After a year, another chain of random shutdowns

can anybody tell what's going on with my computer from a remote desktop? by now that should be easy.
i had random shutdowns problems last year, one month after buying my macbook pro, but they seemed over after the download of the oct.2006 firmware. now they're back. as random as they were. could it be possible that the new battery update clashed with something? the appearance seem to have occurred just after that update. maybe a coincidence. but i had started to have battery failures - computer shutdowns at 95% of battery charge, with 28 cycles count - and was about to go replace it (the sick battery).
just i cant stand abandoning my computer in a dark room with many others, so i didn't turn it in and kept it on ACDC.
anybody may guess what i should do to avoid a premature death?

There's nothing anyone here can do about this. We're all just users like you. Was the phone still covered by warranty? Was there an explanation from Apple?

Similar Messages

There goes another thread on Random Shutdowns blocked by apple...

it may have something to do with someone saying 'don't buy a macbook under any circumstances', which I'd have to disagree with, they are good computers I can't wait till mine is repaired!

I can understand why the threads might be locked...but I don't agree with it. Even though the random shut down threads end up consisting of people badmouthing the product, it is still an open forum that should give people the right to free speech.
In general I would still really like to own a Macbook, and from what I've seen, I dont see how a new OS could address the issue, as more often then not a logic board replacement does fix the issue. The reason why a lot of new logic boards don't seem to help could be because they're boards from the same "batch" being used.
I dunno, technically if you spend a lot of time around these forums it's easy to get a really bad taste for almost anything, but people should still realise that there's still not a ridiculously high chance that they'll run into any serious issues.
Take posts/threads in this forum realistically, but people need to realise that you're often not going to find anything BUT negative comments posted in places like this, so it's not always fair to turn down a new computer because of prevalent issues.
I would not be able to wait and wait just because some people are still having certain issues. Bite the bullet...buy your new computer, and things should be fine. If they're not, applecare is more then willing to back you up and get you up and running asap.

Random Shutdowns Started Again After Fix - Some Questions for Others

::sigh::
After a very prompt repair followed by 3 weeks of constant use with no problems, tonight I had another random shutdown. (Here we go again.) I never was able to find anyone at Apple who could tell me what they fixed (it was not a logic board replacement) but apparently it wasn't a permanent fix.
Some observations and questions:
When random shutdowns start, my "previous shutdown code" in the system log changes to -72, and continue to register as -72 even when I shutdown the computer myself. During the period when the system was working after the repair, shutdown codes were always 0s or 3s. Have others noticed the same pattern? In my experience, once that first negative code appears, it doesn't change back to normal, regardless of how the computer is turned off (except after the repair).
Also, tonight was the first time since my repair that I used the 3-prong power cord with the AC adapter (rather than just the two prong). Could there be any connection (perhaps a faulty cord sendinga surge to the system and damaging something)? During the last round, shutdowns occurred whether on AC power or battery, but I'm wondering if the use of that cord may have triggered the problem in the first place. Has anyone that has had random shutdowns never used the 3-prong cord at all?
The other thing I've noticed is that importing digital camera photos into iPhoto often seems to trigger shutdowns (not all of them, but some of them). My random shutdown tonight happened after editing photos I'd just imported from my camera (and right after I ejected and unplugged the camera). Could the connection to the camera somehow cause a problem? Has anyone who has had random shutdowns NOT connected a digital camera or used iPhoto?
Just grasping at straws here to try to figure out what causes this problem (since apparently Apple hasn't figured it out yet). Looks like I'm going to have to take it back again. I love my MacBook better than any PC I've ever had, but I never had these kind of hardware problems with my PCs (and if I did have a problem it was usually pretty simple to troubleshoot and repair).

I think you're confused, it's not as simple as that.
Here's why - I just ran two yes terminal sessions on my wife's MacBook and let it run for 15 minutes. Fan came on, system is running warm but running just fine.
On my RSD MacBook, while I was at the Apple Store, trying to demonstrate the RSD it ran two yes terminals for like 5 minutes and kept running however when I closed Terminal - wham RSD.
It IS NOT heat related. Most likely the system "thinks" there's a heat problem by a bad sensor, wire whatever.
If I can't run my MacBook at 100% (actually 200%, both cores) for as long as I need then it is defective and should be returned to Apple.
When my MacBook was working I ran EVN (Escape Velocity NOVA) which runs under Rosetta, man that thing sucked the battery dry in less than 60 minutes and the system got pretty warm too. BUT IT KEPT running and didn't shut down. When my system was acting up I couldn't even browse the Apple web site and ut would shutdown.
Greg
PS I installed the SMC update a week before my system started having RSD.

