Mac running extremely slow on Mavericks. Any ideas?

Hardware Information:

MacBook Pro (13-inch, Late 2011)

MacBook Pro - model: MacBookPro8,1

1 2.8 GHz Intel Core i7 CPU: 2 cores

8 GB RAM


Video Information:

Intel HD Graphics 3000 - VRAM: 512 MB


System Software:

OS X 10.9.1 (13B42) - Uptime: 0 days 18:37:8


Disk Information:

TOSHIBA MK7559GSXF disk0 : (750.16 GB)

EFI (disk0s1) <not mounted>: 209.7 MB

Macintosh HD (disk0s2) /: 749.3 GB (342.82 GB free)

Recovery HD (disk0s3) <not mounted>: 650 MB


OPTIARC DVD RW AD-5970H


USB Information:

Apple Inc. FaceTime HD Camera (Built-in)


Logitech USB Receiver


Apple Inc. Apple Internal Keyboard / Trackpad


Apple Inc. BRCM2070 Hub

Apple Inc. Bluetooth USB Host Controller


Apple Computer, Inc. IR Receiver


FireWire Information:


Thunderbolt Information:

Apple Inc. thunderbolt_bus


Kernel Extensions:


Problem System Launch Daemons:


Problem System Launch Agents:


Launch Daemons:

[System] com.microsoft.office.licensing.helper.plist 3rd-Party support link


Launch Agents:


User Launch Agents:

[not loaded] com.google.keystone.agent.plist 3rd-Party support link


User Login Items:

iTunesHelper

Dropbox


Internet Plug-ins:

Default Browser: Version: 537 - SDK 10.9

QuickTime Plugin: Version: 7.7.3

SharePointBrowserPlugin: Version: 14.3.9 - SDK 10.6 3rd-Party support link


Audio Plug-ins:

BluetoothAudioPlugIn: Version: 1.0 - SDK 10.9

AirPlay: Version: 1.9 - SDK 10.9

AppleAVBAudio: Version: 2.0.0 - SDK 10.9

iSightAudio: Version: 7.7.3 - SDK 10.9


3rd Party Preference Panes:

None


Bad Fonts:

None


Old Applications:

/Applications/Microsoft Office 2011/Office

Microsoft Graph: Version: 14.3.9 - SDK 10.5 3rd-Party support link

Microsoft Database Utility: Version: 14.3.9 - SDK 10.5 3rd-Party support link

Microsoft Office Reminders: Version: 14.3.9 - SDK 10.5 3rd-Party support link

Microsoft Upload Center: Version: 14.3.9 - SDK 10.5 3rd-Party support link

My Day: Version: 14.3.9 - SDK 10.5 3rd-Party support link

SyncServicesAgent: Version: 14.3.9 - SDK 10.5 3rd-Party support link

Open XML for Excel: Version: 14.3.9 - SDK 10.5 3rd-Party support link

Microsoft Alerts Daemon: Version: 14.3.9 - SDK 10.5 3rd-Party support link

Microsoft Database Daemon: Version: 14.3.9 - SDK 10.5 3rd-Party support link

Microsoft Chart Converter: Version: 14.3.9 - SDK 10.5 3rd-Party support link

Microsoft Clip Gallery: Version: 14.3.9 - SDK 10.5 3rd-Party support link

Microsoft AutoUpdate: Version: 2.3.6 - SDK 10.4 3rd-Party support link

/Library/Application Support/Microsoft/MAU2.0/Microsoft AutoUpdate.app

/Applications/Microsoft Office 2011

Microsoft PowerPoint: Version: 14.3.9 - SDK 10.5 3rd-Party support link

Microsoft Excel: Version: 14.3.9 - SDK 10.5 3rd-Party support link

Microsoft Outlook: Version: 14.3.9 - SDK 10.5 3rd-Party support link

Microsoft Word: Version: 14.3.9 - SDK 10.5 3rd-Party support link

Microsoft Document Connection: Version: 14.3.9 - SDK 10.5 3rd-Party support link

/Library/Application Support/Microsoft/MERP2.0

Microsoft Error Reporting: Version: 2.2.9 - SDK 10.4 3rd-Party support link

Microsoft Ship Asserts: Version: 1.1.4 - SDK 10.4 3rd-Party support link

Microsoft Language Register: Version: 14.3.9 - SDK 10.5 3rd-Party support link

/Applications/Microsoft Office 2011/Additional Tools/Microsoft Language Register/Microsoft Language Register.app

Solver: Version: 1.0 - SDK 10.5 3rd-Party support link

/Applications/Microsoft Office 2011/Office/Add-Ins/Solver.app


Time Machine:

Time Machine not configured!


