Any others with 27" iMac 10.9.4 memory issues... my experience.

Question

Level 1

0 points

Any others with 27" iMac 10.9.4 memory issues... my experience.

Hi, I just thought I would provide my experience here to both see if others have seen and dealt with the issue - and to alert others that this may be something worth considering in upgrading from Mac OSX 10.9.3

My 27" iMac 11,1 update to 10.9.4 was a disaster. From the time I restarted my Mac it bogged down in performance and my applications were being paused (as seen in the Force Quit window). The mermory task_kernel was grabbing over 5 GB of my 8 and not letting go. At idle with no applications running all was fine with memory, but the moment I launched any of my standard browser (Firefox or Safari) or Windows apps (Outlook, PPt, Word, etc) or nearly anything else the Mac ground to a halt and applications were being Paused. Quitting applications did not release memory from task_kernel.

I finally re-installed Maverics from scratch and nothing changed. I tried Disk permissions and cleaning out as much as I dared and re-updating things like Flash but nothing made a difference.

For 3 days I searched all over the net for answers and could only find some reference to changing files that are energy-management related. Apparently this was an issue for many portable users in the upgrade. I tried their work around but this did not work for me either.

Being without a working Mac was getting to be too much so I finally decided to go backwards and used Time Machine (thank you, thank you, thank you Time Machine!) to go back to my last backup with 10.9.3. I held my breath when it started and with Activity Monitor running all started fine... and stayed fine! And has for days now.

By the way, I have an identical iMac with same software that was not upgraded that has stayed fine as well with every other upgrade but 10.9.4.

I do not know why this problem happened but clearly 10.9.4 is either not properly tuned for my Mac or it is creating a not so obvious conflict that is beyond my ability to manage. I could spend days trying to figure this out - or - just leave well enough alone and hope that Apple fixes the issue or let's us know what is going on that we should fix.

For now, it's goodbye 10.9.4 and will be looking forward to but apprehensively at 10.9.5

iMac, OS X Mavericks (10.9.4), 27" iMac 11,1

Posted on Aug 14, 2014 7:41 PM

Reply

Answer 1

BobHarris

Level 9

53,315 points

Aug 14, 2014 8:27 PM in response to BerryFine

This could be a bad kernel extension from a 3rd party product (kernel_task is where kernel extension memory usage would appear).

The next time you run into this situation, you could post the output from EtreCheck, which will tell us the 3rd party kernel extensions you have installed, and based on past user posts, someone may be able to identify a 3rd party extension that is problematic.

<https://discussions.apple.com/docs/DOC-6174>

With that as a starting point, someone will be able to direct you for any additional information that may be desired given the clues from EtreCheck and a description of the problems you are seeing.

Reply

Answer 2

BerryFine Author

Level 1

0 points

Aug 14, 2014 8:45 PM in response to BobHarris

Sorry, I had it ready didn't post. Even have the log file as it was happening. I took a video of Activity Monitor during it too.

EtreCheck version: 1.9.13 (49)

Report generated 15 August 2014 1:41:52 pm AEST

Hardware Information: ?

iMac (27-inch, Late 2009) (Verified)

iMac - model: iMac11,1

1 2.8 GHz Intel Core i7 CPU: 4 cores

8 GB RAM

Video Information: ?

ATI Radeon HD 4850 - VRAM: 512 MB

iMac 1920 x 1080

VGA Display 1024 x 768 @ 60 Hz

System Software: ?

OS X 10.9.2 (13C1021) - Uptime: 4 days 20:42:36

Disk Information: ?

ST31000528ASQ disk0 : (1 TB)

S.M.A.R.T. Status: Verified

EFI (disk0s1) <not mounted>: 209.7 MB

Macintosh HD (disk0s2) / [Startup]: 999.35 GB (717.56 GB free)

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

OPTIARC DVD RW AD-5680H

USB Information: ?