Problems with random shutdown after replacing a swollen battery

Hello all,
Perhaps one of you can help with this issue.
I'm using a Macbook Pro 17" mid-2007 model. A few months ago, the power disconnected from the machine when the battery had already run down and the machine did a hard shutdown. When I booted it back up there were serious problems with the display. Eventually it stopped working altogether. I took it for service and it was determined to by the NVIDIA graphics processor problem, so Apple replaced my motherboard.
When I got the machine back from servicing, there was a rattle in the right fan that gradually got worse. After a while the touchpad button stopped depressing in the center. I also experienced several random shutdowns while operating on battery power. I learned about the swelling battery issue with macbooks and ordered a replacement. By the time the replacement battery arrived my original battery was quite swollen. I'm concerned that the swelling battery may have warped the case a bit, leading to the fan noise.
I have now replaced the battery, but I'm still experiencing random shutdowns after 20+ minutes of use on battery power. I have done the RSS tests that were recommended in other forums and there doesn't seem to be any random shutdown problems when I'm plugged in -- only under battery power. My understanding is that a swelling battery can sometimes cause the battery to disengage from the electrical contacts on the MB, causing a sudden shutdown. I'm wondering why the problem is persisting now with a new battery? After one random shutdown, I tried to power up again using the battery, while pushing the battery into place at various angles, but I couldn't find any angle that would give power to the machine. The fan noise is also still present.
Can anyone offer an explanation or advise on any methods to overcome these random shutdowns? I have checked the console and the machine isn't registering any error when it shuts down, although when it restarts it says "DirectoryService[35] Improper shutdown detected"

Yep, it is video (or: or audio for video) so unless you're sure you need it (because you work or will work with the DVC Pro HD video/audio codec), you can remove the plug from its' folder and put it in your documents folder (don't trash it, I have no idea if it is necessary for non-DVC Pro HD users to have it installed too).
The WWW is littered with posts from people encountering bugs and crashreports with DVCPROHDAudio.plugin as the main suspect. Most of those posts seem to be from video people rather than audio folks.
http://www.google.nl/search?q=DVCPROHDAudio.plugin&ie=utf-8&oe=utf-8&aq=t&rls=or g.mozilla:en-US:official&client=firefox-a
But, if you get crashes and you see this one mentioned in the report, disable it, restart, and see if the problem's gone.

I hate my Motorola Droid Razr! After 3 years it has turned out to be a real crappy cell phone. Does not belong in the "smartphone" category. Forever freezes up, doesn't respond to anything I ask it to do. I am purchasing another brand of smartphone an

I hate my Motorola Droid Razr! After 3 years it has turned out to be a real crappy cell phone. Does not belong in the "smartphone" category. Forever freezes up, doesn't respond to anything I ask it to do. I am purchasing another brand of smartphone and will NEVER go back to Motorola again. I have tried many help/support tutorials and solutions and nothing works.I HATE THIS PHONE!!!

If you've had the phone for 3 years, then it's time for something new. The Motorola phones I've had have been pretty solid, but if you want to switch brands or even providers, then go for it.
Technology changes so quickly that a 3 year old phone, regardless of manufacturer, is likely to seem slow, buggy, laggy - simply because it doesn't have the power to match the network capabilities NOW. If it's only capable of 3G speeds, it will be slow compared to a phone with 4G capability. After three years of use, the internal memory may be maxed out, especially if you haven't cleared stuff out, wiped the cache, etc, causing freezing and non-responsiveness. It may not have enough RAM to effectively run updated apps....
I would say you are due for a new phone - so compare the newest models, go to a store and try them out, and then get whatever brand and model will work best for you.

Creative Cloud-Am I tied in for another year after initial year's membership if I accept the higher?

Am I tied in for another year after initial year's membership if I accept the higher rate? or can I leave at any point in year 2?

Hi Bev,
Fully appreciate that the price will go up. Just slightly concerned that I am "tied in" for another year at the higher rate.
This what I received through this morning:
We hope you've been making the most of everything Creative Cloud has to offer. With the next generation of creative apps like Adobe Photoshop® CC, Illustrator® CC and more; great training resources; and more efficient ways to collaborate and share with the creative community, you have everything you need to create your greatest work. Only in Creative Cloud.
To make sure you can continue to use your favorite tools and services without interruption and take full advantage of everything that's new, your membership will automatically renew on 01-September-2013 (PT) at the annual plan price of 38.11 GBP per month, plus applicable Tax/VAT. You don't have to do anything to renew.
If you'd like to review your membership details or update your renewal settings, simply <http://www.adobe.com/go/cc_manage_act?trackingid=KFKNB> log in to your account.
Thanks for being part of Creative Cloud.
The Adobe Creative Cloud Team

Another Random Shutdown Thread!

Hey all
So, ive got the random shutdown prob. Ive downloaded the firmware update and when I go to install it im told its not needed, I tried the battery update..and still the prob persists. Is it just that my battery is a dud?
Thanks !
Kasra

Yeah, I was suprised about that too. I'm sitting outside the Apple Store right now with my replacement. I demonstrated the crash once to the guy by running yes, and then it crashed again on him while he was trying to look at the logs.
This one's a week 32. I'm currently running yes in two Terminal windows and all seems well. Let's hope it stays this way!
edit: I think the problem with my old MacBook was with the temperature sensors or with the fans, because I didn't hear the fans kick in once while I was using it and the fans just kicked in on this one. Strange thing is, it crashed even when it was cool to the touch. Just thought that was worth mentioning...

