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User profile for user: SimonGar
SimonGar Author
User level: Level 1
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Kernel Task CPU issues

First I would like to say that I would greatly appreciate any help/advice/support offered here. Am very desperate 😀


Alright.. So basically - well, not so basically - I'm having this issue. When I play Borderlands 2, after about 5 minutes of the game launch, my computer starts to lag out. I have linked these lagouts directly with spikes in CPU usage from a process called 'kernel_task' - up to as much as %400 on some occasions, althought normally %200 - %300. This basically makes the game unplayable, unless I only want to play the game for 5 minutes before relaunching it...



The cause of the kernel task CPU overload:


I downloaded the game Borderlands 2 a couple days ago and my mac far surpasses the minimum requirements.


I have a:


Late 2011 15" Macbook Pro running OS X Lion 10.7.5. 8GB memory, 2.4 GHz Intel Core i7. I'm playing with a supported AMD Radeon HD 6770M graphics card with 1gb vram. The minimum requirements are under half these specs.


Whenever I run this game longer than 5 minutes, my kernel task (monitered using activity monitor) spikes beyond %300 which completely lags out my computer the the point where I am forced to quit the game unless I want to play something which looks more like a stuttery jittery nightmare than a game which should flawlessly run on my mac with maxed graphic settings.



Tests that I have run so far:


I have reset the SMC, as suggested by apple advisors.


I have reset the NVRAM and PRAM, as suggested by apple advisors.


I have updated from 10.7.4 to 10.7.5, as suggested by apple advisors.


I have cleared 2 caches, one found in the regular library, the other found in computer > Macintosh HD > library, cleared my downloads folder and removed all startup on login items, as suggested by apple advisors.


I have read on the apple forums that overheating can cause kernel task issues. I tested this myself. I ran a game which caused my computer to run hotter than Borderlands 2 by 10 degrees celcius, and kernel task didn't budge. Clearly not the issue here.



Any help is greatly appreciated... Please get back to me <3


Simon

MacBook Pro (15-inch Late 2011), Mac OS X (10.7.5)

Posted on Feb 8, 2014 5:07 AM

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User profile for user: Linc Davis
Linc Davis
User level: Level 10
209,559 points

Posted on Feb 8, 2014 9:16 AM

When you next have the problem, note the exact time: hour, minute, second.

If you have more than one user account, these instructions must be carried out as an administrator.

Launch the Console 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 â–č 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 Console in the icon grid.


Make sure the title of the Console window is All Messages. If it isn't, select All Messages from the SYSTEM LOG QUERIES menu on the left. If you don't see that menu, select

View â–č Show Log List

from the menu bar.

Each message in the log begins with the date and time when it was entered. Scroll back to the time you noted above. Select the messages entered from then until the end of the episode, or until they start to repeat, whichever comes first. Copy the messages to the Clipboard by pressing the key combination command-C. Paste into a reply to this message (command-V).

The log contains a vast amount of information, almost all of it useless for solving any particular problem. When posting a log extract, be selective. In most cases, a few dozen lines are more than enough. It is never necessary or helpful to post more than about 100 lines. "The more, the better" is not the rule here.

Please do not indiscriminately dump thousands of lines from the log into this discussion.

Important: Some private information, such as your name, may appear in the log. Anonymize before posting.

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User profile for user: Linc Davis
Linc Davis
User level: Level 10
209,559 points

Feb 8, 2014 9:16 AM in response to SimonGar

When you next have the problem, note the exact time: hour, minute, second.

If you have more than one user account, these instructions must be carried out as an administrator.

Launch the Console 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 â–č 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 Console in the icon grid.


Make sure the title of the Console window is All Messages. If it isn't, select All Messages from the SYSTEM LOG QUERIES menu on the left. If you don't see that menu, select

View â–č Show Log List

from the menu bar.

Each message in the log begins with the date and time when it was entered. Scroll back to the time you noted above. Select the messages entered from then until the end of the episode, or until they start to repeat, whichever comes first. Copy the messages to the Clipboard by pressing the key combination command-C. Paste into a reply to this message (command-V).

The log contains a vast amount of information, almost all of it useless for solving any particular problem. When posting a log extract, be selective. In most cases, a few dozen lines are more than enough. It is never necessary or helpful to post more than about 100 lines. "The more, the better" is not the rule here.

