Q: MacBook Pro Freezing Program by Program.
-
May 25, 2014 7:24 PMby Melophage,adgroff,
if you haven’t done so already, download and install EtreCheck. Please include in your reply the output from a run of EtreCheck — it might provide a clue as to why Firefox is freezing.
-
May 25, 2014 7:37 PMby Linc Davis,Remove the worthless Sophos product by following the instructions on this page. It certainly isn't doing any good, and it might be contributing to the problem. If you have a different version, the procedure may be different.
Back up all data before making any changes.
-
May 25, 2014 8:03 PMby adgroff,I've downloaded and installed it now! Here's the report (before uninstalling Sophos)
EtreCheck version: 1.9.11 (43) - report generated May 25, 2014 10:01:10 PM CDT
Hardware Information:
MacBook Pro (15-inch, Mid 2012)
MacBook Pro - model: MacBookPro9,1
1 2.3 GHz Intel Core i7 CPU: 4 cores
4 GB RAM
Video Information:
Intel HD Graphics 4000 - VRAM: 384 MB
NVIDIA GeForce GT 650M - VRAM: 512 MB
System Software:
OS X 10.8.5 (12F45) - Uptime: 0 days 1:24:34
Disk Information:
APPLE HDD TOSHIBA MK5065GSXF disk0 : (500.11 GB)
disk0s1 (disk0s1) <not mounted>: 209.7 MB
ChaChaRedux (disk0s2) / [Startup]: 499.25 GB (321.94 GB free)
Recovery HD (disk0s3) <not mounted>: 650 MB
MATSHITADVD-R UJ-8A8
USB Information:
Apple Inc. FaceTime HD Camera (Built-in)
Apple Inc. Apple Internal Keyboard / Trackpad
Apple Inc. BRCM20702 Hub
Apple Inc. Bluetooth USB Host Controller
Apple Computer, Inc. IR Receiver
Thunderbolt Information:
Apple Inc. thunderbolt_bus
Configuration files:
/etc/hosts - Count: 15
Gatekeeper:
Anywhere
Kernel Extensions:
[not loaded] com.paceap.kext.pacesupport.leopard (5.7) Support
[not loaded] com.paceap.kext.pacesupport.master (5.7) Support
[not loaded] com.paceap.kext.pacesupport.panther (5.7) Support
[not loaded] com.paceap.kext.pacesupport.snowleopard (5.7) Support
[not loaded] com.paceap.kext.pacesupport.tiger (5.7) Support
[kext loaded] com.sophos.kext.sav (9.0.11 - SDK 10.7) Support
[kext loaded] com.sophos.nke.swi (9.0.3 - SDK 10.8) Support
[not loaded] com.wacom.kext.pentablet (5.3.0 - SDK 10.8) Support
Startup Items:
HP IO: Path: /Library/StartupItems/HP IO
PACESupport: Path: /Library/StartupItems/PACESupport
Problem System Launch Agents:
[failed] com.apple.accountsd.plist
[failed] com.apple.AirPlayUIAgent.plist
[failed] com.apple.coreservices.appleid.authentication.plist
[failed] com.apple.printtool.agent.plist
Launch Daemons:
[loaded] com.adobe.fpsaud.plist Support
[loaded] com.adobe.SwitchBoard.plist Support
[loaded] com.microsoft.office.licensing.helper.plist Support
[loaded] com.oracle.java.Helper-Tool.plist Support
[running] com.sophos.autoupdate.plist Support
[running] com.sophos.configuration.plist Support
[running] com.sophos.intercheck.plist Support
[running] com.sophos.notification.plist Support
[running] com.sophos.scan.plist Support
[running] com.sophos.sxld.plist Support
[running] com.sophos.webd.plist Support
[failed] PACESupport.plist Support
Launch Agents:
[not loaded] com.adobe.AAM.Updater-1.0.plist Support
[loaded] com.adobe.CS5ServiceManager.plist Support
[running] com.flipvideo.FlipShare.AutoRun.plist Support
[loaded] com.oracle.java.Java-Updater.plist Support
[running] com.sophos.uiserver.plist Support