X220 - Random shutdown

My X220 is running Windows 7 Enterprise Edition 32 bit. I have updated to the 1.21 version of the BIOS.
I have a 128 GB SSD,
I am still experiencing random shutdowns under these circumstances:
1. Only when connected to AC power. I am using 65W standard AC/DC adapter.
2, Has been connected to the LAN always when it happens
I have re-configured my computer: Will come back with results.
1. I did upggrade BIOS to 1.21
2. I have now reduced the System Performance settiung in Power Manaher from a value of "Maximum Turbo" to "Turbo".
Kommer tillbaka med findings.

Grrrr.. while writing this entry - the computer made the random shutdown AGAIN (now using another machine). Lenovo - can you PLEASE make at least ONE Thinkpad with IBM quality....
Anyway .. here goes...
Bought an X220 i7 a few months back.
Data:
Model: 4291-36G
OS: Windows7 64bit (shipped with unit) + dual booting Ubuntu Linux 10.10 (64bit)
On BOTH Windows AND Linux these random shutdowns started to happen during the last week - with no change in my usage pattern (software development, browsing, email, etc. - under both linux and windows).
The most strange part is that the behavior feels like someone is pushing/holding the power key at random times (anything from 5 to 20 minutes after boot) - because windows goes to "fast sleep" and linux pops up the shutdown/sleep selector when it happens.
I just updated to the 1.21 bios (using a stand-alone CD from ISO).. luckily it didn't reboot while flashing...
This DID NOT FIX THE PROBLEM (I am not sure what bios was there before).
This really smells like a HW issue.
NOTE: Temperature monitors say that the CPU is well under critical - so that doesn't seem to be the issue.
My guess is:
1. faulty motherboard (sending the power off event.. or other)
2. could it be related to the fingerprint reader? - I know it's a long shot - but every time it has been initiated, I think my palms have rested, touching the reader as well as putting a light pressure everywhere else on the palm rest (just trying to help you to troubleshoot the design flaw - it's still a HW issue ;-))
Lenovo - I have 3 years on-site support on it... how do I get a new unit ASAP (I live in Denmark)? Can I just move the HDD to the new machine (I remember that Win7 may have some annoying copy protection linking machine, HDD and OS)?
br
Lars
PS Lenovo - as I wrote in the beginning of this post... I have NEVER EVER EVER EVER (well, you get the picture) had ANY problems with this back when ThinkPads were done by IBM. Can you please start making some machines that are as stable as those? So far, I have been the Proud owner of an X31, T41p, T21 and many more... and *not so proud owner of* T61p and now X220 - both seem pretty flawed - and I seem to remember an IBM internal stating they had to send 1/2 a shipment of T61's back because of serious problems with design, construction, etc...
PPS I know I was a bit evil above... but still think that premium price should deliver premium product.

Mbp random shutdowns. out of ideas. didnt pay $4000 over for this garbage.

So i had my 1st gen cd mbp for over a year now. almost a year and a 1/2 in fact. I forgot to buy app. Bad mistake, because its super unreliable now. 3 months into ownership, fans stopped working, magnetic catches fail to work so i cant shut my mbp. So i brought it to the service centre. they said there was a screw stuck in the fan which resulted in it not turning. *** did that screw come off? He said he had no idea. Fantastic.
My problem was fixed, but wif it came another problem. my top case was severely misaligned. alot of gaps all over. I brought it to another service centre who claimed they ordered a top case for me, and they would replace it free of charge. And they did, but it didnt resolve any issues. Still alot of gaps. I was told "its like that". I had enough of waiting so i just forced myself to live with it. Get this; i had to live with imperfections on an high end premium mobile computer which cost me over $4000 bucks. Garbage.
Fast forward to abt 2 months ago, my warranty had ended, but the gaps were getting worse. As it was a problem that had existed in the days since my laptop was covered, i called Apple and asked nicely if there was something they could do about it, since it was an issue that was left unresolved from many months back when my warranty was still valid. No problem they said. I was a happy man, for awhile, as you will soon find out why this happiness was shortlived.
I should add at this point, that my mbp has been on the receiving end of a stick of kingston 1gb ram(bumping up my system ram to 2gb) and a replaced battery, and that its working PROPERLY
So i brought it in to 1 of the service centers, and i was quite suprised to discover they actually replaced my top and bottom case. There were still gaps.. but minimal. The CSO told me the same thing; there are bound to have gaps once an mbp has bene taken apart and put together again. Garbage isnt it? I didnt fork out big money for imperfection. But then again, as i said, the gaps were quite minimal and it was on a level i could accept. So i signed for it and i was on my way home.
Since then, i have been on the receiving end of many many many random shutdowns. iStats showed a very high 128deg. c @ heatsink B while the rest of the readings were pretty normal. and then the whole thing would shut down. @ times heatsink B readings were not available on iStat. Sometimes heatsink B disappears altogether.
So i took it back, where after subsequent diagnoses by the techies, said that it was the result of a faulty battery. I told them i had no problems whatsoever before i brought my mbp in.. but they said they were very sure it was a faulty battery. What timing right? Well they gave me a new one free of charge, because i was under the battery exchange program. So, i am into my 2nd battery of my 1 and 1/2 years of mbp ownership.
So it looked ok the 2nd time i brought it back home.. but now its still developing sudden shutdowns. I really dont know what to do now. its not OS based as it happens both in Xp & OSX. It happens whether the power is plugged in or not.
Can it be the ram? But i swear it has not been giving me any problems before.
Seriously can anyhelp? Any suggestions? I cant be going back to the service centre everytime it happens. I need my mac everyday for sch work and etc etc. i am really not compelled to yell @ Apple over the phone. Nobody deserves to be yelled @ for something they didnt do....

