Very Slow iMac

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Level 1

116 points

Very Slow iMac

I have a 2007 intel iMac with a 2.4 Ghz Core 2 Duo, 750 gb hard drive (430 gb free) and 3 gb Ram. I am running OS X 10.8.2 and until 2 -3 weeks ago was still very quick. Now starting up my iMac is a pain, I'll turn it on and walk away because it takes so long to boot. Once it does start everything I try to open at first gives me a "not responding" but if I wait long enough it will respond. When it started acting up I had not loaded anything new. I have tried resetting pRam, SMC, used DU from start up and I have no errors on my smart drive and I have repaired disk and disk premission. From the Activity Monitor I do not have any "page outs" but 2.36 gb ram out of my 3 gb is used. My "Eye TV" program is suing the most ram @ 1.2 %, so I do not see any drain there. I have tried the purge, in "Termanal" to clear my ram to no avail.

Can anyone help please?

iMac, OS X Mountain Lion (10.8.2), 3 gb ram, 750gb hd

Posted on Oct 12, 2012 7:20 PM

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Answer 1

Oct 12, 2012 7:32 PM in response to trouble me

I had the same problem with my iMac. I just upgraded the RAM and it was back to the speeds it got when it was a couple months old! iFixit.com has some great guides on fixing/upgrading computers.

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Answer 2

trouble me Author

Level 1

116 points

Oct 12, 2012 7:36 PM in response to IanStewart98

I have new Ram (4gb) on the way, but I was not sure if this was the problem. I will update when it comes in. Thank you for your responce.

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Answer 3

Linc Davis

Level 10

209,547 points

Oct 13, 2012 5:51 AM in response to trouble me

It's likely that your boot drive is failing, or that you have some other hardware fault. Back up all data immediately, then run the Apple Hardware Test.

Intel-based Macs: Using Apple Hardware Test

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Answer 4

trouble me Author

Level 1

116 points

Oct 13, 2012 8:48 AM in response to Linc Davis

I have tried to access the Apple Hardware Test to no avail. I can hold down the D key on start up and nothing happens, all I get is what looks like an empty folder. So I held down the Option D keys and nothing happens. Because I have updated to Mountain Lion I do not have a disk to start with. Even if I did have a disk there is no way to read it because I have one of the many 2007 iMac that have a defective Super Drive that will not read DVD's and the reader I do have is FireWire so it does not work on start up. Any other thoughts on how to get to the Apple Hardware Test?

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Answer 5

Linc Davis

Level 10

209,547 points

Oct 13, 2012 9:39 AM in response to trouble me

Make a "Genius" appointment at an Apple Store to have the machine tested.

Back up all data on the internal drive(s) before you hand over your computer to anyone. If privacy is a concern, erase the data partition(s) with the option to write zeros* (do this only if you have at least two complete, independent backups, and you know how to restore to bare metal from any of them.) Don’t erase the recovery partition, if present.

*An SSD doesn't need to be zeroed.

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