[running] com.wacom.pentablet.plist Support
User Launch Agents:
[loaded] com.adobe.ARM.[...].plist Support
[loaded] com.adobe.ARM.[...].plist Support
[failed] com.akamai.client.plist Support
[loaded] com.google.keystone.agent.plist Support
[running] com.spotify.webhelper.plist Support
User Login Items:
iTunesHelper
Microsoft AU Daemon
N067U_ButtonManager
N124U_ButtonManager
Nikon View Monitor Carbon
HP Scheduler
HPEventHandler
BambooCore
BambooCore
Internet Plug-ins:
AdobePDFViewerNPAPI: Version: 11.0.06 - SDK 10.6 Support
Flash Player: Version: 13.0.0.214 - SDK 10.6 Support
ContentUploaderPlugin: Version: 1.2 Support
AdobePDFViewer: Version: 11.0.06 - SDK 10.6 Support
ebrary Reader: Version: 2.10 - 12/12/06 Support
Scorch: Version: ScorchNetscapePlugin 4.1.4 build 1 Support
iPhotoPhotocast: Version: 7.0
DirectorShockwave: Version: 11.0.0r458 Support
PDF Browser Plugin: Version: 2.4.4 - SDK 10.6 Support
FlashPlayer-10.6: Version: 13.0.0.214 - SDK 10.6 Support
QuickTime Plugin: Version: 7.7.1
AdobeAAMDetect: Version: AdobeAAMDetect 1.0.0.0 - SDK 10.6 Support
AmazonMP3DownloaderPlugin: Version: AmazonMP3DownloaderPlugin 1.0.15 Support
Silverlight: Version: 5.1.20913.0 - SDK 10.6 Support
DivXBrowserPlugin: Version: 1.4 Support
Flip4Mac WMV Plugin: Version: 2.2.1.11 Support
WacomTabletPlugin: Version: WacomTabletPlugin 2.1.0.2 Support
SharePointBrowserPlugin: Version: 14.1.0 Support
JavaAppletPlugin: Version: Java 7 Update 55 Check version
WacomNetscape: Version: 2.1.0-1 - SDK 10.8 Support
Audio Plug-ins:
AirPlay: Version: 1.7 - SDK 10.8
iSightAudio: Version: 7.7.1 - SDK 10.8
iTunes Plug-ins:
Quartz Composer Visualizer: Version: 1.4 - SDK 10.8
User Internet Plug-ins:
Move_Media_Player: Version: npmnqmp 071101000050 Support
fbplugin_1_0_1: Version: (null) Support
3rd Party Preference Panes:
3ivx MPEG-4 Support
PenTablet Support
DivX Support
Flash Player Support
Flip4Mac WMV Support
Growl Support
Java Support
Time Machine:
Skip System Files: NO
Auto backup: YES
Time Machine not configured!
Top Processes by CPU:
61% firefox
25% SophosWebIntelligence
8% WindowServer
4% SophosScanD
1% SophosSXLD
Top Processes by Memory:
928 MB firefox
152 MB SophosScanD
143 MB InterCheck
119 MB SophosAntiVirus
94 MB mds
Virtual Memory Information:
112 MB Free RAM
1.43 GB Active RAM
1.38 GB Inactive RAM
1.06 GB Wired RAM
483 MB Page-ins
0 B Page-outs
-
May 25, 2014 8:03 PMby Linc Davis,Helpful1. This is a comment on what you should—and should not—do to protect yourself from malicious software ("malware") that circulates on the Internet and gets onto a computer as an unintended consequence of the user's actions. It does not apply to software, such as keystroke loggers, that may be installed deliberately by an intruder who has hands-on access to the computer, or who has been able to log in to it remotely. That threat is in a different category, and there's no easy way to defend against it.If you find this comment too long or too technical, read only sections 5, 6, and 10.OS X now implements three layers of built-in protection specifically against malware, not counting runtime protections such as execute disable, sandboxing, system library randomization, and address space layout randomization that may also guard against other kinds of exploits.
