My MacBook restart itself once a day, randomly

(First of all, I'm lucky to have a MacBook. Why? Because it is 8 years old and only now starting to make troubles, and because if PC would have restart itself once a day all my work would have gone forever. macOS kind enough the restart itself from the point we left off)


It's two months now since the first time. In the beginning, it was twice a day or even more, but now it's barely once a day. When my Mac reset itself the next screen is appearing:




Then the Apple logo is showing up, then the Log In screen, but after one sec the Apple logo sowing up again and just then everything is back to normal. At first, I thought its because of a program called BOINC, but it is not.


But Apple Support recommended me to reinstall macOS, but I can't because I don't have a backup device. I've bought AirPort Time Machine throw friends in the US but they are stack there in the meantime and I don't want to buy another backup device at the same price again. Also, I've tried to check via Terminal what was the last action before resetting but the code AS were giving me hasn't shown up anything. Console didn't help either.


So, can someone help me find what causes the reset, and if it's not an app but the macOS, how can I reinstall it without hurting my precious files?

MacBook Pro 13″, macOS 10.15

Posted on Aug 23, 2020 12:57 PM

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Question marked as Top-ranking reply

Posted on Aug 23, 2020 1:28 PM

You have experienced a kernel panic. Kernel panics are usually, but not always, a hardware problem. In your case, you say this does not happen frequently. Do you remember what software you were using when the panic does occur? You could post one or two recent kernel panic logs. 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.


The only way to save your files is if the computer can be used long enough for you to backup. If you cannot backup, then your data will be lost because recovery is a destructive process. You can try booting into Safe Mode which might prevent the recurrence of the panic:


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.


If you are able to do an erase and install, then please provide me with the exact MBP model you have. To find the complete model information select About This Mac from the Apple menu. You can create a snapshot of the dialog as follows:


How to take a screenshot on your Mac

Capture, Save or Record Screenshots in Mac OS X - Help Desk Geek


OS X Screen Capture Shortcuts


(⌘⬆︎3) Command-Shift-3 Capture the screen to a file

(⌘⬆︎⌃3) Command-Shift-Control-3 Capture the screen to the Clipboard

(⌘⬆︎4) Command-Shift-4 Capture a selection to a file

(⌘⬆︎⌃4) Command-Shift-Control-4 Capture a selection to the Clipboard

(⌘⬆︎5) Command-Shift-5 Invoke new screen grabber


You can then post the image in the forum's message editor.




Similar questions

8 replies
Question marked as Top-ranking reply

Aug 23, 2020 1:28 PM in response to idoks

You have experienced a kernel panic. Kernel panics are usually, but not always, a hardware problem. In your case, you say this does not happen frequently. Do you remember what software you were using when the panic does occur? You could post one or two recent kernel panic logs. 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.


The only way to save your files is if the computer can be used long enough for you to backup. If you cannot backup, then your data will be lost because recovery is a destructive process. You can try booting into Safe Mode which might prevent the recurrence of the panic:


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.


If you are able to do an erase and install, then please provide me with the exact MBP model you have. To find the complete model information select About This Mac from the Apple menu. You can create a snapshot of the dialog as follows:


How to take a screenshot on your Mac

Capture, Save or Record Screenshots in Mac OS X - Help Desk Geek


OS X Screen Capture Shortcuts


(⌘⬆︎3) Command-Shift-3 Capture the screen to a file

(⌘⬆︎⌃3) Command-Shift-Control-3 Capture the screen to the Clipboard

(⌘⬆︎4) Command-Shift-4 Capture a selection to a file

(⌘⬆︎⌃4) Command-Shift-Control-4 Capture a selection to the Clipboard

(⌘⬆︎5) Command-Shift-5 Invoke new screen grabber


You can then post the image in the forum's message editor.




Aug 25, 2020 1:01 PM in response to idoks

Sorry, but I have no idea how to interpret that log. Kernel panic logs are in: /Library/Logs/DiagnosticReports/ folder. Also, here is more information related to kernel panics.


Dealing with Kernel Panics


Disconnect any third-party peripherals including any USB hubs. How to use safe mode on your Mac, 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.


Aug 25, 2020 11:47 AM in response to Kappy

Thank you. I've found the DiagnosticReports file but I don't understand what's in there and how to read it. It can be really helpful if someone could do a TeamViewer with me or even Zoom with Screen Share so I could be explained what's causing those kernel panics and how to solve it without reseting my Mac. And I'm pretty sure that most of the time the rest happened when I was in Safari, but I'm there most of my time. Other times were when I've been in Ai or Keynote.

Aug 25, 2020 12:54 PM in response to Kappy

I have at least five awd files for each crash, and I can't open them. Only two is readable. And of course I can't remember the time of each one but I'm pretty sure that there are several .awd files that are unrelated to a system reset, including some from 2018 (everything was fine back then). In addition, I have a folder I haven't noticed before called CrashReporter. Maybe there are things there


Anyway, here is one of the two files that was created/modified in the time of last reset:



Sep 1, 2020 8:23 AM in response to Kappy

I'm glad to say that although I haven't done anything yet, since I've opened this question, for the first time in the last two and a half months, my Mac hasn't reset itself at all. I don't know what changed that, but if it will continue one more month I will close this thread. Thank you for your help :)

This thread has been closed by the system or the community team. You may vote for any posts you find helpful, or search the Community for additional answers.

My MacBook restart itself once a day, randomly

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