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User profile for user: Aro2220x
Aro2220x Author
User level: Level 1
9 points

kernel_task going crazy on late 2011 macbook pro 13.3" base model

I bought this 2011 Macbook pro and have loved it, until now. This kernel_task problem has been very difficult for me to find the cause of since I am not super familiar with MacOSX.

The Problem

The computer runs fine, sometimes. Typically, after I've been using it for anywhere from a few minutes to a few hours, both while using battery and while plugged in, the computer starts going slow. I mean REALLY slow. Like, I type into a text box and it can't keep up with more than 5-10wpm.

Symptoms

The only symptom I have been able to find is in activity monitor, while this problem is happening, the kernel_task entry is running anywhere between 200-600% CPU. I'm not sure I understand how something can be using more than 100% of my cpu but anyway...

I read a bunch of articles from people with similar problems and have found the following:


  • My fan does not turn on high when this is happening.
  • My laptop is cool to the touch.
  • If I reboot, it keeps going slow, once this problem has started.
  • It sometimes goes away if I close the lid and come back in an hour or two.
  • It happens even on a fresh boot.
  • I am running Maverick OSX and this problem first started during Mountain Lion, but rarely. Now it is quite common.
  • I reformatted the system, wiping everything, and it happened again.
  • I held D while booting and ran the hardware diagnostic. It said everything was fine.
  • Looking under /Library/Logs I can't find a kernal panic log file.
  • In terminal > kextstat -kl | awk '!/com\.apple/{printf"%s %s\n", $6, $7' comes up with no results
  • Nothing else in the activity monitor ever seems to go crazy on cpu.
  • Sometimes I am doing a lot of things. Sometimes I am doing almost nothing. There seems to be no reason this happens.
  • I disabled spotlight once through some terminal command but I guess it started again when I rebooted. In any event, I noticed it was indexing everything but the system was running fine at the time.
  • I followed instructions to reset PRAM and SMC. It seemed to fix things once, but just recently it happened again and I did it again and the system was still going super slow.
  • In disk utility I've ran Verify Disk, repair Disk, Verify Disk Permissions and Repair Disk Permissions multiple times but it doesn't seem to stop the problem while it is happening or stop it from happening in the future.
  • Battery drains a little faster now (>2 years after purchase), but it's something like 6 hours instead of 7-8...which I think is normal.
Things I don't know about
  • When I verify disk permissions / repair disk permissions there almost always seems to be different problems. Sometimes there's a lot of things, other times not so much. Right now there's only two entries when I run it.
    • eg., "Group differs on "Library/Printers/InstalledPrinters.plist"; should be 80; group is 0.
    • eg., "Permissions differ on "Library/Printers/InstalledPrinters.plist"; should be -rw-rw-rw-; they are -rw-r--r--.
  • Some thread said something about being able to find out what is using kernel_task through terminal, somehow. But I couldn't find details on that.
  • I noticced under /Library/Logs/DiagnosticReports there are a bunch of diagnostic reports that get generated without me doing anything, but I can't seem to find out how to navigate to /Library/Logs in finder (only terminal)

My problem is that I'm not sure how to investigate this problem further. I don't know any other diagnostics I can be running to troubleshoot this problem. I really want to know what is causing this problem so I can decide if it is fixable / worth fixing.

I was going to buy a new laptop, but now I'm worried if I buy another macbook pro, I'll run into another odd problem like this and be stuck with an expensive laptop that randomly turns into a paper weight. And I'd buy a Windows laptop or a chromebook...but I really do not like their operating systems. So right now I'm kind of screwed...exams are coming up and I can't figure out if this laptop is fixable...I can't even find out what is the problem!

Please help.

MacBook Pro, iOS 7.0.4, 13.3" 2011 base model

Posted on Nov 20, 2013 6:58 PM

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User profile for user: Linc Davis
Linc Davis
User level: Level 10
209,547 points

Posted on Nov 21, 2013 7:26 AM

Please read this whole message before doing anything.

This procedure is a diagnostic test. It won’t solve your problem. Don’t be disappointed when you find that nothing has changed after you complete it.

Third-party system modifications are a common cause of usability problems. By a “system modification,” I mean software that affects the operation of other software — potentially for the worse. The following procedure will help identify which such modifications you've installed. Don’t be alarmed by the complexity of these instructions — they’re easy to carry out and won’t change anything on your Mac.


These steps are to be taken while booted in “normal” mode, not in safe mode. If you’re now running in safe mode, reboot as usual before continuing.