2. All versions of OS X since 10.6.7 have been able to detect known Mac malware in downloaded files, and to block insecure web plugins. This feature is transparent to the user. Internally Apple calls it "XProtect."The malware recognition database used by XProtect is automatically updated; however, you shouldn't rely on it, because the attackers are always at least a day ahead of the defenders.The following caveats apply to XProtect:- It can be bypassed by some third-party networking software, such as BitTorrent clients and Java applets.
- It only applies to software downloaded from the network. Software installed from a CD or other media is not checked.
As new versions of OS X are released, it's not clear whether Apple will indefinitely continue to maintain the XProtect database of older versions such as 10.6. The security of obsolete system versions may eventually be degraded. Security updates to the code of obsolete systems will stop being released at some point, and that may leave them open to other kinds of attack besides malware.3. Starting with OS X 10.7.5, there has been a second layer of built-in malware protection, designated "Gatekeeper" by Apple. By default, applications and Installer packages downloaded from the network will only run if they're digitally signed by a developer with a certificate issued by Apple. Software certified in this way hasn't necessarily been tested by Apple, but you can be reasonably sure that it hasn't been modified by anyone other than the developer. His identity is known to Apple, so he could be held legally responsible if he distributed malware. That may not mean much if the developer lives in a country with a weak legal system (see below.)Gatekeeper doesn't depend on a database of known malware. It has, however, the same limitations as XProtect, and in addition the following:- It can easily be disabled or overridden by the user.
- A malware attacker could get control of a code-signing certificate under false pretenses, or could simply ignore the consequences of distributing codesigned malware.
- An App Store developer could find a way to bypass Apple's oversight, or the oversight could fail due to human error.
Apple has so far failed to revoke the codesigning certificates of some known abusers, thereby diluting the value of Gatekeeper and the Developer ID program. These failures don't involve App Store products, however.For the reasons given, App Store products, and—to a lesser extent—other applications recognized by Gatekeeper as signed, are safer than others, but they can't be considered absolutely safe. "Sandboxed" applications may prompt for access to private data, such as your contacts, or for access to the network. Think before granting that access. Sandbox security is based on user input. Never click through any request for authorization without thinking.4. Starting with OS X 10.8.3, a third layer of protection has been added: a "Malware Removal Tool" (MRT). MRT runs automatically in the background when you update the OS. It checks for, and removes, malware that may have evaded the other protections via a Java exploit (see below.) MRT also runs when you install or update the Apple-supplied Java runtime (but not the Oracle runtime.) Like XProtect, MRT is effective against known threats, but not against unknown ones. It notifies you if it finds malware, but otherwise there's no user interface to MRT.5. The built-in security features of OS X reduce the risk of malware attack, but they are not, and never will be, complete protection. Malware is a problem of human behavior, and a technological fix is not going to solve it. Trusting software to protect you will only make you more vulnerable.The best defense is always going to be your own intelligence. With the possible exception of Java exploits, all known malware circulating on the Internet that affects a fully-updated installation of OS X 10.6 or later takes the form of so-called "Trojan horses," which can only have an effect if the victim is duped into running them. The threat therefore amounts to a battle of wits between you and the scam artists. If you're smarter than they think you are, you'll win. That means, in practice, that you always stay within a safe harbor of computing practices. How do you know when you're leaving the safe harbor? Below are some warning signs of danger.Software from an untrustworthy source- Software of any kind is distributed via BitTorrent. or Usenet, or on a website that also distributes pirated music or movies.
- Software with a corporate brand, such as Adobe Flash Player, doesn't come directly from the developer’s website. Do not trust an alert from any website to update Flash, your browser, or anything else.
- Rogue websites such as Softonic and CNET Download distribute free applications that have been packaged in a superfluous "installer."
- The software is advertised by means of spam or intrusive web ads. Any ad, on any site, that includes a direct link to a download should be ignored.
Software that is plainly illegal or does something illegal- High-priced commercial software such as Photoshop is "cracked" or "free."
- An application helps you to infringe copyright, for instance by circumventing the copy protection on commercial software, or saving streamed media for reuse without permission.
Conditional or unsolicited offers from strangers- A telephone caller or a web page tells you that you have a “virus” and offers to help you remove it. (Some reputable websites did legitimately warn visitors who were infected with the "DNSChanger" malware. That exception to this rule no longer applies.)