Western Digital My Book 1 TB

S.M.A.R.T. Status: Verified

disk4s1 (disk4s1) <not mounted>: 32 KB

MUSIC AND PHOTO BACKUP (disk4s3) /Volumes/MUSIC AND PHOTO BACKUP: 1 TB (479.91 GB free)

Iomega Iomega Select HDD 250.06 GB

S.M.A.R.T. Status: Verified

EFI (disk5s1) <not mounted>: 209.7 MB

Frogster 1 250 GB Portable (disk5s2) /Volumes/Frogster 1 250 GB Portable: 249.72 GB (246.19 GB free)

Seagate Portable 500.11 GB

S.M.A.R.T. Status: Verified

EFI (disk3s1) <not mounted>: 209.7 MB

500GB Portable (disk3s2) /Volumes/500GB Portable: 499.76 GB (173.28 GB free)

Western Digital My Book 1140 2 TB

S.M.A.R.T. Status: Verified

EFI (disk2s1) <not mounted>: 209.7 MB

disk2s2 (disk2s2) <not mounted>: 2 TB

Boot OS X (disk2s3) <not mounted>: 134.2 MB

Apple Computer, Inc. IR Receiver

Apple Inc. Built-in iSight

General UDisk 1.94 GB

S.M.A.R.T. Status: Verified

Apple, Inc. Keyboard Hub

Apple, Inc Apple Keyboard

Apple Inc. BRCM2046 Hub

Apple Inc. Bluetooth USB Host Controller

Apple Internal Memory Card Reader

Gatekeeper: ?

Anywhere

Kernel Extensions: ?

[loaded] com.Cycling74.driver.Soundflower (1.5.2) Support

[loaded] com.Perfect.Driver.SystemAudioRecorder (1.0.0 - SDK 10.9) Support

[not loaded] com.elgato.driver.DontMatchAfaTech (1.1) Support

[not loaded] com.elgato.driver.DontMatchCinergy450 (1.1) Support

[not loaded] com.elgato.driver.DontMatchCinergyXS (1.1) Support

[not loaded] com.elgato.driver.DontMatchEmpia (1.1) Support

[loaded] com.logmein.driver.LogMeInSoundDriver (1.0.3 - SDK 10.5) Support

[loaded] com.movavi.driver.SoundGrabber (1.6.5 - SDK 10.6) Support

[not loaded] com.pctools.iantivirus.kfs (1.0.1) Support

[loaded] com.seagate.driver.PowSecDriverCore (5.2.6 - SDK 10.4) Support

[not loaded] com.seagate.driver.PowSecLeafDriver_10_4 (5.2.6 - SDK 10.4) Support

[loaded] com.seagate.driver.PowSecLeafDriver_10_5 (5.2.6 - SDK 10.5) Support

[not loaded] com.seagate.driver.SeagateDriveIcons (5.2.6 - SDK 10.4) Support

[not loaded] com.wdc.driver.1394HP (1.0.11 - SDK 10.4) Support

[not loaded] com.wdc.driver.1394_64HP (1.0.1 - SDK 10.6) Support

[not loaded] com.wdc.driver.IOFireWireWDHID (1.1.2) Support

[loaded] com.wdc.driver.USB-64HP (1.0.1) Support

[not loaded] com.wdc.driver.USBHP (1.0.13) Support

[not loaded] net.Thomson.iokit.USBLAN_usbpart (1.6.0) Support

Startup Items: ?

WDBMService: Path: /Library/StartupItems/WDBMService

Problem System Launch Daemons: ?

[failed] com.apple.wdhelper.plist

[running] com.seagate.TBDecorator.plist Support

Launch Daemons: ?