Thats what i am doing now. I took out both rams and reinserted. And you know what... it seems fine now. Its like a very irritating bee-otch of a girl friend. 1 moment all nice and sweet. The next shut on you like never before

Random Shutdown 601-7250-090

Well Well Well... MSI does not answer my mail so I type here...
I have the same problem "Random Shutdown" and I have changed everything in my computer, memory, gfx-card, psu and so on...
K9N SLI (AMD X2 socket AM2)
601-7250-090
So does all the mobo 601-7250-0x0 to 601-7250-090 have the same problem...?
I have tried 3 K9N SLI (601-7250-090) and same problem on all of them...
"Random Shutdown" can take everything from 1h to 2 weeks...

Hi guys, the 7250 nightmare seems inmortal.... I'm another victim of it... I understand 100% Mattiz POST and I also had a PC store so I was able to test many brands into my first (and last k9n sli platinum 601-7250-010k), my history?:
I bought my main rig a year ago with:
MSI k9 sli p 601-7250-01k
AMD X2 3800+
2X512MB CORSAIR XMS DDR2 800 PC6400
WESTERN DIGITL SATA 1,5 80GB
DVD-RW LITE-ON
PSU AGILER 600WTTS
When I set up the HD, after 5 minutes of fresh installation of win xp s2... ramdom shutdowns... (also have to unplugg power cord and wait bout 30 sec to replugg power cord and press power button to boot)
MEM'S tried: CORSAIR DOMINATOR PC6400, KINGSTON DDR2 667, SAMSUNG 667, MARKVISION 533...
PSU tried: AGILER 600WTTS, 700 WTTS (BOSSKILLER TOLD ME THAT AGILERS PSU'S SUCKS SO...) COOLER MASTER XTREME POWER 600WTTS +18V DUAL RAIL, THERMALTKE PUREPOWER 700WTTS...
HD tried: MAXTOR 80 GB SATA / PATA SEAGATE 250GB WD 120/200GB SATA 1,5 / 3,0
After two weeks of sad frustration... the my system get stable with:
AMD 3800+ 1GB XMS CORSAIR + SEAGATE SATA2 250GB + PSU COOLER MASTER 600WTTS
BIOS SETTINGS:
UPDATED FROM 1.0 TO VERSION 1.5
+ MEM TIMINGS AND VOLTAGE SETTING MANULLY 5-5-5-12-23 1,9V
(NOT NECCESARY TO LIMIT UDMA MODE TO 2)
A month later... I added a eVGA 7600GS 512MB + 1 GB more in two stick of corsair XMS2 (same brand and specs that first ones)... again... ramdom freezes... I remove eVGA card... ramdom freezes...
Solution:
Roll back IDE PATA/SATA drivers to xp native drivers (uninstallin' nvidia drivers)
Three months later... I change CPU unit... with my new AMDx2 5600+ and guest what?! yeh!! incredible! ramdom freezes/shutdowns... no matter that I quit 5600+ and put 3800+ again...
Solution:
Flash bios to 1.6 Version and limit UDMA mode to 2
Today:
I still have bios version 1.6, I read that 1.7 have the "HT Sync error"!!! so.. my system is now great! I don't need more bios flashes... not shutdowns at all: specs in my signature, hope my large history helps! good luck kid!
PD. I'll never bought a 7250!!! xD but I can't leave MSI... so I'm waiting k9 NEO next week to built another rig, hope my next chapter have a happy ending xD

Random shutdowns/backlight shutoff.

