James Glynn
Level 1 (10 points)
Mac OS X

Q: "Happy Cleaning" message on startup

WHen I startup, after entering login, my desktop picture flashes for a moment, then I get black screen with message, "Happy Cleaning! Press Command-Power to get out." But when I press those keys, it flashes and returns to black screen with same message. Shut down and restart same screen. What can I do?

Posted on Aug 18, 2016 8:40 AM

by John Galt,Solvedanswer
John Galt John Galt
Level 8 (48,633 points)
Mac OS X
A:

An "Internet activity monitoring" utility is either installed on that Mac, or it was installed at one time and not completely uninstalled. Were you aware of that?

 

That is in addition to the fact that Mac has been affected by "cleaning" and "anti-virus" garbage. A Mac that has been so affected will no longer run properly.

 

I recommend that you completely erase that Mac and reconfigure it, omitting the junk. How would you like to proceed?

Posted on Aug 31, 2016 7:21 AM

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James Glynn

Q: "Happy Cleaning" message on startup

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  • Helpful answers

  • by macjack,

    macjack macjack Aug 18, 2016 8:49 AM in response to James Glynn
    Level 9 (55,682 points)
    Mac OS X
    Aug 18, 2016 8:49 AM in response to James Glynn

    Hi James, there is no,"Happy Cleaning" message in OS X.

    Start up in Safe Mode.

    Restart holding the "shift" key.

    https://support.apple.com/en-us/HT201262

    (Expect it to take longer to start this way because it runs a directory check first. Also give it a little time after start because it runs some maintenance routines in the beginning.)

    There is no,"Happy Cleaning" message in OS X.

    Run MalwareBytes. while in Safe Mode. Malware Bytes is about the most proven anti-malware software for Mac.

  • by etresoft,

    etresoft etresoft Aug 18, 2016 9:03 AM in response to James Glynn
    Level 7 (29,071 points)
    Aug 18, 2016 9:03 AM in response to James Glynn

    Hello James,

    With all due respect to MalwareBytes, this sounds like one of those "clean up" apps. I don't know if MalwareBytes will detect it since it may not be considered adware, malware, or PUP (potentially unwanted program). I suggest you download EtreCheck from http://www.etrecheck.com, run it, and paste the results here. EtreCheck is perfectly safe to run, does not ask for your password to install, and is signed with my Apple Developer ID.

     

    And just to be forewarned, even once you remove the software, you may still get some pop-ups. They are all over the internet. Plus, some clever "clean up" apps have figured out how to use Apple's built-in notification system to keep displaying ads and pop-ups even after you've completely uninstalled the scam-ware.

     

    Disclaimer: Although EtreCheck is free, there are other links on my site that could give me some form of compensation, financial or otherwise.

  • by James Glynn,

    James Glynn James Glynn Aug 30, 2016 1:22 PM in response to etresoft
    Level 1 (10 points)
    Mac OS X
    Aug 30, 2016 1:22 PM in response to etresoft

    EtreCheck version: 3.0.3 (307)

    Report generated 2016-08-30 14:33:21

    Download EtreCheck from https://etrecheck.com

    Runtime 4:35

    Performance: Good

     

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

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

     

    Problem: Other problem

    Description:

    When I startup, after entering login, my desktop picture flashes for a moment, then goes to black screen with message, “Happy Cleaning! Press Command-Power to get out.” But when I press those keys, it flashes and returns to black screen with same message.

     

    Hardware Information: ⓘ

        MacBook Air (13-inch, Late 2010)

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

        MacBook Air - model: MacBookAir3,2

        1 1.86 GHz Intel Core 2 Duo CPU: 2-core

        4 GB RAM Not upgradeable

            BANK 0/DIMM0

                2 GB DDR3 1067 MHz ok

            BANK 1/DIMM0

                2 GB DDR3 1067 MHz ok

        Bluetooth: Old - Handoff/Airdrop2 not supported

        Wireless:  en0: 802.11 a/b/g/n

        Battery: Health = Normal - Cycle count = 157

     

    Video Information: ⓘ

        NVIDIA GeForce 320M - VRAM: 256 MB

     

    System Software: ⓘ

        OS X El Capitan 10.11.6 (15G31) - Time since boot: less than an hour

     

