iMac keeps freezing

Question

Level 1

0 points

iMac keeps freezing

Okay so here's my problem. My mac just keeps randomly freezing for no reason, you know? Spinning balls all across the board, Chrome refusing any input or giving me a white screen every time I change back to another tab. Random warnings that the shockwave plugin isn't working. More spinning balls while browsing the finder. Menu bar not taking any input either, etc. etc.

I've tried a whole lot of things. I reduced the amount of startup apps. I tried clearing out a whole bunch of different caches. Activity Monitor shows no apps causing any CPU spikes, although a bunch of apps do sometimes all give "Not Responding" messages at the same time.

Tried restarting the computer in Safe Mode, and although I didn't spend a lot of time in that mode, it appears the problem persists there as well. At least I got some slowdowns while browsing the finder.

Using the Disc Utility to Restore Disc several times, but just gives me "no problems found".

I'm at a loss here. What other options are left?

I don't know what sort of info you people need, but if you need to know anything, just ask. These problems have come up incidentally a few times in the past, but today it's been especially bad. I've opened minimal apps at this point in time, using only one tab in Chrome. But still every once in a while I get a complete freeze.

So again, if you need to know anything, just ask. It's becoming very frustrating.

iMac, OS X Yosemite (10.10.2)

Posted on Mar 22, 2015 1:47 PM

Reply

Answer 1

SeaPapp

Level 7

26,492 points

Mar 22, 2015 2:01 PM in response to Dharengo

Post an etreCheck report http://www.etresoft.com/etrecheck

Also in order to repair the start up drive with Disk Utility you must be started from another volume. You should have a recovery partition that you can access by starting while holding Command-R and run Disk Utility from there.

Reply

Answer 2

Dharengo Author

Level 1

0 points

Mar 22, 2015 2:17 PM in response to SeaPapp

Problem description:

My mac keeps freezing up at random times. VERY frequently.

EtreCheck version: 2.1.8 (121)

Report generated 22 maart 2015 22:14:22 CET

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.

Hardware Information: ℹ️

iMac (21.5-inch, Late 2012) (Technical Specifications)

iMac - model: iMac13,1

1 2.7 GHz Intel Core i5 CPU: 4-core

8 GB RAM Upgradeable

BANK 0/DIMM0

4 GB DDR3 1600 MHz ok

BANK 1/DIMM0

4 GB DDR3 1600 MHz ok

Bluetooth: Good - Handoff/Airdrop2 supported

Wireless: en1: 802.11 a/b/g/n

Video Information: ℹ️

NVIDIA GeForce GT 640M - VRAM: 512 MB

iMac 1920 x 1080

System Software: ℹ️

OS X 10.10.2 (14C1514) - Time since boot: 0:11:39

Disk Information: ℹ️

APPLE HDD ST1000LM024 disk0 : (1 TB)

EFI (disk0s1) <not mounted> : 210 MB

Alex (disk0s2) / : 999.35 GB (471.31 GB free) - 9 errors

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

USB Information: ℹ️

Apple Inc. FaceTime HD Camera (Built-in)

Apple Inc. BRCM20702 Hub

Apple Inc. Bluetooth USB Host Controller

Thunderbolt Information: ℹ️

Apple Inc. thunderbolt_bus

Configuration files: ℹ️

/etc/hosts - Count: 80

Gatekeeper: ℹ️

Mac App Store and identified developers

Kernel Extensions: ℹ️

/Applications/Toast 11 Titanium/Spin Doctor.app

[not loaded] com.hzsystems.terminus.driver (4) [Click for support]

/Applications/VMware Fusion.app

[not loaded] com.vmware.kext.vmci (90.6.3) [Click for support]

[not loaded] com.vmware.kext.vmioplug.14.1.3 (14.1.3) [Click for support]

[not loaded] com.vmware.kext.vmnet (0231.47.74) [Click for support]

[not loaded] com.vmware.kext.vmx86 (0231.47.74) [Click for support]

[not loaded] com.vmware.kext.vsockets (90.6.0) [Click for support]

/System/Library/Extensions

[loaded] com.Cycling74.driver.Soundflower (1.6.6 - SDK 10.6) [Click for support]

[not loaded] com.echofx.videoglide.kext (1.0.0) [Click for support]

[not loaded] com.roxio.BluRaySupport (1.1.6) [Click for support]

[not loaded] com.seagate.driver.PowSecDriverCore (5.2.6 - SDK 10.4) [Click for support]

