnosing problems- crash, freeze, panic, or spinning beach ball?, Don’t Panic! Understanding & Troubleshooting Kernel Panics in macOSHow to fix kernel panics after installing OS X updates | MacIssues, and If your Mac restarted because of a problem - Apple Support.


Kernel panics are indicative of possible hardware failure, so you should Check your Mac with hardware diagnostics or AHT. Kernel panic logs are found in: /Library/Logs/DiagnosticReports/ folder.


If you have no success figuring what is happening then you may need to examine the software you have running when the panics occur. Be sure it’s all current. If you must to resolve the problem erase the disk and reinstall macOS. Follow this outline to reset the computer to the factory-new state: Factory reset of your Mac - Apple Support.


Boot Into Safe Mode


  1. If your Mac isn’t already shut down, then shut it down and wait at least 30 seconds before rebooting.
  2. Immediately, at or before the chime, press and hold down the SHIFT key. 
  3. Release the key after the Apple logo and progress bar appear.
  4. Safe mode startup is much slower than normal startup, so be patient.
  5. When the Login Screen appears enter your admin password. If you use automatic login, then this means you are in safe mode.


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Assistance with intermittent Kernel Panic at startup (Mid 2011 21.5" iMac)

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