PowerBook crashes when running on battery power

Having problem with a 17" powerbook.
computer runs fine with AC plug in, but when running without AC, it will freeze or kernal panic when launch any application. Ran disk utility and everything seems to be fine, even with MacTestCD... everything passed (Memory and HDD all passed).
I did permission repair & diskwarrior... it still crashes without AC...

MacTestCD? How old is that?
Never heard of MacTestCD. Who makes it? You should only use a utility made for the operating system in question. Otherwise kernel panics could happen if they attempt to repair things they don't understand.
Is your data backed up?

Similar Messages

Macbook Pro crashes when running on battery

Hi.
My Macbook Pro crashes when running in battery. It seems it doesn't happen when connected to the power.
Is there any way to know if it's a battery malfunction?
Because Apple changed the motherboard a month ago or so because Nvidia broke. So it could be also the connector to the battery?
Is there any tests I can run?
Thanks

I would take it back to Apple and have them check it. You may have got a replacement logic board with a problem. Apple usually use rebuilt ones.
Dave M.
MacOSG Founder/Ambassador  An Apple User Group  iTunes: MacOSG Podcast
Macsimum News Associate Editor  Creator of 'Mac611 - Mobile Mac Support'

Hizzing / bad sound when running from battery power (Ups)?:

Why is my computer (Imac) emitting a hizzing sound when running from the UPS (battery)? I am testing a offline UPS type: POWERWARE Eaton Protection Station UPS 500VA 250W. My Imac is suppose to use max 200 watts of electrity (Imac 24 inch. intel 2.8 Ghz, 4 GB memory). When running from AC there is no sound. When testing (pulling out the cord on the UPS the Imac starts emitting a disturbing hizz / sound)???

I solved it my self. It was OK (no buzz and fuzz) when it was plugged in (when the electicity line was down once and I was running on the UPS battery).....

Satellite L635 freezes up when running on battery power

Hi,
I've bought a Toshiba satellite L635 yesterday, and whenever I try to work on it for more than 5 minutes, the entire computer freezes up nad remains stuck.
After I turn it off and on again and run in safe mode, it works just fine.
When the computer is plugged in to the AC power, it works fine too.
I've tried to recover the OS and settings, but it still freezes up after about 5 minutes of work.
I've also tried to kill all the unnecessary processes, but it still freezed up on me.
I will appreciate your help,
Eli.

Hi,, The problem is on Power menagement, the system tries to extend battery life by reducing performance, so go to: ControlPanel > Power Options > Change Plan settings from here click -Change Advanced power Settings- then in - Processor Power Management - increase % of - Minimum Processor State in both Battery and Plugged in modes. I increased them to 15% and its helped to forget this problem. Also dont forget to update your BIOS from toshiba support, version of 2.2 availible. Wish this will help you

High CPU usage when running on battery power

Hi all,
Since a a few weeks, my MBP mod A1278 with the i5 CPU, is extremely slow when not plugged in.
The Activity Monitor shows that a kernel_task is consuming 274% CPU and is using 64 threads.
As soon as I hookup the power adapter, the kernel_task activity falls back to around 3% and everything is all good.
Anyone with a solution? Should I replace the battery?
BTW I completely reinstalled the MBP and I have a clean system.
Thanks.
Patries,

Click Apple icon on the Menubar.
From the dropdown click About This Mac.
Click More Info.
From the popup window select System Report and click Power on the side bar.
It will show the health of the battery.
Proceed from there.
Best.

When running on battery power, my MBP shuts down after 30 mins..please help

this has been happening for the last two weeks; whenever i run my MBP on battery, it goes blank/shuts down after about 30 mins...would start back on, but shut down even before the login screen comes! i checked the battery display under the laptop-it showed 3 green lights!! TIA!! i bought my MBP off the apple website last september!

With your symptoms, most likely, yes. If you have a 17" MBP, you are out of spec (based on Apple's specification of 80% health for 300 cycles). If you have a 15" MBP, you're in spec (84% health), but your symptoms indicate a problem (i.e. a defective battery). So, contact AppleCare!
You can't calibrate now. I asked because if a battery goes too long (150-220 cycles) without calibration, the "sudden loss of power" can result.
Hope this helps...
Graham, that's why I inquired about calibration, but with the OP's cycle count, that's not the issue. Also, FYI the "battery condition" information is part of System Profiler with Leopard; the OP lists Tiger, and did post all the information available under Tiger.