Top Processes by CPU:

7% WindowServer

7% Google Chrome

3% Dropbox

1% EtreCheck

1% Activity Monitor


Top Processes by Memory:

614 MB iTunes

532 MB firefox

246 MB Google Chrome

205 MB Dropbox

131 MB com.apple.IconServicesAgent


Virtual Memory Information:

60 MB Free RAM

3.31 GB Active RAM

3.26 GB Inactive RAM

1.29 GB Wired RAM

2.45 GB Page-ins

4 MB Page-outs

MacBook Pro (13-inch Late 2011), OS X Mavericks (10.9.1)

Posted on Feb 14, 2014 4:40 PM

Reply
7 replies

Feb 15, 2014 6:55 AM in response to aberforth125

  1. If you reinstalled from a backup, or if you reinstalled problematic software, then you may have reinstalled your problems.
  2. Take a look at Applications > Utilities > Activity Monitor, and see if something is using an inordinate amount of CPU or memory. The keystone agent is known for doing this, with excessive phoning home.
  3. aberforth125 wrote:

    I haven't had a problem with this in the past.

    Every new OS has some bugs and incompatibilites with old software. Mavericks is innovative, and old software that hasn't kept up will have more problems with it.

  4. Try a safe boot (restart, hold down shift until you see the Apple logo). This does some diagnostic testing and then starts up without third-party added on software. If this eliminates the symptom, then you know the problem is with the third-party software. A safe boot doesn't fix anything, but it tells you where the problem is. Mac OS X: What is Safe Boot, Safe Mode?

    http://support.apple.com/kb/ht1564If a safe boot doesn't improve the symptoms, then the problem is within OSX itself.

  5. To troubleshoot problems within OSX itself:
    1. Try a test user account: Isolating an issue by using another user account
    2. Boot into your recovery partition (restart, hold down ⌘R until you see the Apple logo), and use Disk Utility to repair your hard drive. Repair permissions too while you're there. OS X: About OS X Recovery

Feb 15, 2014 9:08 AM in response to arthur

Occasionally, the activity moniter will show both Chome and Dropbox using a lot of CPU power. Sometimes though, it will show 90% of hte CPU power as idle, but things will still be slow


I restarted in safe boot, logging into my same account, and it didn't resolve the problem.


I then created a separate user account, and logged into it normally (not safe boot) and hat DID resolve the problem. So does that mean it's software related?


I also restarted in recovery mode and repaired the permissions. This didn't imporve anything.

Feb 15, 2014 9:22 AM in response to aberforth125

Well, your EtreCheck output says RAM very clearly. You have 60 MBs free and 4 GBs of pageouts. That is shouting, "More RAM."


If the computer is running slow with no applications running, then you have a clearly different problem which would require a different EtreCheck run to possibly reveal. Or you can start looking for things that would slow it down but you must do so without running any applications or third-party stuff.


Things You Can Do To Resolve Slow Downs


If your computer seems to be running slower here are some things you can do:


Start with visits to: OS X Maintenance - MacAttorney;

The X Lab: The X-FAQs;

The Safe Mac » Mac Performance Guide;

The Safe Mac » The myth of the dirty Mac;

Mac maintenance Quick Assist.


Boot into Safe Modethen repair your hard drive and permissions:


Repair the Hard Drive and Permissions Pre-Lion


Boot from your OS X Installer disc. After the installer loads select your language and click on the Continue button. When the menu bar appears select Disk Utility from the Utilities menu. After DU loads select your hard drive entry (mfgr.'s ID and drive size) from the the left side list. In the DU status area you will see an entry for the S.M.A.R.T. status of the hard drive. If it does not say "Verified" then the hard drive is failing or failed. (SMART status is not reported on external Firewire or USB drives.) If the drive is "Verified" then select your OS X volume from the list on the left (sub-entry below the drive entry,) click on the First Aid tab, then click on the Repair Disk button. If DU reports any errors that have been fixed, then re-run Repair Disk until no errors are reported. If no errors are reported click on the Repair Permissions button. Wait until the operation completes, then quit DU and return to the installer.


Repair the Hard Drive - Lion/Mountain Lion/Mavericks


Boot to the Recovery HD:


Restart the computer and after the chime press and hold down the COMMAND and R keys until the Utilites Menu screen appears. Alternatively, restart the computer and after the chime press and hold down the OPTION key until the boot manager screen appears. Select the Recovery HD disk icon and click on the arrow button below.


When the recovery menu appears select Disk Utility. After DU loads select your hard drive entry (mfgr.'s ID and drive size) from the the left side list. In the DU status area you will see an entry for the S.M.A.R.T. status of the hard drive. If it does not say "Verified" then the hard drive is failing or failed. (SMART status is not reported on external Firewire or USB drives.) If the drive is "Verified" then select your OS X volume from the list on the left (sub-entry below the drive entry,) click on the First Aid tab, then click on the Repair Disk button. If DU reports any errors that have been fixed, then re-run Repair Disk until no errors are reported. If no errors are reported, then click on the Repair Permissions button. Wait until the operation completes, then quit DU and return to the main menu. Select Restart from the Apple menu.


Restart your computer normally and see if this has helped any. Next do some maintenance:


For situations Disk Utility cannot handle the best third-party utility is Disk Warrior; DW only fixes problems with the disk directory, but most disk problems are caused by directory corruption; Disk Warrior 4.x is now Intel Mac compatible.