[loaded] com.adobe.fpsaud.plist Support

[running] com.cleverfiles.cfbackd.plist Support

[not loaded] com.google.keystone.daemon.plist Support

[not loaded] com.logmein.logmeinblanker.plist Support

[not loaded] com.logmein.logmeinserver.plist Support

[loaded] com.logmein.raupdate.plist Support

[loaded] com.microsoft.office.licensing.helper.plist Support

[loaded] com.oracle.java.Helper-Tool.plist Support

[loaded] com.oracle.java.JavaUpdateHelper.plist Support

[not loaded] com.portents.changerd.plist Support

[not loaded] com.portents.changermediaid.plist Support

[loaded] com.timesoftware.timemachineeditor.helper.plist Support

[loaded] com.vmware.launchd.vmware.plist Support

[loaded] fi.polar.libpolar.plist Support

[running] fi.polar.polard.plist Support

Launch Agents: ?

[running] com.brother.LOGINserver.plist Support

[not loaded] com.google.keystone.agent.plist Support

[failed] com.logmein.LMILaunchAgentFixer.plist Support

[not loaded] com.logmein.logmeingui.plist Support

[not loaded] com.logmein.logmeinguiagent.plist Support

[not loaded] com.logmein.logmeinguiagentatlogin.plist Support

[loaded] com.oracle.java.Java-Updater.plist Support

User Launch Agents: ?

[not loaded] com.adobe.ARM.[...].plist Support

[not loaded] com.leadertech.PowerRegister.SEA1.6cd89bc1180f7c681347ee4dd84555e2.plist Support

[not loaded] com.macpaw.CleanMyMac.helperTool.plist Support

[not loaded] com.macpaw.CleanMyMac.trashSizeWatcher.plist Support

[not loaded] com.macpaw.CleanMyMac.volumeWatcher.plist Support

[not loaded] com.macpaw.CleanMyMac2Helper.diskSpaceWatcher.plist Support

[not loaded] com.macpaw.CleanMyMac2Helper.scheduledScan.plist Support

[not loaded] com.macpaw.CleanMyMac2Helper.trashWatcher.plist Support

[not loaded] com.microsoft.LaunchAgent.SyncServicesAgent.plist Support

[not loaded] com.seagate.dashboard.plist Support

User Login Items: ?

SmartDaemon

GrowlHelperApp

Microsoft Outlook

WebSync

Microsoft Database Daemon

Radioshift Helper (2427993400)

AdobeResourceSynchronizer

Dropbox

Google Drive

Firefox

Skype

iAntiVirus

WDQuickView

Internet Plug-ins: ?

AdobePDFViewerNPAPI: Version: 10.1.10 Support

Flash Player: Version: 14.0.0.145 - SDK 10.6 Outdated! Update

AdobePDFViewer: Version: 10.1.10 Support

LogMeInSafari32: Version: 1.0.730 Support

iPhotoPhotocast: Version: 7.0

RealPlayer Plugin: Version: Unknown

DirectorShockwave: Version: 11.0.0r430 Support

Loki: Version: 3.0 Support

LogMeInSafari64: Version: 1.0.730 Support

FlashPlayer-10.6: Version: 14.0.0.145 - SDK 10.6 Support

QuickTime Plugin: Version: 7.7.3

AmazonMP3DownloaderPlugin: Version: Unknown

DivXBrowserPlugin: Version: 1.4 Support

Silverlight: Version: 5.1.20913.0 - SDK 10.6 Support

LogMeIn: Version: 1.0.730 Support

Google Earth Web Plug-in: Version: 5.1 Support

Default Browser: Version: 537 - SDK 10.9

Flip4Mac WMV Plugin: Version: 2.3.2.6 Support

SharePointBrowserPlugin: Version: 14.3.9 - SDK 10.6 Support

JavaAppletPlugin: Version: Java 7 Update 65 Check version

OfficeLiveBrowserPlugin: Version: 12.3.3 Support

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

User Internet Plug-ins ?

bjnplugin_2.6.255.8: Version: bjnplugin 2.6.255.8 - SDK 10.8 Support

bjninstallplugin_2.6.255.8: Version: bjninstallplugin 2.6.255.8 - SDK 10.8 Support

BrowserPlus_2.9.8: Version: 2.9.8 Support

fbplugin_1_0_1: Version: (null) Support

Picasa: Version: 1.0 Support

RealPlayer Plugin: Version: (null) Support

3rd Party Preference Panes: ?