Hi - I'll try to keep this saga brief, but that may be a tall order considering the circumstances.
Back story:
The first time I sent my iBook G4 in to AppleCare was June 2006, when the display was showing a single, pixel-high line across the bottom of the screen (about 1/2 inch up from the bottom) when I would adjust the angle of the lid. It came back fixed, but with a worse display issue! Instead of just a line, the screen would now flicker (NOT a backlight problem, in random stripes across the display itself) and turn to grayscale instead of the normal colors. It did this in response to the slightest vibrations (typing, touching the trackpad) and adjustments of the lid. I sent it in again with explicit information about what caused the malfunction and how to replicate it.
The iBook was promptly sent back to me, without any contact being made beforehand, because the techs "couldn't recreate the problem." Great. Allow me to note that I "recreated" the problem the FIRST time I booted it up out of the return box from AppleCare - within about thirty seconds. Needless to say, at this point I was less than pleased. I wound up taking the iBook into the university bookstore, where we have an Apple tech but not a full genius bar. I was able to show him the problem in person and leave the iBook in his care. Several days later, I found out that he had to ship it off to AppleCare anyway because it was something they'd looked at before.
It finally came back and yes, the display was no longer going wonky, but I now had a lid that would not align properly and thus would not latch, a non-working microphone, and a small scratch on my LCD. I had let the lid and scratch slide for a couple of weeks, but was getting ready to call Apple Care about the microphone (I needed it for a class) when my hard drive decided to take a nosedive. Over a series of a few crashes, in the midst of which I was able to back up my most important materials - thank goodness - the hard drive completely died and the iBook would eventually either only boot up to a blue screen, a gray screen with the apple and spinning gear, a gray screen with nothing, or a blue screen with an OS 9 icon in the middle. Off it went to Apple Care, AGAIN.
It came back today with a new hard drive. I used it for a few minutes before retrieving my power source, thinking it would be fine since though my battery runs down quickly, it was showing a 65% charge and I had a few minutes. At this time, I was still using the pre-installed Panther and getting ready to reinstall Tiger and all my other stuff. I was chatting on iChat when the iBook completely shut down.
I went and got my power source, plugged it in, and booted back up. I got an error message saying my date and time was set to some time before 2001... Except when I actually checked my clock/calendar, it was set to the correct time. My friend suggested I might need to do a PMU reset, so I shut down and did so.
The iBook worked fine for a couple of hours, until my backlight randomly turned off. It did NOT go to sleep - the backlight just turned off. This has never happened to me before - I could barely make out the outline of my open windows on the screen, so I knew it was the backlight out and not a crash. I closed the lid and the backlight flickered on the way down. When I re-opened it, the light came back on.
Several hours later, after I'd reinstalled Tiger, with a 99-100% charged battery, with my power source plugged in and the light green - another crash. I believe this was an ACTUAL crash, like the first one I described. I attempted to restart the iBook and it wouldn't power back up. I tried several times, then did another PMU reset, and it finally booted back up.
MOMENTS after it powered back up from crash #2, crash #3 occurred. Or so I thought. The iBook would again not respond to the power button, so I shut the lid and heard a chime after it was shut. I reopened the lid and the iBook was booting back up. I don't know if this was a backlight malfunction I mistook as a crash, or what.
Note: none of the times the laptop actually CRASHED did I get a low battery warning or any advance indication I was having some sort of a power failure.
On to another backlight failure: it was about an hour after the last crash. I was configuring some World of Warcraft settings in windowed mode, with the battery at full charge and the power source plugged in and green. The screen went black and the laptop made a clicking/swishing noise I associate with shutting down. As I was preparing to throw it at the wall (kidding) I noticed that I still felt a slight vibration and heard a slight humming from the body of the iBook. I listened and looked carefully, and sure enough, the iBook was still running, but the backlight had again failed. (Apparently the backlight shutting down is the noise I'm familiar with.) I moved my cursor around, tried hitting "esc" and doing other "wake up" things but nothing would work. This time, shutting and reopening the lid also did nothing. I couldn't see anything to do a regular shutdown, so I did a hard shutdown by holding down the power button. Upon rebooting, the backlight worked like a charm.
Thirty minutes after this, I experienced another actual crash - complete shutdown of the system. I was playing World of Warcraft in fullscreen mode when the screen went black and all system stopped. No noise, no vibrations - it was definitely off this time. I attempted to power back up but again the iBook would not respond to the power button. I closed and reopened the lid, and it still would not respond. I reset the PMU and nothing happened. Finally, I removed and reinserted the battery and it then booted up. Upon booting this time, I again got the clock/calendar set to pre-2001 message, and yet the clock and calendar were both set to the correct time. The battery showed 97% charge, and the power supply had been connected the entire time.
So, that leads me to now. I have no clue what is wrong with it at this point and I am absolutely frustrated that every time I send this thing into Apple Care it comes back with problems - either the same problems, not fixed, or entirely new problems it didn't have before.
I'd really appreciate it if somebody could give me a clue what might be going on here. I repaired permissions, attempted to repair the disk (no repair was necessary) and am currently getting all the updates to take me from OS X 10.4 to 10.4.8. I'm just frustrated because I'm the only person I know out of a whole bunch of very happy Mac customers to have this many problems - I really feel like I have a lemon, but I was told last time I spoke to Mac that they won't completely replace my unit unless I have the SAME problem repaired three times. I'll avoid getting ranty here, and I do plan to call Apple Care in the morning (Saturday 12/1) but I thought I'd post here anyway to see if anybody had any ideas or anecdotes they'd like to share.
Some ideas I have that could be wrong:
-- Logic board failure (Could explain the prior display issues and hard drive failure, I think)
-- Battery (I know it's not holding a charge well, but I don't see what that would have to do with the backlight)
-- Backlight out (Unrelated to crashes?)
That's all I've got. Any help would be greatly appreciated.

Hi, and welcome to Apple Discussions.
random stripes across the display itself
Sounds like the infamous logic board problem that plagued the iBook G3 (Dual USB).
When the iBook does a hard shutdown, it would be normal to get the message about the date being wrong. It's possible that if it automatically connects to the internet, it may immediately automatically reset so that when you check it, it's correct.
Backlight problems? Again, familiar to many G3 owners:
http://discussions.apple.com/thread.jspa?threadID=207731&tstart=0
AppleCare's your best bet, but this will give you some "light" reading and something to think about until you get them called.
Good luck.

