Andrew F

Q: My iMac keeps freezing since upgrading to El Capitan!

Hi

 

Can anyone help.

 

I upgraded a couple of months ago to El Capitan and since then have occasionally had issues with my desktop freezing, an irritation but not too much hassle.

 

However in the last couple of weeks it's becoming a nightmare!

 

Most of time its occurring when I've put the cpmupter to 'sleep' and then when I try & wake it up, it's just completely frozen & I can't get it to do anything, and end up having to turn it off & on again with the switch at the back of the computer. Sometimes it just freezes in the middle of using and isn't even specific to using any particular programme.

 

Can anyone help or make any suggestions what the issue might be or how I can try & identify the problem. I'm not that technical, so really not sure where to start.

 

Currently operating OS X El Capitan Version 10.11.4

iMac (21.5 inch, late 2009)

Processor 3.06 GHz Intel Core 2 Duo

Memory 4GB 1067 MHz DDR3

Graphics ATI Radeon HD 4670 256MB

 

Many thanks.

G

iMac, OS X El Capitan (10.11.4)

Posted on Apr 6, 2016 7:35 AM

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Q: My iMac keeps freezing since upgrading to El Capitan!

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  • Helpful answers

  • by rkaufmann87,Helpful

    rkaufmann87 rkaufmann87 Apr 6, 2016 8:58 AM in response to Andrew F
    Level 9 (58,073 points)
    Photos for Mac
    Apr 6, 2016 8:58 AM in response to Andrew F

    Andrew F,

     

    Please post an EtreCheck report of your system. We can then look for obvious issues. Please click the link, download the app and run the report. Once you have the report, please copy and paste it to your reply to this post.

     

    If you would like more info on what EtreCheck is, simply click the link and you will find a description of the app.

  • by Andrew F,

    Andrew F Andrew F Apr 6, 2016 8:07 AM in response to rkaufmann87
    Level 1 (5 points)
    Desktops
    Apr 6, 2016 8:07 AM in response to rkaufmann87

    Hi rkaufmann87.

     

    Report info as follows:

     

    EtreCheck version: 2.9.10 (261)

    Report generated 2016-04-06 16:01:50

    Download EtreCheck from https://etrecheck.com

    Runtime 4:33

    Performance: Good

     

    Click the [Support] links for help with non-Apple products.

    Click the [Details] links for more information about that line.

    Click the [Check files] link for help with unknown files.

     

    Problem: Other problem

    Description:

    Computer keeps freezing

     

    Hardware Information:

        iMac (21.5-inch, Late 2009)

        [Technical Specifications] - [User Guide] - [Warranty & Service]

        iMac - model: iMac10,1

        1 3.06 GHz Intel Core 2 Duo CPU: 2-core

        4 GB RAM Upgradeable - [Instructions]

            BANK 0/DIMM0

                Empty  

            BANK 1/DIMM0

                Empty  

            BANK 0/DIMM1

                2 GB DDR3 1067 MHz ok

            BANK 1/DIMM1

                2 GB DDR3 1067 MHz ok

        Bluetooth: Old - Handoff/Airdrop2 not supported

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

     

    Video Information:

        ATI Radeon HD 4670 - VRAM: 256 MB

            iMac 1920 x 1080

     

    System Software:

        OS X El Capitan 10.11.4 (15E65) - Time since boot: less than an hour

     

    Disk Information:

        ST31000528AS disk0 : (1 TB) (Rotational)

            EFI (disk0s1) <not mounted> : 210 MB

            Macintosh New Imac HD (disk0s2) / : 999.21 GB (595.09 GB free)

            Recovery HD (disk0s3) /Volumes/Recovery HD  [Recovery]: 650 MB (128 MB free)

     

        HL-DT-ST DVDRW  GA11N   ()

     

    USB Information:

        Apple Inc. BRCM2046 Hub

            Apple Inc. Bluetooth USB Host Controller

        Apple Computer, Inc. IR Receiver

        Apple Inc. Built-in iSight

        Apple, Inc. Keyboard Hub

            Apple, Inc Apple Keyboard

        Apple Card Reader

        LaCie P'9223 Mobile Drive

        Fitbit Inc. Fitbit Base Station

        Hewlett-Packard HP LaserJet Professional P1102

        Brother MFC-J6510DW

     

