Sudden Motion Sensor crash in MBP with SSD

Hi. I replaced my 2011 17" MBP's internal HD with one, then another SSD from OWC, going from 240 to 480.
As indicated in OWC's instructions, the Sudden Motion Sensor no longer applies and should be disabled with this command from the terminal:
$ sudo pmset -a sms 0
And using this command, we can see that the SMS is off:
$ sudo pmset -g
Active Profiles:
Battery Power                    -1
AC Power                    -1*
Currently in use:
womp                    1
halfdim          1
sms                    0
What happens all too often though is that my Mac issues an SMS crash while asleep if I am driving home and hit a bump in my car. Just Monday, I was driving with my Mac open and on, the car hit a bump and I got to watch the Gray Screen of Death as the Mac issued a kernel panic from the Sudden Motion Sensor.
But it's off.
FYI, I turned it off to try and stop this behaviour

Download an run memtest to check your RAM.
http://osxdaily.com/2011/05/03/memtest-mac-ram-test/
www.memtestosx.org/downloads/memtest422/Users_Guide.rtf
Don Montalvo was preventing the crashes by turning off SMS. However, replacing bad RAM was the ultimate solution.
https://discussions.apple.com/thread/3013824?start=0&tstart=0
https://discussions.apple.com/thread/3013824?start=45&tstart=0

Similar Messages

Can't enable "Sudden Motion Sensor" in 13" MBP

My brand new MacBook Pro's "Sudden Motion Sensor" won't seem to enable. I've done the Terminal commands listed on Apple's support page and I get a "1" instead of a "0" next to the results, implying that the system thinks it's turned on, yet under "System Profiler" it says "Disabled." Obviously, either Terminal or System Profiler is wrong, but I can't figure out which one.
I'm not sure if this would influence it but, I do have a WD500GB Scorpio Blue drive inside and was/am suffering from the "Beach ball of death" issues associated with the 3rd party HDD's, so I downgraded from the 1.7 EFI Firmware to the 1.6 EFI. Anyone experienced this issue or have any recommendations?

Hi, got the same problem on a 15" MBP running 10.6.1. Apple support referred me to these discussions for a solution.

Should I disable the sudden motion sensor after upgrading to an SSD

I put a 1TB Samsung 840 EVO in my MacBook Pro (9,1). Should I disable the sudden motion sensor? Does it do anything else other than park the hard disk (like something with the fans)?

You may want to read up on the SMS here:
Mac notebooks: About the Sudden Motion Sensor
Sounds like you can safely disable it if you wish since MacBooks which ship with an SSD drive seem to have it disabled.

