Looks like no one’s replied in a while. To start the conversation again, simply ask a new question.

My iMac is going slow 'beachballing' and crashing

Hi There,

I'm getting the spinning ball on all apps and lately the iMac has been crashing and rebooting.

Can someone assist?


I have an EtreCheck result to support.

Thanks for your help.

iMac, macOS Sierra (10.12.5)

Posted on Nov 12, 2017 1:52 AM

Reply
Question marked as Best reply

Posted on Nov 12, 2017 2:03 PM

The only huge red flag I see is that the installer log shows MacKeeper, one of the biggest scams ever foist upon the World of Mac. I don't see it in the other areas of the Etrecheck report; however , if it is installed you must get rid of it.


Something else to try: Disconnect all USB devices (except for mouse and keyboard) plus the WD FireWire drive, restart, and see if the computer runs better. I am suspicious that the WD MyBooks (you have several?) are causing issues. I had trouble with them on both the pre-Intel Macs and current Macs. The drives inside the enclosures are good but WD applies an odd formatting scheme that I believe is part of the problem. Also their enclosure electronics are OK but not as good as some. The other part of the problem is that their "SmartWare" is badly misnamed. It is a very poor product. So...


If the computer runs better without the extra USB stuff, reintroduce them on at a time (you have a lot of devices) and test, looking for any degradation in performance. Connect the USB MyBooks next to last and the FireWire MyBook last.


If the drives seem to trigger the problems and you have a way to offload their contents for maintenance, do so and then use Disk Utility to erase and reformat the drives as Macintosh Extended (Journaled), then reload the files from where they was moved during maintenance.


If reformatting does not completely fix the issue then you should consider a better drive enclosure. I've personally had serious issues or have helped others with issues with EVERY "name-brand" external drive that go on sale every weekend. They are low-cost devices to get people in the store and some are also low-quality. After the all my external drive travails I now buy only empty enclosures from Other World Computing into which I install "bare" WD Black premium drives. I no longer have issues with external drives slowing my workflow.


For our desktop Macs I use this model:

OWC Mercury Elite Pro USB 3 With USB+1 HDD... at MacSales.com

and this model for our notebook Macs:

OWC Mercury Elite Pro mini 2.5" Bus-Powered... at MacSales.com


You may find some benefit from not leaving USB flash drives ("thumb" drives) connected all the time. There is some evidence that older flash drives of questionable quality can cause a small reduction in performance.


Disclosure: I have NO relation with OWC other than that of a satisfied customer.

2 replies
Question marked as Best reply

Nov 12, 2017 2:03 PM in response to fishinwater

The only huge red flag I see is that the installer log shows MacKeeper, one of the biggest scams ever foist upon the World of Mac. I don't see it in the other areas of the Etrecheck report; however , if it is installed you must get rid of it.


Something else to try: Disconnect all USB devices (except for mouse and keyboard) plus the WD FireWire drive, restart, and see if the computer runs better. I am suspicious that the WD MyBooks (you have several?) are causing issues. I had trouble with them on both the pre-Intel Macs and current Macs. The drives inside the enclosures are good but WD applies an odd formatting scheme that I believe is part of the problem. Also their enclosure electronics are OK but not as good as some. The other part of the problem is that their "SmartWare" is badly misnamed. It is a very poor product. So...


If the computer runs better without the extra USB stuff, reintroduce them on at a time (you have a lot of devices) and test, looking for any degradation in performance. Connect the USB MyBooks next to last and the FireWire MyBook last.


If the drives seem to trigger the problems and you have a way to offload their contents for maintenance, do so and then use Disk Utility to erase and reformat the drives as Macintosh Extended (Journaled), then reload the files from where they was moved during maintenance.


If reformatting does not completely fix the issue then you should consider a better drive enclosure. I've personally had serious issues or have helped others with issues with EVERY "name-brand" external drive that go on sale every weekend. They are low-cost devices to get people in the store and some are also low-quality. After the all my external drive travails I now buy only empty enclosures from Other World Computing into which I install "bare" WD Black premium drives. I no longer have issues with external drives slowing my workflow.