    Gatekeeper:

        Mac App Store and identified developers

     

    Unknown Files:

        /Library/LaunchAgents/.SM.gul.com.brother.LOGINserver.plist (hidden)

            /Library/Printers/Brother/Utilities/Server/LOGINserver.app/Contents/MacOS/LOGIN server

        /Library/LaunchAgents/.SM.gul.com.epson.ecrp.launcher.plist (hidden)

            /Applications/Epson Software/Epson Utilities/Epson Customer Research Participation.app/Contents/MacOS/Ecrp Ecrp

        /Library/LaunchAgents/.SM.gul.com.epson.ews.launcher.plist (hidden)

            /Applications/Epson Software/Epson Web Support.app/Contents/MacOS/Epson Web Support -NAV:AGNT

        /Library/LaunchAgents/.SM.gul.com.rim.BBAlbumArtCacher.plist (hidden)

            /Library/Application Support/BlackBerry/RimAlbumArtDaemon

        /Library/LaunchAgents/.SM.gul.com.rim.BBLaunchAgent.plist (hidden)

            /Library/Application Support/BlackBerry/BBLaunchAgent.app BBLaunchAgent

        /Library/LaunchDaemons/.SM.gul.com.adobe.fpsaud.plist (hidden)

            /Library/Application Support/Adobe/Flash Player Install Manager/fpsaud

        /Library/LaunchDaemons/.SM.gul.com.microsoft.office.licensing.helper.plist (hidden)

            /Library/PrivilegedHelperTools/com.microsoft.office.licensing.helper

        /Library/LaunchDaemons/.SM.gul.com.rim.BBDaemon.plist (hidden)

            /Library/Application Support/BlackBerry/BBDaemon

        8 unknown files found. [Check files]

     

    Kernel Extensions:

            /Applications/Parallels Desktop.app

        [loaded]    com.parallels.kext.hypervisor (11.1.3 32521 - SDK 10.9 - 2016-02-26) [Support]

        [loaded]    com.parallels.kext.netbridge (11.1.3 32521 - SDK 10.9 - 2016-02-26) [Support]

        [loaded]    com.parallels.kext.usbconnect (11.1.3 32521 - SDK 10.9 - 2016-02-26) [Support]

        [loaded]    com.parallels.kext.vnic (11.1.3 32521 - SDK 10.9 - 2016-02-26) [Support]

     

            /System/Library/Extensions

        [not loaded]    com.marvell.kext.USBGenericPrinterClass (1.0.0 - 2016-04-06) [Support]

        [loaded]    com.rim.driver.BlackBerryUSBDriverInt (0.0.74 - 2016-04-06) [Support]

        [not loaded]    com.rim.driver.BlackBerryUSBDriverVSP (0.0.74 - 2016-04-06) [Support]

     

    System Launch Agents:

        [not loaded]    7 Apple tasks

        [loaded]    154 Apple tasks

        [running]    65 Apple tasks

        [killed]    12 Apple tasks

        12 processes killed due to insufficient RAM

     

    System Launch Daemons:

        [not loaded]    46 Apple tasks

        [loaded]    149 Apple tasks

        [running]    83 Apple tasks

        [killed]    10 Apple tasks

        10 processes killed due to insufficient RAM

     

    Launch Agents:

        [running]    .SM.gul.com.brother.LOGINserver.plist (hidden) (2011-09-22) [Support]

            /Library/Printers/Brother/Utilities/Server/LOGINserver.app/Contents/MacOS/LOGIN server

        [running]    .SM.gul.com.epson.ecrp.launcher.plist (hidden) (2010-08-10) [Support]

            /Applications/Epson Software/Epson Utilities/Epson Customer Research Participation.app/Contents/MacOS/Ecrp Ecrp

        [loaded]    .SM.gul.com.epson.ews.launcher.plist (hidden) (2010-01-07) [Support]

            /Applications/Epson Software/Epson Web Support.app/Contents/MacOS/Epson Web Support -NAV:AGNT

        [running]    .SM.gul.com.rim.BBAlbumArtCacher.plist (hidden) (2012-02-08) [Support]