Below are instructions to enter some UNIX shell commands. The commands are harmless, but they must be entered exactly as given in order to work. If you have doubts about the safety of the procedure suggested here, search this site for other discussions in which it’s been followed without any report of ill effects.


Some of the commands will line-wrap or scroll in your browser, but each one is really just a single line, all of which must be selected. You can accomplish this easily by triple-clicking anywhere in the line. The whole line will highlight, and you can then copy it. The headings “Step 1” and so on are not part of the commands.


Note: If you have more than one user account, Step 2 must be taken as an administrator. Ordinarily that would be the user created automatically when you booted the system for the first time. The other steps should be taken as the user who has the problem, if different. Most personal Macs have only one user, and in that case this paragraph doesn’t apply.


Launch the Terminal application in any of the following ways:


☞ Enter the first few letters of its name into a Spotlight search. Select it in the results (it should be at the top.)


☞ In the Finder, select Go ▹ Utilities from the menu bar, or press the key combination shift-command-U. The application is in the folder that opens.


☞ Open LaunchPad. Click Utilities, then Terminal in the icon grid.


When you launch Terminal, a text window will open with a line already in it, ending either in a dollar sign (“$”) or a percent sign (“%”). If you get the percent sign, enter “sh” and press return. You should then get a new line ending in a dollar sign.


Step 1


Triple-click anywhere in the line of text below on this page to select it:

kextstat -kl | awk '!/com\.apple/{printf "%s %s\n", $6, $7}' | open -ef


Copy the selected text to the Clipboard by pressing the key combination command-C. Then click anywhere in the Terminal window and paste (command-V). I've tested these instructions only with the Safari web browser. If you use another browser, you may have to press the return key after pasting. A TextEdit window will open with the output of the command. If the command produced no output, the window will be empty. Post the contents of the TextEdit window (not the Terminal window), if any — the text, please, not a screenshot. You can then close the TextEdit window. The title of the window doesn't matter, and you don't need to post that. No typing is involved in this step.

Step 2


Repeat with this line:

{ sudo launchctl list | sed 1d | awk '!/0x|com\.(apple|openssh|vix\.cron)|org\.(amav|apac|cups|isc|ntp|postf|x)/{print $3}'; echo; sudo launchctl getenv DYLD_INSERT_LIBRARIES; echo; sudo defaults read com.apple.loginwindow LoginHook; echo; sudo crontab -l; } 2> /dev/null | open -ef


This time you'll be prompted for your login password, which you do have to type. Nothing will be displayed when you type it. Type it carefully and then press return. You may get a one-time warning to be careful. Heed that warning, but don't post it. If you see a message that your username "is not in the sudoers file," then you're not logged in as an administrator.


Note: If you don’t have a login password, you’ll need to set one before taking this step. If that’s not possible, skip to the next step.


Step 3

{ launchctl list | sed 1d | awk '!/0x|com\.apple|org\.(x|openbsd)/{print $3}'; echo; launchctl getenv DYLD_INSERT_LIBRARIES; echo; crontab -l 2> /dev/null; } | open -ef


Step 4

ls -A /e*/{cr,la,mach}* {,/}Lib*/{Ad,Compon,Ex,Fram,In,Keyb,La,Mail/Bu,P*P,Priv,Qu,Scripti,Servi,Spo,Sta}* L*/Fonts .la* 2> /dev/null | open -ef

Important: If you formerly synchronized with a MobileMe account, your me.com email address may appear in the output of the above command. If so, anonymize it before posting.


Step 5

osascript -e 'tell application "System Events" to get name of login items' | open -ef


Remember, steps 1-5 are all copy-and-paste — no typing, except your password. Also remember to post the output.


You can then quit Terminal.

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18 replies
Question marked as Best reply
User profile for user: Linc Davis
Linc Davis
User level: Level 10
209,547 points

Nov 21, 2013 7:26 AM in response to Aro2220x

Please read this whole message before doing anything.

This procedure is a diagnostic test. It won’t solve your problem. Don’t be disappointed when you find that nothing has changed after you complete it.

Third-party system modifications are a common cause of usability problems. By a “system modification,” I mean software that affects the operation of other software — potentially for the worse. The following procedure will help identify which such modifications you've installed. Don’t be alarmed by the complexity of these instructions — they’re easy to carry out and won’t change anything on your Mac.


These steps are to be taken while booted in “normal” mode, not in safe mode. If you’re now running in safe mode, reboot as usual before continuing.