Please do not indiscriminately dump thousands of lines from the log into this discussion.

Important: Some private information, such as your name, may appear in the log. Anonymize before posting.

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User profile for user: SimonGar
SimonGar Author
User level: Level 1
0 points

Feb 8, 2014 4:08 PM in response to Linc Davis

Thank you very much.


I can say these things before I head off (I don't have the time to do the console thing at this moment as I have to go out for a family thing on the beach in about 2 minutes... Wish me luck). There is no exact date and time that these things occur, well, there is of course but what I'm trying to say is I can reproduce this issue any time I want. It doesn't happen randomly when playing Borderlands 2, it happens every time (%100 chance of me replicating the problem right now) after a short amount of time playing the game.


When I get back from the beach I'll do the following things for you:


1: Console log, I'm assuming I'll just "command + F" and type in borderlands or something related to find those few lines you need?


2: I'll test this kernel task problem with multiple other games, including a different copy of Borderlands 2 (one without DLC's).


I'll post the results when I get back from the beach, again, thanks for the help. I have a feeling you're going to be more helpful than the apple advisors.

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User profile for user: SimonGar
SimonGar Author
User level: Level 1
0 points

Feb 8, 2014 5:04 PM in response to Linc Davis

Alright, so these are the results.


1:45:58pm is the time the kernel task started rising in cpu usage, give or take 2 - 3 seconds.


After I quit borderlands 2, 1:46:29pm was the time kernel task shot back down to what it normally is (%5 - %10).


Funnily enough, I noticed a kernel log entrance a little before the start time and a kernerl log entrance a little after the end time. "Little" meaning about 45 seconds. Heres the log from the start time to the finish time + a little extra to show you those kernel things which I have a feeling might be related. Sorry if it's long.


9/02/14 1:45:06.000 PM kernel: MacAuthEvent en1 Auth result for: 08:76:ff:1e:79:1c MAC AUTH succeeded

9/02/14 1:45:06.000 PM kernel: wlEvent: en1 en1 Link UP virtIf = 0

9/02/14 1:45:06.000 PM kernel: wl0: Roamed or switched channel, reason #8, bssid 08:76:ff:1e:79:1c

9/02/14 1:45:06.000 PM kernel: en1: BSSID changed to 08:76:ff:1e:79:1c

9/02/14 1:45:07.000 PM kernel: AirPort: RSN handshake complete on en1

9/02/14 1:45:09.527 PM com.apple.launchd.peruser.501: (com.teamviewer.desktop[17114]) Bug: launchd_core_logic.c:4782 (26200):2

9/02/14 1:45:09.527 PM com.apple.launchd.peruser.501: (com.teamviewer.teamviewer[17113]) Bug: launchd_core_logic.c:4782 (26200):2

9/02/14 1:45:12.157 PM com.apple.launchd: (com.teamviewer.service[17115]) Bug: launchd_core_logic.c:4782 (26200):2

9/02/14 1:45:19.529 PM com.apple.launchd.peruser.501: (com.teamviewer.desktop[17116]) Bug: launchd_core_logic.c:4782 (26200):2

9/02/14 1:45:19.529 PM com.apple.launchd.peruser.501: (com.teamviewer.teamviewer[17117]) Bug: launchd_core_logic.c:4782 (26200):2

9/02/14 1:45:22.159 PM com.apple.launchd: (com.teamviewer.service[17118]) Bug: launchd_core_logic.c:4782 (26200):2

9/02/14 1:45:29.531 PM com.apple.launchd.peruser.501: (com.teamviewer.teamviewer[17120]) Bug: launchd_core_logic.c:4782 (26200):2

9/02/14 1:45:29.531 PM com.apple.launchd.peruser.501: (com.teamviewer.desktop[17119]) Bug: launchd_core_logic.c:4782 (26200):2

9/02/14 1:45:32.160 PM com.apple.launchd: (com.teamviewer.service[17121]) Bug: launchd_core_logic.c:4782 (26200):2

9/02/14 1:45:39.533 PM com.apple.launchd.peruser.501: (com.teamviewer.teamviewer[17122]) Bug: launchd_core_logic.c:4782 (26200):2

9/02/14 1:45:39.533 PM com.apple.launchd.peruser.501: (com.teamviewer.desktop[17123]) Bug: launchd_core_logic.c:4782 (26200):2