    Disk Information: ⓘ

        APPLE SSD SM128C disk0 : (121.33 GB) (Solid State - TRIM: Yes)

            EFI (disk0s1) <not mounted> : 210 MB

            Jim's MacBook (disk0s2) / : 120.47 GB (24.45 GB free)

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

     

    USB Information: ⓘ

        Apple Inc. Built-in iSight

        SanDisk Ultra Fit 124.22 GB

            EFI (disk1s1) <not mounted> : 210 MB

            SweetPea (disk1s2) /Volumes/SweetPea : 123.87 GB (62.18 GB free)

        Apple Card Reader

        Apple Inc. BRCM2070 Hub

            Apple Inc. Bluetooth USB Host Controller

        Apple Inc. Apple Internal Keyboard / Trackpad

     

    Gatekeeper: ⓘ

        Mac App Store and identified developers

     

    Unknown Files: ⓘ

        /Library/LaunchDaemons/com.Cvnt.Uninstall.plist

            /Library/PrivilegedHelperTools/com.Cvnt.Uninstall

        One unknown file found. [Check files]

     

    Kernel Extensions: ⓘ

            /Library/Application Support/Symantec/AntiVirus

        [not loaded]    com.symantec.kext.SymAPComm (11.2.2f3 - 2015-02-27) [Support]

     

            /Library/Application Support/Symantec/Daemon/SymDaemon.bundle/Contents/PlugIns/FileSecurity.bundle/C ontents/Resources

        [not loaded]    com.symantec.kext.filesecurity (1.4.3 - 2010-12-26) [Support]

     

            /Library/Application Support/Symantec/Daemon/SymDaemon.bundle/Contents/PlugIns/SymConfidentialData.b undle/Contents/Resources

        [not loaded]    com.symantec.kext.confidentialData (1.4 - 2010-05-10) [Support]

     

            /Library/Application Support/Symantec/Daemon/SymDaemon.bundle/Contents/PlugIns/SymFirewall.bundle/Co ntents/Resources

        [not loaded]    com.symantec.kext.fw (1.0.3 - 2010-12-26) [Support]

     

            /Library/Application Support/Symantec/IntrusionPrevention/SavedEngine

        [not loaded]    com.symantec.kext.ips (3.1 - 2010-12-26) [Support]

     

            /Library/Extensions

        [not loaded]    expressvpn.tap (20150118 - 2016-08-06) [Support]

        [not loaded]    expressvpn.tun (20150118 - 2016-08-06) [Support]

     

            /System/Library/Extensions

        [not loaded]    com.eltima.SyncMate.kext (0.2.5b15 - 2016-08-06) [Support]

        [not loaded]    com.globaldelight.driver.BoomDevice (1.1 - SDK 10.1 - 2016-08-06) [Support]

        [not loaded]    com.symantec.kext.internetSecurity (1.3.2 - 2016-08-06) [Support]

        [not loaded]    com.symantec.kext.pf (4.2.1 - 2016-08-06) [Support]

        [not loaded]    jp.co.zoom.Q2HDWebCamAudio (1.0.0 - SDK 10.6 - 2016-08-06) [Support]

     

    Startup Items: ⓘ

        HP IO: Path: /Library/StartupItems/HP IO

        HP Trap Monitor: Path: /Library/StartupItems/HP Trap Monitor

        Startup items are obsolete in OS X Yosemite

     

    System Launch Agents: ⓘ

        [not loaded]    8 Apple tasks

        [loaded]    160 Apple tasks

        [running]    70 Apple tasks

     

    System Launch Daemons: ⓘ

        [failed]    com.apple.ucupdate.plist (2015-07-31)

        [failed]    com.apple.watchdogd.plist (2015-11-13)

        [not loaded]    44 Apple tasks

        [loaded]    156 Apple tasks

        [running]    89 Apple tasks

     

    Launch Agents: ⓘ

        [not loaded]    com.fujitsu.pfu.ScanSnap.AOUMonitor.plist (2014-06-07) [Support]

        [not loaded]    com.rosettastone.rosettastonedaemon.plist (2011-03-16) [Support]

        [not loaded]    com.symantec.uiagent.application.plist (2010-05-10) [Support]

     