            /Library/Application Support/BlackBerry/RimAlbumArtDaemon

        [running]    .SM.gul.com.rim.BBLaunchAgent.plist (hidden) (2012-02-08) [Support]

            /Library/Application Support/BlackBerry/BBLaunchAgent.app BBLaunchAgent

        [not loaded]    com.adobe.AAM.Updater-1.0.plist (2016-01-14) [Support]

        [running]    com.brother.LOGINserver.plist (2011-09-22) [Support]

        [running]    com.epson.ecrp.launcher.plist (2010-08-10) [Support]

        [loaded]    com.epson.ews.launcher.plist (2010-01-07) [Support]

        [loaded]    com.google.keystone.agent.plist (2016-03-06) [Support]

        [running]    com.rim.BBAlbumArtCacher.plist (2012-02-08) [Support]

        [running]    com.rim.BBLaunchAgent.plist (2012-02-08) [Support]

     

    Launch Daemons:

        [loaded]    .SM.gul.com.adobe.fpsaud.plist (hidden) (2012-10-29) [Support]

            /Library/Application Support/Adobe/Flash Player Install Manager/fpsaud

        [loaded]    .SM.gul.com.microsoft.office.licensing.helper.plist (hidden) (2011-03-10) [Support]

            /Library/PrivilegedHelperTools/com.microsoft.office.licensing.helper

        [running]    .SM.gul.com.rim.BBDaemon.plist (hidden) (2012-02-08) [Support]

            /Library/Application Support/BlackBerry/BBDaemon

        [loaded]    com.adobe.fpsaud.plist (2016-03-19) [Support]

        [running]    com.fitbit.galileod.plist (2015-10-30) [Support]

        [loaded]    com.google.keystone.daemon.plist (2016-03-06) [Support]

        [loaded]    com.microsoft.office.licensing.helper.plist (2011-03-10) [Support]

        [running]    com.rim.BBDaemon.plist (2012-02-08) [Support]

     

    User Launch Agents:

        [loaded]    com.adobe.ARM.[...].plist (2009-11-13) [Support]

        [loaded]    com.adobe.ARM.[...].plist (2013-07-04) [Support]

        [running]    com.amazon.music.plist (2015-02-16) [Support]

        [failed]    com.apple.SafariBookmarksSyncer.plist

        [running]    com.hp.printerAgent.plist (2010-04-14) [Support]

     

    User Login Items:

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

        iTunesHelper    UNKNOWN  (missing value)

        AirPort Base Station Agent    Application Hidden (/System/Library/CoreServices/AirPort Base Station Agent.app)

        Mac ScanAndSweep    UNKNOWN  (missing value)

        iAntiVirus    UNKNOWN Hidden (missing value)

        TomTomHOMERunner    Application Hidden (~/Library/Application Support/TomTom HOME/TomTomHOMERunner.app)

        Dropbox    Application  (/Applications/Dropbox.app)

        Brother MFC-J6510DW    Application  (~/Library/Printers/Brother MFC-J6510DW.app)

        Fitbit Connect Menubar Helper    Application  (/Applications/Fitbit Connect.app/Contents/MacOS/Fitbit Connect Menubar Helper.app)

        BlackBerry Device Manager    Application Hidden (/Library/Application Support/BlackBerry/BlackBerry Device Manager.app)

        Director Docker    Application  (/Applications/Hewlett-Packard/HP Photo and Imaging Software/HP Photo and Imaging Director/Director Docker.app)

     

    Other Apps:

        [running]    com.brother.ControlCenter.86432

        [running]    com.brother.scanner.ica.99232.F923B0AD-0AF0-45CC-9884-5B1D4C416612

        [running]    com.brother.utility.NETserver.85792

        [running]    com.brother.utility.USBserver.85152

        [running]    com.fitbit.GalileoMenubar.79392

        [running]    com.getdropbox.dropbox.59872

        [running]    com.parallels.desktop.console.103392

        [running]    com.parallels.winapp.2402073e1dfbdc10fe7341f1865acc1e.8789a586001d4f0d8b091477a3 f3edec.141792

