Mac Pro 2009 - Challenge of restoring to factory condition and upgrading to OS X Yosemite
Mac Pro, OS X Yosemite (10.10.2)
If you have the original restore discs that came with the computer, you should be able to do an erase/install and have the software as it was shipped. Procedure is outlined here:
Mac OS X v10.6 Snow Leopard: How to Erase and Install - Apple Support
You can, at that point, upgrade to Yosemite if you wish.
I think you are making it harder and more steps than needed.
It sounds like, all you really want is a clean install which you can also do with Yosemite installer package and just install onto a new drive.
No fuss, no muss.
So why do you want to "go back to factory condition" is the real question I see.
Upgrading is not as safe or clean as it use to be what with all the changes along the way, out of date drivers and programs, lack of Rosetta, and maybe you picked up some other junk that really does not belong.
You may have seen people post the results from Etrecheck and it can help ID issues.
Thanks.
I have found that my Mac Pro is getting to be too slow. The whirly gigs take longer and longer. I thought of upgrading the processor, but found it can be very expensive. Thus, I thought maybe if I clean out my computer from all the junk apps I have put in it over the years that it would help with the speed. Many of the apps don't have a removal ability and not sure how to remove them completely from my computer. If I delete them I think they probably will still be there in the background. Thus, in the end I am attempting to make my computer more efficient.
PS. My system crashed last March and I took it to the Apple store for repair. They did repair it and the representative told me he had a 2009 mac pro. He said they are work horses and work well. Sitting here I hear so many clicking sounds and I believe it is because I have so much junk going on inside.
I do appreciate your time for responding.
Clone your system! regularly.
Post output Etrecheck. That will spot and tell us a lot.
Unfortunate there is no uninstaller control panel but there are a couple reliable programs that can help.
Adware and all the so called "clean my mac" etc programs are JUNK and will adversely affect your system.
A clean install is what you want. And use Setup Assistant. When fully updated with Apple updates, CLONE and put that aside so you have a good reliable backup you can also boot from.
Yosemite has been troublesome for some.
Invest in an SSD and a new backup drive, and even one for your primary data too.
You have OEM GT120 graphic card which should be okay -
Then get into what when where how and why - as even Safari can be sluggish, installing plugins and extensions is always of concern.
And there must be 100s of identical threads like yours. They do not require going back to 10.5.x or 10.6.3 or a trip to the store (other than to buy RAM, hard drives of course! )
Once again thanks for your kindness. I do have carbonite and have all my data saved there as well as my own external drive. I was not sure what etrecheck was, but found it and completed the review. I am attaching it here. I saw the adware warning and will remove it after hearing from you and your thoughts. Again, your assistance is greatly appreciated.
Problem description:
Sluggish computer and desire to remove unwanted apps.
EtreCheck version: 2.1.8 (121)
Report generated March 14, 2015 at 3:32:01 PM EDT
Download EtreCheck from http://etresoft.com/etrecheck
Click the [Click for support] links for help with non-Apple products.
Click the [Click for details] links for more information about that line.
Click the [Adware! - Remove] links for help removing adware.
Hardware Information: ℹ️
Mac Pro (Early 2009) (Technical Specifications)
Mac Pro - model: MacPro4,1
2 2.26 GHz Quad-Core Intel Xeon CPU: 8-core
6 GB RAM Upgradeable
DIMM 1
1 GB DDR3 ECC 1066 MHz ok
DIMM 2
1 GB DDR3 ECC 1066 MHz ok
DIMM 3
1 GB DDR3 ECC 1066 MHz ok
DIMM 4
Empty
DIMM 5
1 GB DDR3 ECC 1066 MHz ok
DIMM 6
1 GB DDR3 ECC 1066 MHz ok
DIMM 7
1 GB DDR3 ECC 1066 MHz ok
DIMM 8
Empty
Bluetooth: Old - Handoff/Airdrop2 not supported
Wireless: en2: 802.11 a/b/g/n
Video Information: ℹ️
NVIDIA GeForce GT 120 - VRAM: 512 MB
HSG1131 1600 x 900 @ 60 Hz
System Software: ℹ️
OS X 10.10.2 (14C109) - Time since boot: 2:54:56
Disk Information: ℹ️
HL-DT-ST DVD-RW GH41N
HL-DT-ST DVD-RW GH41N
WDC WD1001FALS-41K1B0 disk1 : (1 TB)
EFI (disk1s1) <not mounted> : 210 MB
Macintosh HD 1 (disk1s2) / [Startup]: 999.35 GB (8.67 GB free) (Low!)
