ALL MAIN MAC APPS BEACHBALLING (HANGING) MESSAGES, CONTACTS, FIND MY, FACETIME

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Level 1

11 points

ALL MAIN MAC APPS BEACHBALLING (HANGING) MESSAGES, CONTACTS, FIND MY, FACETIME

for about the last 5months my Contacts app really became annoying where i would get a beachball with every character i entered into the search field -still is happening : /

same for messaging app : /

also for about the same time my FaceTime app would do the same and now wont even open just stays hanged.

same w. FindMy app =>it doesnt fully open anymore... after a long startup of the app => it just shows my contacts that are sharing their location with me on a blank map and when i click on one it beachballs indefinitely : /

Please see attached Etrecheck Report

EtreCheckPro REPORT 18Apr23

2019 iMac Retina 5K, 27-inch —FULLY UPDATED

64GB of RAM

ThankYou for any help as this is really slowing down my work flow : /

Sincerely,

ßill

🕊️

iMac 27″, macOS 10.12

Posted on Apr 18, 2023 12:54 PM

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Answer 1

Top-ranking reply

mtnengineer Author

Level 1

11 points

May 5, 2023 2:36 AM in response to mtnengineer

❗ SOLVED ❗

After a call with Apple icloud they made an appointment with AppleCare at London Drugs, they tested and found nothing wrong, stopped all unnecessary apps from auto loading and all the apple programs i listed above worked perfectly. I then started opening apps that I had running before One(1) by One(1) and found the culprit was the fact that I had TAMED contactsd & TimeMachine processes with AppTamer. : /

what a pain for something i did myself... all is fine now... so far... #LOLs

Thank you all for you concern and help 🙏🏿

Sincerely,

ßill

🕊️

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Answer 2

Old Toad

Level 10

215,676 points

Apr 18, 2023 1:56 PM in response to mtnengineer

First, there is no reason to ever install or run any 3rd party "cleaning", "optimizing", "speed-up", anti-virus, VPN or security apps on your Mac. This documents describe what you need to know and do in order to protect your Mac: Effective defenses against malware and other threats - Apple Community and Recognize and avoid phishing messages, phony support calls, and other scams - Apple Support.

There are no known viruses, i.e. self propagating, for Macs. There are, however, adware and malware which require the user to install although unwittingly most of the time thru sneaky links, etc.

Anti Virus developers try to group all types as viruses into their ad campaigns of fear. They do a poor job of the detecting and isolating the adware and malware. Since there are no viruses these apps use up a lot of system resources searching for what is non-existent and adversely affect system and app performance.

There is one app, Malwarebytes, which was developed by a long time contributor to these forums and a highly respected member of the computer security community, that is designed solely to seek out adware and known malware and remove it. The free version is more than adequate for most users.

Also, unless you're using a true VPN tunnel, such as between you and your employer's, school's or bank's servers, they aprovide false secutiry from a privacy standpoint. Read these two articles: Public VPN's are anything but private and Former Malware Distributor Kape Technologies Now Owns ExpressVPN, CyberGhost, Private Internet Access, Zenmate, and a Collection of VPN “Review” Websites.

That being said uninstall Cleaner and iCleanMemory according to the developer's instructions. The system handles memory exceptionally well and any 3rd party memory apps only hinders the system's efficiency in this area.

The read performance appears good but the write is dismal, 514 MB/s. Since you have an SSD drive I'm inclined to think it's not a failing driver but due to software.

You have an incredible number of apps in the User Login Items. I recommend you only include those that absolutely must be open and running at all times and the others just open and close when needed like Speediest, AppCleaner, Firefox, Contacts just to name a few.

Also I'd remove Chrome. It's a known resource how and the report indicates it's crashing frequently. It also data mines personal information like where you go on the internet, etc. If you don't like Safari I suggest Firefox or Brave. Uninstall Chrome and all its addons like Loop.

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Answer 3

Apr 19, 2023 2:22 AM in response to mtnengineer

Did you try to remove CCleaner when running in Safe Mode? This prevents third party extensions from running, which is probably what is impeding your efforts to remove in the first place.

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Answer 4

Apr 19, 2023 2:29 AM in response to mtnengineer

Also: you have a very old and incompatible version of VirtualBox. You should either update it or uninstall it.

Soundflower 1.6.7 has not been compatible with macOS for the last several years.

But after looking again at all these applications that are struggling, we circle back to... Chrome and its evil keystone daemons.

You may find that when the beachball appears, "kernel task" and "VTDecoderXPC" may be using a large amount of resources in Activity Monitor - an indictment that Chrome and its thugs are doing what they do.

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Answer 5

Apr 30, 2023 2:43 AM in response to mtnengineer

Is that external 4TB drive a rotational HD, or is it an SSD?

Did you try ejecting the drive, restarting your mac and using it for a while without the drive connected?

A failing drive could cause a lot of beachballs...

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Answer 6

Old Toad

Level 10

215,676 points

Apr 29, 2023 9:28 AM in response to mtnengineer

I missed seeing the report in your first post. I don't see any of the usual suspects. Have you checked the Activity Monitor's CPU section while you're experiencing the SWOD (i.e. spinning wheel of death) to see if you can tell which process/app is causing it?

