How do I restart a frozen imac

the imac froze during a Tahoe update. now stuck with spinning wheel and words examining volumes.

Posted on Sep 9, 2026 1:53 PM

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Posted on Sep 9, 2026 1:58 PM

Press and hold the power button on the back until hot shuts down. wait 20 seconds and then press it again to turn it on.

4 replies

Sep 9, 2026 2:24 PM in response to IronMichael

Give it a little longer.

macOS Updates/Upgrades take several black screen restarts and progress bars cycles to fully complete.


Then if it still fails to complete the update...?

For different types of startup screens, see > If your Mac doesn't start up all the way - Apple Support

For a stalled progress bar, see > If your Mac starts up to an Apple logo or progress bar - Apple Support

Sep 9, 2026 2:32 PM in response to IronMichael

IronMichael wrote:
Thanks Phil. Alas the progress bar gets to 40 per cent and stops. Then reverts to black and white doing nothing before setting off to examine volumes, from which it never moves after hours of waiting. 😟

That suggests there's something wrong with the SSD.


You may need to set up a Genius Bat appointment and have it looked at for a potential fix.

click here ➜ Apple Service and Repair for Mac Desktops - Apple Support


How do I restart a frozen imac

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