My MacBook Pro has started closing down randomly after a "swoosh" sound.

My Mac has started closing down randomly again after a "swoosh" sound. The last time this happened was in October this year, when Apple charged me $1200 to install a new Motherboard, because my Mac would not startup, after several shutdowns and my AppleCare had run out just before this happened. Please check this manually. I need to know if this new motherboard is also about to die. Thanks.


[Re-Titled by Moderator]

MacBook Pro 16″, macOS 12.6

Posted on Dec 19, 2023 9:14 PM

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Posted on Dec 26, 2023 8:20 PM

I'm sorry to say that the Logic Board has most likely failed once more. Unfortunately the Logic Boards for the 2018-2020 Intel Macs tend to have a high rate of failure due to the T2 security chip (especially the 16" 2019 model).


The Kernel Panics listed at the end of the EtreCheck report suggest a bad Logic Board.


First, "x86 CPU CATERR detected" means a CPU CATastrophic ERRor which usually means a hardware issue with the Logic Board although there is a very slim chance of an external Thunderbolt device causing a problem.


Second, the "ProxiedDevice-Bridge" panics are issues with the T2 security chip. You can try to perform a DFU firmware "Revive" to reset the T2 security chip & system firmware to see if that helps. Theoretically this process should not affect any data, but if the Logic Board is bad...who knows as it could brick the laptop if it is unable to complete the process successfully. It may also only be a temporary solution.

How to revive or restore Mac firmware - Apple Support


If you are still within the 90 day part/repair warranty period, then the repair should be covered for you. FYI, if Apple won't cover the repair under the 90 day part/repair warranty, then I would highly recommend putting the money towards another laptop instead of repairing it again. If you report the issue with the 90 day part/warranty period and the repair is not covered by Apple, then look into your local consumer protection laws.


However, getting Apple to acknowledge a hardware issue for this problem may be difficult unless you can show them these Kernel Panics occur when booted into a clean version of macOS. Unfortunately Apple does not train their techs to interpret Kernel Panic logs. I would suggest creating new APFS volume and installing macOS into the new APFS volume so you can dual boot this laptop with its current OS and a clean copy of macOS. Do not install any third party apps into the new OS. Do not migrate from the main OS or from a backup. Do not log into your AppleID or iCloud on the clean OS. You want to test the clean OS and show it has Kernel Panics without anything else causing them. You can also try running the Apple Diagnostics to see if any hardware issues are detected (doubtful, but it never hurts since a diagnostic failure would confirm a hardware issue).


Definitely make sure the Apple tech documents that you are complaining about Kernel Panics within the part/repair warranty period so if Apple drags this out you have proof you reported the issue in time....hard to say if it will help to for them covering the repair. I've heard that some Apple techs do not properly document these test screenings and complaints, so try to get a printed copy of the incident or a receipt for your records.

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Question marked as Top-ranking reply

Dec 26, 2023 8:20 PM in response to bebopple

I'm sorry to say that the Logic Board has most likely failed once more. Unfortunately the Logic Boards for the 2018-2020 Intel Macs tend to have a high rate of failure due to the T2 security chip (especially the 16" 2019 model).


The Kernel Panics listed at the end of the EtreCheck report suggest a bad Logic Board.


First, "x86 CPU CATERR detected" means a CPU CATastrophic ERRor which usually means a hardware issue with the Logic Board although there is a very slim chance of an external Thunderbolt device causing a problem.


Second, the "ProxiedDevice-Bridge" panics are issues with the T2 security chip. You can try to perform a DFU firmware "Revive" to reset the T2 security chip & system firmware to see if that helps. Theoretically this process should not affect any data, but if the Logic Board is bad...who knows as it could brick the laptop if it is unable to complete the process successfully. It may also only be a temporary solution.

How to revive or restore Mac firmware - Apple Support


If you are still within the 90 day part/repair warranty period, then the repair should be covered for you. FYI, if Apple won't cover the repair under the 90 day part/repair warranty, then I would highly recommend putting the money towards another laptop instead of repairing it again. If you report the issue with the 90 day part/warranty period and the repair is not covered by Apple, then look into your local consumer protection laws.


However, getting Apple to acknowledge a hardware issue for this problem may be difficult unless you can show them these Kernel Panics occur when booted into a clean version of macOS. Unfortunately Apple does not train their techs to interpret Kernel Panic logs. I would suggest creating new APFS volume and installing macOS into the new APFS volume so you can dual boot this laptop with its current OS and a clean copy of macOS. Do not install any third party apps into the new OS. Do not migrate from the main OS or from a backup. Do not log into your AppleID or iCloud on the clean OS. You want to test the clean OS and show it has Kernel Panics without anything else causing them. You can also try running the Apple Diagnostics to see if any hardware issues are detected (doubtful, but it never hurts since a diagnostic failure would confirm a hardware issue).


Definitely make sure the Apple tech documents that you are complaining about Kernel Panics within the part/repair warranty period so if Apple drags this out you have proof you reported the issue in time....hard to say if it will help to for them covering the repair. I've heard that some Apple techs do not properly document these test screenings and complaints, so try to get a printed copy of the incident or a receipt for your records.

Dec 20, 2023 1:25 AM in response to bebopple

Hey there!


Sorry to hear about this issue with your Mac.


Have you run Apple Diagnostics to test your Mac yet? It may be able to identify a component at fault.

Use Apple Diagnostics to test your Mac - Apple Support


Something EtreCheck flagged was your external hard drives:

External drives and performance - There are external drives connected that could be affecting performance.


I've seen a Mac exhibit odd behavior with certain external hard disks connected, and if EtreCheck flagged them, I think it's worth trying to use your Mac without them and see if the issue is resolved.


Something else to note, Apple repairs are covered by a 90-day warranty, so you should be covered for any hardware issues. After running Apple Diagnostics and disconnecting external drives as a test, I'd recommend contacting Apple again: Contact - Official Apple Support.


-Jack

Dec 25, 2023 8:33 PM in response to Clique of One

If like me you had several going at once, you need to detach them all - use your mac over a number of days to see if the problem persists. By repeating this procedure with your other drives you can gradually identify which of the external drives may be causing your issue.


Part of this seems to be that the contemporary MacOS can be confused by more than one bootable drive being attached at a time. I'm from the old school where not so many years ago external drives were breaking all the time and each one needed to be bootable in case the main drive also went down.

Dec 28, 2023 7:44 PM in response to HWTech

I wanted to thank all of you who responded, including John Daniel who helped a great deal and shared some good advice on a general proofessional strategy for "new macs." I followed through on everything - I ran Apple Diagnostics (no result), removed my externals and added them back one at a time testing to see if my issue reappeared with anyone of them (it didn't). Ran Drive DX and noted that my 4TB USB backup drive, showed an "average" health rating of 41% mostly caused by "Poweron Hours" and "Spin Retry Count". I also spoke to Rob at Bombich Support who suggested giving it a rest for a week or so to cool down. What worked best for me was to install a fresh version of Sonoma and retest with EtreCheck. It said no problems found, and thank god for that. Anyway I just wanted to thank all of you for caring enough to help. I've had macs since the Lisa (1982), and it has never stopped changing. Best wishes, Bob

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My MacBook Pro has started closing down randomly after a "swoosh" sound.

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