For our desktop Macs I use this model:

OWC Mercury Elite Pro USB 3 With USB+1 HDD... at MacSales.com

and this model for our notebook Macs:

OWC Mercury Elite Pro mini 2.5" Bus-Powered... at MacSales.com


You may find some benefit from not leaving USB flash drives ("thumb" drives) connected all the time. There is some evidence that older flash drives of questionable quality can cause a small reduction in performance.


Disclosure: I have NO relation with OWC other than that of a satisfied customer.

Nov 12, 2017 1:53 AM in response to fishinwater

Here is the report:


EtreCheck version: 3.4.6 (460)

Report generated 2017-11-12 20:35:55

Download EtreCheck from https://etrecheck.com

Runtime: 2:38

Performance: Excellent


Click the [Lookup] links for more information from Apple Support Communities.

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


Problem: Beachballing


Hardware Information:

iMac (27-inch, Late 2009)

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

iMac - model: iMac11,1

1 2.66 GHz Intel Core i5 (i5) CPU: 4-core

8 GB RAM Upgradeable - [Instructions]

BANK 0/DIMM0

2 GB DDR3 1067 MHz ok

BANK 1/DIMM0

2 GB DDR3 1067 MHz ok

BANK 0/DIMM1

2 GB DDR3 1067 MHz ok

BANK 1/DIMM1

2 GB DDR3 1067 MHz ok

Handoff/Airdrop2: not supported

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

iCloud Quota: 2.11 GB available


Video Information:

ATI Radeon HD 4850 - VRAM: 512 MB

iMac 2560 x 1440


Disk Information:

ST31000528AS disk0: (1 TB) (Rotational)

[Show SMART report]

EFI (disk0s1 - MS-DOS FAT32) <not mounted>
[EFI]: 210 MB

Macintosh HD (disk0s2 - Journaled HFS+) /
[Startup]: 999.35 GB (418.71 GB free)

Recovery HD (disk0s3 - Journaled HFS+) <not mounted>
[Recovery]: 650 MB


OPTIARC DVD RW AD-5680H
()


USB Information:

USB20Bus

hub_device

Western Digital My Book

My Book disk2: (2 TB)

EFI (disk2s1 - MS-DOS FAT32) <not mounted>
[EFI]: 210 MB

iMac off site backup (disk2s2 - Journaled HFS+) /Volumes/iMac off site backup : 2.00 TB (10.09 GB free)

Western Digital My Book 1110

My Book 1110 disk1: (2 TB)

(disk1s1) <not mounted>
[partition_map]: 32 KB

My Book (disk1s3 - Journaled HFS+) /Volumes/My Book : 2.00 TB (13.41 GB free)

Virtual CD 1110 disk3: (804.4 MB)

(disk3s0) <not mounted>
[partition_scheme]: 700 MB

(disk3s0s1) <not mounted>
[partition_map]: 32 KB

WD SmartWare (disk3s0s2 - HFS+) /Volumes/WD SmartWare : 275 MB (0 B free)

Apple Card Reader

Apple Inc. BRCM2046 Hub

Apple Inc. Bluetooth USB Host Controller

USB20Bus

hub_device

USB2.0 Hub

Fitbit Inc. Fitbit Base Station

Dynastream Innovations ANT USB-m Stick

Dynastream Innovations ANT USBStick2

Apple Computer, Inc. IR Receiver

Apple Inc. Built-in iSight


Firewire Information:

WD My Book 800mbit - 800mbit max

EFI (disk4s1 - MS-DOS FAT32) <not mounted>
[EFI]: 210 MB

FireWire Ext HD (disk4s2 - Journaled HFS+) /Volumes/FireWire Ext HD : 2.00 TB (190.12 GB free)


System Software:

macOS Sierra
10.12.6 (16G1036) - Time since boot: about one hour


Gatekeeper:

Mac App Store and identified developers


Kernel Extensions:

/System/Library/Extensions

[not loaded] au.com.maxon.driver.MaxonFamily (1.0) [Lookup]

[not loaded] com.ZTE.driver.ZTEUSBCDCACMControl (ZTEDriver_MacV1.1.2) [Lookup]

[not loaded] com.ZTE.driver.ZTEUSBCDCACMData (ZTEDriver_MacV1.1.2) [Lookup]

[not loaded] com.rim.driver.BlackBerryUSBDriverInt (0.0.52) [Lookup]