BrowserPlus Support

DivX Support

Flash Player Support

Flip4Mac WMV Support

Growl Support

Iomega Active Delivery Support

Java Support

MacFUSE Support

Seagate Dashboard for Mac OSX Support

WDQuickView Support

Time Machine: ?

Skip System Files: NO

Mobile backups: OFF

Auto backup: YES

Volumes being backed up:

Macintosh HD: Disk size: 930.71 GB Disk used: 262.43 GB

Destinations:

Frog Pond Master Backup [Local] (Last used)

Total size: 2

Total number of backups: 25

Oldest backup: 2013-11-25 14:20:27 +0000

Last backup: 2014-08-15 03:10:33 +0000

Size of backup disk: Adequate

Backup size 2 > (Disk used 262.43 GB X 3)

Time Machine details may not be accurate.

All volumes being backed up may not be listed.

Top Processes by CPU: ?

69% firefox

48% Finder

6% plugin-container

5% WindowServer

4% Microsoft Outlook

Top Processes by Memory: ?

2.78 GB firefox

213 MB plugin-container

164 MB Finder

147 MB SafariDAVClient

90 MB Microsoft Outlook

Virtual Memory Information: ?

171 MB Free RAM

2.23 GB Active RAM

2.08 GB Inactive RAM

1.21 GB Wired RAM

64.70 GB Page-ins

4.67 GB Page-outs

Reply

Answer 3

John Galt

Level 10

141,460 points

Aug 15, 2014 8:24 AM in response to BerryFine

That Mac is burdened with a number of problems including least two useless utilities that are likely to be contributing factors. Among them are

CleanMyMac
PC Tools "iAntiVirus"

There are uninstallation procedures for each of these items, but the presence of CleanMyMac justifies completely erasing that Mac and reconfiguring it. You are welcome to try measures short of that but there is no way to recover from the effects of having used it other than to erase the system completely.

There is no way to reverse the effects of having used CleanMyMac2, and the developer's uninstallation instructions are ineffective. Only MacPaw, its developer, can know the reason for that, but I can think of two possibilities: either they are purposefully leaving components behind for reasons known only to them, or they simply don't know what they're doing. Neither one of those possibilities is particularly comforting for the user. EtreCheck does not reveal the presence of these components.

Reinstalling OS X alone will have no effect on either removing CleanMyMac or reversing the damage it is capable of inflicting upon a system. Follow the applicable recovery procedure below:

If you have a backup that you created prior to using CleanMyMac, now is the time to use it. For Time Machine, boot OS X Recovery, and at the Mac OS X Utilities screen, choose Restore from Time Machine Backup. Choose a date preceding the installation of CleanMyMac.
If you do not have a backup that predates the use of CleanMyMac, create one now. To do that read Mac Basics: Time Machine backs up your Mac.
- The recovery procedure will require that you erase the Mac using OS X Recovery, and then create a new user whose contents will be empty. You will then be able to use Setup Assistant to migrate your essential documents including photos, music, work products and other essential files.
- When doing so, select only your previous User account and do not select "Applications", "Computer and Network Settings" or "Other files and folders". De-select those choices.
- Subsequent to using Setup Assistant, you will need to reinstall the essential software you may require, once again remembering to install software only from their original sources, and omitting all non-essential software.

To erase and install Mavericks read: OS X Mavericks: Erase and reinstall OS X

To migrate your essential documents read: OS X: How to migrate data from another Mac using Mavericks and follow the procedure under Time Machine or other disk migration.

Other problems exist but those concerns will be rendered moot by erasing your system, which must be accomplished.

May I suggest that you review the following setting in System Preferences?

Although you may easily override that setting, it will serve to protect you from inadvertently installing garbage.