Below are instructions to enter some UNIX shell commands. The commands are harmless, but they must be entered exactly as given in order to work. If you have doubts about the safety of the procedure suggested here, search this site for other discussions in which it’s been followed without any report of ill effects.


Some of the commands will line-wrap or scroll in your browser, but each one is really just a single line, all of which must be selected. You can accomplish this easily by triple-clicking anywhere in the line. The whole line will highlight, and you can then copy it. The headings “Step 1” and so on are not part of the commands.


Note: If you have more than one user account, Step 2 must be taken as an administrator. Ordinarily that would be the user created automatically when you booted the system for the first time. The other steps should be taken as the user who has the problem, if different. Most personal Macs have only one user, and in that case this paragraph doesn’t apply.


Launch the Terminal application in any of the following ways:


☞ Enter the first few letters of its name into a Spotlight search. Select it in the results (it should be at the top.)


☞ In the Finder, select Go ▹ Utilities from the menu bar, or press the key combination shift-command-U. The application is in the folder that opens.


☞ Open LaunchPad. Click Utilities, then Terminal in the icon grid.


When you launch Terminal, a text window will open with a line already in it, ending either in a dollar sign (“$”) or a percent sign (“%”). If you get the percent sign, enter “sh” and press return. You should then get a new line ending in a dollar sign.


Step 1


Triple-click anywhere in the line of text below on this page to select it:

kextstat -kl | awk '!/com\.apple/{printf "%s %s\n", $6, $7}' | open -ef


Copy the selected text to the Clipboard by pressing the key combination command-C. Then click anywhere in the Terminal window and paste (command-V). I've tested these instructions only with the Safari web browser. If you use another browser, you may have to press the return key after pasting. A TextEdit window will open with the output of the command. If the command produced no output, the window will be empty. Post the contents of the TextEdit window (not the Terminal window), if any — the text, please, not a screenshot. You can then close the TextEdit window. The title of the window doesn't matter, and you don't need to post that. No typing is involved in this step.

Step 2


Repeat with this line:

{ sudo launchctl list | sed 1d | awk '!/0x|com\.(apple|openssh|vix\.cron)|org\.(amav|apac|cups|isc|ntp|postf|x)/{print $3}'; echo; sudo launchctl getenv DYLD_INSERT_LIBRARIES; echo; sudo defaults read com.apple.loginwindow LoginHook; echo; sudo crontab -l; } 2> /dev/null | open -ef


This time you'll be prompted for your login password, which you do have to type. Nothing will be displayed when you type it. Type it carefully and then press return. You may get a one-time warning to be careful. Heed that warning, but don't post it. If you see a message that your username "is not in the sudoers file," then you're not logged in as an administrator.


Note: If you don’t have a login password, you’ll need to set one before taking this step. If that’s not possible, skip to the next step.


Step 3

{ launchctl list | sed 1d | awk '!/0x|com\.apple|org\.(x|openbsd)/{print $3}'; echo; launchctl getenv DYLD_INSERT_LIBRARIES; echo; crontab -l 2> /dev/null; } | open -ef


Step 4

ls -A /e*/{cr,la,mach}* {,/}Lib*/{Ad,Compon,Ex,Fram,In,Keyb,La,Mail/Bu,P*P,Priv,Qu,Scripti,Servi,Spo,Sta}* L*/Fonts .la* 2> /dev/null | open -ef

Important: If you formerly synchronized with a MobileMe account, your me.com email address may appear in the output of the above command. If so, anonymize it before posting.


Step 5

osascript -e 'tell application "System Events" to get name of login items' | open -ef


Remember, steps 1-5 are all copy-and-paste — no typing, except your password. Also remember to post the output.


You can then quit Terminal.

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User profile for user: Linc Davis
Linc Davis
User level: Level 10
209,547 points

Nov 20, 2013 7:31 PM in response to Aro2220x

The kernel is using excessive processor cycles. Below are some possible causes for the condition.

Throttling

When it gets high temperature readings from the hardware, or a low-voltage reading from the battery, the kernel may try to compensate by interrupting the processor(s) to slow them down and reduce power consumption. This condition can be due to


  • a buildup of dust on the logic board
  • high ambient temperature
  • a worn-out or faulty battery in a portable
  • the malfunction of a cooling fan or sensor


Note that if the problem is caused by a sensor, there may be no actual overheating or undervoltage.

If the computer is portable, test with and without the AC adapter connected. If kernel_task hogs the processor only on battery power, the fault is in the battery or the logic board. If it happens only on AC power, charging is causing the machine to heat up. That may be normal on some models. CPU usage should drop when charging is complete.

