mantarunner
Level 1 (0 points)

Q: Why is my iMac running so slow

Lots of the color spinning wheel for what used to be mundane tasks.

 

My iMac is 4 1/2 years old and really does not have a lot installed on it data wise.  We use Dropbox or an external drive.

 

We don't even have a lot of applications on it; skype, chrome, quicktime, Excel, PPT, Word, Entourage, TurboTax, Quicken and iLife.

 

Is the best thing to wipe the drive clean and start over?

iMac, Mac OS X (10.5)

Posted on Aug 18, 2013 9:02 AM

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mantarunner

Q: Why is my iMac running so slow

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  • by John Galt,

    John Galt John Galt Aug 18, 2013 9:12 AM in response to mantarunner
    Level 9 (50,479 points)
    Mac OS X
    Aug 18, 2013 9:12 AM in response to mantarunner

    mantarunner wrote:

     

    Is the best thing to wipe the drive clean and start over?

     

    That is an option but if by "starting over" you mean reinstalling everything that is already installed the result will be exactly what you have now, and nothing will change.

     

    Are you still running OS 10.5 "Leopard"?

     

    Which exact model iMac are you using? There are a few different models that may be considered 4 1/2 years old.

     

    How much memory is installed?

     

    How much unallocated disk space remains?

     

    Have you run Disk Utility to repair the boot volume (you can only do this by starting your Mac from a different boot volume)?

     

    A definitive answer to your question will remain elusive without more information. Without a specific description it is difficult to provide specific guidance. Read the following to determine if something may apply to your concern:

     

     

    General Mac maintenance: Tips to keep your Mac in top form

     

    General purpose Mac troubleshooting guide: Isolating issues in Mac OS X

     

    Creating a temporary account to isolate user-specific problems: Isolating an issue by using another user account

     

    Memory limitations: Using Activity Monitor to read System Memory and determine how much RAM is being used

     

    Identifying resource hogs and other tips: Runaway applications can shorten battery runtime, affect performance, and increase heat and fan activity

     

    To identify potential hardware problems: Apple Hardware Test

     

    To resolve startup issues and perform disk maintenance, use Disk Utility.

     

    Safe Mode or "Safe Boot" is a troubleshooting mode that bypasses all third party system extensions and loads only required system components. Read about it: Starting up in Safe Mode

     

  • by mantarunner,

    mantarunner mantarunner Aug 18, 2013 10:13 AM in response to mantarunner
    Level 1 (0 points)
    Aug 18, 2013 10:13 AM in response to mantarunner

    Hi John,

     

    Thank you for your prompt reply.

     

    Here are the answers to most of your questions.  However, I do not know how to run the disk utility.  I looked in system preferences, but no luck.

     

    Are you still running OS 10.5 "Leopard"?  10.6.8

     

    Which exact model iMac are you using?  iMac8,1

     

    How much memory is installed?  4GB with a 2.66 GHz Processor

     

    How much unallocated disk space remains? 118.43 GB remaining

  • by CaptH,

    CaptH CaptH Aug 18, 2013 12:17 PM in response to mantarunner
    Level 1 (59 points)
    Aug 18, 2013 12:17 PM in response to mantarunner

    The first thing  I would do is review and then try the following from Apple support:

     

    http://support.apple.com/kb/HT3964

     

    Check out the "system performance" items in that article. That's easy to do.

     

    The following site has a lot of information about performance problems and drive problems in their how-to and downloads section:

     

    http://scsc-online.com

     

    Although their article on using Activity Monitor to troubleshoot performance problems is for Mountain Lion it's pretty much applicable to any recent system. If it looks like it might be a drive going bad then you can download their hard drive troubleshooting book.

     

    Hope this helps.