        [running]    com.tomtom.HOMERunnerApp.79072

        [running]    jp.co.canon.cijscannerregister.78432

        [loaded]    392 Apple tasks

        [running]    185 Apple tasks

        [killed]    23 Apple tasks

     

    Internet Plug-ins:

        AdobeAAMDetect: AdobeAAMDetect 1.0.0.0 - SDK 10.6 (2016-01-14) [Support]

        FlashPlayer-10.6: 21.0.0.197 - SDK 10.6 (2016-03-24) [Support]

        QuickTime Plugin: 7.7.3 (2016-03-29)

        AdobePDFViewerNPAPI: 11.0.15 - SDK 10.6 (2016-03-09) [Support]

        Flash Player: 21.0.0.197 - SDK 10.6 (2016-03-24) [Support]

        AdobePDFViewer: 11.0.15 - SDK 10.6 (2016-03-09) [Support]

        Default Browser: 601 - SDK 10.11 (2016-03-29)

        Silverlight: 4.1.10329.0 (2014-02-10) [Support]

        AmazonMP3DownloaderPlugin101749: AmazonMP3DownloaderPlugin 1.0.17 - SDK 10.4 (2013-07-16) [Support]

        JavaAppletPlugin: 15.0.1 - SDK 10.11 (2013-04-22) Check version

     

    Safari Extensions:

        Quidco Cashback Reminder (2014-11-03)

        OpenIE (2012-09-19)

     

    3rd Party Preference Panes:

        Flash Player (2016-03-19) [Support]

     

    Time Machine:

        Skip System Files: NO

        Auto backup: YES

        Volumes being backed up:

            Macintosh New Imac HD: Disk size: 999.21 GB Disk used: 404.13 GB

        Destinations:

            GF LaCie [Local]

            Total size: 999.86 GB

            Total number of backups: 17

            Oldest backup: 23/03/2016, 08:17

            Last backup: 05/04/2016, 17:54

            Size of backup disk: Too small

                Backup size 999.86 GB < (Disk used 404.13 GB X 3)

     

    Top Processes by CPU:

            85%    SafariDAVClient

             5%    WindowServer

             4%    prl_vm_app

             3%    PrinterProxy(2)

             3%    kernel_task

     

    Top Processes by Memory:

        680 MB    prl_vm_app

        565 MB    kernel_task

        356 MB    com.apple.WebKit.WebContent(9)

        188 MB    SafariDAVClient

        164 MB    Safari

     

    Virtual Memory Information:

        28 MB    Free RAM

        3.97 GB    Used RAM (444 MB Cached)

        50 MB    Swap Used

     

    Diagnostics Information:

        Apr 6, 2016, 03:07:34 PM    Self test - passed

        Apr 6, 2016, 09:11:24 AM    /Library/Logs/DiagnosticReports/softwareupdated_2016-04-06-091124_[redacted].cp u_resource.diag [Details]

            /System/Library/CoreServices/Software Update.app/Contents/Resources/softwareupdated

        Apr 5, 2016, 09:24:09 AM    /Library/Logs/DiagnosticReports/SafariDAVClient_2016-04-05-092409_[redacted].cp u_resource.diag [Details]

            /System/Library/PrivateFrameworks/BookmarkDAV.framework/Helpers/SafariDAVClient

        Apr 5, 2016, 09:18:29 AM    /Library/Logs/DiagnosticReports/Microsoft Word_2016-04-05-091829_[redacted].hang

            /Applications/Microsoft Office 2011/Microsoft Word.app/Contents/MacOS/Microsoft Word

        Apr 5, 2016, 09:17:25 AM    /Library/Logs/DiagnosticReports/Microsoft Excel_2016-04-05-091725_[redacted].hang

            /Applications/Microsoft Office 2011/Microsoft Excel.app/Contents/MacOS/Microsoft Excel

        Apr 5, 2016, 09:16:15 AM    /Library/Logs/DiagnosticReports/Mail_2016-04-05-091615_[redacted].hang

            /Applications/Mail.app/Contents/MacOS/Mail

  • by rkaufmann87,Helpful

    rkaufmann87 rkaufmann87 Apr 6, 2016 8:58 AM in response to Andrew F
    Level 9 (58,073 points)
    Photos for Mac
    Apr 6, 2016 8:58 AM in response to Andrew F

