T400 strange power issue

I have a strange intermitent problem with my T400.
Usually, I put the machine into hibernate at night. I then usually unplug the device and all the lights go out.
Twice now, after doing the above, I have returned in the morning to find the battery light blinking orange - i.e., the battery has been nearly entirely drained. Opening the computer, the screen is clearly on, but black, and I can only get things going again by first holding down the power button to completely shut off the system (but why is it even on?), and then restarting. The battery is indeed entirely drained, but recharges normally. In "restarting", the computer behaves as if comming out of hibernate.
I have also noticed that on both occasions when this has occured, upon resuming I get a message from Windows that "the computer has been restarted and windows updates have been installed" (its set to automatic updates).
Does anyone have any idea whats going on? Is the automatic updates function somehow interferring with the hibernate causing the system to restart on its own and then get "frozen" in a power-draining state?

Yes - you have already identified the culprit! Task Scheduler has the ability to wake the computer from hybernation.
Go to control panel and change the automatic update setting so that the files are downloaded, but not installed automatically. By default Windows installs updates at 3:00am, or at the next shutdown after the scheduled install. If you change it to download and notify you, you will get a pop-up telling you that there are updates to be installed.
I travel with my thinkpad, so I have mine set to only notify me of updates, and not to download or install automatically. This keeps me from getting my cellular connection bogged down with automatic downloads.
Just remember, when you see the icon, do the installations at some point! Don't let them pile up.
Don Mannino

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Strange power issues

I am having some strange power issues with my six week old Macbook. The symptoms are as follows (I apologise in advance for the length of this post) :
1) If the battery charge is below 50%, and you connect the magsafe charger prior to power-on, the charge light will illuminate until the grey boot screen comes up. Then the charge light turns of completely & the Macbook boots up using battery power. If I disconnect the magsafe connector, followed by the mains and reconnect in the reverse sequence, the light turns green momentarily and then orange (as it should for charging)
2) If I start the coconutBattery application after booting into OSX, while the charge is still below 50%, the same issue occurs again with the magsafe. It appears to happen at the exact time the application queries the battery. I can get the charger working if I follow the same disconnect/mains/reconnect sequence.
3) The issues above also seems to occur when the battery updater checks the battery. The Macbook does not recognise that the charger is plugged in.
4) If the charge is above 50%, then all works as expected. The coconutBattery application does not affect the charger. The Macbook works as normal.
I have tested with a brand new magsafe & a new battery - symptoms are identical. I have noticed several other non-consistent issues - the flashing green light/orange light on the magsafe connection, unusual battery life calculations (70+ hours).
I have performed calibrations & reset the PMU and the PRAM, and have all current updates. And I have spent a large amount of time in the forums looking at similar issues without much success. I am beginning to suspect the logic board (DC chip) is at fault, however I dont relish the idea of dropping my new Macbook at my local Apple Repair centre & getting it back three weeks later with the same issue.
My current cycles (on this new battery) are at 2 with a full charge capacity of 5142 mAh.
My questions to the community are:
Does anyone have a similar experience with these types of symptoms?
Or can someone illustrate on what would cause the Macbook to believe that the magsafe was disconnected? Whatever internal system call the coconutBattery application uses to recover details from the battery appears to trigger this behavior.
I would appreciate any thoughts on this one.
Macbook Core 2 Duo - 2GB RAM Mac OS X (10.4.9)

Just another observation, based on reading some of Apple's documentation regarding the AC charger:
"If the adapter works after this 60-second "rest," you most likely have a line noise issue with your power source that will require you to reset the adapter (by repeating this moment of rest) periodically. This happens when the AC adapter's over voltage protection feature senses ground noise and then turns off the adapter."
Could a sudden draw of power required at a 50% and below charge trip this over voltage protection feature? I know the charging draw varies based on current battery level.
I have tested this in UPS protected boards with the same result.

Strange power issues - new battery?

When you push the power button, You can hear the fans turning and you hear the startup chime. From here it will either do one of two things: start like normal and show the apple screen or do nothing at all. There isn't much of a pattern to when it will do either except that when I get nothing, shut it down, take out the battery, press the reset button, and put the battery back in it starts up normally. I think that this is an issue with the battery, which I am more than willing to replace. Shuld I? If that's not it, what is the issue?

Hi, and welcome to Apple Discussions.
It sounds like you are resetting the PMU each time in order to recover. Try doing it in the exact recommended order and see if that makes a difference:
http://support.apple.com/kb/HT1431?viewlocale=en_US
An exceedingly worn battery can cause strange issues, all right, but it could also be a problem with the logic board.
Which model of iBook is this (MHz rating, type of optical drive)?
How big is the hard drive and how much space remains available?
How much RAM is installed?