Reply

Answer 4

etresoft

Level 8

46,768 points

Aug 15, 2014 9:25 AM in response to BerryFine

I don't disagree with anything John Galt said, but even without the AV and "clean up" software, you still have an awful lot of low-level system modifications, including kernel extensions. If you are wondering why your kernel task takes up so much RAM, those kernel extensions are the first place to look. They should only be removed by using vendor-provided uninstallers or uninstallation instructions. Reinstalling OS X onto an erased hard drive might be the fastest path to recovery.

Reply

Answer 5

John Galt

Level 10

141,460 points

Aug 15, 2014 10:34 AM in response to John Galt

Augmenting what I wrote earlier: Since you already correlated problems the problems you describe with updating OS X, it is extremely likely they are caused by one or more incompatible or poorly written kernel extensions, or their interaction with one another. As etresoft wrote, that system has been modified by a great number of them including ones known to cause problems. Waiting for Apple to fix problems caused by software they did not write and cannot control is futile.

In addition to those modifications, Internet plugins such as BrowserPlus, bjnplugin and others with which I am not familiar are present. If you are not completely certain what they are and desire the benefit they convey, then you should get rid of them. To do that read Safari: Unsupported third-party add-ons may cause Safari to unexpectedly quit or have performance issues. To learn how to avoid inadvertently installing things that no reasonable person would want to install read How to install adware.

Erasing and reinstalling in the manner I described is not the only solution, but it has been my experience that it is the method most likely to require the least amount of time and interaction on your part. It is possible to eliminate those kernel extensions piecemeal, and in so doing you are likely to identify one or more that are directly responsible for the slowdowns. However, CleanMyMac is capable of causing corruption that extends beyond system files, and justifies complete erasure as I wrote. Since it appears you are already using Time Machine, recovering to a fault-free system unaffected by garbage will be fairly simple.

Edit to add: I don't know what TimeMachineEditor is, or does. I don't recommend using anything that interferes with Time Machine's normal operation. I am assuming your Time Machine backups are intact. If you are not absolutely certain they are, do not proceed. Instead, I recommend creating an additional backup unaffected by third party modifications.

Reply

Answer 6

BerryFine Author

Level 1

0 points

Aug 15, 2014 3:16 PM in response to John Galt

Thanks John and etresoft I am truly impressed with your knowledge and willingness to help!

As you noted, I have no problems with this configuration on 10.9.3 (the etresoft picture is as of now and the last TM backup before going to 10.9.4). So, if CleanMyMac is suddenly an issue on 10.9.4 then more likely some new conflict than a general disk corruption issue would be my initial reaction. But CleanMyMac folks seems to have taken a beating in some of the forums with scant information as to what they are doing that is so problematic? Usually software companies that stay in business fix their issues?

TimeMachineEditor is a a simple scheduling application that makes TimeMachine work when you want it to - so you can schedule how often, when, etc. This I found a great help previously as TimeMachine's continuous backing up can really impact performance when you least want it to. Not sure why Apple hasn't provided some flexibility in their own app. as a simple scheduler would make it much friendlier especially on less powerful or memory limited computers.

iAntivirus was always highly rated as a good piece of useful free ativirus software. I have been running it for more than ten years. Is there information that it now has issues?

I will take your advice and go after some of those plugins but will take a deep breath before spending more hours erasing and rebuilding the computer. Right now everything is running sweetly as it has for months and I would prefer to enjoy that for a while and catch up on my work. I don't know that 10.9.4 offered something that I can't live without for now. The quickening pace of these updates may be justified on some measures but is getting tedious.

Thanks again for your insights.

Reply

Answer 7

John Galt

Level 10

141,460 points

Aug 15, 2014 5:24 PM in response to BerryFine

CleanMyMac is well known to cause problems. This site is rife with tales of misery following its use. Because it is capable of deleting files and components of files that must not be deleted and cannot be deleted through normal actions, it is my practice to recommend complete erasure and reconfiguration. As I wrote this is most likely to require the least amount of your time.

If you wish I can provide the locations of specific files to delete that CleanMyMac's uninstaller does not delete, but the problem is that if you actually used CleanMyMac to "erase excess binaries" or "clean up junk files" then merely uninstalling those components will be an insufficient remedy. Let me know how you would like to proceed either way.