    Launch Daemons: ⓘ

        [not loaded]    com.Cvnt.Uninstall.plist (2013-11-16) [Support]

        [not loaded]    com.adobe.fpsaud.plist (2016-06-13) [Support]

        [not loaded]    com.crashplan.engine.plist (2016-07-14) [Support]

        [not loaded]    com.expressvpn.tap.plist (2016-07-16)

        [not loaded]    com.expressvpn.tun.plist (2016-07-16)

        [not loaded]    com.logmein.logmeinserver.plist (2011-03-03) [Support]

        [not loaded]    com.macpaw.CleanMyMac3.Agent.plist (2016-07-19) [Support]

        [not loaded]    com.microsoft.office.licensing.helper.plist (2010-08-25) [Support]

        [not loaded]    com.microsoft.office.licensingV2.helper.plist (2016-02-12) [Support]

        [not loaded]    com.symantec.avscandaemon.plist (2009-10-10) [Support]

        [not loaded]    com.symantec.deepsight-extractor.plist (2009-11-12) [Support]

        [not loaded]    com.symantec.diskMountNotify.plist (2009-11-14) [Support]

        [not loaded]    com.symantec.navapd.plist (2009-11-14) [Support]

        [not loaded]    com.symantec.navapdaemonsl.plist (2009-11-14) [Support]

        [not loaded]    com.symantec.sharedsettings.plist (2009-07-22) [Support]

        [not loaded]    com.symantec.symdaemon.plist (2009-11-26) [Support]

     

    User Launch Agents: ⓘ

        [not loaded]    com.google.keystone.agent.plist (2016-07-12) [Support]

        [not loaded]    com.macpaw.CleanMyMac3.Scheduler.plist (2016-08-06)

     

    User Login Items: ⓘ

        Flux    Application  (/Applications/Flux.app)

        Caffeine    Application  (/Applications/Caffeine.app)

        Mail    Application  (/Applications/Mail.app)

        BatterySqueezer    Application  (/Applications/BatterySqueezer.app)

        Calendar    Application  (/Applications/Calendar.app)

        Dropbox    Application  (/Applications/Dropbox.app)

        ScanSnap Manager    Application  (/Applications/ScanSnap/ScanSnap Manager.app)

        CrashPlan menu bar    Application  (/Applications/CrashPlan.app/Contents/Helpers/CrashPlan menu bar.app)

        CleanMyMac 3 Menu    Application  (/Applications/CleanMyMac 3.app/Contents/MacOS/CleanMyMac 3 Menu.app)

        NoteBookHelper    Application  (~/Library/Services/NoteBookHelper.service)

        MacUpdate Desktop    Application Hidden (/Applications/MacUpdate Desktop.app)

     

    Internet Plug-ins: ⓘ

        FlashPlayer-10.6: 22.0.0.192 - SDK 10.9 (2016-07-19) [Support]

        QuickTime Plugin: 7.7.3 (2016-08-06)

        Flash Player: 22.0.0.192 - SDK 10.9 (2016-07-19) Outdated! Update

        Default Browser: 601 - SDK 10.11 (2016-08-06)

        OfficeLiveBrowserPlugin: 12.3.6 (2013-09-03) [Support]

        SharePointBrowserPlugin: 14.6.0 - SDK 10.6 (2016-01-18) [Support]

        Silverlight: 5.1.41212.0 - SDK 10.6 (2016-04-10) [Support]

     

    Safari Extensions: ⓘ

        1Password - AgileBits - https://agilebits.com/onepassword (2012-05-16)

     

    3rd Party Preference Panes: ⓘ

        Flash Player (2016-06-13) [Support]

        Norton\nQuickMenu (2010-05-10) [Support]

     

    Time Machine: ⓘ

        Skip System Files: NO

        Mobile backups: ON

        Auto backup: YES

        Volumes being backed up:

            Jim's MacBook: Disk size: 120.47 GB Disk used: 96.02 GB

        Destinations:

            TimeMachine [Local]

            Total size: 655.32 GB

            Total number of backups: 14

            Oldest backup: 11/15/15, 9:10 PM

            Last backup: 8/6/16, 8:48 PM

            Size of backup disk: Excellent

                Backup size 655.32 GB > (Disk size 120.47 GB X 3)