Sudden motion sensor dissapears

Hi,
I have an issue with the sudden motion sensor on my computer.With the latest mac os x 10.4.10 the sensor always appears in the system profiler on warn starts (ie, when I reboot) but never on cold starts when I turn on the computer). I've tried with the original mac os disk that came with the PB with version 10.4.0 and the sensor always appears. I've tried with a retail mac os 10.4.6 mac os x installation disk and the sensor only appears with warm starts. I've updates 10.4.0 to 10.4.10 and I have the same problem, this upgrade done from system update and with the combo updater.
the only consequence is that widgets like Level don't work. Starting the computer takes like 1 second more and in the system.log log I get the error:
Oct 8 00:29:31 localhost kernel[0]: IOI2CController::clientReadI2C cmd key:1017, B:1, A:b0 S:25, L:1, M:3 status:0xe00002ed
Oct 8 00:29:31 localhost kernel[0]: -IOI2CController::clientReadI2C status = 0xe00002ed
Oct 8 00:29:31 localhost kernel[0]: AMS::readBytes ERROR: failed to read from I2C
Oct 8 00:29:31 localhost kernel[0]: AMS::shockIntHandler ERROR: failed to read the byte
Oct 8 00:29:31 localhost kernel[0]: IOI2CController::clientWriteI2C cmd key:1019, B:1, A:b0 S:25, L:1, M:2 status:0xe00002ed
Oct 8 00:29:31 localhost kernel[0]: -IOI2CController::clientWriteI2C status = 0xe00002ed
Oct 8 00:29:31 localhost kernel[0]: AMS::writeBytes ERROR: failed to write to I2C
Oct 8 00:29:31 localhost kernel[0]: AMS::clearInterrupt ERROR: failed to write the bytes, retval = 0xe00002ed
Oct 8 00:29:31 localhost kernel[0]: AMS::shockIntHandler ERROR: failed to clear the interrupt, retval = 0xe00002ed
Oct 8 00:29:31 localhost kernel[0]: IOI2CController::clientReadI2C cmd key:101b, B:1, A:b0 S:0, L:1, M:3 status:0xe00002ed
Oct 8 00:29:31 localhost kernel[0]: -IOI2CController::clientReadI2C status = 0xe00002ed
Oct 8 00:29:31 localhost kernel[0]: AMS::readBytes ERROR: failed to read from I2C
Oct 8 00:29:31 localhost kernel[0]: AMS::checkResult ERROR: failed to read the bytes
Oct 8 00:29:31 localhost kernel[0]: AMS::writeCommand ERROR: failed to check the result code
Oct 8 00:29:31 localhost kernel[0]: AMS::startApp ERROR: failed to send kStartAppComm
Oct 8 00:29:31 localhost kernel[0]: AMS::start ERROR: startApp failed
Apple has this kb article http://docs.info.apple.com/article.html?artnum=300781 but doesn't help much and this forum has reports from other people but with older versions of tiger and that got fix with version 10.4.3.
I've aldo used the AMSTracker program to report data from the sensor without problems (would that indicate the sensor works ok?)
Can anybody help me solve this error?
TIA
Message was edited by: PerseP
Message was edited by: PerseP

Update:
mac os x 10.4.0 to 10.4.7 to 10.4.8 to 10.4.9 to 10.4.10 works always.
mac os x 10.4.0 to 10.4.10 via combo update works only with hot starts.
In the post http://discussions.apple.com/thread.jspa?threadID=228309 they've found that in versions 10.4.0, 10.4.1 and 10.4.2 of mac os x the the motion sensors appears properly in the system profile but with update 10.4.3 Apple seems to break this until they've released version 10.4.7 which fixes it again.

Sudden Motion Sensor and a new hard drive?

I was just wondering if the Sudden Motion Sensor will still work with a non-Apple hard drive.
If so,
I am also looking for a 160GB hard drive replacement for the Macbook. Something fast, reliable, quite, and most important, good quality. And low power consumption, if possible
P.S. I am also looking for 2GB RAM, with the same qualities.
Thanks.
Apple Mac mini (late 2005) Mac OS X (10.4.8) PowerMac10,2: 1.5GHz, 512MB RAM, 80GB HD, BT/AE...

Nick,
oddly enough there have been reports of the SMS not working properly with some Western Digital drives, which have their own SMS system as well. I happen to have a 120G WD Scorpio, but haven't seen the problem myself yet. I'm sure OWC will replace it without problems if it crops up though-one advantage to dealing with a Mac specific dealer

2011 MBP - HD in Optibay - Sudden Motion Sensor?

2011 15" MacBook Pro with BTO Apple SSD.
Optibay with WD 750GB Scorpio Black.
What is the correct setting regarding the Sudden Motion Sensor?
There is conflicting information that this drive does or does not have a SMS - according to WD's website it does have "ShockGuard"
There are several that have had trouble with motion sensor in a hard drive, in the optibay and in the Mac software. Some have not... and it seems to depend on drive.
What is the correct setting - should one turn OFF Sudden Motion Sensor in the operating system? or leave it on?
and either way, does SMS or "Shockguard" work properly when in an optibay?