/System/Library/Extensions/Seagate Storage Driver.kext/Contents/PlugIns

[not loaded] com.seagate.driver.PowSecLeafDriver_10_4 (5.2.6 - SDK 10.4) [Click for support]

[not loaded] com.seagate.driver.PowSecLeafDriver_10_5 (5.2.6 - SDK 10.5) [Click for support]

[not loaded] com.seagate.driver.SeagateDriveIcons (5.2.6 - SDK 10.4) [Click for support]

/System/Library/Extensions/VideoGlide.kext/Contents/PlugIns

[not loaded] com.echofx.videoglide.kext.audio (1.0.0) [Click for support]

[not loaded] com.echofx.videoglide.kext.noseize.appleusbaudio (1.0.0) [Click for support]

[not loaded] com.echofx.videoglide.kext.noseize.classic (1.0.0) [Click for support]

/Users/[redacted]/Library/Services/ToastIt.service/Contents/MacOS

[not loaded] com.roxio.TDIXController (2.0) [Click for support]

Startup Items: ℹ️

VideoGlide Startup: Path: /Library/StartupItems/VideoGlide Startup

Startup items are obsolete in OS X Yosemite

Problem System Launch Daemons: ℹ️

[failed] com.apple.systemstatsd.plist

[running] com.seagate.TBDecorator.plist [Click for support]

Launch Agents: ℹ️

[not loaded] com.adobe.AAM.Updater-1.0.plist [Click for support]

[loaded] com.adobe.CS4ServiceManager.plist [Click for support]

[loaded] com.citrix.AuthManager_Mac.plist [Click for support]

[running] com.citrix.ReceiverHelper.plist [Click for support]

[running] com.citrix.ServiceRecords.plist [Click for support]

[loaded] com.oracle.java.Java-Updater.plist [Click for support]

[loaded] org.macosforge.xquartz.startx.plist [Click for support]

Launch Daemons: ℹ️

[loaded] com.adobe.fpsaud.plist [Click for support]

[loaded] com.adobe.SwitchBoard.plist [Click for support]

[running] com.allocinit.camtwistassistant.plist [Click for support]

[loaded] com.github.GitHub.GHInstallCLI.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]

[loaded] org.macosforge.xquartz.privileged_startx.plist [Click for support]

User Launch Agents: ℹ️

[loaded] com.google.keystone.agent.plist [Click for support]

[loaded] com.valvesoftware.steamclean.plist [Click for support]

User Login Items: ℹ️

iTunesHelper Programma (/Applications/iTunes.app/Contents/MacOS/iTunesHelper.app)

Skype Programma Hidden (/Applications/Skype.app)

Mail Programma Hidden (/Applications/Mail.app)

Transmission Programma Hidden (/Applications/Transmission.app)

Soundflowerbed Programma (/Applications/Soundflower/Soundflowerbed.app)

Dropbox Programma (/Applications/Dropbox.app)

Internet Plug-ins: ℹ️

JavaAppletPlugin: Version: Java 7 Update 75 Check version

Unity Web Player: Version: UnityPlayer version 5.0.0f4 - SDK 10.6 [Click for support]

Default Browser: Version: 600 - SDK 10.10

Flip4Mac WMV Plugin: Version: 3.0.0.126 - SDK 10.8 [Click for support]

AdobePDFViewerNPAPI: Version: 11.0.0 - SDK 10.6 [Click for support]

FlashPlayer-10.6: Version: 16.0.0.305 - SDK 10.6 [Click for support]

Silverlight: Version: 5.1.30514.0 - SDK 10.6 [Click for support]

Flash Player: Version: 16.0.0.305 - SDK 10.6 Outdated! Update

QuickTime Plugin: Version: 7.7.3

CitrixICAClientPlugIn: Version: 11.8.2 - SDK 10.7 [Click for support]

SharePointBrowserPlugin: Version: 14.0.0 [Click for support]

AdobePDFViewer: Version: 11.0.0 - SDK 10.6 [Click for support]

DirectorShockwave: Version: 11.6.8r638 [Click for support]

3rd Party Preference Panes: ℹ️

Flash Player [Click for support]

Flip4Mac WMV [Click for support]

Java [Click for support]

Seagate Dashboard for Mac OSX [Click for support]

Time Machine: ℹ️

Time Machine not configured!

Top Processes by CPU: ℹ️

2% WindowServer

2% coreaudiod

1% mds

1% mds_stores

1% launchd

Top Processes by Memory: ℹ️

249 MB Mail

180 MB mds_stores

163 MB Google Chrome

129 MB Finder

112 MB ocspd

Virtual Memory Information: ℹ️

1.47 GB Free RAM

4.19 GB Active RAM

1.99 GB Inactive RAM

938 MB Wired RAM

2.71 GB Page-ins

0 B Page-outs

Diagnostics Information: ℹ️

Mar 22, 2015, 09:57:48 PM Self test - passed

-------------

I hope this helps.