To Everyone with Random Shutdowns! (Solved! REALLY!)

Hey all,
I had posted about a week back about my Macbook (Core duo white, late 2006), it was having the same symptoms as some of the others with the known random shutdown syndrome (RSS). Like many others I had thought it was the end of my macbook and the logicboard needed replacing because that is what the 'genius' people do, but I was still wondering what would cause it. It would randomly shut off! (or so I thought) I'd be typing in Safari, watching a youtube video, and even playing games, it would just shut off and I could hear the hard drive spin down. I'd restart and it would do it again sometimes right away, sometimes hours later.
This got me to thinking (like others have said) that it must be an issue with over heating. To test my theory I backed up my HD, and tried to reinstall Snow Leopard after zeroing the HD (as a fresh install). During the install process the Macbook's fan started to get loud and then it happened, it died again! So, this proved to me that it is NOT a software/OS issue at all, which means the said efforts in other posts of changing screen saver and energy saver settings had nothing to do with the cause! Aha moment!
I thought to myself... something is making it shutdown, obviously, and has to do with too much heat as the fan was going crazy even while reinstalling the OS. After reading many posts on different support forums I came accross the possibility that it could be the heatsink and/or sensor that is attached to it. I also found out that this "RSS" only applies to the non-unibody, core duo, and core 2 duo macbooks... you know what that means?
These models are the only ones with the shared memory and GPU on the same heatsink! GAH! A possible solution presents itself? To make a long post even longer... I removed the keyboard, carefully unscrewed the heatsink and fan and what did I see? Cracked and dried out thermal paste on the CPU AND GPU, they are both under the same heatsink after all, this was bad, really bad.
Luckily I had some Arctic Silver thermal paste in a tube from years ago when I upgraded my PowerMac CPU. Using some rubbing alcohol and a soft cloth I removed the crud on the heatsink, processor, and GPU (I might add that there was way too much paste on there in the first place). I waited an extra few minutes to make sure the alcohol evaporated, and then I applied a small (dime sized) amount of thermal past directly onto the two chips, I aligned the heatsink carefully and gave it a very small gentle push down onto the chips, reattached the sensor wire to the mainboard, and screwed the heatsink back in.
After putting the keyboard back on and making sure all screws were in... I immediately turned on the laptop and reinstalled the OS. The OS install took approximately 10 mintues! (crazy!) The last time I did that it took over 30 mins to install! I was stunned!
After the OS installed I let the computer idle and shut down, I let it sit for about an hour to allow the paste to contract as it cooled. After starting up again I immediately downloaded Temperature Monitor and installed it (I did have it running when my mac had RSS by the way), here are the results to prove my theory:
My Macbook with RSS:
CPU1 and CPU2 Idle temp - 114 degrees (F)
Heatsink temp - 128 degrees (F)
Approximate over heating temp - 184 degrees (F) (causing the heatsink sensor to shutdown the laptop)
My Macbook with new high quality thermal paste:
Idle temp of CPU1, CPU2, and GPU - 77 degrees (F)
Heatsink temp - 84 degrees (F)
Running temp with adobe CS4, youtube, and typing this message - 103 degrees (F)
Pretty amazing if you ask me!
Before I applied the thermal paste my Macbook took at least a minute to start up with a fresh OS install, now it only takes about 15 seconds! I have not heard the fan spin up and go crazy since! And I can't even explain to you how much fast it is now!
This does prove that Random shutdown syndrome (RSS) is caused ONLY by your GPU over heating due to old thermal paste between the chips and heatsink! A design flaw by Apple? probably not because thermal paste will crack and dry over time.
This also proves that energy conversion to data in the chips can decrease because of over heating, causing the computer performance to dramatically drop!
So before you take your out-of-warranty macbook to Apple or a repair shop, see what your internal temp readings are and try to replicate the problem with over heating your CPU/GPU! This was a 10 minute fix! I am still amazed at how much faster everything is, and haven't had a random shutdown since! I hope this helps alot of people that think they are out of luck and have to pay to get it fixed!
- Cory -