Jim,
I have a similar setup to yours. SSD in main MBP drive bay, and WD 750GB Scorpio Black in the optibay.
Ok, so we know that:
SMS doesn't work in the optibay.
Having the boot drive in the optibay causes hibernation issues, which could be "solved" by disabling hibernation and its creation of the /var/vm/sleepimage file.
WD has something called ShockGuard on their Scorpio Black drives:
"WD's ShockGuard technology protects the drive mechanics and platter surfaces from shocks during shipping and handling and in daily operation. WD’s SecurePark parks the recording heads off the disk surface during spin up, spin down, and when the drive is off. This ensures the recording head never touches the disk surface, resulting in improved long-term reliability due to less head wear and improved non-operational shock tolerance." [http://www.wdc.com/wdproducts/library/SpecSheet/ENG/2879-701275.pdf]
I'm wondering if, after a few months with your setup, you still consider the WD ShockGuard to be a sufficient reason for leaving the WD Scorpio Black in the optibay.
My initial instinct is that ShockGuard may not be as effective as SMS. I wonder, in part because whenever the Scorpio Black is accessed (via spotlight usage or what have you), it stays spinning for quite a while before eventually spinning down. Do you experience this? Do you have any more advice from your experience?
Thanks.

Sudden Motion sensor active in Boot Camp using Win7 with lid closed

My quesrtion to the community is:
W/ an i7 MBP,
faster 500Gb drive,
running Windows 7 via Boot Camp,
OS running,
Is the Sudden Motion Sensor operational when the lid is closed with Win7 running?

Download an run memtest to check your RAM.
http://osxdaily.com/2011/05/03/memtest-mac-ram-test/
www.memtestosx.org/downloads/memtest422/Users_Guide.rtf
Don Montalvo was preventing the crashes by turning off SMS. However, replacing bad RAM was the ultimate solution.
https://discussions.apple.com/thread/3013824?start=0&tstart=0
https://discussions.apple.com/thread/3013824?start=45&tstart=0

Hard drive upgrade on 13" MBP sudden motion sensor compatibility

Hello,
I'm planning on upgrading the hard drive in my 13" MBP (aluminium unibody) and I've read a lot of posts regarding the sudden motion sensor conflicts with OS X 10.6.2. I'd like to know if the Western Digital 500GB Scorpio Blue here (http://www.dabs.com/products/western-digital-500gb-scorpio-blue-5400rpm-sata-300 -8mb-58P6.html) would suffer from the conflict (I'm not sure if "Shock Guard" = sudden motion sensor). I don't know if its a simple yes/no or whether its drive / mac specific.
If it would be a problem does anyone have a suggestion for a guaranteed compatible 500Gb hard drive (5400 rpm is fine)?
Any thoughts are much appreciated, thanks for your help!

Western Digital Lists their drive features as:
* IntelliSeek™ - IntelliSeek technology calculates optimum seek speeds to lower power consumption, noise and vibration.
* SecurePark™ - WD's SecurePark technology parks the recording heads off the disk surface during spin up, spin down and when the drive is off. This ensures the recording head never touches the disk surface resulting in improved long term reliability due to less head wear, and improved shock tolerance.
* ShockGuard™ - WD's ShockGuard technology protects the drive mechanics and platter surfaces from shocks during shipping and handling and in daily operation.
* Free-fall Sensor - As an added layer of protection, if the drive (or the system it's in) is dropped while in use, WD's free-fall sensor detects that the drive is falling and, in less than 200 milliseconds, parks the head off the disks to help prevent damage and data loss.
* WhisperDrive™ - WD's exclusive WhisperDrive technology combines state-of-the-art seeking algorithms that result in one of the quietest 2.5-inch drives on the market.
The Free Fall Sensor is the equivalent of the Sudden Motion Sensor. Looking at the specs for the drive you linked to... they list the following features:
Shock Guard, WhisperDrive, SecurePark
As they do not list Free Fall Sensor, I'm guessing this model does not have one so it should not conflict with the internal Sudden Motion Sensor in your MacBook.