Reply

Answer 3

Dharengo Author

Level 1

0 points

Mar 22, 2015 2:33 PM in response to Dharengo

In addition, I tried the recovery partition. It did take quite a bit longer to run the recovery process but it still did not produce any errors. And the freezing problem is quite persistent. I'm at a loss here. It's never been this bad. D:

Reply

Answer 4

Old Toad

Level 10

216,100 points

Mar 22, 2015 2:51 PM in response to Dharengo

Alex (disk0s2) / : 999.35 GB (471.31 GB free) - 9 errors

First and foremost make a current backup of your hard drive. It may be failing.

Once you've made the backup Boot into the Recovery volume (boot with the Command + R keys held down), select Disk Utility and repair both the disk and disk permissions. Reboot normally and test for the freezing. Also rerun Etrecheck to see if the errors are still noted. It would be wise in any case to make an appointment at the nearest Apple Genius Bar for a free diagnosis.

Also your Hosts file has been modified, i.e 80 entires. That can also contribute to slow performance. See this user tip: Fixing a hacked /etc/hosts file

Reply

Answer 5

SeaPapp

Level 7

26,492 points

Mar 22, 2015 2:54 PM in response to Dharengo

You tried the recovery partition? Does that mean that you ran Disk Utility from recovery? Your hard drive is showing some errors and needs to be repaired. If it continues to produce errors it might be failing. You don't have Time Machine configured so I'd suggest that before you do ANYTHING you make a backup.

Remove all traces of the Seagate software, you don't need it. Make sure your VMWare is up to date. You've got some things I don't recognize but I'm not seeing any of the "usual suspects". Is Transmission a bittorrent client? Torrents are bad news.

Reply

Answer 6

Dharengo Author

Level 1

0 points

Mar 22, 2015 3:04 PM in response to SeaPapp

Do any of you have any tips or links on how to make a backup then?

And explain to me, if my HD may be failing (very scary idea), can I do anything about that? What if it does fail, is it replaceable or do I have to find an entirely new mac? This stuff is scaring me a lot, am I going to be fine? D:

Reply

Answer 7

Dharengo Author

Level 1

0 points

Mar 22, 2015 3:47 PM in response to SeaPapp

Additionally, since I am making a backup now anyway, would you recommend a full reformat? Or should I save that for a last resort?

If a full reformat is in order... how do I do it?

Reply

Answer 8

SeaPapp

Level 7

26,492 points

Mar 22, 2015 3:55 PM in response to Dharengo

Reformatting would be premature at this point. Make the backup, repair the hard drive and check the other things I listed and see if things improve.

Reply

Answer 9

Dharengo Author

Level 1

0 points

Mar 22, 2015 4:01 PM in response to SeaPapp

Well, while I'm making the backup, I hope I can at least get this question answered:

When you say, the hard drive is "failing", is this a physical thing? Can this be fixed by the software? And suppose my hard drive is in need of replacement, is this possible with my iMac? Or do I need to learn how to boot from an external hard drive?

Reply

Answer 10

SeaPapp

Level 7

26,492 points

Mar 22, 2015 5:56 PM in response to Dharengo

Hard drive failing refers to the hardware, software will not fix it if it is indeed failing. You would need to take your iMac to the nearest Apple Store or AASP for service, the hard drive is not user servicable. It's not the end of the world.

Reply

Answer 11

Dharengo Author

Level 1

0 points

Mar 23, 2015 2:05 AM in response to SeaPapp

Ok, so now that I have a backup I ran a check to restore disc permissions and got a ton of errors out. A lot of them were about printers? Something about being "dr-xr-xr-x" instead of "drwxr-r-x". And some values that should be 80 (or some other number, but mostly 80) instead of 0. Although with my limited knowledge I am unsure how this can contribute to slowdowns.

There's also something about "System/Library/CoreServices/RemoteManagement/ARDAgent.app/Contents/MacOS/ARDAg ent" being alterered and not being restored. I have absolutely no idea what that means. Maybe it's something to do with the hosts file?

Regular disc restore still gives no errors.

After reboot, the freezes appear to persist. I will attempt with all my might to do the additional steps. And perhaps take my mac to a specialist.