Recovery HD (disk1s3) <not mounted> [Recovery]: 650 MB
WDC WD1001FALS-41K1B0 disk0 : (1 TB)
EFI (disk0s1) <not mounted> : 210 MB
Macintosh HD 2 (disk0s2) /Volumes/Macintosh HD 2 : 999.86 GB (7.96 GB free)
TOSHIBA DT01ACA300 disk3 : (3 TB)
EFI (disk3s1) <not mounted> : 210 MB
Macintosh HD 3 (disk3s2) /Volumes/Macintosh HD 3 : 3.00 TB (217.13 GB free)
TOSHIBA DT01ACA300 disk2 : (3 TB)
EFI (disk2s1) <not mounted> : 210 MB
Macintosh HD 4 (disk2s2) /Volumes/Macintosh HD 4 : 3.00 TB (788.21 GB free)
USB Information: ℹ️
Omnivision Scanner Mouse
USB 2.0 Peripheral Switch USB 2.0 Peripheral Switch
EPSON EPSON WF-3540 Series
Apple Inc. BRCM2046 Hub
Apple Inc. Bluetooth USB Host Controller
Gatekeeper: ℹ️
Mac App Store and identified developers
Adware: ℹ️
Geneio [Adware! - Remove]
Kernel Extensions: ℹ️
/Library/Application Support/Symantec/Protector
[not loaded] com.symantec.kext.protector.panther (1.0f5) [Click for support]
[not loaded] com.symantec.kext.protector.tigerplus (1.0f5) [Click for support]
/Library/StartupItems/SymAutoProtect
[not loaded] com.Symantec.kext.SAVAPComm (11.0.6) [Click for support]
/System/Library/Extensions
[not loaded] com.devguru.driver.SamsungComposite (1.4.28 - SDK 10.6) [Click for support]
[not loaded] com.parallels.kext.prl_tg (7.0 15050.707095 - SDK 10.6) [Click for support]
[not loaded] com.parallels.prl_video (7.0 15050.707095 - SDK 10.6) [Click for support]
[not loaded] com.seagate.driver.PowSecDriverCore (5.2.4 - SDK 10.4) [Click for support]
[not loaded] com.usbtool.driver.USBSwitchShareDriver (1.0.03) [Click for support]
[not loaded] com.usbtool.driver.USBSwitchShareDriver64 (1.0.04) [Click for support]
/System/Library/Extensions/Seagate Storage Driver.kext/Contents/PlugIns
[not loaded] com.seagate.driver.PowSecLeafDriver_10_4 (5.2.4 - SDK 10.4) [Click for support]
[not loaded] com.seagate.driver.PowSecLeafDriver_10_5 (5.2.4 - SDK 10.5) [Click for support]
[not loaded] com.seagate.driver.SeagateDriveIcons (5.2.4 - SDK 10.4) [Click for support]
/System/Library/Extensions/ssuddrv.kext/Contents/PlugIns
[not loaded] com.devguru.driver.SamsungACMControl (1.4.28 - SDK 10.6) [Click for support]
[not loaded] com.devguru.driver.SamsungACMData (1.4.28 - SDK 10.6) [Click for support]
[not loaded] com.devguru.driver.SamsungMTP (1.4.28 - SDK 10.5) [Click for support]
[not loaded] com.devguru.driver.SamsungSerial (1.4.28 - SDK 10.6) [Click for support]
Startup Items: ℹ️
comapcpcpestart: Path: /Library/StartupItems/comapcpcpestart
NortonMissedTasks: Path: /Library/StartupItems/NortonMissedTasks
SMC: Path: /Library/StartupItems/SMC
SymAutoProtect: Path: /Library/StartupItems/SymAutoProtect
SymProtector: Path: /Library/StartupItems/SymProtector
Startup items are obsolete in OS X Yosemite
Launch Agents: ℹ️
[running] com.brother.LOGINserver.plist [Click for support]
[loaded] com.carbonite.launchd.carbonitealerts.plist [Click for support]
[running] com.carbonite.launchd.carbonitestatus.plist [Click for support]
[running] com.epson.Epson_Low_Ink_Reminder.launcher.plist [Click for support]
[running] com.epson.eventmanager.agent.plist [Click for support]
[failed] com.hp.devicemonitor.plist [Click for support] [Click for details]
[loaded] com.hp.messagecenter.launcher.plist [Click for support]
[loaded] com.oracle.java.Java-Updater.plist [Click for support]
[loaded] com.parallels.desktop.launch.plist [Click for support]