Usually software companies that stay in business fix their issues?

Companies that stay in business require only that revenue exceeds expenses, by whatever means necessary, legal, illegal, ethical, or not. In the case of Mac "cleaning" utilities a case can be made for the fact they are all frauds perpetrated on unsuspecting consumers, and CleanMyMac is not the only example. It is merely popular, and popularity can be purchased very easily. Another, arguably more popular and similar utility has had two lawsuits filed against its owner for making claims closely resembling those made by CleanMyMac.

In the context of maintaining a Mac, purge the word "clean" from your consciousness. It's misleading in that it implies neglecting a Mac will cause it to somehow become "unclean", and after all who wants a filthy Mac. Its emotional connotation results in many Mac users represented on this site relating tales of misery after using garbage "cleaning" apps. This perceived need for maintenance is one exploited by marketing firms that seek to capitalize on former Windows inured to the need for constant attention just to keep PCs at whatever minimal user-productivity level they are capable of achieving. A Mac needs no such pampering, and not even Apple uses the word "clean" in any context - other than its literal one.

Apple does not ship Macs containing "junk" that needs to be "cleaned" yet that is exactly what CleanMyMac2 proposed to do with a brand new Mac containing nothing but one minimally configured User account - about 1.5 GB of "junk", to be specific. Considering that CleanMyMac will only remove 500 MB before you have to pay for it, and that even a brand new Mac contains five times that amount of "junk", it can be reasonably inferred that CleanMyMac is hardly "free" at all.

That doesn't include the time and / or expense you will need to recover from its use. The following are just a couple of representative samples of problems directly attributable to CleanMyMac:

Re: uninstall locklizard using cleanmymac, delete all my files and personal setting

All Data Lost?

icons are gone..what to do???

There are countless others you can find on this site with a cursory search.

I suggest you do not use it or any number of similarly ill-conceived "cleaning" utilities. They are all scams with one sole purpose: to take your money. They are very successful at that.

As for iAntiVirus, even its developer has admitted its uselessness, declaring AV software "dead". One reason (surprise!) is that there isn't any money in it. The epoch in computer history marked by the prevalence of viruses is nearing its end for a number of reasons. Malware authors and scam artists are now turning their attention to more lucrative means of relieving people of their cash - which is where we began this story, isn't it?

This site is also replete with reports of problems directly attributable to iAntiVirus. Any "highly rated" reviews by publications that accept advertising should be dismissed on that basis alone, and nearly all publications accept advertising.

Don't use such things.

This I found a great help previously as TimeMachine's continuous backing up can really impact performance when you least want it to.

Time Machine Editor may be completely innocuous; I don't know. However, whenever you interfere with Time Machine's normal functions you are risking that it won't work the way it's designed to work. Considering the purpose of a backup strategy, I think that's ill-advised. Using Time Machine will result in a literally negligible effect on performance, and if you're experiencing anything other than that it warrants further investigation. The effect of system-altering components would be my first suspicion.

Reply

Answer 8

etresoft

Level 8

46,768 points

Aug 15, 2014 5:23 PM in response to BerryFine

The biggest issue is that those companies are providing solutions under false pretenses. There is nothing on your Mac that needs "cleaning up". There have only been a handful of Mac malware programs, so why have you spent ten years scanning your system for Windows malware that isn't going to harm you? OS X included antivirus software but it only detects malware that can actually infect a Mac.

You shouldn't notice Time Machine running at all. If you do, that is an indication of a problem.

Reply

Answer 9

John Galt

Level 10

141,460 points

Aug 15, 2014 5:38 PM in response to John Galt

As for iAntiVirus, even its developer has admitted its uselessness, declaring AV software "dead".

That link will time out after a while, so here are a couple more:

Antivirus pioneer Symantec declares AV “dead” and “doomed to failure”

Symantec Declares Antivirus Is No Moneymaker

Reply