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Level 1

9 points

2012 MacBook Pro running slow

I purchased my MacBook Pro in the fall of 2012. In the last year or so it's been running slower and slower. Now it's reached a point where using it is always a hassle. I'll often get the spinning beachball for so long that I have to force a shutdown. I don't think I have unnecessary junk on my hard drive-- I'm only using about 100 GB out of 500 GB.

I'm just about at the limit of my tech knowledge--- can anyone offer a recommendation? Below is the EtreCheck report.

Thanks so much for your help!

EtreCheck version: 4.0.4 (4A150)

Report generated: 2018-02-28 21:03:41

Download EtreCheck from https://etrecheck.com

Runtime: 12:13

Performance: Poor

Problem: Computer is too slow

Major Issues:

Anything that appears on this list needs immediate attention.

Corrupt filesystem - This machine shut down due to a corrupt filesystem.

Poor performance - EtreCheck report took over 10 minutes to run. This is very unusual.

Minor Issues:

These issues do not need immediate attention but they may indicate future problems.

Upgradeable - This machine’s RAM could be upgraded and the mechancial hard drive could be replaced with an SSD. This would dramatically improve your machine’s performance.

High battery cycle count - Your battery may be losing capacity.

Clean up - There are orphan files that could be removed.

Unsigned files - There is unsigned software installed. It appears to be legitimate but should be reviewed.

Hardware Information:

MacBook Pro (13-inch, Mid 2012)

MacBook Pro Model: MacBookPro9,2

1 2.5 GHz Intel Core i5 (i5-3210M) CPU: 2-core

4 RAM Upgradeable

BANK 0/DIMM0

2 GB DDR3 1600 ok

BANK 1/DIMM0

2 GB DDR3 1600 ok

Battery: Health = Replace Soon - Cycle count = 1101

Video Information:

Intel HD Graphics 4000 - VRAM: 1536 MB

Color LCD 1280 x 800

Drives:

disk0 - APPLE HDD HTS547550A9E384 500.11 GB (Mechanical)

Internal SATA 3 Gigabit Serial ATA

disk0s1 - EFI (MS-DOS FAT32) [EFI] 210 MB

disk0s2 [Core Storage Container] 499.25 GB

disk1 - Macintosh HD (Journaled HFS+) 498.88 GB

disk0s3 - Recovery HD [Recovery] 650 MB

Mounted Volumes:

disk1 - Macintosh HD 498.88 GB (402.01 GB free)

Journaled HFS+

Mount point: /

Network:

Interface en0: Ethernet

One IPv4 address

Interface en4: iPhone

Interface fw0: FireWire

Interface en1: Wi-Fi

802.11 a/b/g/n

One IPv4 address

Interface en2: Bluetooth PAN

Interface bridge0: Thunderbolt Bridge

System Software:

macOS High Sierra 10.13.3 (17D102)

Time since boot: About 3 days

System Load: 2.33 (1 min ago) 2.02 (5 min ago) 1.94 (15 min ago)

Security:

System	Status
Gatekeeper	Mac App Store and identified developers
System Integrity Protection	Enabled

Unsigned Files:

Launchd: /Library/LaunchAgents/com.rim.BBLaunchAgent.plist

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

Details: Exact match found in the whitelist - probably OK

Launchd: /Library/LaunchDaemons/com.oracle.java.Helper-Tool.plist

Executable: /Library/Internet Plug-Ins/JavaAppletPlugin.plugin/Contents/Resources/Helper-Tool

Details: Exact match found in the whitelist - probably OK

Launchd: /Library/LaunchAgents/com.oracle.java.Java-Updater.plist

Executable: /Library/Internet Plug-Ins/JavaAppletPlugin.plugin/Contents/Resources/Java Updater.app/Contents/MacOS/Java Updater -bgcheck

Details: Exact match found in the whitelist - probably OK

Launchd: /Library/LaunchDaemons/com.rim.BBDaemon.plist

Executable: /Library/Application Support/BlackBerry/BBDaemon

Details: Exact match found in the whitelist - probably OK

Kernel Extensions:

/System/Library/Extensions

[Loaded] RIMBBUSB.kext (0.0.74)

[Not Loaded] RIMBBVSP.kext (0.0.74)

System Launch Agents:

[Not Loaded]	9 Apple tasks
[Loaded]	174 Apple tasks
[Running]	107 Apple tasks

System Launch Daemons:

[Not Loaded]	37 Apple tasks
[Loaded]	189 Apple tasks
[Running]	106 Apple tasks

Launch Agents:

[Running]	com.rim.BBAlbumArtCacher.plist (Research in Motion Limited - installed 2012-07-17)
[Running]	com.rim.BBLaunchAgent.plist (? dcf2726d - installed 2013-01-03)
[Loaded]	com.google.keystone.agent.plist (Google, Inc. - installed 2017-09-27)
[Loaded]	com.oracle.java.Java-Updater.plist (? 961f8ba3 - installed 2017-12-19)

Launch Daemons:

[Loaded]	com.malwarebytes.MBAMHelperTool.plist (Malwarebytes Corporation - installed 2016-03-18)
[Loaded]	com.adobe.fpsaud.plist (Adobe Systems, Inc. - installed 2018-02-01)
[Loaded]	com.oracle.java.Helper-Tool.plist (? e3fefdd2 - installed 2017-12-19)
[Loaded]	com.google.keystone.daemon.plist (Google, Inc. - installed 2017-10-12)
[Running]	com.rim.BBDaemon.plist (? 9f895e8a - installed 2012-07-17)

User Launch Agents:

[Loaded]

com.divx.agent.postinstall.plist (? 0 - installed )

User Login Items:

Mail Application (Apple, Inc.

