2012 MacBook Air overheats/shuts off when in sleep... only when plugged in

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Level 1

8 points

2012 MacBook Air overheats/shuts off when in sleep... only when plugged in

Twice so far today when I have put my MacBook Air to sleep it has completely shut off. Both times it was plugged in and I noticed it was extremely hot on the bottom. I have put it to sleep other times in between with it not plugged in and everything was fine. Both times I had to hold down the power button a lot longer than normal to force it to boot up, and I had a message asking if I wanted to restore any open programs (Chrome and WhatsApp) because OSX closed due to an error.

My laptop is relatively old at this point (2012 model) so I'm not sure if it's dying from old age, or if there's an issue at hand.

MacBook Air (13-inch Mid 2012), macOS Sierra (10.12)

Posted on Oct 10, 2016 12:26 AM

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Answer 1

Ptaxey

Level 6

8,089 points

Oct 10, 2016 1:27 AM in response to pamela.w

Try to reset SMC, this can help Reset the System Management Controller (SMC) on your Mac - Apple Support

Check also this article about notebooks temperature Mac notebooks: Operating temperature - Apple Support

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Answer 2

OGELTHORPE

Level 9

57,329 points

Oct 10, 2016 11:14 AM in response to pamela.w

You might run an Apple Hardware Test. It may provide a clue:

https://support.apple.com/en-us/HT201257

Note that an error free AHT is not conclusive.

An appointment at an Apple store genius bar for a FREE evaluation would be a good option.

Ciao.

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Answer 3

pamela.w Author

Level 1

8 points

Oct 10, 2016 11:21 AM in response to OGELTHORPE

Thank you! I completely ended up editing this.....

I got an error code: 4HDD/11/40000000:Sata(0,0) which is an HDD code... but the MacBook Air has a SSD no? Either way I think I'm going to get this looked at...

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Answer 4

pamela.w Author

Level 1

8 points

Oct 10, 2016 11:25 AM in response to Ptaxey

I tried this just now. I'll let my laptop sleep while plugged in for a bit and see if I can replicate the issue or if it goes away! Thank you.

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Answer 5

OGELTHORPE

Level 9

57,329 points

Oct 10, 2016 1:00 PM in response to pamela.w

The Apple Hardware Test does not actually test the HDD/SSD but rather the connection to it. It may be a faulty SATA cable, possibly a non functional HDD or something worse. An Apple store genius bar appointment has now become the best option.

Ciao.

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