[loaded] com.parallels.DesktopControlAgent.plist [Click for support]
[loaded] com.parallels.DynresHelper.plist [Click for support]
[running] com.parallels.vm.prl_pcproxy.plist [Click for support]
[running] com.seagate.SeagateStorageGauge.plist [Click for support]
[running] com.symantec.quickmenu.application.plist [Click for support]
Launch Daemons: ℹ️
[loaded] com.adobe.fpsaud.plist [Click for support]
[running] com.carbonite.launchd.carbonitedaemon.plist [Click for support]
[loaded] com.microsoft.office.licensing.helper.plist [Click for support]
[loaded] com.oracle.java.Helper-Tool.plist [Click for support]
[loaded] com.oracle.java.JavaUpdateHelper.plist [Click for support]
[running] com.parallels.desktop.launchdaemon.plist [Click for support]
[failed] com.parallels.TimeSync.plist [Click for support]
[failed] com.parallels.vm.prl_fsd.plist [Click for support] [Click for details]
[running] com.parallels.vm.prltoolsd.plist [Click for support]
User Launch Agents: ℹ️
[failed] com.adobe.ARM.[...].plist [Click for support] [Click for details]
[failed] com.adobe.ARM.[...].plist [Click for support] [Click for details]
[loaded] com.adobe.ARM.[...].plist [Click for support]
[failed] com.apple.CSConfigDotMacCert-@me.com-SharedServices.Agent.plist [Click for details]
[failed] com.apple.MobileMeSyncClientAgent.plist [Click for details]
[failed] com.citrixonline.GoToMeeting.G2MUpdate.plist [Click for support] [Click for details]
[failed] com.genieo.completer.download.plist [Adware! - Remove]
[loaded] com.genieo.completer.ltvbit.plist [Adware! - Remove]
[loaded] com.genieo.completer.update.plist [Adware! - Remove]
[loaded] com.google.keystone.agent.plist [Click for support]
[failed] com.wondershare.mobilegodaemon.plist [Click for support]
User Login Items: ℹ️
Scanner Mouse Starter Application (/Applications/Scanner Mouse.app/Contents/MacOS/Scanner Mouse Starter.app)
Dropbox Application (/Applications/Dropbox.app)
Microsoft Database Daemon Application (/Applications/Microsoft Office 2011/Office/Microsoft Database Daemon.app)
AdobeResourceSynchronizer Application Hidden (/Applications/01-Application Folders/Apple MacPro Applications/Adobe Reader.app/Contents/Support/AdobeResourceSynchronizer.app)
BitTorrent Sync Application (/Applications/BitTorrent Sync.app)
Google Drive Application (/Applications/Google Drive.app)
Google Chrome Application Hidden (/Applications/Google Chrome.app)
RealPlayer Downloader Agent Application (/Users/[redacted]/Library/Application Support/RealNetworks/RealPlayer Downloader Agent.app)
KiesAgent Application (/Applications/Kies.app/Contents/MacOS/KiesAgent.app)
fuspredownloader Application Hidden (/Users/[redacted]/Library/Application Support/.FUS/fuspredownloader.app)
SAVDiskMountNotify Application (/Library/Application Support/Symantec/AntiVirus/SAVDiskMountNotify.app)
Internet Plug-ins: ℹ️
Unity Web Player: Version: UnityPlayer version 4.3.1f1 - SDK 10.6 [Click for support]
Default Browser: Version: 600 - SDK 10.10
Flip4Mac WMV Plugin: Version: 3.2.0.16 - SDK 10.8 [Click for support]
OfficeLiveBrowserPlugin: Version: 12.2.0 [Click for support]
RealPlayer Plugin: Version: Unknown
Silverlight: Version: 4.0.60531.0 [Click for support]
FlashPlayer-10.6: Version: 16.0.0.305 - SDK 10.6 [Click for support]
Flash Player: Version: 16.0.0.305 - SDK 10.6 Outdated! Update
iPhotoPhotocast: Version: 7.0
QuickTime Plugin: Version: 7.7.3