(/Applications/Mail.app)

iTunesHelper Application (Apple, Inc. - installed 2018-01-24)

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

Stickies Application (Apple, Inc.

(/Applications/Stickies.app)

Internet Plug-ins:

AmazonMP3DownloaderPlugin1017277: Unknown

QuickTime Plugin: 7.7.3 (installed 2018-01-31)

AdobePDFViewerNPAPI: 11.0.10 (installed 2015-03-01)

AdobePDFViewer: 11.0.10 (installed 2015-03-01)

Flash Player: 28.0.0.161 (installed 2018-02-07)

FlashPlayer-10.6: 28.0.0.161 (installed 2018-02-07)

o1dbrowserplugin: 5.41.3.0 (installed 2015-12-16)

googletalkbrowserplugin: 5.41.3.0 (installed 2015-12-11)

Silverlight: 5.1.41212.0 (installed 2016-02-27)

JavaAppletPlugin: Java 8 Update 161 build 12 (installed 2018-01-23)

User Internet Plug-ins:

NugsterPlugin: Unknown (installed 2016-07-17)

Google Earth Web Plug-in: 7.1 (installed 2013-10-07)

3rd Party Preference Panes:

Flash Player (installed 2018-02-01)

Java (installed 2018-01-23)

MacFUSE (installed 2008-12-19)

Time Machine:

Skip System Files: No

Mobile backups: Yes

Auto backup: Yes

Volumes being backed up:

Macintosh HD: Disk size: 498.88 GB - Disk used: 96.86 GB

Destinations:

M*****************c [Local] (Last used)

Total size: 1.00 TB

Total number of backups: 5

Oldest backup: 2017-10-13 01:24:19

Last backup: 2018-02-25 15:02:00

Top Processes by CPU:

Process (count)	Source	% of CPU
plugin-container (4)	15
system_profiler (2)	Apple	13
kernel_task	Apple	6
firefox	4
WindowServer	Apple	2

Top Processes by Memory:

Process (count)	Source	RAM usage
kernel_task	Apple	558 MB
plugin-container (4)	517 MB
firefox	409 MB
system_profiler (2)	Apple	370 MB
mdworker (13)	Apple	190 MB

Top Processes by Network Use:

Process	Source	Input	Output
firefox	2 MB	43 KB
Mail	Apple, Inc.	1 MB	63 KB
helpd	Apple	866 KB	21 KB
mDNSResponder	Apple	384 KB	192 KB
netbiosd	Apple	103 KB	24 KB

Top Processes by Energy Use:

Process (count)	Source	Energy usage (0-100)
plugin-container (4)	9
firefox	7
WindowServer	Apple	2
quicklookd	1
hidd	Apple	1

Virtual Memory Information:

Available RAM	715 MB
Free RAM	17 MB
Used RAM	3.30 GB
Cached files	699 MB
Swap Used	151 MB

Software Installs (past 30 days):

Name	Version	Install Date
Disk Diag	1.4	2018-02-28

Clean up:

~/Library/LaunchAgents/com.divx.agent.postinstall.plist

/Library/Internet Plug-Ins/DivXBrowserPlugin.plugin/Contents/Resources/extensions-installer

Executable not found

Diagnostics Information (past 7 days):

2018-02-28 20:39:13 cloudd Crash

Terminating app due to uncaught exception NSInternalInconsistencyException reason: Path UsersUSERLibraryCachesAssets deletedrenamed crashing.terminating with uncaught exception of type NSExceptionabort called

2018-02-25 08:59:04 Last Shutdown Cause: -60 - Corrupt filesystem

End of report

MacBook Pro, macOS High Sierra (10.13.3)

Posted on Feb 28, 2018 8:10 PM

Best reply

Allan Jones

Level 9

68,690 points

Posted on Mar 1, 2018 4:40 PM

Let's look at things that do not cost you money first, then you can decide if you want to do upgrades mentioned.

1) Outdated software can affect performance as you upgrade to newer OS version.

You have MacFuse from 2008. In computer years it is a fossil.
The Blackberry processes (file names with "rim") are older and very experienced people here have noted that old Blackberry software can slow a computer.
Old versions of DivX are known for similar issues. You have at least one DivX component running.

Good rule about software: if you don't use it, dump it.