Where did you get the additional RAM. If it's 3rd party RAM and as a way to rule out the 3rd party RAM is to re-install the original Apple RAM and run with it for a while to see if the problem persists.

If you find that the RAM is the culprit I recommend you replace the modules from either Crucial.com and OWC (MacSales.com). If it's not the RAM this post will self-destruct in 10, 9, 8, 7……poof💨

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Answer 7

Apr 20, 2023 2:17 AM in response to mtnengineer

Did you completely remove the keystone daemons as well as the Chrome application? If not, then they will continue running in the background and doing their damage.

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Answer 8

Old Toad

Level 10

215,676 points

Apr 19, 2023 9:40 AM in response to mtnengineer

Regarding AppCleaner, it's a specific type of cleaning app and just removes apps that you've dropped into its window. There is just one caveat to know about:

WARNING: If you use AppCleaner on an app that you have other apps from the same developer, like Adobe, you must be extremely careful checking all checkboxes and deleting. Some for those files may support other apps from the same developer and deleting them can mess them up. Adobe apps is a primary example. I know from experience. For singular apps from a developer it's safe.

Malwarebytes is an excellent app. I just run it when I think I might have picked some adware or malware.

As far as VPNs are concerned don't expect total anonymity using one. And I wouldn't use it all the time.

As far as removing Cleaner try booting into Safe Mode according to How to use safe mode on your Mac and delete from there.

Note: if you have a wireless keyboard with rechargeable batteries connect it with its charging cable before booting into Safe Mode. This makes it act as a wired keyboard as will assure a successful boot into Safe Mode.

And I agreee wholeheartedly regarding Chrome.

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Answer 9

Old Toad

Level 10

215,676 points

Apr 28, 2023 1:53 PM in response to Randall_2023

I finally saw it after I posted. I think it's time the author made an appointment at the nearest Apple Genius Bar or Apple Authorized Service Provider.

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Answer 10

Old Toad

Level 10

215,676 points

Apr 28, 2023 1:19 PM in response to mtnengineer

Download and run Etrecheck. Be sure to give it Full Disk access before running.

Copy and paste the results into your reply. Etrecheck is a diagnostic tool that was developed by one of the most respected users here in the ASC and recommended by Apple Support to provide a snapshot of the system and help identify the more obvious culprits that can adversely affect a Mac's performance.

Copy the report

and use the Additional Text button to paste the report in your reply.

Then we can evaluate the report to see if we can determine the cause of the problem.

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Answer 11

mtnengineer Author

Level 1

11 points

Apr 18, 2023 9:35 PM in response to Old Toad

Oh ThankYou so much for your very informative reply OT 🙏🏿

The only "anti-virus" i use is MALWAREBYTES ✔ i do run occasional scans since early 2021 when an Apple Tec led me to it One(1) time during a Service Call with my 2013 "per-dicessor" iMac ✔ I just ran another scan just to yield a "CleanMachine" as far as MWB is concerned....

Re: VPNs => I use it only to watch SKY NEWS from the UK which "stopped streaming" near the beginning of Covid in mid 2020. and have found PROTON VPN to be "BY FAR" the BEST FREE ONE(1) available that runs seamlessly and without any speed loss whatsoever and it starts near instantly.... ✔ —do you "know" about this One(1) OT ❓ <=please any comments you may have are certainly appreciated 🙏🏿

re: AppCleaner => you first mentioned "there is no reason to ever install or run any 3rd party "cleaning"," and to "uninstall Cleaner and iCleanMemory" but then mention "I recommend you only include those that absolutely must be open and running at all times and the others just open and close when needed like Speediest, AppCleaner, Firefox..." => so IAM wondering if maybe i was "correct" if you will, in using AppCleaner to remove all files when "deleting" a program ❓*1

(again, any comments you may gave about AppCleaner🙏)

re: CCLEANER <=it has been running in the backG on my Menu Bar Continuously but only use it to occationally clean the APPLICATION CASHE but i will un-install it on your recomendation as it really didnt seem like it was doing anything as i would clean 5GB of Application Cashe and One(1) hour latter it would be back to 3GB

: / <=So I guess it is doing nothing for me ❓

re: BROWSERS <=I mainly use F.F. and run Gmail, and my Media Apps*2 on MSEdge

Chrome is only open occationally for downloading various videos from various multi-media sites that could not download with F.F.

=>wondering if Chrome*3 is not loaded could it still could be slowing down my machine ❓

So I will turn off SpeedTest when not running it (even though i never see it using any memory) but i really like App Tamer as it uses so much less cpu and memory then Activity Monitor and does all what i need (which is v.often having to reset coreaudiod as my sound just intermittantly stops or my mic stops -like about every 3 days or so...

=>You thots about App Tamer OT ❓

so that being said and with the above being done... IAM thinking IAM "still @aLoss"

: (. . .

like you said my write speed is dismal and all my and all main MAC APPS are sluggish as "HANG" <= BEACHBALLING <= messages, contacts, find my, & facetime

i have tried re-installing from Recovery which didnt help with the above mention mac apps

: /

=>I dont know what to do...

