bwdey

Q: How to "clean" my Macbook Pro

Hi,

 

I'm interested in completely cleaning my Macbook Pro. I've no idea where to start so let me begin by detailing what's going on:

 

Some specs on the machine fist:

Processor 2.4GHz Intel Core 2 Duo

Memory 4GB 1067 MHz DDR3

Startup Disk Macintosh HD.

 

1) Im getting pop-ups like crazy. Every time I click a new pop-up annoyingly clutters my screen. I've gone to safari>preferences> extensions and removed all plug-ins, but still they persist. And yes, the "block pop ups" box is checked as well.

 

2) My machine is running slowly. I see the "rainbow wheel of death" much too often. Does this just happen when Macs get old? (Bought in 2010)

 

3) I want to purge my machine of all old junk that may be cloggin' 'er pipes. Basically, I want to get rid of everything I don't need. Old files: gone. Old, unused programs: gone. That thing I don't know the function of, but sits uselessly in the recondite depths of my memory: GONE.

 

4) Is there anyway to get my computer running "optimally". Certainly the current state is not even close to good. It's miserably slow.

 

Can anyone help me out? I imagine there are probably specific fixes for each of these issues, but is there a program out there (or combination of free ones) that will do more than one thing? Would Mac Keeper do these things? What's your advice?

MacBook Pro, OS X Mavericks (10.9.4)

Posted on Sep 22, 2014 9:44 PM

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Q: How to "clean" my Macbook Pro

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  • by Kappy,

    Kappy Kappy Sep 22, 2014 9:50 PM in response to bwdey
    Level 10 (271,684 points)
    Desktops
    Sep 22, 2014 9:50 PM in response to bwdey

    See the following re: pop-ups and such:

     

    Helpful Links Regarding Malware Problems

     

    If you are having an immediate problem with ads popping up see The Safe Mac » Adware Removal Guide and AdwareMedic.

     

    Open Safari, select Preferences from the Safari menu. Click on Extensions icon in the toolbar. Disable all Extensions. If this stops your problem, then re-enable them one by one until the problem returns. Now remove that extension as it is causing the problem.

     

    The following comes from user stevejobsfan0123. I have made minor changes to adapt to this presentation.

     

    Fix Some Browser Pop-ups That Take Over Safari.

     

    Common pop-ups include a message saying the government has seized your computer and you must pay to have it released (often called "Moneypak"), or a phony message saying that your computer has been infected, and you need to call a tech support number (sometimes claiming to be Apple) to get it resolved. First, understand that these pop-ups are not caused by a virus and your computer has not been affected. This "hijack" is limited to your web browser. Also understand that these messages are scams, so do not pay any money, call the listed number, or provide any personal information. This article will outline the solution to dismiss the pop-up.

     

    Quit Safari

     

    Usually, these pop-ups will not go away by either clicking "OK" or "Cancel." Furthermore, several menus in the menu bar may become disabled and show in gray, including the option to quit Safari. You will likely have to force quit Safari. To do this, press Command + option + esc, select Safari, and press Force Quit.

     

    Relaunch Safari

     

    If you relaunch Safari, the page will reopen. To prevent this from happening, hold down the 'Shift' key while opening Safari. This will prevent windows from the last time Safari was running from reopening.

     

    This will not work in all cases. The shift key must be held at the right time, and in some cases, even if done correctly, the window reappears. In these circumstances, after force quitting Safari, turn off Wi-Fi or disconnect Ethernet, depending on how you connect to the Internet. Then relaunch Safari normally. It will try to reload the malicious webpage, but without a connection, it won't be able to. Navigate away from that page by entering a different URL, i.e. www.apple.com, and trying to load it. Now you can reconnect to the Internet, and the page you entered will appear rather than the malicious one.

     

    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

      OS X Mavericks- Protect your Mac from malware

      About file quarantine in OS X

     

    If you require anti-virus protection Thomas Reed recommends using ClamXAV. (Thank you to Thomas Reed for this recommendation.)

     

    From user Joe Bailey comes this equally useful advice:

     

    The facts are:

     

    1. There is no anti-malware software that can detect 100% of the malware out there.

    2. There is no anti-malware that can detect everything targeting the Mac.

    3. The very best way to prevent the most attacks is for you as the user to be aware that

         the most successful malware attacks rely on very sophisticated social engineering

         techniques preying on human avarice, ****, and fear.

    4. Internet popups saying the FBI, NSA, Microsoft, your ISP has detected malware on

        your computer is intended to entice you to install their malware thinking it is a

        protection against malware.