Airport crashes computer running off battery

This issue has been moved from "Wireless Internet stops working"
Posts: 11
Registered: May 25, 2007
Re: Wireless Internet stops working
Posted: Jun 22, 2007 7:26 AM in response to: squirrelofsnooze Reply Email
I'm having similar issue after upgrade to 10.4.10. My mbp is practically new, only a few weeks old. Originally thought it was Safari and flash problem but it also happens in Firefox. Went to genius bar, in log they saw problem with airport. they said it was problem at my home wireless since computer seemed to work ok in store, though we did not have it connected to internet very long in the store and store is open net, not closed.
when i got home and started browsing, my computer crashed twice, in both Safari and Firefox. It would have connection for a few minutes and then crash. (screen slowly turning gray and then prompt to restart). I ran internet connect diagnostic and it said i was not connected even though i had strong signal on icon. i could see internet connect icon in dock switching from ethernet to wireless (no ethernet cable connected). I did the diagnostic wizard thing and got a prompt that my WEP was not in the keychain and if i would always allow it to connect for diagnostic. I entered always and entered wep for keychain. I have not had a crash since but admittedly I have not had time to really put it to a test. Also, I have been helping it along by launching internet connect along with whatever browser in an effort to wake up both the airport card and the wireless router. I don't think you should have to launch internet connect to start or keep a connection going, but it seems to be working for me so far.
I'm open to more suggestions myself since i'm not so sure the issue is solved yet.
jim
MPB c2d, 2.33/2g Mac OS X (10.4.10)
jawood
Posts: 1
From: CA
Registered: Jun 22, 2007
Re: Wireless Internet stops working
Posted: Jun 22, 2007 8:43 AM in response to: jmitro Reply Email
My MBP has been running like a champ since I bought it in March. However, I started having the same exact problem after I updated yesterday.
I find that if I am on battery power I can only maintain a wireless connection for 2-5 minutes. AirPort shows that I am connected, but I cannot access webpages or email. If I turn off AirPort and turn it back on sometimes I get reconnected to the internet. The other times my computer crashes and I get the slow gray screen that tells me to reboot.
Strangely, if I stay plugged in to power I have none of these problems. I would therefore assume that yesterday's update somehow effected the power settings for my wireless card. However, all of the settings I can find look good to me. I am a Mac "newbie." Is there any way to go back to remove an update or go back to a previous system set up? I live about an hour from the nearest Apple store, so I am hoping to avoid a trip to the Genius Bar. Suggestions?
Joe
MacBookPro Mac OS X (10.4.10)
jmitro
Posts: 11
Registered: May 25, 2007
Re: Wireless Internet stops working
Posted: Jun 22, 2007 8:54 AM in response to: jawood Reply Email
joe,
thanks for the heads up on the power supply. that could have had more to do with my own solution than the wep and the launching of internet connect. my battery was running low and i did plug it in about the same time i was working on the connection. when i get a chance, i'll see if i can duplicate what you've experienced re power supply. we may have the same issue and maybe we'll be able to narrow it down. i'm close to an apple store and it's easy for me to drop in after work on the way home. i may be able to save you a trip. i'll report back later next week as i'll be out of town over the weekend.
jim
MPB C2D, 2.33/2g Mac OS X (10.4.10)
Joe,
I have duplicated what you reported about computer working fine plugged in but crashes when running off battery. I will try to get in to the Apple store on Monday or Tuesday. In meantime I guess we need to stay plugged in.
jim
17 MBP C2D 2.33Ghz 2G Mac OS X (10.4.10)

I drove over to my nearest Apple store today and naturally the problem wouldn't appear while I was in the store. The Genius took a look at my error logs and could see the problem I was having, but he didn't really have a fix for me. He did suggest rebooting from the CDs that came with my computer to reinstall the operating system if I kept having kernal panics.
Of course, when I got home the problem reappeared when I was running on battery power...my computer also had another kernal panic. Part of me started to wonder if it is a problem with my wireless router. However, I also have a MacBook still running 10.4.9 and it isn't having any problems nor is my PC laptop.
I finally gave up and plugged in the power supply. Since no one at the Apple store seems to be able to fix my problem I am hoping the "software update gods" find the error with this week's update and release a fix. Otherwise, I am going to have to dig out those CDs. How hard is it to reinstall the operating system? It sounds daunting.

