Critical System Failures and App Crashes – MacBook Air M4 (macOS 26.3.1)

If Safe Mode doesn't solve the problem.....

Most of the crash logs are showing crashes or high CPU utilization related to the file system:

Diagnostics Information (past 60 days):

2026-03-08 23:17:23 spotlightknowledged High CPU Use (7 times)

2026-03-07 23:08:36 FPCKService High CPU Use (5 times)

Executable:

/System/Library/PrivateFrameworks/FileProviderDaemon.framework/XPCServices/FPCKService.xpc/Contents/MacOS/FPCKService

2026-03-07 18:34:36 apfsd High CPU Use (5 times)

2026-03-07 18:30:57 duetexpertd High CPU Use (3 times)

FYI, "duetexpertd" appears related to synchronizing between devices, but I'm not entirely certain.

I would try running Disk Utility First Aid as described in the following Apple article:

How to repair a Mac storage device with Disk Utility - Apple Support

Even if the First Aid summary says everything is "Ok", click "Show Details" and scroll through the report. If there are any unfixed errors or warnings, then run First Aid again until they are gone. If after several scans, the errors/warnings remain, then the file system cannot be repaired. Depending on where the errors/warnings are located will determine the least time consuming method to fix the problem.

If the file system is not the problem, then perhaps rebuild the Spotlight index.

If this were happening to me, I would experiment with starting up in safe mode, https://support.apple.com/guide/mac-help/start-up-your-mac-in-safe-mode-mh21245/mac ,

to see if third party software is to blame. I would also try running etrecheck,

https://etrecheck.com/en/index.html, to get a detailed report about your computer. You can post the etrecheck report here - someone might spot something.

Have you installed and run any "cleaning", "optimizing", "speed-up", anti-virus or VPN apps on your Mac?

Please download and run Etrecheck.  The free version is sufficient.

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 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 after clicking on the Reply button use the Additional Text button to paste the report in your reply.

Then we can examine the report and see if we can determine the cause of the problem.

Yoav_Wasserman wrote:

safe mode, did solve this problem.

I've deleted several apps and at one point I've deleted an app named "Ice" that has some screen control and I thought this was the solution for my problems.

Until a minute ago, when some problems came back.

I'm sending a new report, hopefully someone will know what's going on

Your Mac has some Configuration Profile(s) but unclear what exactly they are. If they aren't compatible with Tahoe, it can cause problems. IS this your personal Mac or one provided by a company or school? Also you seem to have two battery charging programs, battery toolkit and aldente and neither are needed at all with Apple's latest battery health management. I'd uninstall both of them to see if that helps.

And what is Cloudflare WARP? It seems to claim to make your internet faster and act like a VPN. Maybe not really credible, and possibly conflicting with the OS.

Recast Launcher -- this changes the interface to the Finder, maybe remove it also (as a test).

You also have AppCleaner -- have you used it in the time before the crashes started? It may have removed items needed for a stable system.

Unless the above helps eliminate the system failures, I might be inclined to do what Owl-53 suggested, a clean erase and clean install.

Yoav_Wasserman wrote:

Honestly, Apple, this is a joke. I bought a high-end MacBook Air M4 less than a year ago to work, not to spend my day rebooting. Since the macOS 26.3 update—and even after installing 26.3.1—the system is a disaster. I'm forced to restart at least 4 times a day just to keep it functional.

General Instability: The OS is completely unstable, requiring multiple daily reboots just to perform basic tasks.

It’s been over two weeks and it feels like you've abandoned your users. For a premium machine, this is absolutely unacceptable.

I would agree, but understand that 26.3.1 runs very smoothly for the vast majority of users, so something significant is wrong with your specific machine or setup. My 2019 Intel 16" MacBook Pro with 16 GB memory runs very responsively, and I cannot even remember when a reboot was necessary or involuntary (... maybe 4-5 years ago?). You can also see modern M4, M5 etc. Macs in Apple Stores humming away (without reboots).

I expect that one the following has happened:

• Something installed or running in the background that is majorly incompatible with the Tahoe MacOS
• Hardware starting to fail

For the first, follow the earlier suggestion about Etrecheck. For the second, make an appointment with Apple for service. If your warranty or AppleCare is still active, any repair or replacement would be covered.

I don't see any of the usual suspects but unless your employer requires you to use Cloudfair, AdBlockVPN and Freedom I recommend you uninstall them according to the deveopers' instructions.

