High kernel_task Memory Usage on MBP mid 2012 after 10.8.3 upgrade

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High kernel_task Memory Usage on MBP mid 2012 after 10.8.3 upgrade

Hi! i have a MBP Mid 2012 (4gb ram/500gb HD) and till yesterday everything was smooth. After i upgraded from ML 10.8.2 to ML 10.8.3 i saw a huge difference in kernel_task RAM Usage... before the upgrade it was around 400-500mb but now it went up to 750(at startup) and it can go up to 900mb... when i launch the MBP on Safe Mode the kernel_task is using 280-300mb... anyone having the same problem? or having a solution about that? ty

MacBook Pro, OS X Mountain Lion (10.8.3)

Posted on Mar 15, 2013 9:30 AM

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Answer 1

Eric Root

Level 10

684,027 points

Mar 15, 2013 10:02 AM in response to Mouzy

Try going to Applications/Activity Monitor and see if you can identify the process and then select the process and quit it using the command under the View menu.

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Answer 2

Mouzy Author

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Mar 15, 2013 10:07 AM in response to Eric Root

as i mentioned on the post i know it is the kernel_task that has that high memory usage... so i know what is the problem , but don't know how to solve it unfortunatelly :/

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Answer 3

Mar 15, 2013 10:46 AM in response to Mouzy

What sorts of extensions do you have? Most typically this is from applications that are running in kernel space. I saw this from iStat Menus once; kernel_task was in the 3 GB range because of a leak and once removed, kernel_task use went way down.

What do you have set to run at startup? That safe mode is OK really points to some 3rd party extension causing a problem.

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Answer 4

Mouzy Author

Level 1

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Mar 15, 2013 10:49 AM in response to William Lloyd

i use live wallpaper , battery health , and drop box running at startup... i tried turning them off but nothing changed..

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Answer 5

Eric Root

Level 10

684,027 points

Mar 15, 2013 2:27 PM in response to Mouzy

I understood what you typed; what I was wondering is can you figure out what is using all mb. As William pointed out, since it is better in the Safe Mode, it is likely a 3rd party problem. If you can identify which specific item is causing the problem, then you can troubleshoot from there.

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Answer 6

Mar 15, 2013 2:33 PM in response to Mouzy

Live wallpaper would sound like a prime suspect to me.

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Answer 7

Mouzy Author

Level 1

6 points

Mar 16, 2013 3:11 AM in response to Eric Root

Yeah i tried finding out what caused the problem but can't figure out. I even deleted live wallpaper and the rest , so to see if it goes better , but no result. I was told that this may be normal but i find it way to high . I mean +400-500mb difference from Safe Mode and +250 from 10.8.2 ?

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Answer 8

Lexiepex

Level 6

14,102 points

Mar 16, 2013 5:29 AM in response to Mouzy

after you stop and delete the live wallpaper, you have to restart the mac.

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Answer 9

Mouzy Author

Level 1

6 points

Mar 16, 2013 6:22 AM in response to Lexiepex

did so 3 times. Any chance this memory consumption is normal ?

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Answer 10

Lexiepex

Level 6

14,102 points

Mar 16, 2013 9:02 AM in response to Mouzy

I have a 8GB mid 2012 MBP 15" with a 256GB SSD, that behaves very well (10.8.3):

doing this and several not very heavy apps Activity Monitor gives

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Answer 11

emkang

Level 1

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Mar 16, 2013 2:33 PM in response to Mouzy

I too am having this issue. kernel_task prior to the 10.8.3 update was in the 400-600 MB range tops. Now it will not go below 950 MB and jumps past 1.0 GB easily.

This is on a 2012 11" MBA with 8 GB RAM. The only extensions I use are Xmarks and Alfred.

I'm really disappointed that system resrouces are hogging so much memory. I'm not in any danger of running out, but this cannot be normal.

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Answer 12

Mar 17, 2013 2:39 AM in response to Mouzy

I'm having this problem as well on my MBPr 15,4 , 256 GB SSD and 8GB of RAM.

kernel_task shows 1.11 to 1.2 GB of memory consumption.

On my macbook unibody late 2008 (256GB SSD / 8GB RAM) with 10.8.2 the kernel_task shows only around 400MB.

Both macbooks have the similar configuration and installed tools.

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Answer 13

blerim1

Level 1

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Mar 17, 2013 4:27 AM in response to Mouzy

I have this problem, I try to update to 10.8.3 and update completed , i have open activity monitor kernel_task 900 mb , 1 gb , it's so much for kernel , <?

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