The Apple Hardware Test or Apple Diagnostics, though not very reliable, is sometimes able to detect a bad fan or sensor.

If nothing is wrong with the hardware, then whatever you can do to improve cooling may help.

Installed software

User-installed software that includes a device driver or other kernel code may thrash the kernel. That category includes virtualization software, such as Parallels and VMware, as well as most commercial "anti-virus" products. Some system-monitoring applications, such as "iStat," can also contribute to the problem. You can test for this possibility by completely disabling or removing the software according to the developer's instructions, or booting in safe mode. Note, however, that disabling a system modification without removing it or booting in safe mode may not be as easy as you think it is.

Corrupt NVRAM or SMC data

Sometimes the problem is cleared up by resetting the NVRAM or the SMC.

External display

Connecting an external LCD display to some MacBook Pro models may cause this issue. If applicable, test by disconnecting the display. You might get better results with a newer LED display.

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User profile for user: Aro2220x
Aro2220x Author
User level: Level 1
9 points

Nov 20, 2013 8:34 PM in response to Linc Davis

Hi, thanks for the reply.


I've had this problem happen while on battery and while on ac power. Sometimes it works fine on battery and on ac power. If the problem starts and I switch from AC to Battery, or if it starts while on battery and I switch to AC, there is no change.


I've installed some hardware monitoring tool just now to see what the temperatures are. I was a little surprised seeing the highest cpu thermal sensor aroudn 107f. But the system was going fast at the time and the bottom of the computer was cool.


I shut down the system, undid the screws on the back and blew out the dust with canned air (it was very clean in there though). I booted the system back up and now the temperature was 98f, and it was going extremely slowly.


I shut the lid and left for 30 minutes. I just walked back to it now, opened it and noticed the temperature (it was just hibernating) is now 93f and it's going quickly again.


I'm not entirely sure what to make of this since a lot of these symptoms seem counter intuitive. If it was a problem with temperature throttling, then why wasn't it slow at the highest temperature of 107f?


If it was NVRAM or SMC, why didn't it fix after I reset both of them?


If it is battery caused - then why is it running fast on battery sometimes and slow on AC sometimes?


I'm not sure how to tell if it is a failure of a cooling sensor. The system does in fact stay cool. Although it was at 107f and the fan was only at 2100rpm according to this monitoring software.


I do not have any virtualization software, or antivirus. I did install some software I bought off the apple store that lets me plug in a windows xbox360 controller and use it...however this problem was happening before I installed this software and before I formatted.


I don't have much other software on there. Google Chrome, Filezilla, Audacity (as of today, so I doubt that's the cause) and android studio. All of these, except for Google Chrome and Filezilla have been installed after this problem was persistant. I do believe right after I reformatted I ran the system with stock applications using Safari and the slow down happened again...which makes me think it is really not a software issue or being caused by anything I may have installed.


In fact, this problem started all of a sudden and did not correspond with a change in software. In fact, it had been months since I had installed anything new when the symptoms first started.


It does certainly seem like some kind of a hardware problem...but the vagueness of the kernal_task being very high without any ability to run some kind of monitoring/diagnostic with why it is doing that makes this difficult to determine.


If anyone knows any way I can get more information on what is happening with my system during one of these high kernal_task peaks, I may be able to figure out what is (or isn't) the cause and go from there.

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User profile for user: Aro2220x
Aro2220x Author
User level: Level 1
9 points

Nov 20, 2013 8:45 PM in response to Linc Davis

Sorry, I forgot to reply to that portion but I have run those tests before.


http://support.apple.com/kb/HT1509

AHT - I held the D key and booted into that previously. Ran the test and came back and it said everything was ok.


http://support.apple.com/kb/HT5781

as far as I can tell these are just a different set of instructions to run the same test. This one has screenshots that look familiar to the process I ran.


I did run the extended test.

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User profile for user: Aro2220x
Aro2220x Author
User level: Level 1
9 points

Nov 21, 2013 7:07 AM in response to Linc Davis

Hello, so last night until I went to bed the computer was going quick.


I got up this morning and put my laptop in my backpack and walked to work. As soon as I logged in I could tell it was going very slowly. Temperature sensor said it was around 80f (now it's 112f in safe mode).


The computer felt sluggish in safe mode, but I think that is because a bunch of drivers or something related to 'smoothing' ismissing because my cpu is not being fully utilized and I can type as quickly as I want.


So I think this is pretty clearly pointing to a cause that can be disabled in safe mode.


How do I investigate this further?

