Open/Save Dialog, 9 min. Beachball Freeze

Question

Open/Save Dialog, 9 min. Beachball Freeze

I am running OS 10.10.2 on a March 2009 iMac with 8GB RAM and 1TB HD.

PROBLEM: While working in Illustrator 18 (CC 2014), if I choose File > Open, the Open dialog appears but I get the spinning beachball for 9 minutes before file contents appear. I don't have the same problem in Photoshop or any other app. But after Googling, I see that a number of people have posted similar Console Log messages (see below) when using in a variety of apps in Yosemite, even in Apple's own Mail app. This tells me the root problem may not be specific to Illustrator, even though it only affects Illustrator in my case currently.

WHAT I TRIED:

1) Moved all Adobe Illustrator related PLISTS and preference files and folders to the Desktop and then launched Illustrator. I saw Illustrator rebuild new prefs files and all settings reverted back to stock. This proves my moving of the prefs to the Desktop was successful to cause a rebuild of new prefs and PLISTS. Even so, the BeachBall freeze appeared when I did a File > Open.

2) Rebooted with SHIFT held down (Safe Mode). But the beachball problem remains.

3) Disconnected all USB devices except keyboard/mouse, and turned off WiFi and BlueTooth, and even yanked my Ethernet cable. I also turned off Time Machine and Default Folder. But the problem remains, even through a reboot.

4) I removed DropBox and GoogleDrive and I closed all apps other than Illustrator, but to no avail.

5) Tried a Guest User, but that doesn't work with Adobe Apps. Ditto for a Standard user. You get an error dialog when you try to launch Adobe apps with that kind of user. So I then created an Admin user. Illustrator's Open dialog box displays files perfectly, as normal! A NEW ADMIN USER FIXES THE PROBLEM!

So a new Admin user fixes the beachball problem in the Open dialog, but for my normal Admin user there's the 9 min. beachball problem. And yet, SAFE MODE doesn't fix the problem while in my normal User. And neither does deleting Illustrator prefs. So it's clear there's still something lurking in my primary user account that is absent in the new Admin user account. But what? And how can I find it? (Migrating everything to a new User account is no easy task.)

Pertinent section of CONSOLE system.log:

Mar 6 13:27:03 iMac.local WindowServer[151]: disable_update_likely_unbalanced: UI updates still disabled by application "Adobe Illustrator CC 2014" after 15.00 seconds (server forcibly re-enabled them after 1.00 seconds). Likely an unbalanced disableUpdate call.

Mar 6 13:27:19 iMac.local NetAuthSysAgent[858]: DNSAddressResolver:Resolve CFNetServiceResolveWithTimeout failed

Mar 6 13:27:19 iMac.local NetAuthSysAgent[858]: ERROR: AFP_GetServerInfo - connect failed 64

Mar 6 13:27:49 iMac.local NetAuthSysAgent[858]: DNSAddressResolver:Resolve CFNetServiceResolveWithTimeout failed

Mar 6 13:27:49 iMac.local NetAuthSysAgent[858]: ERROR: AFP_GetServerInfo - connect failed 64

Mar 6 13:28:19 iMac.local NetAuthSysAgent[858]: DNSAddressResolver:Resolve CFNetServiceResolveWithTimeout failed

Mar 6 13:28:19 iMac.local NetAuthSysAgent[858]: ERROR: AFP_GetServerInfo - connect failed 64

Mar 6 13:28:24 iMac.local com.apple.SecurityServer[56]: Session 100025 created

Mar 6 13:28:49 iMac.local NetAuthSysAgent[858]: DNSAddressResolver:Resolve CFNetServiceResolveWithTimeout failed

Mar 6 13:28:49 iMac.local NetAuthSysAgent[858]: ERROR: AFP_GetServerInfo - connect failed 64

Mar 6 13:29:19 iMac.local NetAuthSysAgent[858]: DNSAddressResolver:Resolve CFNetServiceResolveWithTimeout failed

Mar 6 13:29:19 iMac.local NetAuthSysAgent[858]: ERROR: AFP_GetServerInfo - connect failed 64

.

the above repeats while time elapses (I deleted this part for brevity)

.