     

    Top Processes by CPU: ⓘ

            76%    softwareupdated

            36%    com.apple.Safari.SafeBrowsing.Service

             9%    AddressBookSourceSync

             7%    kernel_task

             6%    nsurlstoraged(2)

     

    Top Processes by Memory: ⓘ

        372 MB    kernel_task

        344 MB    softwareupdated

        90 MB    photolibraryd

        82 MB    soagent

        74 MB    suggestd

     

    Virtual Memory Information: ⓘ

        99 MB    Free RAM

        4.15 GB    Used RAM (720 MB Cached)

        14 MB    Swap Used

     

    Diagnostics Information: ⓘ

        Aug 30, 2016, 02:19:32 PM    Self test - passed

  • by Allan Eckert,Helpful

    Allan Eckert Allan Eckert Aug 31, 2016 7:21 AM in response to James Glynn
    Level 9 (53,469 points)
    Desktops
    Aug 31, 2016 7:21 AM in response to James Glynn

    My first suggestion would be to uninstall Symantec and CleanMyMac3 for starters. These are both known to be dangerous to install on Mac because of all of the damage they can do to them.

  • by John Galt,Solvedanswer

    John Galt John Galt Aug 31, 2016 7:21 AM in response to James Glynn
    Level 8 (48,633 points)
    Mac OS X
    Aug 31, 2016 7:21 AM in response to James Glynn

    An "Internet activity monitoring" utility is either installed on that Mac, or it was installed at one time and not completely uninstalled. Were you aware of that?

     

    That is in addition to the fact that Mac has been affected by "cleaning" and "anti-virus" garbage. A Mac that has been so affected will no longer run properly.

     

    I recommend that you completely erase that Mac and reconfigure it, omitting the junk. How would you like to proceed?

  • by James Glynn,

    James Glynn James Glynn Aug 31, 2016 7:13 AM in response to Allan Eckert
    Level 1 (10 points)
    Mac OS X
    Aug 31, 2016 7:13 AM in response to Allan Eckert

    I didn't know CleanMyMac is a problem. I have it specifically to uninstall apps I no longer use. I don't know any other way to uninstall an app and be sure I get all the pieces. How else would I uninstall without it?

  • by James Glynn,

    James Glynn James Glynn Aug 31, 2016 7:20 AM in response to John Galt
    Level 1 (10 points)
    Mac OS X
    Aug 31, 2016 7:20 AM in response to John Galt

    I'd be glad, and grateful, to proceed with you if you're willing to help me with this. I'm just a bit confused, because "etresoft" responded and I posted results, but I haven't heard from him since posting. I assume you are responding having seen the etresoft results?

     

    The notebook has a recent Time Machine backup. Also iCloud. My primary computer is this iMac which I'm using now, but the notebook has a very important app called Live Worship which is not installed anywhere else and has its own media library of background jpegs and videoclips for worship projection. Its got a bunch of other stuff I may or may not need. I assume there's a way to get rid of some stuff and keep others in the backup?

  • by John Galt,

    John Galt John Galt Aug 31, 2016 8:29 AM in response to James Glynn
    Level 8 (48,633 points)
    Mac OS X
    Aug 31, 2016 8:29 AM in response to James Glynn

    No one is more qualified than Mr. Etresoft to interpret his program's results, and I'm sure he will reply soon enough. Everyone here is volunteering his or her own free time, and those times are unpredictable.

     

    The most troublesome entries indicate the presence of "cleaning" and "anti-virus" programs notorious for causing system corruption and related improper or unexpected operation. Whenever a user modifies a Mac in that manner, it's incumbent upon that user to familiarize himself with that particular software's operation, including how to maintain it, how to address any problems it might cause, and how to get rid of it when that user wants it gone. Those questions need to be answered before installing third party software, not after. Each particular product will have its own requirements.

     

    If you need software that is not available from the Mac App Store (such as Live Worship), it's often necessary to participate in a user-to-user support site so that you can learn how it works, what to do when encountering unexpected operation, when important updates to it become available, and similar concerns specific to that software.

     

    As a rule, I do not modify OS X with third party software, due to those concerns. I seriously doubt Live Worship is causing the "Happy Cleaning" messages you are encountering, but its user-to-user support site is here: http://www.liveworship.com/community/.