- A web site offers free content such as video or music, but to use it you must install a “codec,” “plug-in,” "player," "downloader," "extractor," or “certificate” that comes from that same site, or an unknown one.
- You win a prize in a contest you never entered.
- Someone on a message board such as this one is eager to help you, but only if you download an application of his choosing.
- A "FREE WI-FI !!!" network advertises itself in a public place such as an airport, but is not provided by the management.
- Anything online that you would expect to pay for is "free."
Unexpected events- You open what you think is a document and get an alert that it's "an application downloaded from the Internet." Click Cancel and delete the file. Even if you don't get the alert, you should still delete any file that isn't what you expected it to be.
- An application does something you don't expect, such as asking for permission to access your contacts, your location, or the Internet for no obvious reason.
- Software is attached to email that you didn't request, even if it comes (or seems to come) from someone you trust.
I don't say that leaving the safe harbor just once will necessarily result in disaster, but making a habit of it will weaken your defenses against malware attack. Any of the above scenarios should, at the very least, make you uncomfortable.6. Java on the Web (not to be confused with JavaScript, to which it's not related, despite the similarity of the names) is a weak point in the security of any system. Java is, among other things, a platform for running complex applications in a web page, on the client. That was always a bad idea, and Java's developers have proven themselves incapable of implementing it without also creating a portal for malware to enter. Past Java exploits are the closest thing there has ever been to a Windows-style virus affecting OS X. Merely loading a page with malicious Java content could be harmful.Fortunately, client-side Java on the Web is obsolete and mostly extinct. Only a few outmoded sites still use it. Try to hasten the process of extinction by avoiding those sites, if you have a choice. Forget about playing games or other non-essential uses of Java.Java is not included in OS X 10.7 and later. Discrete Java installers are distributed by Apple and by Oracle (the developer of Java.) Don't use either one unless you need it. Most people don't. If Java is installed, disable it—not JavaScript—in your browsers.Regardless of version, experience has shown that Java on the Web can't be trusted. If you must use a Java applet for a task on a specific site, enable Java only for that site in Safari. Never enable Java for a public website that carries third-party advertising. Use it only on well-known, login-protected, secure websites without ads. In Safari 6 or later, you'll see a lock icon in the address bar with the abbreviation "https" when visiting a secure site.
Stay within the safe harbor, and you’ll be as safe from malware as you can practically be. The rest of this comment concerns what you should not do to protect yourself.
7. Never install any commercial "anti-virus" (AV) or "Internet security" products for the Mac, as they are all worse than useless. If you need to be able to detect Windows malware in your files, use one of the free security apps in the Mac App Store—nothing else.Why shouldn't you use commercial AV products?- To recognize malware, the software depends on a database of known threats, which is always at least a day out of date. This technique is a proven failure, as a major AV software vendor has admitted. Most attacks are "zero-day"—that is, previously unknown. Recognition-based AV does not defend against such attacks, and the enterprise IT industry is coming to the realization that traditional AV software is worthless.
- Its design is predicated on the nonexistent threat that malware may be injected at any time, anywhere in the file system. Malware is downloaded from the network; it doesn't materialize from nowhere. In order to meet that nonexistent threat, commercial AV software modifies or duplicates low-level functions of the operating system, which is a waste of resources and a common cause of instability, bugs, and poor performance.
- By modifying the operating system, the software may also create weaknesses that could be exploited by malware attackers.
- Most importantly, a false sense of security is dangerous.