XP slows down when running on battery

Hi, I've just bought a brand new macbook and upgraded it with 1GB of RAM. However, after I installed bootcamp and loaded xp, I found out that the macbook begins to lag when I unplug the magsafe. Is this normal?
This issue is most noticeable when I play audio on the macbook. Whenever I open any audio file and repeatedly press the apple (windows) key next to the space par, the audio jitters pauses every half a second. This isn't limited to that, it lags whenever I open a new window or folder. It only does that when running off battery power.
I'm a new mac user and I was wondering if any of you had the same problems. I know my parents' PC laptops don't have the same problem when they unplug their power. Please respond, or at least let me know if I'm the only one with this issue.
Macbook Mac OS X (10.4.7)
Mac OS X (10.4.7)
Windows XP Pro

Finally someone raised the question I asked numerous times and couldn't get anyone to try it out on their macbooks.
Yes - Windows XP will lagg when on battery power only. I've noticed it few weeks ago. Strangely - OSX won't lagg when on battery power.
I got one answer on my previous post that made a lot of sense - The person told me that it's probably just a glitch in the BOOTCAMP beta - since its only a trial version for now - until its fully upgraded with Leopard.
It makes a sence now that I'm not the only one with the problem. Its probably BOOTCAMP.
I guess we will have to wait for Leopard with the upgraded, fully supported version of BOOTCAMP.
Glad to hear that I'm not the only one - I can be sure now that its not a faulty battery or logic board.
For now use the magsafe when on Windows side - until you get leopard or until new version of Bootcamp is released.
Here's the link to my original post http://discussions.apple.com/message.jspa?messageID=4445918#4445918

How can i use an external screen on mountain lion when i'm running on battery power?

Hey all:
I just upgraded from snow leopard to Mountain Lion, and i use external screen, keyboard and mouse all the time....
On Mountain Lion it's perfect when the power adaptor is connected as soon as you close the LID your external screen becomes the primary screeen and it's fully functional desktop (no mirroring or extension screen)
But the problem is when i'm in battery power, in snow leopard i used to close my lid my mac goes to sleep then i wake it up using the mouse and immediately open the LID so it doesn't go to sleep again and now i'm running on battery power with a primary external screen.
Any idea how to use an external screen on mountain lion while i'm on battery power? (i know i can use mirroring but i want just 1 primary screen and the laptop screen would be turned off )
Thanks for the help.....
Sherif

Sherif Daniel wrote:
my question is how to use an external display with mountain lion when i'm running on the laptop battery not connecting the ac adaptor?
Thanks again
You can't with the lid closed, that's one of the rules for clamshell mode.
http://support.apple.com/kb/ht3131

My macbook pro 2.0 early 2011 will not go to sleep with the power source connected. only enters sleep mode when running on battery. Someone did this happen, and it could solve?

Alo, my Macbook pro i7 2 GHz Intel Core i7 (early 2011) will not go to sleep with the power source connected. only enters sleep mode when running on battery. Someone did this happen, and it could solve?

There is no output from that command line? Maybe the pid changed.
I'll repeat what I am trying to find out...
1. You do a pmset -g on the terminal.
2. The output from that pmset should have a line that says "sleep 0 (imposed by n)" where n is some number.
3. The ps ax | grep n is supposed to display what the process associated with n is.
It's the output from step 3 that should indicate what is causing you not to sleep.
But speaking of sleep, that's where I am going.

MacBook Pro late 2011 not switching to ATI graphics when running off mains power.

