Help With Resetting the SMC

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Level 1

8 points

Help With Resetting the SMC

I have (over time) had several unusual things happen to my 1 year-old MBP. In reading the Apple article for resetting the SMC after trying the other steps suggested with no change in the problems, I am wanting to reset the SMC. However, the options are confusing to me. The 2 options about the battery, I can say it does not have the battery that used to be in my older MBP that just pops out. The second option for resetting the SMC says "resetting…with a battery you should NOT remove…" Since this option seems to be the closest one to my machne, I want to make sure because in the owners manual it goes over how to remove the battery and does not say you should not remove the battery on your own. However, is this the link I would follow for resetting the SMC? My machine does not fit the 3rd link. I want to make sure I do the right thing.

Just in case you need to know, my battery icon does not display properly when the MBP is plugged into the MagSafe and when I initially plug it into the adapter, it says, "not charging." It also will be hooked up to the MagSafe with the amber light on but the % charged will not change for a long time unless I unplug it, restart the machine and plug it back up. Not sure if this is related but the past week I have had Safari Quit unexpectedly about 5 times per day. I get the report form and send that in, but I have never had this issue before. I have been watching a lot of online TV programs from NBC online and CBS online, but I am not sure if this is related and will be helped by the reset.

I did a check on my machine's serial number (at http://www.appleserialnumberinfo.com), and I just noticed that there was supposed to be a hard drive firmware update and an EFI Firmware update, but I do not know enough about computers to go through with these.

Thanks for any help regarding what link to follow for resetting the SMC and what to do if that does not help at least the charging and saying, "not charging" when the MagSafe is hooked up to the MBP. I should add that the outlet is working fine.

MBP 3.06 GHz, 500GB 7200 RPM, Intel C2D. 8 GB 1067 MHz DDR3, Mac OS X (10.6.5)

Posted on Dec 4, 2010 10:58 PM

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Answer 1

rkaufmann87

Level 10

140,568 points

Dec 4, 2010 11:10 PM in response to KoolerKT

Instructions for SMC reset on a MacBook Pro are simple, they are :

_SMC RESET_

• Shut down the computer.
• Unplug the computer's power cord and all peripherals.
• Press and hold the power button for 5 seconds.
• Release the power button.
• Attach the computers power cable.
• Press the power button to turn on the computer.

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Answer 2

KoolerKT Author

Level 1

8 points

Dec 4, 2010 11:24 PM in response to rkaufmann87

There are 3 links as mentioned in my post. I would like to know which one my computer falls under. The only one I would think it would is the one that says, "resetting the SMC on portables with a battery you should NOT remove." But I thought on the Intel MBPs unibody it is OK to remove the battery by unscrewing all the screws. The instructions for that link are more involved than what you mentioned. Can you tell me which one of the 3 options for resetting the SMC my MBP would fall under?

Link to the article with the 3 options down toward the bottom of the page. http://support.apple.com/kb/ht3964

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Answer 3

KoolerKT Author

Level 1

8 points

Dec 5, 2010 6:19 AM in response to KoolerKT

The instructions given to me did NOT work. Holding down the power button just turned the machine back on. This is why I would like to know from anybody which of the 3 links my MBP falls under so I can effectively reset the SMC button. I put the link to the article that gives the 3 options for resetting the SMC button.

Please any help, so I can see if this will help my power icon reading incorrectly issues. I thought the battery can be removed by the owner but it looks like a hassle.

Thanks.

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Answer 4

eww

Level 9

53,028 points

Dec 5, 2010 6:30 AM in response to KoolerKT

Your machine has a built-in battery that is not user-removable without voiding the warranty/AppleCare coverage on it. You should use the instructions provided by the second link in that article.

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Answer 5

KoolerKT Author

Level 1

8 points

Dec 5, 2010 6:49 AM in response to eww

Eww- since I tried what the other poster said twice, could I have damaged the MBP in anyway?