8. An AV product from the App Store, such as "ClamXav," has the same drawback as the commercial suites of being always out of date, but it does not inject low-level code into the operating system. That doesn't mean it's entirely harmless. It may report email messages that have "phishing" links in the body, or Windows malware in attachments, as infected files, and offer to delete or move them. Doing so will corrupt the Mail database. The messages should be deleted from within the Mail application.An AV app is not needed, and cannot be relied upon, for protection against OS X malware. It's useful, if at all, only for detecting Windows malware, and even for that use it's not really effective, because new Windows malware is emerging much faster than OS X malware.Windows malware can't harm you directly (unless, of course, you use Windows.) Just don't pass it on to anyone else. A malicious attachment in email is usually easy to recognize by the name alone. An actual example:London Terror Moovie.avi [124 spaces] Checked By Norton Antivirus.exe
You don't need software to tell you that's a Windows trojan. Software may be able to tell you which trojan it is, but who cares? In practice, there's no reason to use recognition software unless an institutional policy requires it. Windows malware is so widespread that you should assume it's in every email attachment until proven otherwise. Nevertheless, ClamXav or a similar product from the App Store may serve a purpose if it satisfies an ill-informed network administrator who says you must run some kind of AV application. It's free and it won't handicap the system.The ClamXav developer won't try to "upsell" you to a paid version of the product. Other developers may do that. Don't be upsold. For one thing, you should not pay to protect Windows users from the consequences of their choice of computing platform. For another, a paid upgrade from a free app will probably have all the disadvantages mentioned in section 7.9. It seems to be a common belief that the built-in Application Firewall acts as a barrier to infection, or prevents malware from functioning. It does neither. It blocks inbound connections to certain network services you're running, such as file sharing. It's disabled by default and you should leave it that way if you're behind a router on a private home or office network. Activate it only when you're on an untrusted network, for instance a public Wi-Fi hotspot, where you don't want to provide services. Disable any services you don't use in the Sharing preference pane. All are disabled by default.10. As a Mac user you don't have to live in fear that your computer may be infected every time you install software, read email, or visit a web page. But neither should you assume that you will always be safe from exploitation, no matter what you do. The greatest harm done by security software is precisely its selling point: it makes people feel safe. They may then feel safe enough to take risks from which the software doesn't protect them. Nothing can lessen the need for safe computing practices. -
May 25, 2014 9:17 PMby adgroff,This was incredibly helpful, and I'm extremely grateful that you shared this. I've been operating, in many ways, on autopilot for the past five or so years, so I was completely out-of-date on how Apple had been improving built-in means of protection. I do always try to be sensible about where I visit and what I do, so hopefully I'll be in reasonably good shape for the future.
Thanks again!
-
May 25, 2014 10:15 PMby MadMacs0,adgroff wrote:
Internet Plug-ins:
DirectorShockwave: Version: 11.0.0r458 Support
Why You Should Ditch Adobe Shockwave
Also, Silverlight is out-of-date and needs a security update.
-
May 28, 2014 5:30 PMby cpdaleo1,You all seem highly knowledgable and if you would be so kind to offer any guidance you might. My wife and 15yr old son use the MacBook, I am an iPad person, so forgive my novice comments. My wife searches Google, checks email and took a real estate class on the computer. I know my son has downloaded some apps and Minecraft things, watches youtube and who knows?
What appears to be happening according to my wife is when the computer goes into standby mode for an hour or longer and then she goes to log back in and continue where she may have left off, the rainbow disc spins constantly and whatever program was opened she has to force quit. It also indicates that our home wifi is not connected and she has to manually go in and reconnect it. Oddly, I have noticed this a few times on my ipad. There is nothing wrong with the router or our iphones when this happens, though.
I have told her to log off instead of letting it go into standby mode as a general rule of thumb. I read this thread and some others and downloaded etrecheck and there doen't appear (to me) to be any excessive plug ins or anything odd on the surface, but your and anyone on this forum's insight is greatly appreciated. Below is my etrecheck diagnostic...