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User profile for user: Aro2220x
Aro2220x Author
User level: Level 1
9 points

Nov 21, 2013 8:30 AM in response to Linc Davis

kextstat -kl | awk '!/com\.apple/{printf "%s %s\n", $6, $7}' | open -ef


The text file opened. There was nothing inside.


{ sudo launchctl list | sed 1d | awk '!/0x|com\.(apple|openssh|vix\.cron)|org\.(amav|apac|cups|isc|ntp|postf|x)/{print $3}'; echo; sudo launchctl getenv DYLD_INSERT_LIBRARIES; echo; sudo defaults read com.apple.loginwindow LoginHook; echo; sudo crontab -l; } 2> /dev/null | open -ef

com.mice.360Daemon

com.github.GitHub.GHInstallCLI

com.bjango.istatmenusdaemon



{ launchctl list | sed 1d | awk '!/0x|com\.apple|org\.(x|openbsd)/{print $3}'; echo; launchctl getenv DYLD_INSERT_LIBRARIES; echo; crontab -l 2> /dev/null; } | open -ef


com.carvware.gpcdaemonlauncher31

com.bjango.istatmenusagent

com.google.keystone.user.agent



ls -A /e*/{cr,la,mach}* {,/}Lib*/{Ad,Compon,Ex,Fram,In,Keyb,La,Mail/Bu,P*P,Priv,Qu,Scripti,Servi,Spo,Sta}* L*/Fonts .la* 2> /dev/null | open -ef

/Library/Components:



/Library/Extensions:

ATTOCelerityFC8.kext

ATTOExpressSASHBA2.kext

ATTOExpressSASRAID2.kext

ArcMSR.kext

CalDigitHDProDrv.kext

HighPointIOP.kext

HighPointRR.kext

PromiseSTEX.kext

SoftRAID.kext



/Library/Frameworks:

AEProfiling.framework

AERegistration.framework

AudioMixEngine.framework

NyxAudioAnalysis.framework

PluginManager.framework

iTunesLibrary.framework



/Library/Input Methods:



/Library/Internet Plug-Ins:

Default Browser.plugin

JavaAppletPlugin.plugin

Quartz Composer.webplugin

QuickTime Plugin.plugin

nsIQTScriptablePlugin.xpt



/Library/Keyboard Layouts:



/Library/LaunchAgents:

com.bjango.istatmenusagent.plist



/Library/LaunchDaemons:

com.bjango.istatmenusdaemon.plist

com.github.GitHub.GHInstallCLI.plist

com.mice.360Daemon.plist



/Library/PreferencePanes:

Pref360Control.prefPane



/Library/PrivilegedHelperTools:

com.github.GitHub.GHInstallCLI



/Library/QuickLook:

iBooksAuthor.qlgenerator

iWork.qlgenerator



/Library/QuickTime:

AppleIntermediateCodec.component

AppleMPEG2Codec.component



/Library/ScriptingAdditions:



/Library/Spotlight:

Microsoft Office.mdimporter

iBooksAuthor.mdimporter

iWork.mdimporter



/Library/StartupItems:



/etc/mach_init.d:



/etc/mach_init_per_login_session.d:



/etc/mach_init_per_user.d:



Library/Fonts:



Library/Input Methods:

.localized



Library/Internet Plug-Ins:



Library/Keyboard Layouts:



Library/LaunchAgents:

com.google.keystone.agent.plist



Library/PreferencePanes:



Library/Services:

osascript -e 'tell application "System Events" to get name of login items' | open -ef



iTunesHelper



---fin


p.s. I didn't know about triple click. Thank you.

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User profile for user: Aro2220x
Aro2220x Author
User level: Level 1
9 points

Nov 21, 2013 10:15 AM in response to Linc Davis

I also realized today that I can't think of the last time I heard my fans blasting on high. They seem to be perpetually stuck at 2000rpm, even when my temperature is (in my mind) quite high.


Anyway, I uninstalled iStat and rebooted. The system was still extremely slow (under very high kernel_task load) right after uninstall and after rebooting.

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User profile for user: Aro2220x
Aro2220x Author
User level: Level 1
9 points

Nov 21, 2013 10:53 AM in response to Aro2220x

I read through a few other things:


http://tech.superhappykittymeow.com/?p=258

http://www.rdoxenham.com/?p=259


It seems this may be a band-aid fix for my problem.


The high kernel_task seems to be some kind of a heat-protection measure. When it thinks the temperature is getting too high, it starts running nonsense tasks in the kernel (which always run before all other tasks) to throttle it and thereby lower the heat.


