Slow loading Finder in Mavericks?

This helped me. Thank you. I was having thoughts of returning to 10.8

I have to say that the finder is faster, but I can't use the mouse to click between finder and my pro apps. Or any app for that matter. I have to use the command + tab key to get to finder. I think the bug is deeper than in the OS. When I was in FCP3 setting up scratch disks, finder was slow and my machine is pretty fast. I do hope APPLE takes care of this bug. I am still losing productivity.

blurped wrote:

sudo defaults write com.apple.Finder NSAppSleepDisabled -bool YES

It's a logical solution, since it clearly is the AppNap causing the issue. I tested the command out on my new MBP running OS X Mavericks and I'm no longer having 30 second wait times for large libraries to load.

kufan0001 wrote:

Grr.... maybe I will hold off on trying this then as it does not seem to be helping everybody. How irritating!

ℹ It's absolutely worth a try. Here's why:

1) We know AppNap is a new feature that puts the finder to sleep when not in use

2) So logically we can infer that disabling AppNap will solve the 'AppNap' lag

3) We can fix it by going to Applications/Utilities/Terminal to issue a very basic command

➕ The command is:

sudo defaults write com.apple.Finder NSAppSleepDisabled -bool YES

ℹ Translated into English, it reads:

sudo = I am a user who has administrative rights on this operating system

defaults = My request concerns a default setting of this operating system

write = I am going to 'write' a change to that default setting

com.apple.finder = The default setting is in the Finder, which is an Apple application

NSAppSleepDisabled = The setting is called 'NSAppSleepDisabled' (aka AppNap)

-bool = I am issuing a boolean data command (a 2-setting command i.e. true/false, yes/no)

YES = I am saying 'yes' enable 'NSAppSleepDisabled' (so AppNap won't cause Finder to sleep)

⚠ This will NOT fix all issues related to OS X Mavericks Finder lag.

Why? Another issue is causing your Finder to lag or you issued the command wrong

Then what might the other issue be? A laundry list of possibilitiess...

What other things could I try?

1) Verify disk permissions. Repair permissions. (a quick and easy option)

2) Run a clean install of OS X Mavericks (a more time-consuming difficult option)

How do I do those things? Google it.

I hope this demystifies the "scary" command and/or explains why it might not work for everyone. 😎

Same problem here. Have tried the Terminal commando, will have to see if it works.

And Apple: update is expected - soon

I have tried all the above suggessions including what blurped had suggested as well as what was available in http://osxdaily.com/2013/11/13/fix-finder-slow-high-cpu-use-mac-os-x/ but that did not slow the slowness I have been experiencing in finder after I upgraded to Mavericks.

Here is what solved the problem for me:-

1. Opened Disk Doctor and clicked on Verify Disk

2. Verification showed that disk had some errors which needs to be resolved during reboot

3. Restarted the mac, and Pressed Command + R during restart

This will bring up the Mac OSX Utilities

4. Select Disk Utlitiy

5. Select Macintosh Hard Disk and click on Repair Disk

6. After Repair is done, reboot into Mac and open finder

Now everything loads up faster just like how it used to be in 10.8 🙂

I've tried them all. This one is the only one that has works for me on 2 computers that were upgrades from mountain lion. No problem since, at least for me.

I am talking about this http://osxdaily.com/2013/11/13/fix-finder-slow-high-cpu-use-mac-os-x/

I have the exact problem from the orioginal posting (brand new machine with Mavericks pre-loaded, slow open/save dialog, etc...) and http://osxdaily.com/2013/11/13/fix-finder-slow-high-cpu-use-mac-os-x/ seems to have completely fixed things for me.

I have tried a few things and the bug keeps coming and going. I don't have the luxury of doing a clean install right now. This problem has gone on since the install and APPLE needs to address this. Finder is a large component of this OS. Every time I try to save or convert something I have to wait for ever. I hope APPLE is not becoming the other software company......."deal with it.....we may have an upgrade/fix next year."

I've tried all suggested here (disable appnap, remove preference, disk repair perm), the slowness keeps going, so I use path finder for (temporary) replacement, which is very fast, but still, file open/save operation very slow...

It is most likely that the cause of your problems may be completely different. Open your own thread, detailing your issues fully and

etresoft a long time contributer to Apple Support Communities wrote a very useful app he called etrecheck which helps in diagnosing many problems caused by third party installs etc.. Go to his website, read his information and from there download and run the program according to his instructions

http://www.etresoft.com/etrecheck

Download, run and post the results in the thread you open and you will receive much more personalized assistance.

Cheers

Pete

My problem was solved by starting up in Safe Mode (Safe Boot)

I opened all the folders that were slow in finder. The first 2 or 3 of them were still slow. Then they started to open really fast. Did nothing more. Restarted my machine & then everything was great.

Starting up in Safe Mode

To start up into Safe Mode (to Safe Boot), follow these steps.

1. Be sure your Mac is shut down.
2. Press the power button.
3. Immediately after you hear the startup tone, hold the Shift key.
   The Shift key should be held as soon as possible after the startup tone, but not before the tone.
4. Release the Shift key when you see the gray Apple logo and the progress indicator (looks like a spinning gear).

After the logo appears, you should see a progress bar during startup. This indicates that your computer is performing a directory check as part of Safe Mode.

To leave Safe Mode, restart your computer without holding any keys during startup.

Best wishes

If Steve Jobs were here, he might tell you that youa re holding the mouse wrong. (LOL)

Having suggested, earlier in this discussion, that App Nap might be the cause of our problems I now consider that it might not have been the full answer as occasionally my Finder still drags it's feet. However, the solution proposed at:

http://osxdaily.com/2013/11/13/fix-finder-slow-high-cpu-use-mac-os-x/

has fixed it for me.

Whilst I was following their procedure I discovered that in addition to the com.apple.finder.plist file that was in my ~/Library/Preferences/ folder there were also at least a dozen similar files named variously com.apple.finder.plist.8HaLvbu or similar. Most of these had zero bytes so I deleted those too.

I note that Maan Waggass, elsewhere in this discussion, solved the problem by starting in safe mode. Perhaps safe mode clears out these rogue plists and refreshes the appropriate one. Does anyone know? It would be satisfying to know that between us we have landed on the same and correct solution.

In the meantime I am enjoying a sharp and responsive Finder again.