Reply

Answer 12

Dharengo Author

Level 1

0 points

Mar 23, 2015 2:53 AM in response to SeaPapp

Ok so through great effort wading through the freezes, I removed a bunch of stuff from my computer. And just to be on the safe side, I ran disc utility from recovery again.

It still skipped over that "ARDAgent" thing, and there was something about "displaypolicyd", and once again a bunch of printer related stuff. But I doubt that has much to do with the slowdowns. I am going to run another Etrecheck. I'm writing this from a laptop, so I'll post it in a new post from the mac.

Reply

Answer 13

Dharengo Author

Level 1

0 points

Mar 23, 2015 3:26 AM in response to Dharengo

New Etrecheck

Problem description:

Still getting freezes after some restoration and cleaning attempts.

EtreCheck version: 2.1.8 (121)

Report generated 23 maart 2015 11:05:19 CET

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.

Hardware Information: ℹ️

iMac (21.5-inch, Late 2012) (Technical Specifications)

iMac - model: iMac13,1

1 2.7 GHz Intel Core i5 CPU: 4-core

8 GB RAM Upgradeable

BANK 0/DIMM0

4 GB DDR3 1600 MHz ok

BANK 1/DIMM0

4 GB DDR3 1600 MHz ok

Bluetooth: Good - Handoff/Airdrop2 supported

Wireless: en1: 802.11 a/b/g/n

Video Information: ℹ️

NVIDIA GeForce GT 640M - VRAM: 512 MB

iMac 1920 x 1080

System Software: ℹ️

OS X 10.10.2 (14C1514) - Time since boot: 0:5:51

Disk Information: ℹ️

APPLE HDD ST1000LM024 disk0 : (1 TB)

EFI (disk0s1) <not mounted> : 210 MB

Alex (disk0s2) / : 999.35 GB (476.21 GB free) - 3 errors

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

USB Information: ℹ️

Seagate BUP Slim BK 1 TB

EFI (disk1s1) <not mounted> : 210 MB

Untitled (disk1s2) /Volumes/Untitled : 999.86 GB (477.40 GB free)

Apple Inc. FaceTime HD Camera (Built-in)

Apple Inc. BRCM20702 Hub

Apple Inc. Bluetooth USB Host Controller

Thunderbolt Information: ℹ️

Apple Inc. thunderbolt_bus

Gatekeeper: ℹ️

Mac App Store and identified developers

Kernel Extensions: ℹ️

/Applications/Toast 11 Titanium/Spin Doctor.app

[not loaded] com.hzsystems.terminus.driver (4) [Click for support]

/Applications/VMware Fusion.app

[not loaded] com.vmware.kext.vmci (90.6.3) [Click for support]

[not loaded] com.vmware.kext.vmioplug.14.1.3 (14.1.3) [Click for support]

[not loaded] com.vmware.kext.vmnet (0231.47.74) [Click for support]

[not loaded] com.vmware.kext.vmx86 (0231.47.74) [Click for support]

[not loaded] com.vmware.kext.vsockets (90.6.0) [Click for support]

/System/Library/Extensions

[loaded] com.Cycling74.driver.Soundflower (1.6.6 - SDK 10.6) [Click for support]

[not loaded] com.echofx.videoglide.kext (1.0.0) [Click for support]

[not loaded] com.roxio.BluRaySupport (1.1.6) [Click for support]

/System/Library/Extensions/VideoGlide.kext/Contents/PlugIns

[not loaded] com.echofx.videoglide.kext.audio (1.0.0) [Click for support]

[not loaded] com.echofx.videoglide.kext.noseize.appleusbaudio (1.0.0) [Click for support]

[not loaded] com.echofx.videoglide.kext.noseize.classic (1.0.0) [Click for support]

/Users/[redacted]/Library/Services/ToastIt.service/Contents/MacOS

[not loaded] com.roxio.TDIXController (2.0) [Click for support]

Startup Items: ℹ️

VideoGlide Startup: Path: /Library/StartupItems/VideoGlide Startup

Startup items are obsolete in OS X Yosemite

Problem System Launch Daemons: ℹ️

[failed] com.apple.systemstatsd.plist [Click for details]

[failed] com.seagate.TBDecorator.plist [Click for support] [Click for details]

Launch Agents: ℹ️

[loaded] com.citrix.AuthManager_Mac.plist [Click for support]

[running] com.citrix.ReceiverHelper.plist [Click for support]

[running] com.citrix.ServiceRecords.plist [Click for support]

[loaded] com.oracle.java.Java-Updater.plist [Click for support]

[loaded] org.macosforge.xquartz.startx.plist [Click for support]

