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Sleep Wake Failure with High Sierra 10.13.4

Since installing 10.13.4 on both of my iMacs, I have noticed a Sleep Wake Failure on my 2012 iMac.


Once it has gone to sleep, it will display the log in screen, I enter my password and it will hang. The only solution is to hard reset the system, where it will "bong" twice before presenting me with the login screen (NB: It is File Vault enabled).


This did not happen until I installed 10.13.4 prior to that it was working perfectly.


I don't seem to get this error on my 2017 iMac.

iMac (27-inch, Late 2012), macOS High Sierra (10.13.4), FileVault enabled

Posted on Mar 31, 2018 2:15 AM

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Posted on Apr 3, 2018 6:51 AM

I am having the same issue with my 2017 iMac. It started right after installing Mac OS High Sierra 10.13.4. Instead of sleeping, it goes into a sort of comatose state. When I try to wake my iMac, I get a black, unresponsive screen. At this point, I have to use the power button to do a hard reboot.

Other times I get a log in screen, but the mouse and keyboard are unresponsive, so I have to do the hard reboot anyway.

126 replies
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Apr 3, 2018 6:51 AM in response to Batfink1983

I am having the same issue with my 2017 iMac. It started right after installing Mac OS High Sierra 10.13.4. Instead of sleeping, it goes into a sort of comatose state. When I try to wake my iMac, I get a black, unresponsive screen. At this point, I have to use the power button to do a hard reboot.

Other times I get a log in screen, but the mouse and keyboard are unresponsive, so I have to do the hard reboot anyway.

Apr 4, 2018 10:58 AM in response to ernie98

Are you using FileVault?


From my tests, it seems that 10.13.4 cannot wake up properly if your disk is encrypted with FileVault. 😟 The result is a black screen if you wake by keyboard or mouse (or rarely a non-responsive login screen).


If you press the power button to wake instead of using the keyboard or mouse, the iMac will turn on, turn off, then turn on again to perform a cold boot.


With FileVault turned off, it wakes perfectly every time.


Anyone on 10.13.3 reading this: if you need disk encryption, do not install the 10.13.4 update!

Apr 11, 2018 7:47 AM in response to Batfink1983

Ok, I turned off File Vault and the problem went away. Once the drive had completed decrypting, I applied the 10.13.4 combo update and then turned File Vault back on.


It took a good three days for my drive (1 TB fusion drive) to encrypt and during that time I was able to login normally after my iMac woke from sleep. However, once the encryption completed, the same problem returned.


I've logged a bug report with Apple and would encourage others experiencing this issue to do the same.


Feedback - macOS - Apple

Jul 30, 2018 12:18 PM in response to Danimal2013

Thank you for your analysis I agree with.
But he bug isn't limited to Fusion drive.

Here are the few points I tested and I am sure around 95 %:

  • neither SMC or PRAM reset will have any effect (the person who give you this advice should first reset himself),
  • no reinstall of MacOS X will change anything (but wasting your time and increasing your risk to damage your data),
  • this bug appears on different hardware conf. (perhaps all),
  • this bug is plainly related to High Sierra and FileVault and power managment,
  • decrypting and then re-encrypting your boot volume won't fix High Sierra (but will surely waste you a lot of time and increase your risk to damage your data).

Here is my personal choice of workaroud:

/usr/bin/sudo pmset standby 0


On the other hand, to be able to produce the problem much faster, here is my personal conf.:

/usr/bin/sudo pmset standby 1
/usr/bin/sudo pmset standbydelay 15


Disclaimer:

Don't copy and paste these commands if you didn't fully read and understood the pmset man page.

Apr 2, 2018 11:00 AM in response to Batfink1983

I think I found a solution, at least for me it did work: I am using one of those tiny permanent SD card memories as an internal storage upgrade. It will automatically be mounted on the desktop. I removed it, rebooted the Macbook and voilá: Sleep mode was back up and running again: closing and opening the lid works like a charm. I then put the storage back in the SD card slot, and still sleep mode is working fine! I can't explain why, but this did the trick! Just remove your SD card storage and reboot ...

Apr 4, 2018 10:17 PM in response to RobbUnknown Error

I put one into recovery mode, then a few steps in/after a few things tested in disk utility, it led to unlock drive via the Apple logo - restart from disk - Macintosh HD.

That led straight to setting up Mac but not to the extent a reinstall would entail, then it began decrypting FileVault after.

In energy saver, I disabled put hard drive to sleep & other options that would allow it to sleep automatically.

It's worked beautifully since.

Version 10.13.4

Apr 7, 2018 11:16 PM in response to RecheTech

Same problem here on an iMac 5K 2017. I did the upgrade and now when I sleep the device it can wake up for a few seconds but, predictably, will not wake up after prolonged sleep when hitting keyboard. Only solution is to touch the power button - after which the machine promptly reboots.


And I have filevault activated.


Apple, how could you release a supplemental update so injurious to basic encryption functionality in your new computers? Do you not test this stuff before releasing it?

Apr 8, 2018 4:22 AM in response to mattzN

Additional info: Deactivated FileVault (which executed much faster than expected) and the problem disappeared. Seems like apple didn't use encrypted volumes on their testing systems. Anyway, this is absolutely no solution for us as we are obliged to use encrypted volumes for data security reasons.

Sleep Wake Failure with High Sierra 10.13.4

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