Mar 6 13:35:40 iMac.local mds[33]: (Volume.Normal:2464) volume:0x7f9823863800 ********** Bootstrapped Creating a default store:1 SpotLoc:(null) SpotVerLoc:(null) occlude:0 /Volumes/WORK_SPACE

Mar 6 13:35:42 iMac com.apple.xpc.launchd[1] (com.apple.TMHelperAgent.SetupOffer): Service only ran for 2 seconds. Pushing respawn out by 8 seconds.

Mar 6 13:35:42 iMac.local mds[33]: (Volume.Normal:2464) volume:0x7f9824087000 ********** Bootstrapped Creating a default store:1 SpotLoc:(null) SpotVerLoc:(null) occlude:0 /Volumes/GLOBAL_SPACE

Mar 6 13:35:43 iMac.local WindowServer[151]: common_reenable_update: UI updates were finally reenabled by application "Adobe Illustrator CC 2014" after 534.23 seconds (server forcibly re-enabled them after 1.00 seconds)

I get the exact same set of messages that you see above every time I try to reproduce the problem, simply by doing a File > Open in Illustrator.

I assume AFP is Apple File Protocol? But what "server" is it trying so desperately in vain to "Get"? And why is a DNS resolver being used?

Anyway, as you can see from the Console log above, the beachball in the Open/Save dialog in Illustrator goes away after 534 seconds (about 9 min.). But it reappears each time I try to go to a new folder on my HD within that Open dialog. Each time takes exactly 534 seconds each time for the stupid beachball to go away when changing folders in the Open dialog.

This beachball freeze (for 9 min.) in Illustrator's Open dialog occurred every once and a while over the last several weeks, but now it consistently happens. And no, I've not installed any new software on my iMac other than Yosemite updates.

Once again, I would prefer to fix the root problem in my primary user account rather than migrate to a New User even though I now know a new Admin user account resolves the problem.

Please help.

iMac, OS X Yosemite (10.10.2), March 2009, 8GB RAM, 1TB HD

Posted on Mar 6, 2015 6:16 AM

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Answer 1

Best reply

JohnDavidHolmes Author

Level 1

2 points

Mar 6, 2015 6:41 PM in response to JohnDavidHolmes

With regard to my cry for help...

Pretty please?

Here are links to other apps which show the same Console Log messages that I am seeing, proving this is not an issue exclusive to a single app:

Vmware & OS 10.10.2

Pertaining to networked HD's

Shared Mac on a Network

Prevents Time Capsule access and kills Time Machine too

OS 10.10 & Time Capsule woes

OS 10.9.2 & NAS woes

Yosemite & Time Capsule woes

iPhoto woes after Migration

More Time Capsule woes

Time Machine woes from Germany (translated)

mDNSResponder stuck in restart loop

If you read through all the above like I did, you're probably very tired by now. But if you had the same problem as I do, you would do anything to resolve it, hence my post here. So again, I plead for your kind help and attention to this problem!

The above links do tell me one thing, that a "network error" is at the heart of the Console log messages and my problem. And that remains true even when I've disconnected from the network entirely, leading me to believe that this is some sort of CACHING BUG. For truly, there is a Time Capsule at my office, and I do use Time Machine (although not saving to the TC but instead to an external FW HD). So... It is my guess that Yosemite has cached some network data it doesn't like and tries to access that data from a cache when the Open Dialog appears in Illustrator. But WHY ILLUSTRATOR in my case? It makes no sense to me at all. I would think it should consistently occur in the Open dialogs of all apps, but it's only in Illustrator.

I did have problems with my Time Machine backups after putting Yosemite on my iMac, but those issues were resolved in the 10.10.2 update.

In any case, if indeed it is a CACHING BUG, how then would I clear that stupid, evil cache?