2) It's been three days since you restarted the computer. Not bad but let's see if the runtime goes down if you restart the computer. Disconnect all external devices so we eliminate them as suspects, restart, wait about 30 minutes for Spotlight indexing to slow down, and then run another Etrecheck.

3) That model MBP is showing a wear issue after 3-5 years of service. The ribbon cable that connects the hard drive to the logic board makes sharp bends across metal corners in the chassis. Vibration of normal use and transport can cause this cable to wear. The symptoms of a worn cable mimic a failing hard drive (note the long EtreCheck runtime). Fortunately, new drives cables for that model are cheap, available, and user-installable. Apple Hard Drive / SSD Cable For 13-inch MacBook Pro (Mid 2012) main drive bay

When I upgraded my same model MBP to an SSD I changed the cable at the same time. With that model I believe that is a good practice to avoid future surprises.

I agree that more RAM would help. However, if your slowness is due to software interference of conflicts, adding RAM may not make much improvement until the conflicts are resolved.

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6 replies

Best reply

Allan Jones

Level 9

68,690 points

Mar 1, 2018 4:40 PM in response to lefebvorite

Let's look at things that do not cost you money first, then you can decide if you want to do upgrades mentioned.

1) Outdated software can affect performance as you upgrade to newer OS version.

You have MacFuse from 2008. In computer years it is a fossil.
The Blackberry processes (file names with "rim") are older and very experienced people here have noted that old Blackberry software can slow a computer.
Old versions of DivX are known for similar issues. You have at least one DivX component running.

Good rule about software: if you don't use it, dump it.

When I upgraded my same model MBP to an SSD I changed the cable at the same time. With that model I believe that is a good practice to avoid future surprises.

I agree that more RAM would help. However, if your slowness is due to software interference of conflicts, adding RAM may not make much improvement until the conflicts are resolved.

y_p_w

Level 6

17,642 points

Feb 28, 2018 9:13 PM in response to lefebvorite

Solid state drive. It's mentioned in the report. I was extremely frustrated with my MBP until I got a SanDisk Ultra 3D SSD. It just feels so much faster and less frustrating to use.

The benefits of an SSD don't really depend on the capacity. Some people are budget conscious and just get maybe a 240-256 GB SSD. The storage is always the weakest link. It will dramatically improve performance with application startup, boot time, quit times, etc.

Other than that more RAM would help, but I don't think think it would feel as apparent as using an SSD.

y_p_w

Level 6

17,642 points

Feb 28, 2018 10:23 PM in response to lefebvorite

lefebvorite wrote:

Thank you!! I'll definitely look into getting an SSD.

I was skeptical. However, I had all these telltale signs of storage issues. If I wanted to choose another program to open a file, it would take maybe 40 seconds of just holding it there while it looked for compatible applications. Starting Safari might take 30 second, and closing Safari would either take a long time or just hang. If I just wanted to see files in a directory with Finder, it could take up to 45 seconds before I saw anything. I don't know exactly what it is, but now it might take a second.

High Sierra really needs an SSD to perform well. More memory of course helps, but may not be as noticeable an improvement as an SSD. It's kind of hard to explain, but hard drives have all these moving parts and they have to move around all the time if pieces of data aren't located in the same place. The time to get to those different areas takes a lot of time that's wasted. Besides that, bulk data rates reading/writing from an SSD are faster.

Most newer SATA SSDs max out around the interface speed, so there's not necessarily any ones that are faster. Not sure where you're located, but given your usage I'd think a 240 GB SSD would be adequate and would cost maybe $70 in the United States. They may not be that helpful for bulk data like photos or video, but they really excel when applications are loading or it's accessing the operating system. I think this one is at a good price point:

Amazon.com: Silicon Power 240GB SSD 3D NAND With Read Up To 550MB/s S55 TLC 7mm (0.28") Internal Solid State Drive (SP24…

lefebvorite Author

Level 1

9 points

Mar 1, 2018 6:03 AM in response to y_p_w

Yep, that is exactly my experience! And I never know what will take a normal amount of time, and what will take extra long. Sometimes just opening a third or fourth tab in Firefox is enough to bring everything to a halt.

Thanks so much for the explanation! It's nice to know that a smaller SSD than the current 500 GB that I have will work well. I'm excited to buy one and try it out! I was dreading having to spend money on a new laptop so this is what I'm going to try next instead.

lefebvorite Author

Level 1

9 points

Mar 1, 2018 4:45 PM in response to Allan Jones

Thanks for mentioning all these things! I was aware of the ribbon cable issue, but only because mine failed a year or so ago and was replaced. Hopefully it's still ok! And although it's been 3 days since a restart, things are slow all the time, regardless of how long it's been since I restarted.

however...

As for the out of date software... I missed that! Thanks for mentioning it. Haven't had a Blackberry in years so there's no need for that to still be there. I'll delete some of that old software and see what happens.

Thanks!!

lefebvorite Author

Level 1

9 points

Feb 28, 2018 9:14 PM in response to y_p_w

Thank you!! I'll definitely look into getting an SSD.

2012 MacBook Pro running slow