SharePointBrowserPlugin: Version: 14.4.8 - SDK 10.6 [Click for support]
AdobePDFViewer: Version: 8.1.0 [Click for support]
JavaAppletPlugin: Version: Java 8 Update 31 Check version
User internet Plug-ins: ℹ️
CitrixOnlineWebDeploymentPlugin: Version: 1.0.105 [Click for support]
RealPlayer Plugin: Version: Unknown [Click for support]
WebEx64: Version: Unknown
Safari Extensions: ℹ️
Dictionary
ClickToFlash
iTube Studio
Translate
clea.nr Videos
Awesome Screenshot
DictionarySearch
Evernote Web Clipper
Awesome Screenshot
Franker
Turn Off the Lights
Instant Search
Save to Pocket
WOT
Fixed Search Bar for Google
GMail Counter
PriceExpert
SafariRestore
ResizeMe
Cleaner Google
3rd Party Preference Panes: ℹ️
APC PowerChute Personal Edition [Click for support]
Carbonite [Click for support]
Flash Player [Click for support]
Flip4Mac WMV [Click for support]
Java [Click for support]
Paragon NTFS for Mac ® OS X [Click for support]
Time Machine: ℹ️
Skip System Files: NO
Mobile backups: OFF
Auto backup: NO - Auto backup turned off
Volumes being backed up:
Macintosh HD 1: Disk size: 999.35 GB Disk used: 990.68 GB
Destinations:
2013 Nov 19 - Zitkus Files [Local]
Total size: 0 B
Total number of backups: 0
Oldest backup: -
Last backup: -
Size of backup disk: Too small
Backup size 0 B < (Disk used 990.68 GB X 3)
Top Processes by CPU: ℹ️
6% CarboniteDaemon
4% BitTorrent Sync
4% WindowServer
2% Dropbox
2% iTube Studio
Top Processes by Memory: ℹ️
503 MB BitTorrent Sync
174 MB CarboniteDaemon
142 MB Google Chrome
84 MB mds_stores
84 MB Finder
Virtual Memory Information: ℹ️
49 MB Free RAM
1.55 GB Active RAM
1.52 GB Inactive RAM
887 MB Wired RAM
6.75 GB Page-ins
252 MB Page-outs
Diagnostics Information: ℹ️
Mar 14, 2015, 12:24:03 PM /Library/Logs/DiagnosticReports/CarboniteDaemon_2015-03-14-122403_[redacted].cp u_resource.diag [Click for details]
Mar 14, 2015, 12:20:41 PM Self test - passed
Mar 14, 2015, 10:51:15 AM /Users/[redacted]/Library/Logs/DiagnosticReports/ADManager_2015-03-14-105115_[r edacted].crash
Mar 14, 2015, 10:48:37 AM /Users/[redacted]/Library/Logs/DiagnosticReports/iTube Studio_2015-03-14-104837_[redacted].crash
Mar 14, 2015, 10:22:08 AM /Library/Logs/DiagnosticReports/BitTorrent Sync_2015-03-14-102208_[redacted].cpu_resource.diag [Click for details]
Mar 14, 2015, 12:16:39 AM /Library/Logs/DiagnosticReports/LegacyFileVaultMessageTracer_2015-03-14-001639_ [redacted].crash
Mar 13, 2015, 10:32:57 AM /Users/[redacted]/Library/Logs/DiagnosticReports/iTube Studio_2015-03-13-103257_[redacted].crash
Mar 13, 2015, 10:01:10 AM /Library/Logs/DiagnosticReports/CarboniteDaemon_2015-03-13-100110_[redacted].cp u_resource.diag [Click for details]
Mar 12, 2015, 06:21:06 AM /Library/Logs/DiagnosticReports/CarboniteDaemon_2015-03-12-062106_[redacted].cp u_resource.diag [Click for details]
Mar 11, 2015, 05:11:37 PM /Users/[redacted]/Library/Logs/DiagnosticReports/AgileTransCmd_2015-03-11-17113 7_[redacted].crash
Mar 13, 2015, 09:57:37 AM /Library/Logs/DiagnosticReports/CarboniteDaemon_2015-03-13-095737_[redacted].cr ash
Mar 11, 2015, 04:09:25 PM /Users/[redacted]/Library/Logs/DiagnosticReports/garcon_2015-03-11-160925_[reda cted].crash
Mar 12, 2015, 06:17:06 AM /Library/Logs/DiagnosticReports/CarboniteDaemon_2015-03-12-061706_[redacted].cr ash
Mar 13, 2015, 10:35:51 AM /Users/[redacted]/Library/Logs/DiagnosticReports/ADManager_2015-03-13-103551_[r edacted].crash
Uninstall symantec.