: /

I just hope my worst fear that Apple is slowing down my apps to get me to buy a new mac is not true...

....where as only 3yrs ago January i bought this beast new for $5G CAN and can not conceive of doing that again so soon... but i might have to

❓ : (. . . : /

i mean i would try running on an external SSD 1st but it doesnt "seem" reasonable to even try that as this mac runs v.well for all my other apps <=namely running 2 Windows VMs (autocad runs on One(1) and an "as heavy" of a program (Archicad 18) on the other) which both, and all windows programs therein and my other mac programs WORK WELL without stopping me in the middle of typing : /

IAM "thinking" maybe its time i "paid" for some Official Apple Tech ⁉️

Thank you in advance for your reply comments to this post OT and any One(1) else that may feel inspired to "offer input"...

Sincerely,

ßill

🕊️

rootnotes:

*1 i know using the "uninstall" option of an app is the best way to go if

avail. 4Tru🕊️ 👍🏿 but I always "felt" that the 5+ files that

AppCleaner always found <= "seemed" good — SeeMe🕊️ ...

*2 COMMUNICATION MEDIA APPS like WhatsApp, FBM, Twitter, LinkedIn, Telegram, etc.

*3 i used to use G.Chrome all the time on my old macs back to 2011 MBP until it

became a RIDICULOUS MEMORY HOG #LOLs...

MALWAREBYTES SCAN REPORT:

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Answer 12

mtnengineer Author

Level 1

11 points

Apr 18, 2023 10:57 PM in response to mtnengineer

I have been trying all ways to remove CCleaner and CAN NOT REMOVE IT...

I can not stop it and when trying to delete it says can delete a running program

i even booted in RecoveryMode and disabled SIP and still NO GO ❗

PleaseHELP 🙏🏿

: (. . .

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Answer 13

mtnengineer Author

Level 1

11 points

Apr 20, 2023 2:12 AM in response to Luis Sequeira1

I got VirtualBox to install Home Assistant Operating System last year when i was "trying" to make t so i could stream my GoogleNEST CAMS on my Mac... but i gave up and never followed it through...

(gee if there was a way 🙏🏿 =>to stream all my google cams to One(1) Place to make it like a "real" security system => that would be so GREAT 4Tru🕊️ .... 🙏🏿 🙏🏿 🙏🏿

so I did as you suggested just now =>and uninstalled it along with Google Chrome

Soundflower is a 3rd party plug-in that Splashtop uses to stream audio from a Mac and I use Splastop to remote control my mac and the sound has been stream fine... : / ❓ (not sure if i can or should uninstall this ❓)

but i really would find it difficult to believe that these programs would affect only my MAC APPS (as listed above)

=>IAM BELIEVING that it may have something to do with "TheWAY" iCloud Communication is "connecting" ⁉️ —will advise if it changes after my reboot...

...in the mean "time"... => can any One(1) suggest a ALTERNATIVE App for Contacts & Messages

cuz ØMG❗=>it is SO PAINFUL (as IAMsoBUSY ❗ ) that when everytime i goto search for a contact from 5500+ contacts that as soon as i type 2or3 letters it BEACHBALs for a couple seconds and wont even recognize characters i type while beachballing... so i have to just sit and wait where as before (at aleast) i could just continue to type while it beachballed and it would type out all the characters i typed after the beachballing stopped... —SeeMe... : / and Messages will just beachball on almost anything (typing in message or search field or clicking on a different message... : /

Thank you for your kind suggestions and reasurance comments OT & LS1 🙏🏿

Sincerely,

ßill

🕊️

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Answer 14

mtnengineer Author

Level 1

11 points

Apr 28, 2023 12:20 PM in response to mtnengineer

ØMG❗ PLEASE HELP 🙏🏿 ANY BODY 🙏🏿 🙏🏿

i continuously have to FORCE QUIT

MESSAGES

: (. . .

and CONTACTS is still SLOWER

then molasses IN MAY ❗

(having to pause after nearly every single character i enter into the search field)

=>I ADMIT that after UNINSTALLING CHROME things got a "bit" better 4Tru🕊️ ...

wondering about MS EDGE ❓ as it now can use the CHROME WEB STORE.. <=which i was very happy about b4...

: /

SeeMe...

🙏🏿

(omKP

<= ON MY KNEES PRAYING)

*-)

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Answer 15

mtnengineer Author

Level 1

11 points

Apr 28, 2023 7:44 PM in response to Old Toad

Really hey ❓ IAMthere ❓ : (. . .

: /

so weird this "SLOWING OF APPLE ICLOUD ALL MAIN APPS" : /

IAM Going to FIRST CALL Icloud support <= which i decided was best during the composition of my last post 👍🏿

...still see new attached recent etrecheck report :

thank you for your comments still...

Sincerely,

ßill

🕊️

EtreCheckPro Report generated: 2023-04-28 13:32:38

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ALL MAIN MAC APPS BEACHBALLING (HANGING) MESSAGES, CONTACTS, FIND MY, FACETIME

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