SSD SMS?? (Solid State Drive Sudden Motion Sensor)

Just a quick question, can anyone tell me if the SSD option has a sudden motion sensor? I realize the benefits to hard drive health wouldn't be needed in a SSD but I find it extremely useful for security (ie: iAlertU).
Thanks!
SAM

Yes it does. This is from my SSD model:
Hardware Overview:
Model Name: MacBook Air
Model Identifier: MacBookAir1,1
Processor Name: Intel Core 2 Duo
Processor Speed: 1.8 GHz
Number Of Processors: 1
Total Number Of Cores: 2
L2 Cache: 4 MB
Memory: 2 GB
Bus Speed: 800 MHz
Boot ROM Version: MBA11.00BB.B00
SMC Version: 1.23f9
Sudden Motion Sensor:
State: Enabled

Is this a problem with the Sudden Motion Sensor or the HDD?

I have a MacBook that I purchased in Septemberof this year, and for a while I have been having a problem with the HDD. I understand that there is a Sudden Motion Sensor that parks the hard disk when the computer is moved suddenly, but every hour or so I can hear the HDD make a single loud click for seemingly no reason at all. The computer can be sitting on my desk with no applications running and this will still happen. This is not really much of a problem other than the annoying noise, but if I am playing music or a video from the HDD it will skip when it does this. I have disabled the SMS for now to see if it will make a difference, I am very careful with my devices so I do not fear that I will cause any HDD damage without the SMS, but I am not sure if it is a problem with the HDD or the SMS. Could anyone shed some light on this for me?

Well turns out disabling the SMS did nothing so I'm going to just take it in and hope it can be fixed.

Sudden motion sensor not working with replacement harddisk?

I replaced the original harddisk of my Macbook pro (500 GB, 7.200 rpm, model no. HTS725050A9A362) with the retail version of the same harddisk (model no. HTS725050A9A364).
Now I'm missing the typical "click" when the sudden motion sensor parks the heads and I'm afraid it's not working - although "pmset -g" shows "sms 1".
Is there anything else I can check, e.g. enable head parking at harddisk-firmware level?
Thanks
Juls

For future reference, here are a couple of kb articles on the sudden motion sensor:
http://support.apple.com/kb/HT1935
http://support.apple.com/kb/HT1934
As has been said, Apple's Sudden Motion Sensor is not actually built into the hard drive. In fact, some hard drives with their own version of a sudden motion sensor like Seagate's G-Force Protection actually will set up a conflict with Apple's Sudden Motion Sensor.
I installed the same WD in my Mac as you did, and I hope you enjoy it as much as I have been enjoying mine.

Sudden Motion Sensor - Anyone else hearing it?

Recently got a new 15" Macbook Pro with the 320gb 7200 rpm hard drive.
Something that's a bit worrying is that I can hear the sudden motion sensor activating. In my previous MBP, which is about 2 years old, I couldn't hear it activate at all.
Also, I've got the new MBP on a stand to raise it up. However almost every time I knock the desk it's on, the SMS activates. Sometimes it doesn't need much force to activate at all.
I'm wondering if this is likely to decrease the life of the hard drive as it's parking the head unnecessarily so often?
Thanks
Chris

My MacBook Pro's Hitachi 320GB 7200 rpm drive also clicks when it parks. I don't worry about it. Hitachi's web site claims a MTBF of 600,000 load/unload cycles (or over 160 load/unload cycles per day, every day, for 10 years).
The noise itself doesn't bug me at all - my old G4 powerbook used to cycle the optical drive every time it woke up, but it never failed (4.5 years of near daily use). So a servo or some do-hicky clicks when it does what it's supposed to do?
If it fails, I'll have AppleCare replace the drive for me, and I'll simply restore from my TimeMachine backup or from one of my SuperDuper clones. I'd rather have the motion sensor parking the drives when the machine moves then NOT doing so and having a HD head crash when I carry the machine from one room to another.

Second Hard Drive, Sudden Motion Sensor

Back in the fall I put a SSD in my 2007 MacBook Pro. It's working perfectly. I found the "OptiBay" product, which basically replaces your optical drive with an adapter for another hard drive. I haven't received it yet, but when I do I plan on installing it with a traditional hard drive. My question regards the sudden motion sensor (SMS). I disabled it because it's not needed for the SSD, but I was planning on re-enabling it for my secondary that I will be installing. I'm still going to boot off the SSD, though. Is there a way, or terminal code, to assign the SMS to a certain disk? I'm assuming it will just disable the root drive in the event of "sudden motion," but would this affect a secondary drive?
I'd love for there to be an option to change the identifier, from disk0s2 to disk0s3, but I have a feeling it isn't possible or would be infinitely more difficult... thanks.

