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Slow Start up with High Sierra on Mid 2010 iMac

I have an iMac 21.5 Mid 2010. It was working fine with Mac OS El Capitan. Then I upgraded to Mac OS High Sierra, and start up takes 10+ minutes. Should I /can I, go back to El Capitan? Do I need more memory? What are my options? It looks like Siri was added to the iMac, is it a memory hog? Would it help performance and start up if it were deleted? Thanks for checking this post.

Processor Name: Intel Core i3

Mac OS High sierra 10.13.3


Processor Speed: 3.06 GHz


Number of Processors: 1


Total Number of Cores: 2


L2 Cache (per Core): 256 KB


L3 Cache: 4 MB


Memory: 4 GB (Two Empty Slots remaining)

Mac Hard Drive 185.97 GB available of 499.25 GB

Seagate Back up plus drive 962.58 GB available of 1.5 TB

iMac, Mac OS X (10.6.8), 3.06 GHz Intel core i3 4GB 1333 Mhz

Posted on Mar 10, 2018 9:59 AM

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Question marked as Best reply

Posted on Mar 11, 2018 6:49 PM

You certainly could use more memory, but that isn't why the startup is slow.


A Troubleshooting Protocol to Identify Problems or Fix macOS El Capitan or Later

You should try each, one at a time, then test to see if the problem is fixed before going on to the next.


Be sure to backup your files before proceeding if possible.


  1. Shutdown the computer, wait 30 seconds, restart the computer.
  2. Disconnect all third-party peripherals.
  3. Resetting your Mac’s PRAM and NVRAM
  4. Reset the System Management Controller (SMC)
  5. Start the computer in Safe Mode. Test in safe mode to see if the problem persists, then restart normally.
  6. Use Apple Hardware Test to see if there is any hardware malfunction.
  7. Repair the disk by booting 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.
  8. Repair permissions on the Home folder: Resolve issues caused by changing the permissions of items in your home folder.
  9. Create a New User Account Open Users & Groups preferences. Click on the lock icon and enter your Admin password when prompted. On the left under Current User click on the Add [+] button under Login Options. Setup a new Admin user account. Upon completion log out of your current account then log into the new account. If your problems cease, then consider switching to the new account and transferring your files to it - Transferring files from one User Account to another.
  10. Download and install the OS X El Capitan 10.11.6 Combo Update or 10.12.6 Combo Update or Download macOS High Sierra 10.13.3 Combo Update as needed.
  11. 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.
  12. Erase and Install OS X Restart the computer. Immediately after the chime hold down the Command and R keys until the Apple logo appears. When the Utility Menu appears:
  1. Select Disk Utility from the Utility Menu and click on Continue button.
  2. When Disk Utility loads select the drive (out-dented entry) from the Device list.
  3. Click on the Erase icon in Disk Utility's toolbar. A panel will drop down.
  4. Set the Format type to APFS (for SSDs only) or Mac OS Extended (Journaled.)
  5. Click on the Apply button, then wait for the Done button to activate and click on it.
  6. Quit Disk Utility and return to the Utility Menu.
  7. Select Reinstall OS X and click on the Continue button.

If none of the above helps then make an appointment at the Apple Genius Bar for service. If you need to find an Apple Store - Find a Store - Apple.


4 replies
Question marked as Best reply

Mar 11, 2018 6:49 PM in response to Carlson Mun

You certainly could use more memory, but that isn't why the startup is slow.


A Troubleshooting Protocol to Identify Problems or Fix macOS El Capitan or Later

You should try each, one at a time, then test to see if the problem is fixed before going on to the next.


Be sure to backup your files before proceeding if possible.


  1. Shutdown the computer, wait 30 seconds, restart the computer.
  2. Disconnect all third-party peripherals.
  3. Resetting your Mac’s PRAM and NVRAM
  4. Reset the System Management Controller (SMC)
  5. Start the computer in Safe Mode. Test in safe mode to see if the problem persists, then restart normally.
  6. Use Apple Hardware Test to see if there is any hardware malfunction.
  7. Repair the disk by booting 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.
  8. Repair permissions on the Home folder: Resolve issues caused by changing the permissions of items in your home folder.
  9. Create a New User Account Open Users & Groups preferences. Click on the lock icon and enter your Admin password when prompted. On the left under Current User click on the Add [+] button under Login Options. Setup a new Admin user account. Upon completion log out of your current account then log into the new account. If your problems cease, then consider switching to the new account and transferring your files to it - Transferring files from one User Account to another.
  10. Download and install the OS X El Capitan 10.11.6 Combo Update or 10.12.6 Combo Update or Download macOS High Sierra 10.13.3 Combo Update as needed.
  11. 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.
  12. Erase and Install OS X Restart the computer. Immediately after the chime hold down the Command and R keys until the Apple logo appears. When the Utility Menu appears:
  1. Select Disk Utility from the Utility Menu and click on Continue button.
  2. When Disk Utility loads select the drive (out-dented entry) from the Device list.
  3. Click on the Erase icon in Disk Utility's toolbar. A panel will drop down.
  4. Set the Format type to APFS (for SSDs only) or Mac OS Extended (Journaled.)
  5. Click on the Apply button, then wait for the Done button to activate and click on it.
  6. Quit Disk Utility and return to the Utility Menu.
  7. Select Reinstall OS X and click on the Continue button.

If none of the above helps then make an appointment at the Apple Genius Bar for service. If you need to find an Apple Store - Find a Store - Apple.


Mar 11, 2018 7:01 PM in response to Kappy

Kappy;

Thank you for your response. Just for fun, I downloaded the latest update for El Capitan. I completed the installation just after your response came across. For some reason, with the update, the start up is much faster. From starting the computer to sign in, about one minute. From sign in to access to the desktop and the sidebar, about two minutes. I can live with that. Seems about the same amount of time as the Mac mini I also use, and MUCH faster than the estimated 10 minutes from before.

I was reading somewhere else on the forum that Google Chrome was a memory hog. Would it be better to use just Firefox and Safari as browsers? What about Siri? Should I dump that, if it is never used on my iMac? I will keep your advice on file in case thing slow down again. Thanks again.

Slow Start up with High Sierra on Mid 2010 iMac

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