Hi there.
My MacBook Pro late 2011 doesn't appear to be switching to ATI graphics when running off mains power. It always seems to stay on the Intel adapter instead. I've checked the option in the energy saver settings and it's ticked to "Automatically switch..." and when I untick this box, it switches to ATI and stays that way even when running on battery (as expected). Either way it will not switch to ATI graphics when plugged into mains unless forced to in this way.
Any one else seen this? Very frustrating when trying to run an external monitor with the Intel adapter!
Thanks in advance.
Dan

"As a last resort I opened the bottom cover and disconnected the battery power plug (MagSafe adapter also disconnected)."
After everything was disconnected did you press the power button and walk away for 5 minutes? Try that, just had one restart after waiting for that long.

PB 1400cs won't run on battery power

I've got a 1400cs, purchased second-hand, and it seems to have a problem running on batteries. Even with a new battery, it doesn't want to run on battery power. `Runs fine on AC power, though!
What could cause this? What are my options for inexpensive repair on this problem?

Keith,
I also have a 1400 with the original battery which will not even run the 'book for a second when I unplug the power adapter, but I don't use the 'book anymore. Surprisingly, the battery level gauge in the menu bar is all red and the Control Strip shows a fully charged battery.
In the menu bar, at least with the OS 8.6 I am running, the red vertical bar or cylinder is a capacity gauge; when all red, the battery is full; as power is consumed, the red starts dropping down and the top is filling with blue. Your gauge indicates a fully charged battery.
The only time you see the lightning bolt is when the battery is charging and you will see it in the menu bar and the Control Strip.
You know the power adapter is connected by the presence of the plug in the Control Strip.
The bars in the Control Strip are all gray when the battery is fully charged and all white when empty.
Remove all power and take a look in the battery bay with a flashlight; gently touch each pin with the eraser-end of a pencil and see if any of the pins is loose or possibly set back beyond the others.
According to Apple service guides, if you have performed the resets and have a known-good battery and power adapter, the only fix is a logic board.
Do you have a 45w power adapter and have you tried another power adapter? You can use the PB1400 or 3400 or any G3 or clamshell iBook adapters.

My macbook won't turn it on when running by battery

my 13" macbook won't turn it on when running by battery even the battery is completely charged. Even though plugging by power my macbook still works. What should I do to make sure the battery of the macbook to make it work again.

You might try to reset the SMC and/or PRAM. If that doesn't help you should contact apple service about getting it replaced.

Macbook shutdown without any warning after 40%, when run on battery.

Hello,
My Macbook when run on battery after 40% shuts off without a warning. Is there a way to avoid it? Is there a setting in the battery preferences where I can change to avoid shut down?
Battery Information:
Model Information:
Serial Number: DP-ASMB016-370e-4db1
Manufacturer: DP
Device name: ASMB016
Pack Lot Code: 0002
PCB Lot Code: 0000
Firmware Version: 102a
Hardware Revision: 0500
Cell Revision: 0200
Charge Information:
Charge remaining (mAh): 2496
Fully charged: No
Charging: Yes
Full charge capacity (mAh): 4276
Health Information:
Cycle count: 142
Condition: Good
Battery Installed: Yes
Amperage (mA): 1488
Voltage (mV): 12281
System Power Settings:
AC Power:
System Sleep Timer (Minutes): 60
Disk Sleep Timer (Minutes): 180
Display Sleep Timer (Minutes): 45
Automatic Restart On Power Loss: Yes
Wake On AC Change: No
Wake On Clamshell Open: Yes
Wake On LAN: Yes
Display Sleep Uses Dim: Yes
Battery Power:
System Sleep Timer (Minutes): 60
Disk Sleep Timer (Minutes): 180
Display Sleep Timer (Minutes): 45
Wake On AC Change: No
Wake On Clamshell Open: Yes
Display Sleep Uses Dim: Yes
Reduce Brightness: Yes
Hardware Configuration:
UPS Installed: No
AC Charger Information:
Connected: Yes
Charging: Yes
If you can suggest me with the above problem will be of great help. Thank you in advance.