I too have this problem as well and it has been getting worse lately, I don't know what to do anymore. Here is a little info about my macbookPro. I have the late 2008 unibody model, i bought it in late 2009 Refurbished from Apple. Recently my mac has been turning off out of nowhere. I may be doing something and all of a sudden it just shuts off, it usually happens faster when i start to open up more programs like Photoshop or Final Cut Pro. My mac is out of warranty now and i dont know how much apple is going to charge me to fix it. i mean they want 50 bucks just to talk to them on the phone (ridiculous if you ask me)!.
    I have a temperature sensor installed and here is my data
CPU A Proximity: 126F
CPU A Temperature Diode: 133F
Graphics Processor Chip 1: 122F
Graphics Processor Heatsink 1: 113F
Graphics Processor Heatsink 2: 126F
Graphics Processor Temperature Diode: 131F
Left Palm Rest: 91F
Main Heatsink 3: 122F
Main Logic Board: 118F
Northbridge Chip: 127F
Northbridge Position: 124F
Here is more data from the Power
Battery Information:
Model Information:
Manufacturer:          GSA-1281
Device Name:          ASMB016
Pack Lot Code:          0
PCB Lot Code:          0
Firmware Version:          0
Hardware Revision:          0
Cell Revision:          0
Charge Information:
Charge Remaining (mAh):          3739
Fully Charged:          No
Charging:          No
Full Charge Capacity (mAh):          4610
Health Information:
Cycle Count:          68
Condition:          Normal
Battery Installed:          Yes
Amperage (mA):          -1766
Voltage (mV):          11793
System Power Settings:
AC Power:
System Sleep Timer (Minutes):          0
Disk Sleep Timer (Minutes):          0
Display Sleep Timer (Minutes):          90
Automatic Restart on Power Loss:          No
Wake on AC Change:          No
Wake on Clamshell Open:          Yes
Wake on LAN:          No
Display Sleep Uses Dim:          Yes
GPUSwitch:          2
PrioritizeNetworkReachabilityOverSleep:          0
RestartAfterKernelPanic:          157680000
Battery Power:
System Sleep Timer (Minutes):          60
Disk Sleep Timer (Minutes):          0
Display Sleep Timer (Minutes):          2
Wake on AC Change:          No
Wake on Clamshell Open:          Yes
Current Power Source:          Yes
Display Sleep Uses Dim:          Yes
GPUSwitch:          2
Reduce Brightness:          Yes
RestartAfterKernelPanic:          157680000
Hardware Configuration:
UPS Installed:          No
AC Charger Information:
Connected:          No
Charging:          No
PLEASE HELP ME, I CAN NO LONGER TRUST MY MAC FOR WORK. any replies will be appreciated. thanks

Random Shutdown Because of Heat Sensors?

I bought my white MacBook in mid-May (week 19 production) and it worked fine with the exception of a whine when I did not have the iSight Cam on, the occasional mooing after using the computer heavily then using the CPU lightly for a while, and the discoloration. If you ask me it wasn't that much of a set back because this computer was fast and reliable... or so I had thought!
All of a sudden about a week ago, after I had the discoloration fixed, thanks to AppleCare (which only took 5 days), my computer shut down randomly in the middle of light usage...
At first I had thought that my external hard drive was the problem and I was very upset that this had happened. I tried to reboot my computer, but all that would happen was the usual DVD drive start up sound and then it would turn off again. I tried about 5 times to restart it with no luck, so I walked away. About 20 minutes later I was able to start it back up...
After not using my external hard drive for a day, it happened again, in the middle of normal internet browsing and listening to music it randomly shutdown. I thought that maybe it was an OS 10.4.7 issue, because I had not had any problems with x.6, so I erased and restarted from scratch, and once again, another MacDeath. Once again, I thought it to be my fault in my installation of 2Gb of RAM. I re-installed the custom 2x256 RAM that came with the computer ( and will remain in my hands forever, because you can't even pay someone to take away a stick of 256Mb RAM these days) well after the old RAM was forcefully shoved back in, it died again! This is when I started to get mad...
I put up with the whinning, I put up with the heat, I put up with the discoloration (for a while), but now this? WHY!
Over the next week it happened almost daily and sometimes when I would turn on my computer after it being off for at least 5 hours, it would load my home screen and after about a minute I would hear the fan come on for a few seconds, and then it would die again. I noticed that most times that my MacBook would shutdown unexpectedly, the fan had just turned on for a few seconds or I was playing a game and the fan was already on...
So today I called AppleCare and I had to wait about 30 minutes before I talked to someone... (When I called last time about discoloration, the wait was about 5 minutes) So either there are more and more angry customers calling, or Apple is firing employees to increase their stock value...?
When I finally got through the man told me that it was most likely not the Logic Board, but instead FAULTY HEAT SENSORS and/or FAULTY HEAT SINK APPLICATION. I won't lie I have seen Core Duo Temp show readings as high as 91 C (about 196 degrees F). I knew that this things got hot, but not so hot as to start a fire if left on too long....
So I am getting a box from DHL tomorrow (woohoo) MacB. and I get to part ways again, but this time, from reading many threads, I assume our time apart will be much longer approaching around 2 WEEKS!!!
All I hope is that AppleCare will fix the heat sensors that are supposed to shutdown the computer when it gets overheated.... I have to go to school in about a month and I will not have time to deal with these kinds of issues! I really like the MacBook and all of it's features, but I did not sign up to get a MacDieOnMeBook!
APPLE USE SOME OF THE 24% SALE INCREASE THIS QUARTER TO HELP YOUR LOYAL CUSTOMERS WHO HAVE BEEN WITH YOU THROUGH THE GOOD AND THE BAD!
MB 2GHz White 2GB RAM - 250 GB External HD Mac OS X (10.4.6)

As of yet i'm not exactly sure about the heatsink problem, although a few in here have reported machines that work well after having this part replaced, while others who only had the MLB replaced reported a recurrence of the problem.
as for the volume indicator, i noticed that mine did that too, but it was in fact muted whether or not the tool bar indicated it. i dismissed this as a small quirk, similar to when my volume indicator didnt change as i pressed the volume buttons on my old laptop. but so long as there was an acknowledging "squirt" noise on the computer indicating change of volume, that shouldnt be a problem.
good luck withyour MB

Random Shutdown in 2010 for a 2006 Macbook

Hello-
I have a 2006 Macbook 1.83 GHz processor and I never had the whole random shutdown problem previously... it burned through batteries like nothing and I was about to install my third hard drive, but no random shutdown problems. Well, now I have it...
Anyway, it is out of warranty, obviously.
1) Will Apple still replace the heatsink, since it was defective even though I am out of warranty?
2) If not, does anyone know if by replacing the heatsink that should fix the problem?
Thanks

Sure Apple will replace the heat sync. At a price. I may be something else though. It might be full if dust after all these years. You could try putting a vacuum cleaner over the in vent and give it a good sucking. Worked for a friend of mine...