White Macbook2,1 strange power issues

So here's the issue:
The computer runs fine, and will be plugged in to the magsafe and operate just dandy... okay... so then say I remove the magsafe... sure no problem... the Macbook runs off of the battery which holds a charge for quite a while considering the cycle count is rather high... but the problem comes in when I plug the magsafe back into the computer... it turns off immediately. It powers back on and will operate just fine again, until I unplug the magsafe and then plug it back in, in which case, the process starts all over again.
So:
1. As long as the computer is plugged into the wall from the beginning it runs great.
2. As long as the battery has a charge, the computer runs fine for hours, without being plugged in.
3. If the computer is unplugged from the power supply, switches to battery power, and then is plugged back into the wall, then the machine powers itself off, immediately.
4. It powers back on with no problem after this has happened.
I have tried:
1. Reseting the PRAM (OPTCMD+PR) at boot.
2. Removing the battery and holding down the power button until the light flashes and it makes a high pitched beep noise. (Reseting the Power Management)
3. Taking out the battery and cleaning the dust from the contacts.
I'm sort of at a loss at this point... anybody have any ideas/suggestions?
Thanks

If you have reset the SMC then it is likely an issue with the circuitry that handles the switch. Take it to your nearest Apple Store or Apple Authorized Service Provider to have them look at it.

Strange power issue

Hi all.
I have acquired a 12" Aluminium (867MHz) PowerBook, which won't start up at all. It is completely standard, with no additional RAM installed.
The battery will charge through the power adaptor as normal, with the light correctly going from amber to green when fully charged.
But when the power button is pressed, nothing happens - nada, nothing, zilch.
I've tried two power adaptors, PRAM reset and PMU reset, and still nothing.
Any ideas? If this is likely to be a hardware failure, would it most probably be the DC-in board, DC-DC board or (ouch) the Logic Board?
Many thanks in advance,
JP
PowerBook G4 12" Aluminium Mac OS X (10.3)

Could be bad memory, could be burned up cpu, could be burned out lcd. In the first 2 items, that's on the motherboard and soldered, so it becomes a logic board failure/issue. And let's not rule out a defective power button.

T520 Strange Power Issue

Hi
I unfortunately split water on my T520. Subsequently, I let the laptop dry out which appeared to have done the trick.
I know have to follow a strange method to get the laptop powered on, if it has been switched off:
Take battery out
Remove CMOS battery
Reinsert CMOS battery
Put battery back in laptop
Insert power lead
Then voila, the laptop then powers on. I cannot get the laptop powered on from boot using any other method! The laptop wakes from sleep fine. When the laptop is up and running, it's fine.
I have tried replacing the CMOS battery, but this didn't help.
Any ideas?

zoltanthegypsy wrote:
The fix was to replace the kbd/power button. How long has it been since the spill? Maybe more drying time will do the trick.
I wonder if first it's worth trying to spray (sparingly!) some WD-40 or electric contact cleaner onto the power button, then let that permeate into the switch mechanism and contacts? There's not much to lose since the ultimate fix is to replace the keyboard/power button assembly anyway.
Cheers... Dorian Hausman
X1C2, TPT2, T430s, SL500, X61s, T60p, A21p, 770, 760ED... 5160, 5150... S360/30

Ibook G3 Strange Power Problem

Hi People
My Ibook has a strange power issue, it boots up when the battery is in. But as soon as you plug the power supply in it just switches off.
So basically it only works on the battery. The battery does charge though.
Any help is much appreciated.
Many thanks
Luke

Hi Luke and Welcome to Apple Discussions,
This is the procedure from the service manual for the Dual USB:
"The computer runs with battery, but not with the power adapter plugged into
wall outlet
1. Try known-good power outlet.
2. Try known-good power adapter and power cord.
3. Reset the power manager by pressing the key combination Control-Option-Shiftpower.
Warning: Make sure you do not hold down the "fn" key when resetting the
power manager.
Warning: Resetting the power manager will permanently remove a RAM disk, if
present, and all of its contents. You will also need to reset the date and time
(using the Date & Time control panel).
4. Replace the DC board.
5. Replace the logic board."
Richard

Z77A-GD65 power issue/bad system board?