The problem is that my laptop seems to be:

1. not near critical or even high temperature ranges when this kicks in, and it seems to be arbitrary.

2. the fan is always on low. it doesn't kick in higher fan speeds first before cpu throttling.


I am stumped at how to figure out if this is actually a hardware fault, but assuming I reformatted and not everyone is having the same problem, that suggests it isn't a software fault. That the system seems to run fine at times, and in safe mode where this 'feature' is disabled things seem to run reasonably well (if you call having lousy video drivers reasonable), suggests that my CPU is not broken.


In fact, iStat seems to report realistic cpu temperatures from all available sensors so I'm thinking maybe a sensor itself isn't broken. But maybe something I don't understand in how sensor information is transmitted -- or maybe the fan control speed is broken. I want to install this smcFanControl program I keep hearing about and see if I can force the fan on high. If I can't, then obviuosly something is wrong with it.

But even that is confusing as the fan itself is not completely dead. I can hear it. The sensors say it's blowing. And the temperatures of the board are under 45 celsius right now which is where they're supposed to kick in so I can't be sure it isn't even working.


I'm thinking if there's no way to really get to the bottom of this, maybe I can find a way to disable this kernel_task cpu management feature and purchase software (like iStat) to monitor my CPU and somethign like smcFanControl to manually raise or lower my fan to fight cpu temperatures.


Obviously this isn't the kind of solution I am looking for and this could mean my system isn't going to last as long...but in another post I read that someone with a similar problem sent their computer in to Apple and it cost them at least $350 to fix a sensor.


I'd rather spend $350 towards a new macbook pro.


There is one other solution I may try for a little while until I have a break from school to figure out the rest...which is to just run the thing in safe mode. It's a little choppy, but not nearly as bad. And right now the only thing I "need" to do is write notes in google docs for school.


Anyway, if you can think of any more things I can do to analyze this problem I'm all ears but otherwise that's the best I can figure out after doing all of this.

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User profile for user: Linc Davis
Linc Davis
User level: Level 10
209,547 points

Nov 21, 2013 11:00 AM in response to Aro2220x

Make a "Genius" appointment at an Apple Store, or go to another authorized service provider.

Back up all data on the internal drive(s) before you hand over your computer to anyone. There are ways to back up a computer that isn't fully functional — ask if you need guidance.

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 an empty drive from any of them.) Don’t erase the recovery partition, if present.

Keeping your confidential data secure during hardware repair

*An SSD doesn't need to be zeroed.

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User profile for user: bobmusik
bobmusik
User level: Level 1
9 points

Jan 11, 2014 4:03 AM in response to Aro2220x

You were able to solve the problem finaly?


I have exactly the same problem here on an early 2011 MacBook Pro:

kernal_task with 400-600% CPU usage randomly, and no fan is running.


The only fix that helps here is to start from recovery partition (starting with option-key pressed and then select recovery partition) and perfom a disk repair. After the repair, sometimes it takes 15-20 Minutes, everythings works fine again.


But the kernel task comes back, sometimes on the same day, sometimes after 3-4- days, but it comes back for shure. Even on a fresh system with no 3rd-party software installed.

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User profile for user: Aro2220x
Aro2220x Author
User level: Level 1
9 points

Jan 12, 2014 7:30 AM in response to bobmusik

I never 'solved' the problem, but I think I know what is the culprit and I read about a solution for some older model macbook pro's and airs but not for the one I have.


I found a 'workaround' but it is pretty pathetic.


First of all, there is something wrong with the CPU or Motherboard. It is sensing some heat problem (or something) that is non-existent. Instead of turning the fans up first, it throttles the CPU using the kernel_task 600% nonsense. I read somewhere that you can 'disable' this by deleting some kernel file...but those files don't exist on the latest version of OSX so I can't manually disable this feature.


Of course, there is an operating system that does run on this computer that is not OSX and does not have features like that. It's called Windows 7. I installed it using bootcamp and I *never* have that cpu freeze problem here.


Of course, the battery runs dry in a few hours (since it is not optimized) and well...I'm running Windows.


But at least my computer runs.


Unfortunately, apple doesn't give you the option to disabling that feature and I'm pretty sure my problem is a hardware one so that is why reformating it never really did much for long. Sometimes I would boot up the computer and use it almost the entire day without it having a problem....so running recovery doesn't neccesarily do anything. It's just sometimes you get lucky.

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kernel_task going crazy on late 2011 macbook pro 13.3" base model

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