MacBook constantly restarts after kernel panics

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MacBook constantly restarts after kernel panics

I've been having trouble with my Mac for months. It began with the kernel panics happening one a week, then it got worse and worse until I was barely able to use it. When it reached this point, I took it to the tech and they found out my battery was swollen (even though I didn't have any issue with the battery) and that I had to replace my SSD that was having S.M.A.R.T. errors (wasn't able to update the system). So I replaced both.

Thought everything would be solved after a clean install with new SSD an battery, but no. I had a kernel panic again from the very first day. It's getting worse and worse now. Today it restarted 10 times (8 with an error report). I'm getting worried something will be damaged if it keeps happening this way.

What else can I do? The techs didn't find anything wrong with the hardware after the replacements.

The panics happen out of nowhere, they are not associated with high temperature apparently. Sometimes it happens when I'm away, then I come back and find the login screen after another restart.

I'm going to post my Etre Check Report here:

Etre Check Report

Posted on Jan 6, 2023 8:41 AM

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Answer 1

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HWTech

Community+ 2026

Level 9

72,038 points

Jan 7, 2023 7:15 PM in response to lucianasm

You have a MBPro 13" (2015) model laptop with a third party NVMe WD SSD using some sort of third party SSD adapter. The write speed of the SSD is slower than I would expect since I would expect it to be at least 800MB/s or more.

I don't see any third party software installed which would cause these Kernel Panics. The Kernel Panics are also not consistent on the failure which usually indicates a hardware issue (usually memory related, but could be the CPU or even SSD since the SSD is tied so closely to the CPU and can cause similar issues).

Start by running DriveDx so we can check the health of the WD SSD. Post the complete text report here using the "Additional Text" icon which looks like a piece of paper.

The most likely causes of your problems are one or perhaps a combination of the following:

Third party internal SSD adapter
Issue with the internal WD SSD (hardware issue or compatibility issue)
Hardware issue with the Logic Board

From reading these forums for years, the only third party internal SSD adapter which appears to be compatible & reliable is one from Sintech. People using any other brand of internal SSD adapter seem to report problems with their SSDs and Macs.

Not all SSDs are compatible with all computers. I believe I've seen some people mention using a WD NVMe SSD in these Macs, but I am not entirely certain.

About the best way to test your laptop would be to install macOS to an external USB 3 SSD. Boot macOS from the USB 3 SSD to see if you encounter the same issues. If there are no Kernel Panics, then it likely means the internal SSD adapter or the internal SSD is causing the problem. However, we cannot rule out an issue with the Logic Board's SSD connector.

If you still have Kernel Panics while booting macOS to an external USB 3 SSD, then it most likely means the Logic Board is bad, but it would be best to test the laptop by first removing the internal SSD & adapter since they could still cause issues even while booted to an external drive.

You can also try installing the WD SSD into an external USB 3 enclosure and booting it externally to see whether the Kernel Panics continue, however, this is not a conclusive test unless you also perform a clean install of macOS to this SSD.

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Answer 2

Jan 9, 2023 6:57 AM in response to lucianasm

I don't see anything in the DriveDx report, but if the SSD's controller is having a problem, it will not be reflected in the health report. I tried to check the SSD's firmware, but WD doesn't list that information on their website. This either means there is no firmware update available, or they don't post that information and only allow firmware updates through their proprietary WD Dashboard software which is not available for macOS.

FYI, it appears this SSD is the WD Green SN350 NVMe 240GB M.2 SSD. The sequential write speed of this SSD is listed at 950 MB/s maximum (read speed is rated 2,400 MB/s). So the write speeds are designed to be significantly slower than the read speeds for the 240GB model (the 500GB model has a write speed about twice the 240GB model). So the write speed reported by the EtreCheck report of 477 MB/s may not actually be too bad (no way to tell without knowing actual SSD usage before the report was created).

So the most likely suspect is the internal SSD adapter being used, followed by the SSD. Use the tips in my previous post for methods of testing.

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