     

    Something else is almost certain to be the cause. I don't know what that is, but it's obvious your Mac has been modified by something you probably don't want. If it were mine, I would erase it completely and reconfigure it by installing only the programs you need, bearing in mind that no one needs third party "anti-virus" or "cleaning" garbage. Reversing the effects of having used ill-conceived "cleaning" junk often cannot be achieved without completely erasing the affected Mac.

  • by John Galt,

    John Galt John Galt Aug 31, 2016 8:38 AM in response to James Glynn
    Level 8 (48,633 points)
    Mac OS X
    Aug 31, 2016 8:38 AM in response to James Glynn

    One more thing...

     

    ... Live Worship which is not installed anywhere else and has its own media library of background jpegs and videoclips for worship projection.

     

    If you were to completely erase that Mac and subsequently reinstall a brand new unaltered copy of Live Worship, you will be able to recover any jpegs and videos you might have added to its media library by restoring them from the Time Machine backup created prior to erasing the Mac.

     

    If that program uses a license key or has some similar registration requirement proving it is legitimately yours, be sure to obtain that information before erasing the Mac or determine some other way of recovering it, because a brand new copy will require that information.

  • by etresoft,

    etresoft etresoft Aug 31, 2016 9:53 AM in response to James Glynn
    Level 7 (29,071 points)
    Aug 31, 2016 9:53 AM in response to James Glynn

    Hello again James,

    EtreCheck is designed to help other people better help you by showing the details of your machine and what is running on it. I try to avoid commenting on EtreCheck results unless I think someone has missed something important. In this case, I didn't see any need to provide any more information.

     

    Allan Eckert suggested removing CleanMyMac and Symantec. John Galt mentioned those too but also noticed the "Covenant Eyes" spyware. Technically, the spyware isn't "unknown" per se since I obviously know about it. This is software that I need to categorize better. It isn't adware and shouldn't be labeled as such, but it should be highlighted due to its nature. If you want to run it, fine. But EtreCheck is designed to inform and uncover things like spyware.

     

    The only time EtreCheck is going to come out and recommend an action is when there is something blatantly obvious, like a failing hard drive, low RAM, or known adware. In other cases, it is a judgement call. If you weren't having problems with CleanMyMac or Symantec, then there would be no need to remove them. But since you do seem to be having problems with them, it is a good idea to uninstall them, even if it is for no other reason than to eliminate them as potential causes.

     

    I don't recommend using CleanMyMac or any other "app zapper" to uninstall software. Only use vendor-provided uninstallers or uninstallation instructions. This is another can-o-worms because the Mac doesn't have a decent installation/uninstallation architecture. I find it quite sad that Mac users have to rely on software like CleanMyMac to remove software. I put the blame squarely on Apple for that. If Microsoft can do it so well, why does Apple fail so badly at it? EtreCheck will function as an "adware zapper" because adware, by its nature, doesn't include uninstallers and actually uses uninstallers and uninstallation instructions to further scam people.

     

    There are no good, pat answers to these difficult questions. Every person's situation is unique. That is why this discussion forum exists. If you follow people's suggestions that are specific to your situation, then you will likely come out better than you started. Even if you don't get an instant solution, you will get closer to it. All you have to do is meet people halfway and try their suggestions. It can be frustrating here in the forums. Many of the problems we encounter stem directly from people putting complete (and I do mean absolute) trust and faith in online scammers and criminals. Yet then they won't trust us to help them fix the problems that inevitably result.

  • by James Glynn,

    James Glynn James Glynn Sep 1, 2016 9:36 AM in response to James Glynn
    Level 1 (10 points)
    Mac OS X
    Sep 1, 2016 9:36 AM in response to James Glynn

    OK, I uninstalled Clean My Mac and Symantech (as best as I was able to find all the pieces), then moved much of the stuff from the etresoft results to the trash, and now it appears my Mac is OK and that pesky Happy Cleaning message is gone. So I think I'll use it as is but be much more careful of installing anything I don't need. In fact, I'm going to uninstall a few apps, although without Clean My Mac I'm not really sure how to do that and get all the "pieces."  ???

     

    Thanks to all of you for your helpful suggestions!