Most drives are available with the equivalent of an internal SMS. You just have to check the specs. Drive manufacturers often offer two versions of their drives... one with and one without a SMS. If you get a drive with the SMS built in, you can just leave the MacBook's internal one disabled.
Here is an example of one of the most popular drives:
http://www.seagate.com/www/en-us/products/laptops/momentus/momentus5400.6g/
Seagate's SMS technology is referred to as G-Force. Note the product number: 5400.6_g. The "g" denotes the drive has a "G-Force" sensor.

Where is Sudden Motion Sensor data stored?

Background:
I replaced my superdrive with an optibay + ssd (OS is stored here) and I left the stock HD (home folder) in it's place.
Problem:
I guess I triggered the SMS the other day and now I can't access my HD (basically just hangs / takes forever to load anything) unless I disable SMS. Where would I clear the data / tell it that my HD is safe to use again. Restarted pram and reinstalled OS, but it didn't help.

Thanks for the responses. Yes, as JoeyR stated, I replaced my superdrive with an SSD and the hard drive is in it's original place so I wanted to re-enable the sudden motion sensor. Thank you for clarifying how the SMS works. I wasn't sure if there was a state that was saved somewhere.
Well the original issue was that my OS would boot (SSD), but I couldn't get into my login (HD). I have a temporary user on the SSD so I was able to use that to troubleshoot. I swapped my HD with another one and it worked (STOCK HD). Then I tried putting the HD into an external closure and that worked as well. I had a feeling it was the connector, but I did not have spare parts to test this theory. I would swap the HDs back and forth and sometimes it would work and sometimes it wouldn't. It was a hit or miss situation. It worked when I disabled the SMS, but when I enabled / disabled it again it didn't work. Ran diagnostics on the HDs, both drives seem fine and in perfect condition. Tried to format the hard drivers and do various combinations of swapping drives and in the end the problem still persisted so it had to be a connector issue. I brought it into repair and they replaced the SATA cable for me and all is good now.
Thanks for the help.

Logic 9 sudden motion sensor error.

Hi Guys,
my rig often gives me the "system overload, sudden motion sensor" error during playback, its driving me nuts, the thing that really gets me is that its a mac pro, booting off an SDD, audio is running off a fast drive and the whole lot is in a shockmounted flightcase, i have no idea how the sudden motion sensor could be doing anything at all.
does it have something to do with the 2.5" SSD the rig boots off?

Hi - I am experiencing this error as well. I believe the issue is due to Logic Pro not quite ready for Lion. I just bought a new iMac 2.5 GHz 4GB RAM. Got it to run Logic, and found 9.1.1 doesn't even run on Lion. After upgrading to 9.1.5 the first thing I tried to do was open the demo projects from The Killers and Lilly Allen, to see what this software is all about. Logic hangs somewhere while loading all of the tracks/software instruments, and needs to be Force Quit. The Santigold project loads but it gives me this error about a minute into playing it:
Disk is too slow or system overload
(-10010)
The sudden motion sensor may have parked the hard drive head, or the disk performance is not sufficient to read or write all audio tracks, or the system was not able to process all data in time.
I do not yet have an external drive and am not sure if running project files off a fast external (as opposed to the system drive running Logic) would resolve the issue. But I notice the error is broad and basically multi-purpose, not necessarily stating that your hard drive has parked for sure, rather that disc/system performance couldn't keep up. I haven't duplicated the error when playing my own projects, with less tracks/software instruments. I think that there may be a threshold where you can just push logic too far for Lion interoperability on this 9.1.5 release. Hoping for a new release soon! Good Luck!

Sudden Motion Sensor crash in MBP with SSD

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