EtreCheck version: 1.9.11 (43) - report generated May 28, 2014 at 8:02:27 PM EDT
Hardware Information:
MacBook Pro (15-inch, Late 2011)
MacBook Pro - model: MacBookPro8,2
1 2.2 GHz Intel Core i7 CPU: 4 cores
4 GB RAM
Video Information:
Intel HD Graphics 3000 - VRAM: 384 MB
AMD Radeon HD 6750M - VRAM: 512 MB
System Software:
OS X 10.9.3 (13D65) - Uptime: 0 days 0:4:3
Disk Information:
ST9500325ASG disk0 : (500.11 GB)
EFI (disk0s1) <not mounted>: 209.7 MB
Macintosh HD (disk0s2) / [Startup]: 499.25 GB (363.82 GB free)
Recovery HD (disk0s3) <not mounted>: 650 MB
HL-DT-ST DVDRW GS31N
USB Information:
Apple Inc. FaceTime HD Camera (Built-in)
Apple Inc. Apple Internal Keyboard / Trackpad
Apple Inc. BRCM2070 Hub
Apple Inc. Bluetooth USB Host Controller
Apple Computer, Inc. IR Receiver
Thunderbolt Information:
Apple Inc. thunderbolt_bus
Gatekeeper:
Mac App Store and identified developers
Startup Items:
iCoreService: Path: /Library/StartupItems/iCoreService
Launch Daemons:
[loaded] com.adobe.fpsaud.plist Support
[loaded] com.microsoft.office.licensing.helper.plist Support
[loaded] com.trendmicro.itis.icore.agent.plist Support
Launch Agents:
[loaded] com.trendmicro.itis.loginmgr.agent.plist Support
User Login Items:
iTunesHelper
TmLoginMgr
TmLoginMgr
HP Scheduler
Internet Plug-ins:
SharePointBrowserPlugin: Version: 14.4.1 - SDK 10.6 Support
FlashPlayer-10.6: Version: 13.0.0.214 - SDK 10.6 Support
Flash Player: Version: 13.0.0.214 - SDK 10.6 Support
QuickTime Plugin: Version: 7.7.3
JavaAppletPlugin: Version: 14.9.0 - SDK 10.7 Check version
Default Browser: Version: 537 - SDK 10.9
Audio Plug-ins:
BluetoothAudioPlugIn: Version: 1.0 - SDK 10.9
AirPlay: Version: 2.0 - SDK 10.9
AppleAVBAudio: Version: 203.2 - SDK 10.9
iSightAudio: Version: 7.7.3 - SDK 10.9
iTunes Plug-ins:
Quartz Composer Visualizer: Version: 1.4 - SDK 10.9
3rd Party Preference Panes:
Flash Player Support
Time Machine:
Time Machine not configured!
Top Processes by CPU:
4% WindowServer
1% fontd
0% TmLoginMgr
0% ps
0% notifyd
Top Processes by Memory:
101 MB com.apple.WebKit.WebContent
86 MB mds_stores
86 MB com.apple.IconServicesAgent
66 MB Safari
41 MB ocspd
Virtual Memory Information:
1.57 GB Free RAM
1.27 GB Active RAM
230 MB Inactive RAM
952 MB Wired RAM
225 MB Page-ins
0 B Page-outs
-
May 28, 2014 5:42 PMby Melophage,cpdaleo1,
do you or your wife need to have Trend Micro Security for Mac installed on the MacBook Pro? If not, try uninstalling it — if needed, manual instructions for uninstalling it can be found here.
-
May 28, 2014 5:56 PMby MadMacs0,cpdaleo1 wrote:
You all seem highly knowledgable and if you would be so kind to offer any guidance you might.
Linc is unlikely to respond to your request which is viewed as "hijacking" the original poster's question. There may or may not be others monitoring this conversation, so you won't attrack any attention to it from others that are currently logged on.
You're always welcome to try any suggestions you see in an older thread, but if you can't solve it then it's always best to start a new topic with a complete explanation of your specific issues. That's just the way this forum works best.
-
May 28, 2014 6:15 PMby cpdaleo1,Melophage...After reading Linc's post, I did just that, uninstall MicroTrend. I think it came as a free trial and never reinstated it. One of the prime reason's I converted from PC to Mac was the security. While nothing is ever foolproof, it certainly seems light years ahead and I think some common sense which appears to be the gist of Linc's response, seems to be the path. But with a 15yr old boy and a not so technical wife, you never know.
Thanks for your input. Did you see anything else unusual on the etrecheck scan?
MAdMAcs0...new to the forum as you can tell and figured instead of posting a new question off the bat, let me see what is out there and after several perusals of other threads, this seemed the most appropriate to "tag in" on as the poster seemed to be experiencing similar issues. Linc's response was quite informative as was others and figured as it was recently responded to, someone might offer a thought about my diagnostic. No intent to hijack anything. Appreciate the heads up on the forum etiquette though.