Thanks for the clarification about the battery. I figured since it goes over removal in the owners manual then it might be a "owner's removable battery."

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Answer 6

eww

Level 9

53,028 points

Dec 5, 2010 7:05 AM in response to KoolerKT

KKT: All the information I can find indicates that the only two MBP models ever offered with 3.06GHz processors — one 15" and one 17", both introduced in June 2009 — have built-in batteries. I would be very surprised if either of their owner manuals provided battery removal instructions, so I'm pretty confused.

Are you talking about the 3.06GHz MBP that appears in the System Info underneath each of your posts? If so, is it a 15" or a 17" model? What is its Model Identifier as reported in the Hardware Overview section of System Profiler (Apple menu > About This Mac > More Info)?

Using the incorrect procedure to reset your SMC would not have caused any damage. It probably did nothing at all.

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Answer 7

KoolerKT Author

Level 1

8 points

Dec 5, 2010 8:42 AM in response to eww

(I should say that this is definitely a built-in battery. I think I made that clear from the first post. What I was not sure of is if it was what the SMC Link said; "…you should not remove it on your own, but it looks like all the built-in batteries should not be removed "on your own.")

The Apple Store gave me this MBP because they could not fix my one before this current model. I checked out the serial number and it shows on appleserialnumber.com when I put in the serial number that it is a (I think it said 2.06 processor) or something close to this. Since this was basically a freebie and the Apple Store manager said they would upgrade the MBP to what I had at the time I upgraded the earlier model that basically died. So, what that means, the earlier MPB they "replaced" I had upgraded the speed of the HD, so they did that on this new machine, I upgraded to the highest processor at the time, so they upgraded this new one to 3.06, but that website says I have a 2.06 or 2.08 GHz or something close to this. OK, I tried to explain what Apple did to the machine I have. Just in case it matters, I have found a few things that lead me to believe that this was a return under some unusual circumstance, but I can't prove it.

With that all said, I remember I went online and in the manual I got (both places) for this MBP it explains how to remove the battery: carefully put the screws near the notebook where they go back, and on and on. It never says that the owner should not remove the battery.

I should say, after I explained I did not have the MBP that I can easily remove the battery like the previous MBP I had, but the guy who initially explained how to reset the SMC switch ignored that I guess and gave me the instructions for the MBP I for sure do not have. The 3rd option I knew I did not have, so that only left one option but I thought it was odd because it explains how to remove the battery with dotted lines where to put the screws so you put them back in the proper place.

I did not understand why appleserialnumber.com gave me this info. (and I think Apple did too when I put in my serial number when I first received the machine, which did not make sense). Both places said but in slightly different words: Model: - MacBook Pro (15-inch, Mid 2009) (CTO) and Build Year: - Your Mac was built in 2010. Does this make sense to you?

In the Sys. Profiler: Model Name: MacBook Pro
Model Identifier: MacBookPro5,3
Processor Name: Intel Core 2 Duo
Processor Speed: 3.06 GHz

Maybe it was just a general picture for removing the bottom case. I looked for the owners manual and I looked in the box that my MBP before the current one came in. No owner's manual but I found 2 things still in their wrapper. A remote and some kind of adaptor. Kind of cool. I wonder if the remote works for on my current MBP? what is the pin adaptor for? it is really short, like 6".

Message was edited by: KoolerKT

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Answer 8

eww

Level 9

53,028 points

Dec 5, 2010 8:50 AM in response to KoolerKT

A MBP 5,3 has a built-in battery, so that second set of SMC-resetting instructions is the right one for it.

The removal instructions you're remembering were undoubtedly the ones for removing the bottom panel of the computer, which is how everything inside is accessed. It's particularly important to get the screws back in the right holes during reassembly, because they aren't all interchangeable: there are two or three different lengths. You would use those instructions if you were going to replace your hard drive or RAM, the only two user-replaceable parts inside the case. You shouldn't remove the battery yourself, and I doubt that there were any instructions for doing so.

