help...my macpro 4,1 keeps crashing

Question

help...my macpro 4,1 keeps crashing

Hi...I need some help. An oldtime apple user who for the first time in 30 yrs of apple use am running into a problem I need some help working through

I have a MacPro desktop (MacPro 4,1 early 2009 8 x 2.26ghz Nahelam)

I recently upgraded to El Capitan (10.11.1)and ever since (coincidental maybe?) the computer will quit and crash into a gray screen with a white circle with a slash in the middle of it. When I reboot, everything comes up normally again and I can work for a while, but eventually the computer will crash again.

I am trying to figure out if this is a software issue, hardware issue or what....can someone help or send me a link to where I can start trouble shooting the issue.

Below are the top parts the last couple crash reports as samples:

I have rebooted into SAFE mode and the crash still occurs.

thx in advance for any direction you can give me

==== 1 ====

Process: Spotlight [399]

Path: /System/Library/CoreServices/Spotlight.app/Contents/MacOS/Spotlight

Identifier: Spotlight

Version: 1.0 (972.9)

Code Type: X86-64 (Native)

Parent Process: ??? [1]

Responsible: Spotlight [399]

User ID: 501

Date/Time: 2015-11-20 18:57:50.577 -0500

OS Version: Mac OS X 10.11.1 (15B42)

Report Version: 11

Anonymous UUID: 2EE97F47-2EE6-6253-7AE7-D42ED99777E6

Time Awake Since Boot: 100 seconds

System Integrity Protection: enabled

Crashed Thread: 4 Dispatch queue: com.apple.root.background-qos

Exception Type: EXC_BAD_ACCESS (SIGSEGV)

Exception Codes: KERN_INVALID_ADDRESS at 0x0000000000000018

Exception Note: EXC_CORPSE_NOTIFY

====== 2 =====

Process: sharingd [465]

Path: /usr/libexec/sharingd

Identifier: sharingd

Version: 438.0.1 (438.0.1)

Code Type: X86-64 (Native)

Parent Process: ??? [1]

Responsible: sharingd [465]

User ID: 501

Date/Time: 2015-11-17 07:51:24.359 -0500

OS Version: Mac OS X 10.11.1 (15B42)

Report Version: 11

Anonymous UUID: 2EE97F47-2EE6-6253-7AE7-D42ED99777E6

Time Awake Since Boot: 250 seconds

System Integrity Protection: enabled

Crashed Thread: 0 Dispatch queue: com.apple.main-thread

Exception Type: EXC_CRASH (SIGABRT)

Exception Codes: 0x0000000000000000, 0x0000000000000000

Exception Note: EXC_CORPSE_NOTIFY

Application Specific Information:

*** Terminating app due to uncaught exception 'NSInternalInconsistencyException', reason: 'fcntl F_WRLCK failed: <ABProcessSharedLock: 0x7f8ba230d290: name=(null), lockFilePath=/private/var/folders/5t/ngqcrhq48xjgng001s7gt9980000gn/T/.AddressB ookLocks/database.lock, localLock=<NSRecursiveLock: 0x7f8ba2308c00>{locked = YES, thread = 0x7fff74a8e000, recursion count = 1, name = '/private/var/folders/5t/ngqcrhq48xjgng001s7gt9980000gn/T/.AddressBookLocks/dat abase.lock'}, fileDescriptor=5>'

terminating with uncaught exception of type NSException

abort() called

====== 3 ========

Process: Preview [504]

Path: /Applications/Preview.app/Contents/MacOS/Preview

Identifier: Preview

Version: 8.1 (877)

Code Type: X86-64 (Native)

Parent Process: ??? [1]

Responsible: Preview [504]

User ID: 501

Date/Time: 2015-11-08 12:09:36.457 -0500

OS Version: Mac OS X 10.11.1 (15B42)

Report Version: 11

Anonymous UUID: 2EE97F47-2EE6-6253-7AE7-D42ED99777E6

Time Awake Since Boot: 150 seconds

System Integrity Protection: enabled

Crashed Thread: 13 Dispatch queue: NSOperationQueue 0x7fe2886d9250 :: NSOperation 0x7fe292b22450 (QOS: USER_INTERACTIVE)

Exception Type: EXC_BAD_ACCESS (SIGSEGV)

Exception Codes: KERN_INVALID_ADDRESS at 0x0000000000000010

Exception Note: EXC_CORPSE_NOTIFY

Mac Pro, OS X El Capitan (10.11.1), MacPro 4,1

Posted on Nov 24, 2015 8:07 AM

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Answer 1

Best reply

lllaass

Level 10

210,411 points

Nov 25, 2015 6:07 AM in response to oldasdirt macuser

If you are getting a kernel pan log it and post it here:

Mac OS X: How to log a kernel panic

Is the slash screen this?

Prohibitory symbol

When you see a circle with a slash symbol instead of the Apple logo, it means your Mac couldn't find a valid System Folder to start up from.

That would tend to indicate a disk problem. Boot to Recovery and try repairing the startup disk. Also see if the SMART status is listed as Verified.