Same issues here:
- When powering the MB on the battery, the MB can go off suddenly without warning, usually at about 20% but, since it started about 2 months ago, it occurred also at 7%, between 30 and 40% and even 70% once… It occurs every time when on batteries. And every time, if I start the computer again, it will shut down suddenly without warning after a few seconds/minutes. When back on mains, it can be powered on normally. It does not go to sleep, it's a complete and sudden power off without warning.
- The battery at about 173 cycles sees its capacity dwindling way too much (it's been dwindling since day one, but it's going down faster and faster, the graph since November 2007 in MiniBatteryLogger is edificatory). The capacity right now is between 2900 and 3460 depending of the feel of the day. It's been calibrated regularly since day one in July 2007. Note that the capacity dwindled from its original capacity but never went higher than this value even if along the way it recovered sometimes more capacity.
I have tried all the tricks from calibrating a little bit more often, reseted the SMC, even a complete system reinstall (that I wanted to do anyway as I had to get rid of the evil spotlight bug). All this to no avail.
So what? :-/
Model Information:
Serial Number: DP-ASMB013-3629-1bbc
Manufacturer: DP
Device name: ASMB013
Pack Lot Code: 0001
PCB Lot Code: 0000
Firmware Version: 0102
Hardware Revision: 0300
Cell Revision: 0200
Charge Information:
Charge remaining (mAh): 3320
Fully charged: Yes
Charging: No
Full charge capacity (mAh): 3412
Health Information:
Cycle count: 173
Condition: Check Battery
Battery Installed: Yes
Amperage (mA): -1
Voltage (mV): 12411
System Power Settings:
AC Power:
System Sleep Timer (Minutes): 0
Disk Sleep Timer (Minutes): 0
Display Sleep Timer (Minutes): 5
Automatic Restart On Power Loss: No
Wake On AC Change: No
Wake On Clamshell Open: Yes
Wake On LAN: Yes
Display Sleep Uses Dim: Yes
Battery Power:
System Sleep Timer (Minutes): 5
Disk Sleep Timer (Minutes): 10
Display Sleep Timer (Minutes): 1
Wake On AC Change: No
Wake On Clamshell Open: Yes
Display Sleep Uses Dim: Yes
Reduce Brightness: Yes
Hardware Configuration:
UPS Installed: No
AC Charger Information:
Connected: Yes
Charging: No

HP 250 Laptop - When running on battery turns off without warning and won't restart

One month after warranty expires this laptop presents with this problem. It shuts down without warning when running on battery, although the battery has plenty of charge. Following shutdown it won't restart on battery. Plugging in power and restarting it displays a message that the battery is cactus before continuing to boot. When trying to run F2 on startup battery check it simply doesn't progress past the initial screen (1%) and [esc] key does nothing. Need to power off. However, REMOVE the battery, boot the computer, shutdown, REINSTALL the battery, turn on and everything is OK - most recent example showing battery with 95% remaining. Continues to work for a few days until it decides to fail again. Suspect the battery is not at fault here, and in any case can't get a replacement (thanks HP for providing equipment with rare and unusual parts) - one supplier has only two on order which will be delivered some time in September!! Usual third party providers don't provide a replacement for this battery. Have seen a lot of references to this sort of mystery "battery failure - shutdown with warning" but no concrete solution. Have tried different power setting including never hibernate, but these seem unrelated. Open to useful suggestions at this point.

One month after warranty expires this laptop presents with this problem. It shuts down without warning when running on battery, although the battery has plenty of charge. Following shutdown it won't restart on battery. Plugging in power and restarting it displays a message that the battery is cactus before continuing to boot. When trying to run F2 on startup battery check it simply doesn't progress past the initial screen (1%) and [esc] key does nothing. Need to power off. However, REMOVE the battery, boot the computer, shutdown, REINSTALL the battery, turn on and everything is OK - most recent example showing battery with 95% remaining. Continues to work for a few days until it decides to fail again. Suspect the battery is not at fault here, and in any case can't get a replacement (thanks HP for providing equipment with rare and unusual parts) - one supplier has only two on order which will be delivered some time in September!! Usual third party providers don't provide a replacement for this battery. Have seen a lot of references to this sort of mystery "battery failure - shutdown with warning" but no concrete solution. Have tried different power setting including never hibernate, but these seem unrelated. Open to useful suggestions at this point.

PowerBook crashes when running on battery power

Similar Messages

Maybe you are looking for