9/02/14 1:45:42.162 PM com.apple.launchd: (com.teamviewer.service[17124]) Bug: launchd_core_logic.c:4782 (26200):2

9/02/14 1:45:49.537 PM com.apple.launchd.peruser.501: (com.teamviewer.desktop[17125]) Bug: launchd_core_logic.c:4782 (26200):2

9/02/14 1:45:49.538 PM com.apple.launchd.peruser.501: (com.teamviewer.teamviewer[17126]) Bug: launchd_core_logic.c:4782 (26200):2

9/02/14 1:45:52.164 PM com.apple.launchd: (com.teamviewer.service[17127]) Bug: launchd_core_logic.c:4782 (26200):2

9/02/14 1:45:59.542 PM com.apple.launchd.peruser.501: (com.teamviewer.desktop[17128]) Bug: launchd_core_logic.c:4782 (26200):2

9/02/14 1:45:59.542 PM com.apple.launchd.peruser.501: (com.teamviewer.teamviewer[17129]) Bug: launchd_core_logic.c:4782 (26200):2

9/02/14 1:46:02.167 PM com.apple.launchd: (com.teamviewer.service[17130]) Bug: launchd_core_logic.c:4782 (26200):2

9/02/14 1:46:02.167 PM com.apple.launchd: (com.teamviewer.service[17130]) posix_spawn("/Applications/TeamViewer 7/TeamViewer.app/Contents/Resources/TeamViewer_Service", ...): No such file or directory

9/02/14 1:46:02.168 PM com.apple.launchd: (com.teamviewer.service[17130]) Exited with code: 1

9/02/14 1:46:02.168 PM com.apple.launchd: (com.teamviewer.service) Throttling respawn: Will start in 10 seconds

9/02/14 1:46:09.548 PM com.apple.launchd.peruser.501: (com.teamviewer.desktop[17131]) Bug: launchd_core_logic.c:4782 (26200):2

9/02/14 1:46:09.548 PM com.apple.launchd.peruser.501: (com.teamviewer.teamviewer[17132]) Bug: launchd_core_logic.c:4782 (26200):2

9/02/14 1:46:12.171 PM com.apple.launchd: (com.teamviewer.service[17133]) Bug: launchd_core_logic.c:4782 (26200):2

9/02/14 1:46:19.576 PM com.apple.launchd.peruser.501: (com.teamviewer.teamviewer[17140]) Bug: launchd_core_logic.c:4782 (26200):2

9/02/14 1:46:19.576 PM com.apple.launchd.peruser.501: (com.teamviewer.desktop[17139]) Bug: launchd_core_logic.c:4782 (26200):2

9/02/14 1:46:22.185 PM com.apple.launchd: (com.teamviewer.service[17141]) Bug: launchd_core_logic.c:4782 (26200):2

9/02/14 1:46:29.582 PM com.apple.launchd.peruser.501: (com.teamviewer.teamviewer[17143]) Bug: launchd_core_logic.c:4782 (26200):2

9/02/14 1:46:29.583 PM com.apple.launchd.peruser.501: (com.teamviewer.desktop[17144]) Bug: launchd_core_logic.c:4782 (26200):2

9/02/14 1:46:32.200 PM com.apple.launchd: (com.teamviewer.service[17145]) Bug: launchd_core_logic.c:4782 (26200):2

9/02/14 1:46:39.587 PM com.apple.launchd.peruser.501: (com.teamviewer.desktop[17147]) Bug: launchd_core_logic.c:4782 (26200):2

9/02/14 1:46:39.587 PM com.apple.launchd.peruser.501: (com.teamviewer.teamviewer[17146]) Bug: launchd_core_logic.c:4782 (26200):2

9/02/14 1:46:39.587 PM com.apple.launchd.peruser.501: (com.teamviewer.desktop[17147]) posix_spawn("/Applications/TeamViewer 7/TeamViewer.app/Contents/Resources/TeamViewer_Desktop", ...): No such file or directory

9/02/14 1:46:39.587 PM com.apple.launchd.peruser.501: (com.teamviewer.teamviewer[17146]) posix_spawn("/Applications/TeamViewer 7/TeamViewer.app/Contents/MacOS/TeamViewer", ...): No such file or directory