 Use the shareware app Find Any File to search for any of the supporting files with a particular file name.  For the software mentioned you'd do the following search(es): 

1 - Name contains cloudfair

2 - Name contains freedom

3 - Name contains adblockvpn (if you're only using the Adblock for Brave portion of this software ignore this. I believe a better adblocker is Ghostery).

Any files that are found can be Option dragged from the search results window to the Desktop to get a copy of the file.

FAF can search areas that Spotlight can't like invisible folders, system folders and packages.  

One way to start is to go to System Settings > General > Login Items and Extensions and turn off everything that isn't an Apple application/extension. Then restart and test. If the problem goes away, you can add them back in one by one until the culprit is isolated.

Yoav_Wasserman wrote:

safe mode, did solve this problem.

I've deleted several apps and at one point I've deleted an app named "Ice" that has some screen control and I thought this was the solution for my problems.

Until a minute ago, when some problems came back.

I'm sending a new report, hopefully someone will know what's going on

If the user ( you ) believes these current issues stem specifically from macOS 26 Tahoe.

For a thorough test of both Tahoe / Hardware and to  determine the root cause of all the computer issues.

Use the “Atomic” option and select “Erase All Content and Settings.” Apple Silicon computer

Always make a Time Machine backup before proceeding.

Run the computer without installing any additional software and without restoring from your Time Machine backups.

Run the computer in this mode for approximately 4 to 6 hours and report back if the previous issues reoccur.

FYI - running the same 15 " M4 MBA with a stock 16 GB Unified RAM and a 512 GB SSD

It has moved from Sequoia macOS 15.5 ( 24F74 ) to every version of macOS 26 and currently with version 26.3.1

No issues whatsoever

You have a lot of third party software running. This software is disabled in safe mode, so one (or some combination) of these bits of software is likely the culprit. I would look at the stuff listed under "Unsigned Files", "Launch Daemons", "Launch Agents" and start disabling/uninstalling these, then testing things out.

Looks like you have some questionable login items installed. I would get rid of most or all of them.

I've also found that the App Store versions of the Microsoft office apps are far cleaner and the update process is much less problematic than the versions installed directly from Microsoft. Of course, they require a subscription, so if your running a standalone version of office, that's not an option.

Just checking ... are you asking for assistance from fellow Apple-product users or just venting about your experience with your Mac?

We are not Apple employees here, just folks volunteering their time to try helping others with their Mac issues. Apple rarely reviews posts here ... so, if your goal is to let Apple know, then try here:

• https://www.apple.com/feedback/

Yoav_Wasserman wrote:

<report.log>

EtreCheckPro version: 6.8.14 (68088)

Report generated: 2026-03-09 00:45:52

Download EtreCheckPro from https://etrecheck.com

Runtime: 2:36

Performance: Excellent

EtreCheckPro version: 6.8.14 (68088)

Report generated: 2026-03-13 16:51:32

Download EtreCheckPro from https://etrecheck.com

Runtime: 4:15

Performance: Below Average

In the space 10 days, it has gone from Excellent to Below Average

Arrive at your own conclusions what cause of actions are needed

Yoav_Wasserman wrote:

Honestly, Apple, this is a joke.

You're not talking to Apple. This is a user forum. Apple isn't here.

I bought a high-end MacBook Air M4 less than a year ago to work, not to spend my day rebooting. Since the macOS 26.3 update—and even after installing 26.3.1—the system is a disaster. I'm forced to restart at least 4 times a day just to keep it functional.

Specific failures I am experiencing:

Constant App Crashes:• &nbsp;Frequent crashes of PyCharm, AlDente and Chromium-based browsers (Chrome, Edge, Brave).

No such problems on my M4 MBA or M3 iMac running 26.3.1. The only chromium based browser I run is Edge. What did the app developers say when you reported the problems to them?

System Bugs:• &nbsp;Inability to open new browser tabs, broken screenshot functionality, and severe sleep mode issues.

No such problems here.

General Instability:• &nbsp;The OS is completely unstable, requiring multiple daily reboots just to perform basic tasks.

No such problems here.

It’s been over two weeks and it feels like you've abandoned your users. For a premium machine, this is absolutely unacceptable.

Have you bothered to do any troubleshooting at all? Are you even remotely interested in actually troubleshooting your problems? It doesn't seem like it from your post.