MacBook (M2 2022) lagging and freezing

I don't see any of the normal software that typically causes problems.

As the report mentions, you are running low on Free storage space which at the time of the report was only 27GB. Ideally you should have 20% Free (50GB for your SSD), but more would be better. However, from what you have installed 50GB is probably sufficient.

The SSD write speed is a bit slow as well (read speed is probably Ok for this model). And the diagnostic information at the end of the report is showing Spotlight is having high CPU utilization.

I would run Disk Utility First Aid on the drive by using the instructions in the following Apple article (checking the hidden Container is important):

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 to see if any unfixed errors or warnings are listed. If so, then run First Aid again until the errors/warnings are gone. If after several scans, the errors/warnings remain, then they cannot be repaired. Where the errors/warnings occur will determine how to deal with them.

If file system issues are not causing the problem, then the Spotlight index may need to be rebuilt:

Rebuild the Spotlight index on your Mac - Apple Support

The second report looks better and you gained back some storage, However, your storage speed scores are severely depressed in both reports, and that could explain lagging. The faster one:

Performance:

System Load: 13.44 (1 min ago) 8.21 (5 min ago) 7.57 (15 min ago)

Nominal I/O usage: 0.87 MB/s

File system: 9.03 seconds

Write speed: 1093 MB/s ⚠️

Read speed: 1410 MB/s ⚠️

From data in other Etrecheck reports I have reviewed, your expected Write and Reads speeds should be at minimum 2700 MB/sec, and over 3000 Mb/sec is not uncommon in the model. As the speeds increased a bit after freeing up space on your drive, it could be due to the minimal free space, but those are still far too slow. I usually expect to see storage slowness when useless dreckware like anti-virus software and "cleaning" apps are doing dirty deeds to the system. However I see none of the "usual suspects."

Let's try this. It's a bit of a long shot but it has helped with SSD slowness in my Macs and others:

— Disconenct any peripherals

— Restart the computer in Safe Mode. Instructions: Start up your Mac in safe mode - Apple Support) and use the steps under "Start up in safe mode (Mac with Apple silicon)"

— Once safe-booted, let the computer "soak" in Safe mode for about 30 minutes.

— Restart the computer and run another Etrecheck report. If the storage scores are closer to the nominal values I posted above, you've fixed it!

Please post the complete EtreCheck report and we will be happy to examine it for clues.

How to use the Add Text Feature When Posting an EtreCheck Report - Apple Community

Allan Jones wrote:

The second report looks better and you gained back some storage, However, your storage speed scores are severely depressed in both reports, and that could explain lagging. The faster one:

Performance:

System Load: 13.44 (1 min ago) 8.21 (5 min ago) 7.57 (15 min ago)

Nominal I/O usage: 0.87 MB/s

File system: 9.03 seconds

Write speed: 1093 MB/s ⚠️

Read speed: 1410 MB/s ⚠️

FYI, That is actually normal for some of those MBPro M2 (2022) models depending on the number of NAND chips for the SSD. I found a link last night on my other computer so I don't have it handy to post. The issue made the tech news channels when this model was released.

jamey249 wrote:

Thanks for the tips! Everything seems smoother so far, knock wood.

I had run Disk Utility previously but it had not occurred to me to drill down into the specific volumes, containers, etc. I also followed the instructions to rebuild the Spotlight index but can't tell if it had any effect.

I know what you mean about storage space, it never seems like there is enough. I am planning to upgrade to the latest MacBook Air this summer, and that should at least double what I have now.

In the meantime I am attaching a fresh EtreCheck report just in case it indicates anything important.

<EtreCheck report.log>

That is a huge improvement and looks good.

Only new log entry was for a Bluetooth crash.