    5. Some of the anti-malware products on the market are worse than the malware

        from which they purport to protect you.

    6. Be cautious where you go on the internet.

    7. Only download anything from sites you know are safe.

    8. Avoid links you receive in email, always be suspicious even if you get something

        you think is from a friend, but you were not expecting.

    9. If there is any question in your mind, then assume it is malware.

     

    When you fix the above problem backup your data, erase your computer, reinstall OS X:

     

    Clone Mavericks, Lion/Mountain Lion using Restore Option of Disk Utility

     

    Boot to the Recovery HD:

     

    Restart the computer and after the chime press and hold down the COMMAND and R keys until the 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 and click on the downward pointing arrow button.

     

         1. Select Disk Utility from the main menu then press the Continue

             button.

         2. Select the destination volume from the left side list.

         3. Click on the Restore tab in the DU main window.

         4. Select the destination volume from the left side list and drag it

             to the Destination entry field.

         5. Select the source volume from the left side list and drag it to

             the Source entry field.

         6. Double-check you got it right, then click on the Restore button.

     

    Destination means the external backup drive. Source means the internal startup drive.


    Install or Reinstall Mavericks, Mountain Lion, or Lion from Scratch

     

    Be sure you backup your files to an external drive or second internal drive because the following procedure will remove everything from the hard drive.

     

    OS X Mavericks- Erase and reinstall OS X

    OS X Mountain Lion- Erase and reinstall OS X

    OS X Lion- Erase and reinstall Mac OS X

     

    Note: You will need an active Internet connection. I suggest using Ethernet if possible

                because it is three times faster than wireless.

  • by Linc Davis,

    Linc Davis Linc Davis Sep 22, 2014 9:54 PM in response to bwdey
    Level 10 (208,017 points)
    Applications
    Sep 22, 2014 9:54 PM in response to bwdey

    You may have installed the "VSearch" trojan, perhaps under a different name. Remove it as follows.

    Malware is constantly changing to get around the defenses against it. The instructions in this comment are valid as of now, as far as I know. They won't necessarily be valid in the future. Anyone finding this comment a few days or more after it was posted should look for more recent discussions or start a new one.

    Back up all data before proceeding.

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

    /Library/LaunchAgents/com.vsearch.agent.plist

    Right-click or control-click the line and select

              Services Reveal in Finder (or just Reveal)

    from the contextual menu.* A folder should open with an item named "com.vsearch.agent.plist" selected. Drag the selected item to the Trash. You may be prompted for your administrator login password.

    Repeat with each of these lines:

    /Library/LaunchDaemons/com.vsearch.daemon.plist
    /Library/LaunchDaemons/com.vsearch.helper.plist
    /Library/LaunchDaemons/Jack.plist

    Restart the computer and empty the Trash. Then delete the following items in the same way:

    /Library/Application Support/VSearch
    /Library/PrivilegedHelperTools/Jack
    /System/Library/Frameworks/VSearch.framework
    ~/Library/Internet Plug-Ins/ConduitNPAPIPlugin.plugin

    Some of these items may be absent, in which case you'll get a message that the file can't be found. Skip that item and go on to the next one.

    This trojan is distributed on illegal websites that traffic in pirated content. If you, or anyone else who uses the computer, visit such sites and follow prompts to install software, you can expect much worse to happen in the future.

    You may be wondering why you didn't get a warning from Gatekeeper about installing software from an unknown developer, as you should have. The reason is that this Internet criminal has a codesigning certificate issued by Apple, which causes Gatekeeper to give the installer a pass. Apple could revoke the certificate, but as of this writing, has not done so, even though it's aware of the problem. This failure of oversight has compromised both Gatekeeper and the Developer ID program. You can't rely on Gatekeeper alone to protect you from harmful software.

    *If you don't see the contextual menu item, copy the selected text to the Clipboard by pressing the key combination  command-C. In the Finder, select

              Go Go to Folder...

    from the menu bar and paste into the box that opens by pressing command-V. You won't see what you pasted because a line break is included. Press return.

  • by betty 258,

    betty 258 betty 258 Dec 16, 2014 7:13 PM in response to bwdey
    Level 1 (0 points)
    Dec 16, 2014 7:13 PM in response to bwdey

    Ihave this question also

  • by CMCSK,

    CMCSK CMCSK Dec 16, 2014 8:27 PM in response to betty 258
    Level 6 (10,860 points)
    Dec 16, 2014 8:27 PM in response to betty 258

    Then scroll up & follow the instructions already provided.

     

     

     

     

     

     

     

     

     

     

     

     

     

     

     

     

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