9/02/14 1:46:39.588 PM com.apple.launchd.peruser.501: (com.teamviewer.desktop[17147]) Exited with code: 1

9/02/14 1:46:39.588 PM com.apple.launchd.peruser.501: (com.teamviewer.desktop) Throttling respawn: Will start in 10 seconds

9/02/14 1:46:39.588 PM com.apple.launchd.peruser.501: (com.teamviewer.teamviewer[17146]) Exited with code: 1

9/02/14 1:46:39.588 PM com.apple.launchd.peruser.501: (com.teamviewer.teamviewer) Throttling respawn: Will start in 10 seconds

9/02/14 1:46:42.203 PM com.apple.launchd: (com.teamviewer.service[17148]) Bug: launchd_core_logic.c:4782 (26200):2

9/02/14 1:46:49.591 PM com.apple.launchd.peruser.501: (com.teamviewer.teamviewer[17151]) Bug: launchd_core_logic.c:4782 (26200):2

9/02/14 1:46:49.591 PM com.apple.launchd.peruser.501: (com.teamviewer.desktop[17150]) Bug: launchd_core_logic.c:4782 (26200):2

9/02/14 1:46:52.205 PM com.apple.launchd: (com.teamviewer.service[17152]) Bug: launchd_core_logic.c:4782 (26200):2

9/02/14 1:46:59.593 PM com.apple.launchd.peruser.501: (com.teamviewer.teamviewer[17153]) Bug: launchd_core_logic.c:4782 (26200):2

9/02/14 1:46:59.593 PM com.apple.launchd.peruser.501: (com.teamviewer.desktop[17154]) Bug: launchd_core_logic.c:4782 (26200):2

9/02/14 1:47:02.206 PM com.apple.launchd: (com.teamviewer.service[17155]) Bug: launchd_core_logic.c:4782 (26200):2

9/02/14 1:47:09.595 PM com.apple.launchd.peruser.501: (com.teamviewer.desktop[17158]) Bug: launchd_core_logic.c:4782 (26200):2

9/02/14 1:47:09.595 PM com.apple.launchd.peruser.501: (com.teamviewer.teamviewer[17157]) Bug: launchd_core_logic.c:4782 (26200):2

9/02/14 1:47:12.208 PM com.apple.launchd: (com.teamviewer.service[17159]) Bug: launchd_core_logic.c:4782 (26200):2

9/02/14 1:47:13.000 PM kernel: MacAuthEvent en1 Auth result for: 08:76:ff:1e:79:1c MAC AUTH succeeded

9/02/14 1:47:13.000 PM kernel: wlEvent: en1 en1 Link UP virtIf = 0

9/02/14 1:47:13.000 PM kernel: wl0: Roamed or switched channel, reason #8, bssid 08:76:ff:1e:79:1c

9/02/14 1:47:13.000 PM kernel: en1: BSSID changed to 08:76:ff:1e:79:1c

9/02/14 1:47:14.000 PM kernel: AirPort: RSN handshake complete on en1


Hope that helped. I bolded the kernel log things just to make it easier for you to find them incase they do actually mean something.

I noticed there's a lot of Teamviewer junk in there. From what I remember I installed 'Teamviewer' a while ago to screen share or something similar and ended up trashing it because I didn't need it anymore. How can I properly uninstall it? When I search "Teamviewer" in finder, nothing shows up, and I even have hidden files switched on so I can see them using that command thing in the terminal.


EDIT: After monitering my console for a little bit after I posted this, I noticed that the same kernel messages were coming through in the log without me even doing anything. So I'm guessing that means they're not related to my issue? Just thought that might help.

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User profile for user: Linc Davis
Linc Davis
User level: Level 10
209,559 points

Feb 8, 2014 5:25 PM in response to SimonGar

How can I properly uninstall it?

Any third-party software that doesn't install by drag-and-drop into the Applications folder, and uninstall by drag-and-drop to the Trash, is a system modification.

Whenever you remove system modifications, they must be removed completely, and the only way to do that is to use the uninstallation tool, if any, provided by the developers, or to follow their instructions. If the software has been incompletely removed, you may have to re-download or even reinstall it in order to finish the job.

I never install system modifications myself, and I don't know how to uninstall them. You'll have to do your own research to find that information.

