eskaycee

Q: iMac is crashing AGAIN

I removed all the unnecessary 3rd party apps, it worked well that night (a week ago). Then the next day I turned it on to sign in, it repeatedly crashed and restarted as soon as I put in my password.

 

Every time it crashes, I had to do a safe mode in order to be able to sign in. A number of nights when I remembered to clear caches before signing off, signing in on the following day was fine. What does this mean? Do I have to clear caches everyday?

 

I just ran another EtreCheck, only one item is in red, as follows:

"Time Machine ... Size of backup disk: Too small ..."

 

Does it mean that I have to replace my Time Machine everytime it's full? Doesn't it erase the oldest files to make room? Well, with the larger disk size available now, I don't think I need a new one in the near future. My current disk size is 500.

 

Your help is appreciated. Thanks. Happy Thanksgiving

 

Suzanna

iMac, OS X El Capitan (10.11.1)

Posted on Oct 8, 2016 9:59 AM

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Q: iMac is crashing AGAIN

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  • by Kappy,

    Kappy Kappy Oct 8, 2016 10:04 AM in response to eskaycee
    Level 10 (271,743 points)
    Desktops
    Oct 8, 2016 10:04 AM in response to eskaycee

    Time Machine deletes older files if they have been deleted from the source when it needs space on the backup drive for a new incremental backup. Time Machine "thins" it's backups; hourly backups over 24 hours old, except the first of the day; those "daily" backups over 30 days old, except the first of the week. The weeklies are kept as long as there's room.

     

    How long a backup file remains depends on how long it was on your Mac before you deleted it, assuming you do at least one backup per day. If it was there for at least 24 hours, it will be kept for at least a month. If it was there for at least a week, it will be kept as long as there's room. By default, Time Machine backs up hourly. That cannot be changed in Time Machine. There are third-party utilities that will modify the backup interval such as Time Machine Editor.

     

    The Time Capsule sparse bundle grows in size as needed, but doesn't shrink. Thus, from the user's viewpoint of the Time Capsule. it appears that no space has been freed, although there may be space in the sparse bundle.

     

    Once Time Machine finds it cannot free up enough space for a new backup it reports the disk is full. You can either erase the backup drive and start over or get a larger drive.

     

    Fix Non-Working El Capitan Installation

     

    Try each of these in order. Test to see if the computer is working properly:

     

    1. Reset the PRAM
    2. Reset the System Management Controller (SMC)
    3. Start the computer in Safe Mode, then restart normally. This is slower than a standard startup.
    4. Repair the disk by booting the from the Recovery HD. Immediately after the chime hold down the Command and R keys until the Utility Menu appears. Choose Disk Utility and click on the Continue button. Select the indented (usually, Macintosh HD) volume entry from the side list.  Click on the First Aid button in the toolbar. Wait for the Done button to appear. Quit Disk Utility and return to the Utility Menu. Restart the computer from the Apple Menu.
    5. Download and Install OS X El Capitan 10.11.6 Combo Update.
    6. Reinstall OS X by booting from the Recovery HD using the Command and R keys. When the Utility Menu appears select Reinstall OS X then click on the Continue button.
  • by eskaycee,

    eskaycee eskaycee Oct 8, 2016 10:26 AM in response to Kappy
    Level 1 (9 points)
    Desktops
    Oct 8, 2016 10:26 AM in response to Kappy

    I have updated to macOS Sierra. Would the steps that you recommended still apply?

     

    Would it be easier if I just get a new external hard drive?

  • by Kappy,

    Kappy Kappy Oct 8, 2016 10:57 AM in response to eskaycee
    Level 10 (271,743 points)
    Desktops
    Oct 8, 2016 10:57 AM in response to eskaycee

    The procedure is much the same except for Step 5 that should be omitted. As for a new external disk, you could do that or you can just erase the Time Machine backup drive and start over. Depends on whether you want to save the old backups or not and how the backup drive is connected to the computer. If you are actually using a Time Capsule, then you can only use an external drive connected to the Time Capsule if it is one of the new tower models. Please visit Pondini's Time Machine FAQ for help with Time Machine. This is an extensive site with most everything you may need for using Time Machine. You will not find a better resource for Time Machine in one location. Due to the passing of James Pondini, the site is no longer being updated. Therefore, some of the information may be a little outdated.

  • by eskaycee,

    eskaycee eskaycee Oct 8, 2016 11:31 AM in response to Kappy
    Level 1 (9 points)
    Desktops
    Oct 8, 2016 11:31 AM in response to Kappy

    Thank you. I'm just using an external hard drive as my Time Machine. I will look into the steps; may buy a new one specifically for Mac.

     

    In fact, I just took a look at the Time Machine; the latest backup was Sept 15, 2016! It also says "Next backup: When disk is connected". I checked the cable, it's connected. Does it mean it wasn't able to backup all these weeks? Now I am worried.

  • by Kappy,

    Kappy Kappy Oct 8, 2016 1:39 PM in response to eskaycee
    Level 10 (271,743 points)
    Desktops
    Oct 8, 2016 1:39 PM in response to eskaycee

    Not sure. You would need to check Console messages re: Time Machine to find out. You could also get TM_Error_Logger and see what it picks up.

     

    As for the backup drive, you could get a larger drive to use in the enclosure you have or buy a second, larger drive for Time Machine. Rule of thumb is the drive needs to be at least 2-3 times the capacity of the disk you backup.