Again, I would appreciate your kind thoughts and advice.

Thank you!

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Answer 2

Eric Root

Level 10

684,045 points

Mar 7, 2015 2:15 PM in response to JohnDavidHolmes

Spinning Beach Ball

Spinning Beach ball (2)

Spinning Beach ball (3)

Spinning Beach ball (4)

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Answer 3

Mar 7, 2015 2:46 PM in response to Eric Root

Thank you for posting the extremely GENERAL info about spinning beachballs, Eric. I reviewed the content of all 4 of your links, but I found none of the information relevant or helpful in my particular case, save perhaps for "Sample Process" within Activity Monitor, as described here:

http://www.thexlab.com/faqs/activitymonitor.html#AM-Sample-Process

Even so, that produces a very large text file of code info that I myself cannot decipher, so I am unsure how useful it is.

If you (or anyone else reading this thread) would please time time to read through my previous 2 posts in GREAT DETAIL, including the links to similar Console Messages which I also posted for you, you will see what I suspect to be the problem and I then ask for SPECIFICS (as opposed to GENERAL INFO) on how one might go about resolving it. (It could be a cached server that I don't know how to uncache.) I know you sought to offer me help, Eric, with your posting of those 4 links. But again, the content of those 4 links offer no SPECIFIC guidance for me on this particular issue, except perhaps for "Sample Process," but how helpful is that large text file it generates?

And so, I continue to seek helpful guidance and specifics on how to resolve this particular (and very unusual) beachball issue.

Thank you.

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Answer 4

Mar 8, 2015 5:21 PM in response to JohnDavidHolmes

Okay, experts, here's a new development...

Suspecting the root problem to be a disconnected / unreachable server that is stuck in a cache somewhere, I decided to mount my Time Capsule. I don't always do that because I've had connectivity issues with it since my Yosemite install. Sure enough, once I mount it and show the file list of the Time Capsule in the Finder, if I then launch Illustrator CC and do a File > Open, the file listing appears immediately!

This is, in my mind anyway, solid PROOF that it is a cached server (specifically, my TC) which, for reasons unknown to me, when Illustrator searches for it in the File / Open dialog and cannot find it, Illustrator foolishly continues searching for it for the next 9 minutes, giving me nothing but a beachball the entire time. And again, if I then try to move to a different directory within that Open dialog, the stupid 9 min. beachball appears again.

So again, as I begged and pleaded in my previous post here, how do I clear out my Time Capsule from whatever is caching it? Again, this only happens in Illustrator for me, but as I've seen in other forums, some people have reported the same Console errors in other apps (also pertaining to unreachable servers, it would seem), so could it be an OS level cache instead of an app specific cache? If so, why then didn't SAFE BOOT clear that OS level cache? I tried Safe Boot but the problem remains UNLESS I mount my Time Capsule.

By the way, if I have my TC mounted and choose File > Open in Illustrator, the file listing appears right away. But if I click on the eject icon within the Open dialog to eject my TC, and if I then close that Open dialog and re-Open it, I get the beachball again. So again, that is proof that this entire 9min. Lockup problem pertains to TC not being mounted, which means that it is cached somewhere and for some reason only Illustrator (on my machine anyway) is trying to find it whenever the Open dialog is accessed.

I look forward to hearing your SPECIFIC advice and helpful guidance on this matter.

Many thanks.

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Answer 5

Mar 19, 2015 1:48 AM in response to JohnDavidHolmes

I'd just like to post an update, for all of you who ultimately Google up this thread.

So long as I keep my Time Capsule MOUNTED, I no longer get the spinning beach ball in Illustrator's Open/Save dialog. But as soon as the Time Capsule goes offline, the problem is back.

Again, I think this server is being cached somewhere, but for the life of me, I cannot figure out where in order to clear that cache and solve the problem once and for all.

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Answer 6

Apr 15, 2015 9:51 AM in response to JohnDavidHolmes

I take it no one has been able to solve this?