[not loaded] com.rim.driver.BlackBerryUSBDriverVSP (0.0.45) [Lookup]

[not loaded] com.sierrawireless.driver.SierraSupport (1.4.5) [Lookup]

[not loaded] com.sierrawireless.driver.SierraSupportKicker (1.4.5) [Lookup]

[not loaded] com.sierrawireless.driver.SierraSwitch (1.2.0) [Lookup]


/System/Library/Extensions/Maxon.kext/Contents/PlugIns

[not loaded] au.com.maxon.driver.MSM6280Panther (1.0.2) [Lookup]

[not loaded] au.com.maxon.driver.MSM6280Universal (1.0.2) [Lookup]


System Launch Agents:

[not loaded] 8 Apple tasks

[loaded] 178 Apple tasks

[running] 99 Apple tasks


System Launch Daemons:

[not loaded] 35 Apple tasks

[loaded] 179 Apple tasks

[running] 104 Apple tasks


Launch Agents:

[failed] com.adobe.ARMDCHelper.cc24aef4a1b90ed56a725c38014c95072f92651fb65e1bf9c8e43c37a2 3d420d.plist (Adobe Systems, Inc. - installed 2017-01-12) [Lookup]

[loaded] com.google.keystone.agent.plist (Google, Inc. - installed 2017-09-28) [Lookup]

[running] com.rim.BBLaunchAgent.plist (? dcf2726d 1ba65d6d - installed 2011-04-11) [Lookup]


Launch Daemons:

[loaded] com.adobe.ARMDC.Communicator.plist (Adobe Systems, Inc. - installed 2017-01-12) [Lookup]

[loaded] com.adobe.ARMDC.SMJobBlessHelper.plist (Adobe Systems, Inc. - installed 2017-01-12) [Lookup]

[loaded] com.adobe.fpsaud.plist (? 2afb3af7 564efddb - installed 2017-10-21) [Lookup]

[loaded] com.apple.aelwriter.plist (Apple, Inc. - installed 2011-01-07)

[loaded] com.ea.origin.ESHelper.plist (EA Swiss Sarl - installed 2017-11-05) [Lookup]

[running] com.fitbit.galileod.plist (Fitbit, Inc. - installed 2017-10-12) [Lookup]

[loaded] com.google.keystone.daemon.plist (Google, Inc. - installed 2017-10-15) [Lookup]

[loaded] com.microsoft.autoupdate.helper.plist (Microsoft Corporation - installed 2017-10-16) [Lookup]

[running] com.rim.BBDaemon.plist (? 9f895e8a 3efb3e78 - installed 2010-12-18) [Lookup]


User Launch Agents:

[loaded] com.dropbox.DropboxMacUpdate.agent.plist (Dropbox, Inc. - installed 2017-08-11) [Lookup]

[loaded] com.ea.origin.WebHelper.plist (EA Swiss Sarl - installed 2017-11-06) [Lookup]

[running] com.hp.devicemonitor.plist (HP Inc. - installed 2017-11-12) [Lookup]

[loaded] com.valvesoftware.steamclean.plist (? 994749b2 cff39367 - installed 2016-08-25) [Lookup]


User Login Items:

Fitbit Connect Menubar Helper Application (Fitbit, Inc. - installed 2017-10-24)

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

Google Chrome Application

(/Applications/Google Chrome.app)

HP Device Monitor SMLoginItem - Hidden (HP Inc. - installed 2017-10-26)

(/Library/Printers/hp/Frameworks/HPDeviceMonitoring.framework/Versions/1.0/Helpe rs/HP Device Monitor Manager.app/Contents/Library/LoginItems/HP Device Monitor.app)


Internet Plug-ins:

FlashPlayer-10.6: 27.0.0.183 (installed 2017-10-26) [Lookup]

QuickTime Plugin: 7.7.3 (installed 2017-11-11)

AdobePDFViewerNPAPI: 17.012.20098 (installed 2017-09-02) [Lookup]

AdobePDFViewer: 17.012.20098 (installed 2017-09-02) [Lookup]

Flash Player: 27.0.0.183 (installed 2017-10-26) [Lookup]

OVSHelper: 1.0 (installed 2010-12-10) [Lookup]

OfficeLiveBrowserPlugin: 12.3.6 (installed 2013-03-15) [Lookup]