Here are some general guidelines to get you started. Suppose you want to remove something called “BrickMyMac” (a hypothetical example.) First, consult the product's Help menu, if there is one, for instructions. Finding none there, look on the developer's website, say www.brickmymac.com. (That may not be the actual name of the site; if necessary, search the Web for the product name.) If you don’t find anything on the website or in your search, contact the developer. While you're waiting for a response, download BrickMyMac.dmg and open it. There may be an application in there such as “Uninstall BrickMyMac.” If not, open “BrickMyMac.pkg” and look for an Uninstall button.

Back up all data before making any changes.

You will generally have to reboot in order to complete an uninstallation. Until you do that, the uninstallation may have no effect, or unpredictable effects.

If you can’t remove software in any other way, you’ll have to erase and install OS X. Never install any third-party software unless you're sure you know how to uninstall it; otherwise you may create problems that are very hard to solve.

WARNING: Trying to remove complex system modifications by hunting for files by name often will not work and may make the problem worse. The same goes for "utilities" such as "AppCleaner" and the like that purport to remove software.

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User profile for user: SimonGar
SimonGar Author
User level: Level 1
0 points

Feb 8, 2014 10:37 PM in response to Linc Davis

Hello again.


I could not figure out how to complete the uninstallation of TeamViewer... But I did do the following:


I remember that 3 out of 3 of the apple advisors I spoke to yesterday about this issue said to test running Borderlands on a seperate user account. I couln't at the time because I didn't have immediate access to an external hard drive, but I did today. So I tested it. Now, before I launched Borderlands, I checked to see if TeamViewer was running. It was installed on that user account, but when I checked the console log, no errors or bugs or any of that spam I showed you earlier was appearing. The log was almost silent. TeamViewer was even running. I quit TeamViewer, but did not delete it, and checked the console again and activity monitor - TeamViewer was off. Completely shut down, however not uninstalled. So I figured it was safe to continue. I did not however try to delete TeamViewer, because I was worried I would re-create the same TeamViewer message spam in the console that I have on my main user account. I launched Borderlands, it was running 100% smoothly, and again, after a short period of time... Lagouts. I checked the activity monitor, and noticed that kernel_task didn't exist. I figured it was hidden due to a lack of permissions or something. I noticed that Borderlands was only using up 62% of my CPU, so that clearly wasn't the cause, and every other running app was at or below %1 (borderlands, console, and activity monitor were the only apps I had running, apart from all that background stuff). The CPU usage monitor thing with those red and green squares though, was peaking very high and nearly touching the top of the black box, which is what I had on my main user account when kernel task starts freaking out. So I'm guessing since kernel task was missing from activity monitor due to - I'm assuming - a lack of permissions that I wasn't able to monitor it. But I'm assuming that was still the cause of the lagouts.


I'll go do that time matchup from when the kernel spikes and when it stops with the console log to see if anything pops up there. I'll post back with the log when that's done.


Any thoughts?


My take on the situation (althought probably doesn't mean much): TeamViewer isn't the cause of this at all. The issue is not user specific, it's an issue directly linked with Borderlands and my entire computer, and that issue is causing kernel task go crazy, causing the lagouts. So far it has nothing to do with heat, pram/nvram, SMC, OS X Lion (as I updated from 10.7.4 to 10.7.5 and nothing changed) or any other confliction applications.


EDIT: Before logging on to my other user account to test the log/kernel/time thing, I just checked my log now to see what was going on. 0 TeamViewer logs. That seems to have resolved itself. Lots of SMC errors however... But not spamming. Going to test borderlands now and see if I still have the issue. If I do, going to reset SMC, then test again. If still bad, going to log over to other user account and fetch you the log from there.

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User profile for user: SimonGar
SimonGar Author
User level: Level 1
0 points

Feb 12, 2014 4:44 AM in response to Linc Davis

For the purposes of this post, BL = Borderlands.


Just did a fresh re-install. New OS X copy of 10.9.1, wiped everything off my hard drive and only put stuff that I actually use often back on. Re-downloaded BL 2 along with a fresh re-install of steam. (bought BL 2 off steam).


This is definitely not a steam error if that's what you're thinking as I also have this problem with BL 1 from the mac app store.


Am currently dealing with Aspyr support agents now about it (they're in charge of the mac versions of both BL's) but that is a work in progress.


Any ideas? Been a while since you last posted, hoping you haven't given up on me 😉

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Kernel Task CPU issues

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