    Your report indicates the computer simply does not have enough RAM. When you got it, 4GB was plenty of RAM to run OS X, however now that you are on El Capitan 10.11.4, the absolute bare minimum is 4GB. Your system can be upgraded up to 32GB, however I think if you went to 12 GB that would be fine. If you decide to upgrade the RAM, only use RAM sourced from OWC (www.macsales.com) or Crucial (buy it direct). iMacs are sensitive to RAM and both suppliers provide high quality RAM at reasonable prices and provide excellent support if you need it. Upgrading RAM is extremely simple and is a 5-10 minute process that only requires a screwdriver. If you need it, OWC even has instructional videos.

     

    Good luck.

  • by Andrew F,

    Andrew F Andrew F Apr 6, 2016 8:48 AM in response to rkaufmann87
    Level 1 (5 points)
    Desktops
    Apr 6, 2016 8:48 AM in response to rkaufmann87

    Thank you so much for your advice, really appreciate it.

     

    We are in the UK and look like macsales.com doesn't sell to the UK, but Crucial do have a UK site, so will investigate and hopefully get sorted.

     

    Thanks again.

     

    p.s.      where I have 2 empty slots, and the other 2 slots have 2GB cars, can I just put the extra RAM in the empty slots, or do all the slots have to have the same size RAM cards?

  • by rkaufmann87,

    rkaufmann87 rkaufmann87 Apr 6, 2016 8:59 AM in response to Andrew F
    Level 9 (58,073 points)
    Photos for Mac
    Apr 6, 2016 8:59 AM in response to Andrew F

    You can use the empty slots. Just install matching pairs of RAM in the empty slots.

  • by Andrew F,

    Andrew F Andrew F Apr 6, 2016 9:01 AM in response to rkaufmann87
    Level 1 (5 points)
    Desktops
    Apr 6, 2016 9:01 AM in response to rkaufmann87

    Thank You 

  • by rkaufmann87,

    rkaufmann87 rkaufmann87 Apr 6, 2016 10:22 AM in response to Andrew F
    Level 9 (58,073 points)
    Photos for Mac
    Apr 6, 2016 10:22 AM in response to Andrew F

    Your welcome.

  • by Linc Davis,

    Linc Davis Linc Davis Apr 6, 2016 1:27 PM in response to Andrew F
    Level 10 (207,915 points)
    Applications
    Apr 6, 2016 1:27 PM in response to Andrew F

    First, you haven't provided any information that would make it possible to determine whether you have enough RAM. Second, not having enough RAM would not cause the problem you describe. So you haven't yet made any progress toward solving the problem.

     

    Does the machine reproducibly freeze on waking from sleep? If not, how often does it happen?

  • by andrewfrommilton keynes,

    andrewfrommilton keynes andrewfrommilton keynes Aug 16, 2016 11:15 AM in response to Linc Davis
    Level 1 (12 points)
    Desktops
    Aug 16, 2016 11:15 AM in response to Linc Davis

    I'd just like to chip in.  I have the same problem with my iMac since upgrading to El Capitan and I've narrowed it down to the Distnoted process going crazy fairly regularly ( > 380% cpu.)  Like you, I have a Lacie P9223 external drive - I use it for Time Machine.  Unplugging that has stopped the problem (at least, it hasn't occurred for over a week.)  There seems to be an issue between that drive, distnoted and Time Machine as the latter is usually stuck notifying status: backups work but just no notifications.

     

    So, try unplugging the Lacie drive and see what happens.

  • by dickybran,

    dickybran dickybran Sep 6, 2016 5:44 PM in response to rkaufmann87
    Level 1 (4 points)
    Desktops
    Sep 6, 2016 5:44 PM in response to rkaufmann87

    I'm having a similar problem, but can't seem to do anything about it. I've tried restarting holding command+R, and holding shift, but it keeps crashing. When I got it to open disk utility it crashed while running. When I restarted holding Shift it froze. I finally got it to start in normal boot mode but it wouldn't let me do anything, wheel of death kept appearing and then the desktop crashed.

     

    Any ideas?