Google Earth Web Plug-in: 7.1 (installed 2016-08-20) [Lookup]

GarminGpsControl: 4.2.0.0 (installed 2014-04-01) [Lookup]

Silverlight: 4.0.50524.0 (installed 2010-07-31) [Lookup]

iPhotoPhotocast: 7.0 (installed 2013-04-19)


User internet Plug-ins:

NPRoblox: 1, 2, 8, 25 (installed 2015-04-03) [Lookup]

WebEx64: 1.0 (installed 2015-07-17) [Lookup]

Google Earth Web Plug-in: 7.1 (installed 2013-10-08) [Lookup]


3rd Party Preference Panes:

Flash Player (installed 2017-10-21) [Lookup]

MediaLink (installed 2010-04-08) [Lookup]


Time Machine:

Skip System Files: NO

Mobile backups: OFF

Auto backup: YES

Volumes being backed up:

Macintosh HD: Disk size: 999.35 GB Disk used: 580.64 GB

Destinations:

My Book [Local]

Total size: 2.00 TB

Total number of backups: 88

Oldest backup: 16/7/16, 10:01 pm

Last backup: 12/11/17, 5:36 pm

Size of backup disk: Adequate

Backup size 2.00 TB > (Disk used 580.64 GB X 3)


iMac off site backup [Local]

Total size: 2.00 TB

Total number of backups: 84

Oldest backup: 16/7/16, 7:34 pm

Last backup: 12/11/17, 1:14 pm

Size of backup disk: Adequate

Backup size 2.00 TB > (Disk used 580.64 GB X 3)


Top Processes by CPU:

13%
secd

6%
Finder

4%
WindowServer

3%
kernel_task

1%
syncdefaultsd


Top Processes by Memory:

654 MB kernel_task

262 MB mds_stores

164 MB Google Chrome

107 MB Google Chrome Helper

91 MB RdrCEF Helper


Top Processes by Network Use:

Input Output Process name

141 KB 89 KB mDNSResponder

11 KB 14 KB apsd

10 KB 6 KB netbiosd

6 KB 0 B bootpd

288 B 288 B ntpd


Top Processes by Energy Use:

9.10 Finder

5.48 WindowServer

3.32 backupd

2.90 RdrCEF


Virtual Memory Information:

5.05 GB
Available RAM

2.74 GB
Free RAM

2.95 GB
Used RAM

2.31 GB
Cached files

0 B Swap Used


Software installs (last 30 days):

Adobe Flash Player:
(installed 2017-10-14)

Garmin Express:
(installed 2017-10-15)

Microsoft AutoUpdate:
(installed 2017-10-16)

Adobe Flash Player:
(installed 2017-10-16)

Fitbit Connect:
(installed 2017-10-24)

Adobe Flash Player:
(installed 2017-10-26)

MacKeeper:
(installed 2017-10-28)

MacKeeper:
(installed 2017-10-28)


Install information may not be complete.


Diagnostics Events (last 3 days for minor events):

2017-11-12 18:59:11 Last shutdown cause: 6 - Unknown

2017-11-12 17:56:14 Kernel Panic [Open] [Details]

3rd Party Kernel Extensions: None

2017-11-12 14:29:23 cloudd Crash [Open]

Cause: *** Terminating app due to uncaught exception 'NSGenericException', reason: 'Failed to step (6922): "select apsEnvironment, isApplication, isCKSystemService, canMasquerade, canSetEnvironment, allowCustomAccounts, canAccessProtectionData, canSetDeviceIdentifier, hasAccessDuringBuddy, hasLightweightPCS, hasTCCAuthorization, allowsPowerNapScheduling, isOOPUI, allowsParticipantPII, displaysSystemAcceptPrompt, appIdentifier, clientPrefix from AppBundle where appBundleIdentifier = ? AND sourceAppBundleIdentifier = ?" - errcode:1b0a, msg:"disk I/O error", size: (null), path:/Users/USER/Library/Caches/*/CloudKitMetadata, fs:(null)/(null)'

abort() called

terminating with uncaught exception of type NSException



My iMac is going slow 'beachballing' and crashing

Welcome to Apple Support Community
A forum where Apple customers help each other with their products. Get started with your Apple ID.