Also

Run Apple hardware test. You will need one of the original installation disks

Using Apple Hardware Test - Apple Support

Open the side cover and see if there are any diagnostic lights lit by the memory sticks

Open System Profiler and see if OK is listed by each memory stick. You have to periodically do that since it only checks when your run profiler. That screen doe not update over time.

OS X: About System Information and System Profiler - Apple Support

Also what are the temps? Especially the northbridge temp? Install a tempand fan speed monitoring app. I use Macs Fan Control.

There are problems with the plastic retainers for the northbridge heatsink breaking resulting in the northbridge running too hot and causing problems.

https://discussions.apple.com/thread/4047390

http://forums.macrumors.com/showthread.php?t=1169024

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Answer 2

Nov 24, 2015 8:31 AM in response to lllaass

thanks, will follow those steps! completeness much appreciated!

YES, that is the symbol and that is the screen that the computer ends up with after the crash (except light gray background and white circle- LOL) .

When I then power off the computer and power it back on, it boots up fine. That would seem to me to indicate no problem with start up disk, but I will go thru your suggested steps. Normal disk repair - not in recovery mode - finds no issue with the start up disk.

thx

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Answer 3

lllaass

Level 10

210,411 points

Nov 24, 2015 8:41 AM in response to oldasdirt macuser

You really can't fully test/repair a startup disk except from Recovery or booting from an install DVD since it is in use.

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Answer 4

Nov 24, 2015 6:46 PM in response to lllaass

1. Disks - both boot and backupboot registered as OK in recovery mode

2. RAM in profiler all registers as OK; don't see any lights w cover off.

3. Northbridge temp for core and heatsink are: 69 degrees and 58 degrees respectively

can't seem to find an install disk to run the hardware test....any other options to do this?

thx

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Answer 5

lllaass

Level 10

210,411 points

Nov 25, 2015 1:25 AM in response to oldasdirt macuser

Move the startup drive to another bay

See if you can download Apple Hardware Test for your model Mac

Where can I download Apple Hardware Diagnostics for MacBookPro2,1?

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Answer 6

Nov 25, 2015 6:06 AM in response to lllaass

OK...will move startup disk to a new bay and try to reboot to see what happens

btw, the link to the AHT download in that referenced discussion didn't resolve to anything useful....was re-directed to the generic Apple help support page with endless rabbit holes.

i was able to find an apparent image for AHT applicable to my MacPro 4,1 at:

https://github.com/upekkha/AppleHardwareTest

i downloaded the dmg and will create a dvd and give it a try....hold down the "d"!

thx!

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Answer 7

Nov 26, 2015 3:47 AM in response to oldasdirt macuser

1) what is the make, model and size of your boot drive?

2) hitachi 6tb NAS drives are 'disconnecting' in El Capitan. Check out xlr8yourmac web site for details. Maybe you discovered another.

3) to e the hd as the culprit, reinstall fresh osx on another drive In another slot.

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Answer 8

Nov 26, 2015 3:46 AM in response to Doug Weiner

omg! Lol. That is exactly what the drive is....both my boot drive and my bootbackup cloned drive 6 TB hitachi desk star NAS

i will check out the xlr8yourmac for further info or work arounds and also call OWC....these were bought in October...and see what they know

interestingly, I installed another piece of software or two last night (holiday sales! LOl) to the drive and it seemed to not quit afterwards -- or at least didn't crash while I was using it before I shut the machine down. Maybe a certain offending drive sector was altered or no longer being written to?.....will post follow up or resolution here when found

thx

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Answer 9

Nov 26, 2015 5:05 AM in response to oldasdirt macuser

Here is the link to the thread about the hitachi 6tb NAS issue. It's an Apple support thread.

please note, the issue only effects this one specific model, and appears to be a firmware issue on this one drive with little hope of a fix. The other hitachi 6tb drives don't have this issue.

6TB drives won't mount after restart in Mac Pro 2012

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Answer 10

Nov 27, 2015 1:13 PM in response to oldasdirt macuser

just talked to OWC tech support and despite the OWC mentions in several of the the Hitachi NAS threads, they reported nothing in their database/knowledge base about this....I will be emailing them these threads.

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Answer 11

MacRN

Level 3

640 points

Nov 29, 2015 3:12 PM in response to oldasdirt macuser

I was seeing similar issue, except running Samsung SSD as boot drive on OWC Excelsior PCIe card. It has not occurred since a recent update. Will update if I see anything further.

MacPro 4.1, 16 GB RAM, 3 SSD drives, 2 HDD. Upgraded processor 3.20 gHz.

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Answer 12

Dec 21, 2015 9:38 AM in response to oldasdirt macuser

some followup...after vacation and having to get new compatible 6 hole sled trays from OWC....

I have replaced the two HGST NAS 6TB drives that I had internally mounted and moved them to OWC external enclosures and instead mounted two Toshiba 6TB drives internally.

I have closed everything back up and an reconnected all the raids and other devices and so far no problem. The toshiba 6TB internal drives are working as boot drives and cloned to each other....and the two HGST NAS 6TB drives (now externally firewire 800 connected) mount on boot and one is being used as a time-machine drive.

this is a MacPro 4,1 (2009) running 10.11.2

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