Mac Randomly Shuts Down

rgraves Said:

"Mac Randomly Shuts Down: I have a new iMac running Catalina that has been shutting down randomly. It first did it once the week we got it and now it is getting worse - several times in the past 24 hours. When I restart, it says: 'Your computer restarted because of a problem. Press a key or wait a few seconds to continue start up.[...]"

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A. Boot in to Safe Mode:

Try booting in to Safe Mode [Hold Down the Shift Key upon boot]. In Safe Mode, only necessary items load (i.e. the caches), and new preferences are set aside.

B. Try a New Administrator User:

What happens when you create a new administrator user? Do you stop getting this error? If so, then it is something configured in you current user. Delete this administrator, when desired.

rgraves Said:

"Mac Randomly Shuts Down: [...]It happens when we are using various software, not a particular app.[...]"

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Scan for Malware:

Start with running a scan for malware, using Malwarebytes for Mac and remove what is found. Perhaps something was installed that made this occur. Remove what is found from the quarantine. Malwarebytes is made by longtime users of these forums, and is the only security software safe to use on a Mac, as it does not get in the way. So, once removed from the quarantine, uninstall Malwarebytes, if desired.

Downloads:

1. Malwarebytes Anti-Malware for Mac
2. Malwarebytes Uninstaller

rgraves Said:

"Mac Randomly Shuts Down: If I boot into Safe Mode, should I just use it as normal to see if it crashes at some point, or is there something I should look for?"

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What to Get Out of Safe Mode:

What Safe Mode does is it does not load Login Items, and corrupted system files (i.e. caches) are fixed. So, once you are logged in it, wait 30 setons, and then restart the Mac, seeing if you still get this error. If you still get it, run Malwarebytes while in Safe Mode.

Did you upgrade the RAM yourself?