Note: Alsoft ships DW on a bootable DVD that will startup Macs running Snow Leopard or earlier. It cannot start Macs that came with Lion or later pre-installed, however, DW will work on those models.


Suggestions for OS X Maintenance


OS X performs certain maintenance functions that are scheduled to occur on a daily, weekly, or monthly period. The maintenance scripts run in the early AM only if the computer is turned on 24/7 (no sleep.) If this isn't the case, then an excellent solution is to download and install a shareware utility such as Macaroni, JAW PseudoAnacron, or Anacron that will automate the maintenance activity regardless of whether the computer is turned off or asleep. Dependence upon third-party utilities to run the periodic maintenance scripts was significantly reduced since Tiger. These utilities have limited or no functionality with Snow Leopard or later and should not be installed.


OS X automatically defragments files less than 20 MBs in size, so unless you have a disk full of very large files there's little need for defragmenting the hard drive.


Helpful Links Regarding Malware Protection


An excellent link to read is Tom Reed's Mac Malware Guide.

Also, visit The XLab FAQs and read Detecting and avoiding malware and spyware.

See these Apple articles:


Mac OS X Snow Leopard and malware detection

OS X Lion- Protect your Mac from malware

OS X Mountain Lion- Protect your Mac from malware

About file quarantine in OS X


If you require anti-virus protection I recommend using VirusBarrier Express 1.1.6 or Dr.Web Light both from the App Store. They're both free, and since they're from the App Store, they won't destabilize the system. (Thank you to Thomas Reed for these recommendations.)


Troubleshooting Applications


I recommend downloading a utility such as TinkerTool System, OnyX, Mavericks Cache Cleaner, or Cocktail that you can use for removing old log files and archives, clearing caches, etc. Corrupted cache, log, or temporary files can cause application or OS X crashes as well as kernel panics.


If you have Snow Leopard or Leopard, then for similar repairs install the freeware utility Applejack. If you cannot start up in OS X, you may be able to start in single-user mode from which you can run Applejack to do a whole set of repair and maintenance routines from the command line. Note that AppleJack 1.5 is required for Leopard. AppleJack 1.6 is compatible with Snow Leopard. Applejack does not work with Lion and later.


Basic Backup


For some people Time Machine will be more than adequate. Time Machine is part of OS X. There are two components:


1. A Time Machine preferences panel as part of System Preferences;

2. A Time Machine application located in the Applications folder. It is

used to manage backups and to restore backups. Time Machine

requires a backup drive that is at least twice the capacity of the

drive being backed up.


Alternatively, get an external drive at least equal in size to the internal hard drive and make (and maintain) a bootable clone/backup. You can make a bootable clone using the Restore option of Disk Utility. You can also make and maintain clones with good backup software. My personal recommendations are (order is not significant):


1. Carbon Copy Cloner

2. Get Backup

3. Deja Vu

4. SuperDuper!

5. Synk Pro

6. Tri-Backup


Visit The XLab FAQs and read the FAQ on backup and restore. Also read How to Back Up and Restore Your Files. For help with using Time Machine visit Pondini's Time Machine FAQ for help with all things Time Machine.


Referenced software can be found at MacUpdate.


Additional Hints


Be sure you have an adequate amount of RAM installed for the number of applications you run concurrently. Be sure you leave a minimum of 10% of the hard drive's capacity as free space.


Add more RAM. If your computer has less than 2 GBs of RAM and you are using OS X Leopard or later, then you can do with more RAM. Snow Leopard and Lion work much better with 4 GBs of RAM than their system minimums. The more concurrent applications you tend to use the more RAM you should have.


Always maintain at least 15 GBs or 10% of your hard drive's capacity as free space, whichever is greater. OS X is frequently accessing your hard drive, so providing adequate free space will keep things from slowing down.


Check for applications that may be hogging the CPU:


Pre-Mavericks


Open Activity Monitor in the Utilities folder. Select All Processes from the Processes dropdown menu. Click twice on the CPU% column header to display in descending order. If you find a process using a large amount of CPU time (>=70,) then select the process and click on the Quit icon in the toolbar. Click on the Force Quit button to kill the process. See if that helps. Be sure to note the name of the runaway process so you can track down the cause of the problem.


Mavericks and later


Open Activity Monitor in the Utilities folder. Select All Processes from the View menu. Click on the CPU tab in the toolbar. Click twice on the CPU% column header to display in descending order. If you find a process using a large amount of CPU time (>=70,) then select the process and click on the Quit icon in the toolbar. Click on the Force Quit button to kill the process. See if that helps. Be sure to note the name of the runaway process so you can track down the cause of the problem.


Often this problem occurs because of a corrupted cache or preferences file or an attempt to write to a corrupted log file.

This thread has been closed by the system or the community team. You may vote for any posts you find helpful, or search the Community for additional answers.

Mac running extremely slow on Mavericks. Any ideas?

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