I just updated to Yosemite, and immediately ran into this problem. I have a time capsule at home, but since I'm at work, I can't do File -> Open. Can I get around this by disabling the TC somehow, or do I have to just completely get rid of the user account and make a new one? I'd much rather stop using Time Machine/TC than mess around with a new user account.

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Answer 7

Apr 15, 2015 10:32 AM in response to slkjdaflkdjfksljf

Update: I tried getting rid of the Time Capsule drive in my Time Machine settings, and that didn't help. Then I tried running Console, and found that instead of talking about a Time Capsule connection, it was talking about a Dropbox connection.

So I paused Dropbox and quit the menu bar app ... and for the first time, File->Open worked with no problems.

It seems like whatever Yosemite bug is causing this may not be exclusive to Time Capsule, since it can (apparently) exhibit the same problem when trying to talk to Dropbox.

As far as I know, my Dropbox was fully accessible at the time, so I don't know why it would be a problem. But I also don't know why a disconnected Time Capsule would be a problem in the first place. There's an awful lot I don't know. Anyway, thank you @JohnDavidHolmes for doing the detective work. Hopefully this information is helpful to someone.

To summarize, if you've found this page by Googling, and you have this problem:

Yup, this is a bug.
We don't know why it's happening or how to fix it.
It seems to be related to the File->Open dialog triggering a call to an external server, which causes a many-minutes-long spinning beachball.
The external server could be a Time Capsule or a Dropbox. Check your Console to figure out which.
You can fix it by creating a new admin account and migrating over. That's obviously a headache.
You can also possibly fix it by telling your system to stop using the server, if you can figure out what it is.
Sorry 😟

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Answer 8

Jun 3, 2015 11:42 AM in response to slkjdaflkdjfksljf

Ok, If anybody is still having this issue. I have finally found MY save. not sure who else it will work for, but i felt i needed to let the world know because i have honestly been struggling with it since the day Yosemite came out.

"slkjdaflkdjfksljf's(cool username) post above actually helped me figure out what almost a year of googling and asking around couldnt.

I looked in console when trying different open/save/ quit commands and after awhile i noticed a tiny flash of " iCloud Drive is not able to run, please run "Repair Disk Permissions" in "Disk Utility"I thought this is strange, i have repaired my permissions on all my drives, multipple times and its never happened. Then it hit me... Connecting to iCloud is failing meaning a server cannot be found meaning that is the server mount thats missing AAARRRRGGGG FFFFFFFFF!!!!! the second i disconnected my machine from icloud, all dialogue boxes sprang to life like fresh daisies in spring. CANNOT believe such a simple fix took so long to find. Thus i have written this to help any other poor sods like myself out there. dont hesitate to drop any questions. Peace!

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Answer 9

Apr 22, 2016 8:57 AM in response to JohnDavidHolmes

I certainly experienced problems with iCloud related to the beachball.

However, after updating to OSX version 10.11.4, my "Save As" beachball problems went away.

These were all the problems that seemed related, all gone now:

1. Go to System Preferences. Select iCloud. Beachball.

2. Open TextEdit. Save/Save As. Beachball.

3. Open Excel. Save/Save As. Beachball.

4. Open MS Word. Save/Save As. Beachball.

5. Open Mail. Login failed. (Force Quitting and reopening does no good.)

6. Open Atom from task bar. Create new file. Save. Beachball.

Opening atom from the console worked better.

I am relieved that this problem went away. It cost me a half hour of productivity per day for over a month.

Paul

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Answer 10

bezicto

Level 1

4 points

Dec 13, 2016 4:46 AM in response to TaperPost

This worked for me in Sierra. God, thanks man.

I had my 'chance' with spinning beachball condition EVERYTIME on the open/save dialog and DISABLING iCloud Drive saved my day.

I do not use iCloud Drive anyway, so it just fine with me. For all of you that experiencing this issue, maybe you can just disable iCloud Drive for the time being OR wait until iCloud Drive syncing done.

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