Kernel Panics causing computer to shut down. Is SoftRAID causing this?

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Kernel Panics causing computer to shut down. Is SoftRAID causing this?

I have a 2014 5K iMac. It has been shutting down randomly and the problem seems to be happening more frequently lately. The signs were pointing to my internal SSD going bad because I got the file folder with a question mark a couple times when I started the computer back up. I replaced the SSD but I am still getting random shut downs.

I was hoping someone could read my crash reports and help me identify the problem.

I have 2 non-apple Kexts running. Do you think they may be causing the problem?

\ncom.softraid.driver.SoftRAID\t6.2.1\ncom.promise.driver.stex

When I look at the system log in console this error message keeps popping up repeatedly.

Feb 28 15:14:11 alexs-iMac com.apple.xpc.launchd[1] (com.softraid.softraidd[24633]): Service exited with abnormal code: 2

Feb 28 15:14:11 alexs-iMac com.apple.xpc.launchd[1] (com.softraid.softraidd): Service only ran for 4 seconds. Pushing respawn out by 6 seconds.

I also saw that the latest version of softraid is causing kernel panics on the M1 macs. Mine is an intel mac but maybe it's doing the same thing to mine? https://www.softraid.com/support/known-issues/

kernel panic crash report

Posted on Feb 28, 2022 2:16 PM

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Answer 1

Top-ranking reply

rkaufmann87

Level 10

144,862 points

Feb 28, 2022 2:54 PM in response to alexfrommarquette

It's not likely SoftRaid, I use it and have the same version as you (6.2.1) installed and my iMac runs smoothly. KPs can be tricky to track down, they can be caused by software or hardware.

Common causes are RAM related. If you upgraded the RAM on your iMac, please remove the upgraded RAM and only run it with the RAM that originally shipped with the machine. That way you can eliminate the RAM if the computer continues to KP. If the KPs stop, you found your problem.

Another common cause is if you have an older iMac that used a spinning hard disk or a Fusion Drive, then the issue could be a failing drive. Your best bet it is to take it to an AASP to have the computer professionally diagnosed.

To see if it's software, then another trick is to create a new user account (call it TEST ACCOUNT) and log into it. If the KPs do not happen in the Test Account then you know its something in your normal user account that you need to track down.

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Answer 2

Feb 28, 2022 3:17 PM in response to rkaufmann87

That's good to know thanks. I upgraded the RAM years ago to 32GB. I bought the RAM from OWC and I think they are known for having high quality RAM that works well with mac. It's been working fine for years and I ran some tests with Rember and those all passed so it seems like the RAM is okay.

The crashes are so inconsistent it would take a long time to narrow it down using a test account or safe mode. Some days the imac runs fine, some days it crashes 2-3 times. I'll give that a try though.

My imac did come with a fusion drive but I replaced that with a single SSD about 2 years ago. Once these crashes between more frequent I replaced the SSD with another SSD. That was just a few days ago.

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Kernel Panics causing computer to shut down. Is SoftRAID causing this?

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