free up space o your startupt disk. It is too fll
Macintosh HD 1 (disk1s2) / [Startup]: 999.35 GB (8.67 GB free) (Low!)
Remove genieo since it is malware
Sitting here I hear so many clicking sounds and I believe it is because I have so much junk going on inside.
I've never seen that re-installing Mac OS X would improve performance unless you have some real bad 3rd party system software installed. Clicking sounds? What clicking sounds? Perhaps your hard-drive is dying and the drive is constantly resetting, which may explain your problems.
I am currently scanning for the adware to remove it. This is the problem in a nutshell. I have not used symantec in a long time and it is not listed under my applications. Thus, I don't know how to remove it. Also, I am not sure how to make more room on my start-up disc. I thought by removing applications it would decrease the size of this disc. Yes, I am a novice at this.
- To remove symantec go to their site. You may have to reinstall it and use their uninstaller. While most apps can be uninstalled by dragging the app to the Trash some require use of their uninstaller
- When you delete things they go to the Trash. Have you emptied the Trash?
To make room see:
how do you free up space on the start up disk?
Most of the drives are over full
CCCloner http://www.bombich.com
Way too much "stuff" in the system
Not really enough memory, ship with minimum which was 6 yrs ago. 6x4GB would probably make sense
A $115 250GB SSD though is all a system generally needs, if even that
Beware of disk drives that are NOT 7200 rpm and are slower rpm and green, can be used but generally as backup devices
The way to. Make room is move data and media files and such off the boot volume onto a proper data drive. Apps don't take up room, they can eat and hog processor cycles though and interfere.
Not enough free space, not enough contiguous space, so ndrive spends its time seeking.
And really reformatting and clean install, as well as cloning, do keep system running better.
The old idea of frowning on clean and always upgrading over an earlier OS is out.
Thanks for your feedback. I removed the adware successfully. Actually, the other drives are there to backup files. I obtained a duplicate file remover a while ago, but didn't have time to use it. I am currently cleaning up lots of duplicates that I made (probably triplicates, etc.) since I had lost things in the past. I believe that I will be able to really decrease my storage through the removal of these. I do have copies of the files on external drives anyway (yes, it may seem paranoid, but I have lost things in the past and I guess I went the opposite direction of saving everything 2-3-4 times!!!). I found out how to remove the apps I don't want and the article stated that if there is any small item left in the system it is usually very, very small and not to worry. I will definitely check out the cloner program you suggested.
Is there a way that I could use my drive 2 for all my data (need to clean this drive out also before I would do this) and have my programs recognize where the documents are when I want to retrieve them OR should I just archive them there when I am finished with them altogether? I think a lot of my space is wasted on photos and videos, which I plan to move. Additionally, I found that I made copies of my "applications" folder that is taking up a lot of space. I am going to clean these out as well. I will keep you informed if you don't mind as your support is giving me the confidence to take on this challenge.
Not completely sure what you are saying here.
One way to save your files without manually making multiple copies of things is to use Time Machine, included with Mac OS X. You give it a drive 3x or more the size of what you want to back up, and it just takes care of it. The first backup can take a few hours, but after that it does incremental Backups, quietly in the background about once an hour. It does not interrupt your work or make your Mac slow.
Time Machine is not the world's best Backup solution for every situation. It is a "pretty good" backup system that is the one that always gets done, because it happens automatically, without your intervention. All you have to do is check it from time-to-time to make sure it did not get "stuck".
The late James Pond wrote an entire web site of accessible, illustrated guides to how Time Machine works, along with other Mac OS X tips. You can access them all from its main page:
Have MacPro early 2009 4.1 using OS X Yosemite. Want to reinstall original software-concerned due to 2009 and now 2015 with updates of software.
