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15" Mid 2015 MacBook Pro crashing, freezing and restarting whenever I use downloaded software

I just bought a new Macbook Pro a few months ago, and ever since I upgraded to El Capitan, I've been experiencing issues. See, the whole reason I bought it right before El Capitan's release was to make sure I could upgrade my OS, because my last computer was stuck on Snow Leopard since every time I tried to update to Mavericks or Yosemite, it literally destroyed my computer. Apple wouldn't acknowledge the problem since I was out of warranty, so I wanted to make sure I could upgrade this one while still under warranty.

Anyway. So, my latest issue (already had to deal with a constant battery drain in sleep mode but that's mostly fixed now) is that my computer will periodically freeze, crash, or restart itself. It happens a couple times a week, and I've noticed it's usually happening either when I'm using a downloaded software, or I have a downloaded software open. Example being Photoshop. I'd try to update some pdfs, and I couldn't get more than two lines in before my computer would freeze. Literally took me about an hour to sign a document with my tablet. Another example being Minecraft. This one usually lasts a while but it did crash a few times while playing. The problem doesn't happen often enough that I can recreate it on command, so I can almost guarantee the Genius Bar will be as useless as they were with my last laptop and tell me to factory restore it (literally the only advice they ever gave me and I took it in 4-5 times), and I highly doubt that'll fix the issue, but I want to avoid that anyway since I think restoring it so many times just made my computer even worse than it already was.

So my my question is has anyone else had this issue, and do you know any possible solutions if so? And also, do these frequent freezes/crashes and/or factory restores damage my computer in the long run? I'd really be upset if the issue was resolved but in a couple of years my computer shuts down because of the garbage I'm dealing with now. I just downloaded the latest version of El Capitan, so it's possible that patch may have fixed it, and I will update if it's still crashing. But I'm being proactive and asking for help in the community because in my seven years of Apple service, Apple themselves have literally never ever helped me.

TL;DR My computer's about four months old and it freezes and crashes a few times a week, usually when using downloaded software. Is there a solution? And even if this is resolved, will these crashes and potential factory restores damage my computer in the long run?

MacBook Pro with Retina display, OS X El Capitan (10.11.2)

Posted on Dec 18, 2015 7:15 PM

31 replies

Odiekun Author

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Jan 20, 2016 10:45 PM in response to Grant Bennet-Alder

I just tested it in safe mode and it was not doing the same thing. I wasn't able to play my game in safe mode to fully test your theory, but when I signed back in under the normal mode it was already doing the glitchiness again. The only weird thing that happened in safe mode is that the window didn't move smoothly when I moved it on and off screen. But maybe that's normal since I assume it isn't using as much graphical power in safe mode. Here's a video of what it looked like if you can confirm whether or not this is unusual.

https://vid.me/rKBB

So if what you say is true though, is there a way to check and see what I've downloaded that could be causing these issues? Because I don't even know if t's a plugin or a program or where to even start.

Jan 21, 2016 7:34 AM in response to Odiekun

Since the graphics Driver is not loaded in Safe mode, screen refresh is visibly slow, and that is expected behavior.

If you are running a fairly recent clean Install of Mac OS X, this article lists a bunch of places you can look for problem add-ons:

Stop pop-up ads and adware in Safari - Apple Support

Odiekun Author

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Jan 22, 2016 12:03 AM in response to Grant Bennet-Alder

I just went through the whole list and I didn't have a single one of those things installed. 😟

Jan 22, 2016 8:00 AM in response to Odiekun

Excellent.

Because once you eliminate those, the next step is a little more complex.

When you observe the problem, note the exact time, hour minute and second. Open Console.app (in the /Applications/Utilities folder) and move to the the exact time you noted. Look for messages from about that time. If any look suspicious, copy and paste a screenful (not more) in a reply on the forum.

Odiekun Author

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Jan 23, 2016 3:18 AM in response to Grant Bennet-Alder

It's kind of hard to discern when to look at the record cuz it doesn't 'just happen' anymore. From the moment I open up my computer it starts glitching out several times per second. I took a screen of the most recent log; it looked like there were a few different errors in it so maybe you can figure something out from this.

Jan 23, 2016 8:41 AM in response to Odiekun

Those console messages show that Spotlight is struggling, and its mdworker sub-task (that does the heavy lifting for it) may be damaged.

Have you done a fresh re-Install since your logic board was replaced? Anything installed while the logic board was bad is suspect.

Odiekun Author

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Jan 23, 2016 1:43 PM in response to Grant Bennet-Alder

By fresh install, do you mean a factory restore? No I haven't. I've been avoiding that because when I did that to my last computer it totally destroyed it. But I guess it's still under warranty so it probably wouldn't hurt right?

Jan 23, 2016 2:48 PM in response to Odiekun

By fresh I meant recent. It should not require more than an Install-in-place, which by design does not remove anything except damaged components of Mac OS X.

If you do not have a Trusted Backup, then when your Mac is stable you should certainly create one.

Odiekun Author

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Jan 23, 2016 3:54 PM in response to Grant Bennet-Alder

Okay great, that sounds much more reasonable then. I will try that and let you know how it goes. I have all of my important stuff backed up already but just to confirm, assuming it goes correctly a fresh install should not delete my files and applications from my computer, correct?

Jan 23, 2016 3:57 PM in response to Odiekun

Correct.

But in the unlikely event that something goes terribly wrong, you could lose data.

Odiekun Author

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Jan 23, 2016 4:35 PM in response to Grant Bennet-Alder

Okay thanks, I'll give this a shot then. Do you have a link or anything that explains how to do it?

Jan 23, 2016 4:48 PM in response to Odiekun

Insert the USB stick, double-click on the Installer Icon on the USB stick, follow the directions.

It will restart booted from the stripped-down Installer System on the USB stick. Select the drive onto which you wish to Install, and proceed.

Odiekun Author

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Jan 23, 2016 7:21 PM in response to Grant Bennet-Alder

Is a fresh install the same as a clean install? I'm looking at http://osxdaily.com/2015/10/01/clean-install-os-x-el-capitan-mac/ and it says it will delete everything.

Jan 24, 2016 7:38 AM in response to Odiekun

fresh install is not a precise term -- I could as easily said a recent Install or a recent re-Install.

A "clean Install" includes a step where you deliberately ERASE the drive using Disk Utility. I am not suggesting you take that step.

Odiekun Author

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Jan 24, 2016 9:22 PM in response to Grant Bennet-Alder

Okay I just got finished re-installing El Capitan, but unfortunately it didn't do anything at all. It still flickers as bad as before.

One thing that I did notice that I thought was interesting is that it did go through a period last night when it wasn't flickering at all. I first noticed it after I downloaded the El Capitan installer to my Applications folder. I don't remember it flickering at all until I finally went through with the installation and then it started up again.

Also I took it into the Apple store over the weekend to get their opinion on it. They suggested I have yet another faulty logic board and ordered a replacement part. But considering this is the fourth time (over two computers) that they've come to that conclusion, I honestly feel that not only is it not the logic board, but that it may never have been the logic board at all. I mean what are the odds that all four logic boards that I've had in the last four years would ALL be faulty? What is important to note though is that they ran a test to see if the flickering would show up on an external monitor, but after plugging the monitor in, the flickering stopped entirely until they unplugged it again.

So in other words, the flickering is constant when I'm not doing anything. But whenever I'm playing Minecraft, have the El Capitan installer up, or have an external monitor plugged in, the flickering ceases completely. I don't know if any of those things share a common circumstance, but maybe that means something?

15" Mid 2015 MacBook Pro crashing, freezing and restarting whenever I use downloaded software