Not so random shutdowns...

Hi,
My Macbook is just over a year old now still under applecare, I had random shutdowns before and did the firmware update which fixed it. Yesterday, I had the +please hold down the power button...+ message and so did thinking little of it, after all it is not uncommon to have to do it once in a while. Since then though it has been intermittently restarting all on its own and occasionally throwing up the +please hold power...+ message. Interesting to note is the optical drive noise when it restarts itself. I know how it should sound, the kind of mechanical movement sound that happens when you restart normally (or launch parallels and windows grabs hold of your drive). However, occasionally on these restarts it pauses during this sound several times making the same noise but stuttering through it... Strange!
It seems that I can often make it restart or throw up the power button message by just lifting up the front of the computer, as you would if you were turning it around or something. This leads me to believe it's a hardware fault... Looking under the battery compartment the two outside screws that are on the battery connection side were loose and nearly falling out so I tightened those back up, still the problem persists.
After the last restart message I copied this error report, I have no idea what to look for, just wondering if anyone can see anything helpful?
panic(cpu 1 caller 0x001A4A55): Unresolved kernel trap (CPU 1, Type 13=general protection), registers:
CR0: 0x8001003b, CR2: 0x00270000, CR3: 0x00e08000, CR4: 0x000006e0
EAX: 0x00000000, EBX: 0x00025fde, ECX: 0x02fa4d90, EDX: 0x24188000
CR2: 0x02f67af8, EBP: 0x13f7bfc8, ESI: 0xfc52147b, EDI: 0x0000009c
EFL: 0x00010046, EIP: 0x00101a00, CS: 0x00000004, DS: 0xb018000c
Backtrace, Format - Frame : Return Address (4 potential args on stack)
0x2f67968 : 0x128d08 (0x3cc0a4 0x2f6798c 0x131de5 0x0)
0x2f679a8 : 0x1a4a55 (0x3d24b8 0x1 0xd 0x3d1cc8)
0x2f67ab8 : 0x19aeb4 (0x2f67ac4 0xe 0xffe10048 0xc)
0x13f7bfc8 : 0x19b28e (0x2f67b0c 0x1 0x19ad3b 0x2f97d90) No mapping exists for frame pointer
Backtrace terminated-invalid frame pointer 0xbffffb58
Kernel version:
Darwin Kernel Version 8.10.1: Wed May 23 16:33:00 PDT 2007; root:xnu-792.22.5~1/RELEASE_I386
Model: MacBook1,1, BootROM MB11.0061.B03, 2 processors, Intel Core Duo, 1.83 GHz, 1 GB
Graphics: Intel GMA 950, GMA 950, Built-In, spdisplaysintegratedvram
Memory Module: BANK 0/DIMM0, 512 MB, DDR2 SDRAM, 667 MHz
Memory Module: BANK 1/DIMM1, 512 MB, DDR2 SDRAM, 667 MHz
AirPort: spairportwireless_card_type_airportextreme (0x168C, 0x86), 1.1.9.3
Bluetooth: Version 1.9.0f8, 2 service, 1 devices, 1 incoming serial ports
Network Service: AirPort, AirPort, en1
Network Service: Parallels Host-Guest, Ethernet, en2
Network Service: Parallels NAT, Ethernet, en3
Serial ATA Device: WDC WD1200BEVS-60LAT0, 111.79 GB
Parallel ATA Device: MATSHITACD-RW CW-8221
USB Device: Built-in iSight, Micron, Up to 480 Mb/sec, 500 mA
USB Device: Bluetooth USB Host Controller, Apple, Inc., Up to 12 Mb/sec, 500 mA
USB Device: IR Receiver, Apple Computer, Inc., Up to 12 Mb/sec, 500 mA
USB Device: Apple Internal Keyboard / Trackpad, Apple Computer, Up to 12 Mb/sec, 500 mA
I have tried a PMU reset, PRAM reset and whatever it is that happens when you hold the power button when you turn it on to make it beeeeeeep... The issue happens with or without the power cable attached.
Unless anyone can suggest anything here I'll be taking it to the repair centre...
Thanks for reading!

Ok, this is not an answer but it may help you a little: have you checked your logs? It may be an indication of what has happened there. If you don't know the drill: go to console under applications/utilities, select logs, and go there to /library/logs/panic.log. Some information may appear there, for instance if there is some consistent cause like one of your processors, some specific fault.
Not much, I know, but at least you may glean something out of it.

After a year, another chain of random shutdowns

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