Launch Daemons: ℹ️

[loaded] com.adobe.fpsaud.plist [Click for support]

[running] com.allocinit.camtwistassistant.plist [Click for support]

[loaded] com.barebones.authd.plist [Click for support]

[loaded] com.github.GitHub.GHInstallCLI.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]

[loaded] org.macosforge.xquartz.privileged_startx.plist [Click for support]

User Launch Agents: ℹ️

[loaded] com.google.keystone.agent.plist [Click for support]

[loaded] com.valvesoftware.steamclean.plist [Click for support]

User Login Items: ℹ️

iTunesHelper Programma (/Applications/iTunes.app/Contents/MacOS/iTunesHelper.app)

Soundflowerbed Programma (/Applications/Soundflower/Soundflowerbed.app)

Dropbox Programma (/Applications/Dropbox.app)

Internet Plug-ins: ℹ️

JavaAppletPlugin: Version: Java 7 Update 75 Check version

Unity Web Player: Version: UnityPlayer version 5.0.0f4 - SDK 10.6 [Click for support]

Default Browser: Version: 600 - SDK 10.10

Flip4Mac WMV Plugin: Version: 3.0.0.126 - SDK 10.8 [Click for support]

AdobePDFViewerNPAPI: Version: 11.0.0 - SDK 10.6 [Click for support]

FlashPlayer-10.6: Version: 16.0.0.305 - SDK 10.6 [Click for support]

Silverlight: Version: 5.1.30514.0 - SDK 10.6 [Click for support]

Flash Player: Version: 16.0.0.305 - SDK 10.6 Outdated! Update

QuickTime Plugin: Version: 7.7.3

CitrixICAClientPlugIn: Version: 11.8.2 - SDK 10.7 [Click for support]

SharePointBrowserPlugin: Version: 14.0.0 [Click for support]

AdobePDFViewer: Version: 11.0.0 - SDK 10.6 [Click for support]

DirectorShockwave: Version: 11.6.8r638 [Click for support]

3rd Party Preference Panes: ℹ️

Flash Player [Click for support]

Flip4Mac WMV [Click for support]

Java [Click for support]

Seagate Dashboard for Mac OSX [Click for support]

Time Machine: ℹ️

Auto backup: YES

Volumes being backed up:

Alex: Disk size: 999.35 GB Disk used: 523.14 GB

Destinations:

Untitled [Local]

Total size: 999.86 GB

Total number of backups: 8

Oldest backup: 2015-03-23 02:03:32 +0000

Last backup: 2015-03-23 09:30:49 +0000

Size of backup disk: Too small

Backup size 999.86 GB < (Disk used 523.14 GB X 3)

Top Processes by CPU: ℹ️

7% Google Chrome

2% coreaudiod

0% WindowServer

0% Dropbox

0% Soundflowerbed

Top Processes by Memory: ℹ️

137 MB mds_stores

137 MB Google Chrome

137 MB Finder

112 MB bird

103 MB Dock

Virtual Memory Information: ℹ️

1.97 GB Free RAM

3.66 GB Active RAM

1.95 GB Inactive RAM

1.01 GB Wired RAM

2.59 GB Page-ins

0 B Page-outs

Diagnostics Information: ℹ️

Mar 23, 2015, 10:53:02 AM Self test - passed

"Alex (disk0s2) / : 999.35 GB (476.21 GB free) - 3 errors"

That's less than it was before. Do you think my cleaning has done something to improve things? That being said, the freezes still persist.

Reply

Answer 14

SeaPapp

Level 7

26,492 points

Mar 23, 2015 3:32 AM in response to Dharengo

Everytime you repair permissions you're going to get a bunch of messages, most of them mean nothing Mac OS X: Disk Utility's Repair Disk Permissions messages that you can safely ignore - Apple Support

While in Disk Utility did you manage to check the SMART status of the hard drive?

Should have had you do this earlier....reset the SMC Intel-based Macs: Resetting the System Management Controller (SMC) - Apple Support

Did you address the host file issue referenced by Old Toad earlier?

Reply

Answer 15

Dharengo Author

Level 1

0 points

Mar 23, 2015 4:09 AM in response to SeaPapp

SMART status? No, I guess not. I don't know what that is.

I did fix the host file issue.

Resetting the SMC did not appear to do anything. I talked to a helpdesk fellow on the phone and he says I should call one of my local stores and take my iMac there for a checkup, so I'm going to do that. I'll keep you guys posted.

In advance though, I would like to thank you guys for keeping me sane throughout this experience. Nothing good comes from freaking out and I've come close to that several times. 😝

Reply