I wouldn't be concerned about the serial number or the mistaken info it provides about your machine. Just keep track of the paperwork about the repair/replacement in case that's needed for any future service that may be required.

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Answer 9

Dec 7, 2010 1:36 PM in response to eww

The Dreaded "X" and "No Battery Available" problem and a possible fix....Problem: My MacBook was not powering on unless it was powered by the MagSafe. The computer is not very old, and so I did not think it was the battery. When plugged in it seemed to indicate that the battery was charging because there was a percent charged of 94% by the battery icon. In any case, I could not use the MacBook without having it plugged in. I remembered that I had started to notice this problem when I had accidently tripped on the cord, and pulled the MagSafe out of the MacBook.

I searched around, and saw that resetting the SMC might fix this problem. I followed the SMC reset instructions, and after the machine powered up, I was stunned to see that now the battery icon had an "X" on it, and it said "No battery available". I searched all around and I found a thread, did what it suggested, and my battery is back to normal.

Here is what I did to solve the problem:

1) I turned on my MacBook using the power button, while my MagSafe was plugged in.

2) When my MacBook was starting up, a little bit after I saw the gray apple Icon, I disconnected the MagSafe from the MacBook.

3) The first time I tried this, I did it a bit too early in the start up process, and the Macbook turned off.

4) I turned my MacBook back on,waited until the grey apple icon was on the screen, waited on more second and disconnected the MagSafe.

5) Much to my surprise, my MacBook started up just fine, the MagSafe light was Orange again, (instead of always green like before) and the dreaded "X" was gone from my battery icon.

The post I got this idea from suggested that this problem was possibly a bug in Leopard and not a battery problem. I wish I could have credited the original author who suggested it...but So far so good.

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Answer 10

KoolerKT Author

Level 1

8 points

Dec 9, 2010 2:56 PM in response to Robert Wilford

Thanks for this. I followed a series of procedures on the Resetting the SMC because the battery was charging OK, but when I hooked the MagSafe into the MBP, it said, "Not Charging." A few other odd things like when it was hooked up to the MagSafe it would display as if it was on battery power.

I followed the article all the way through to setting the SMC on a MBP that the battery should not be removed by the owner. I had a lot of other things going on that happened at the same time. Safari kept crashing all of the sudden. I was constantly getting the beach ball when using Safari and for example signed into Sears.com working in their community Forum. My MBP was running really slow and I have still 450 GB left of the 500 GB HD. So I did the reset and I did not notice the battery charging thing change, Safari keeps freezing or just closing in the middle of working on a website.

I think it might be that I have Flip4Mac, Flash 10.1, Silverlight plug-in. I m not sure if these are not liking each other.

I do not know what kind of maintaince to do but I did empty the cache in Safari. I have not noticed much of a change in anything so I guess resetting the SMC did not help. There are steps after this step but I can't remember what they are.

Thanks for your feedback. Do you have a MBP where you can remove the battery easily?

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Answer 11

Dec 27, 2010 1:09 PM in response to Robert Wilford

Whilst using my Macbook Pro on battery - carrying it...it suddenly switched off, and refused to startup.

When I plugged it back in power I get the 'x' no batteries available...and the power is always in orange 'charge' mode, even though it's been on power for 2 days.

I did the trick of removing the power on startup - and got it to use the battery, but it still says 'x' no batteries available...yet the power source says 'battery'!?? Like there's no communication between the battery and the Macbook.

Tried reseting the SMC...nothing...any other ideas? Go back to Apple? Fortunately for me they did just replace my battery recently - as the prior one was bulging...

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Answer 12

S.U.

Level 6

9,595 points

Dec 27, 2010 3:40 PM in response to Robert Wilford

Welcome to Apple Discussions!

After resetting the SMC and PRAM trying to get my NewerTech battery to charge to no avail, I tried your suggestion, and it worked! Very interesting idea and surprisingly effective.

Thanks for posting!

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