Looking for advice. I am afraid its a bad board, but some symptoms point at power which also makes no sense.
This is what the WHOLE system should look like.
MSI Z77A-GD65 system board
Intel 3770K 3.5Ghz
Anted Kuhler H20 620
G.Skills RipJaws 16GB 1600Mhz DDR3 F3-14900CL9Q-16GBXL (on the test list)
Asus nVidia GTX 680 video card
OCX Vertex 3 256MB SSD
Seagate 500GB data drive
Razer Lycosa Keyboard
Razer DeathAdder Mouse
Antec Sonata IV case with Neo ECO 620W power supply
It seems to me that 620W should be more than enough. According to my calculations thats roughly 330W of power draw against a 620W powersupply.
I am not currently over clocking.
So what the system does look like is:
If I connect the 500GB drive then windows starts rebooting as soon as the Windows logo comes up.
If I place all four sticks of RAM in the system windows starts rebooting as soon as the Windows logo comes up.
If I leave the 500GB standard sata drive off and only use 3 sticks of RAM... well we get a solid system and I am writing this message on it.
3 sticks of ram appear to work in any 3 slots and allow the system to boot, except 1,3,4. That combo also resulted in the reboots at the windows logo.
I first thought it was RAM, originally I was using Corsair Vengeance. I saw some posts here about people having the same problem, and noted that the Corsiar RAM was not tested and switch to a the tested G.Skill instead.
Any ideas? It does not completely seem like a System board issue, but it certainly should not be power. All heat levels are well within normal and as I said the system works great if I leave off the drive and one stick of RAM.
Thanks guys....

System torn down, and put back together. (Found out I was out of Thrermal Compound, so I had to run to the store to get some.)
No long leads, only 9 stand offs matching each mount point on the systemboard.
Back together... problem is the exact same.
However, back to the hard drive issue. I decided to play with that since I was getting no where with 4 sticks of RAM.
What I have discovered is that with NO sata cable connecting the drive to the system board, if I try to power the two 250GB standard sata drives the system reboots just as the Windows logo should come up.
The fact that this behavior is so close to the RAM behavior... I am back to thinking its a power issue, though system board is still a chance... its just easier to buy a new better power supply than the Antec Neo Power 620 that came with the case. (I have not ever had a problem with Antec before, and will likely just buy one of their higher end power supplies to replace it, but I think I will try it next, just in case.)
I am not seeing any strange behavior power wise as far as any monitor shows... but connecting power to a sata drive that is NOT connected with a sata cable and causing a reboot just screams power at me.
Anymore thoughts today. In the mean time off to play Secret World with just the SSD and two sticks of RAM, which still runs rock solid.

HP Dm1-1102sa Strange charging issue

Hi,
My laptop (HP dm1-1102sa) has developed a strange charging issue. The laptop will initially charge fine then it will flick between being charging and running on battery constantly. I bought another battery to see if it was that but the problem still occurred. I then took it apart to check for loose connections and voltage. There were no loose connections and the pins on the battery terminals were showing a constant 18.5v. I tried running the laptop with out the battery and the laptop shutdown after a while.
Anyone have any ideas on what I can do next?
Thanks in advance.
Simon

Hi, thanks for the response, I had a look at this page and followed the suggestions, it all came up fine.
What I have noticed is the bi-coloured LED that sits next to the power connection on the left side was white which indicates not charging (so it seems) , even when it was at 73% and plugged in it wasn't charging, I removed the battery and gently blew out the plug and socket and re-connected the battery several times to see if it was a contact issue, I also did the same for the power connector.
The odd thing was it would run perfectly on battery and on mains just not charging.
I downloaded the latest bios revision (not yet installed), so I left it for a while with the battery and the mains lead disconnected, reconnected everything and noticed the bi-coloured LED was now orange so I left it on the desk for a while not running and when I did start it up some time later it was upto 95% charge and then stopped charging again, and again the LED was back to whte.
Today after receiving this message I tried the suggestions as per the document (except I pulgged in the mains first which brought up the orange LED), performed the tests, I had already tried the HP assistant battery test in windows which showed no issues (still wasn't charging, sitting at 73%), now with it running in front of me (not the computer I am using to type this response) the LED is still orange and the message I get now is "99% available (plugged in, charging)".
So for the moment it appears to have righted its self which is a concern, I hope that it stays this way....
JJ

Strange performance issue with 3510/3511 SAM-FS disk cache

Hi there!
I'm running a small SAM-QFS environment and have some strange performance issue on the disk storage part, which somebody here might be able to explain.
Configuration: one 3510, dual controller, RAID-5 9+1, one hot spare and one disk not configured for whatever reason. The R5 logical drive hosts a 150GB LUN for SAM-QFS metadata (mm in SAM-FS speak) and a 1TB LUN for data (mr in SAM-FS speak). Further, there are two small LUNs (2GB, 100GB) for some other purpose. Those two LUNs have nearly no I/O. All disks are SUN146G. Host connection is 2GBit, multipathing enabled and working.
Then the disk cache became too small, and the customer added a 3511 expansion unit with SUN300G disks. One logical drive is a RAID-1, 1+1, used for NetBackup catalog. The other is a RAID-5, 8+1, providing two LUNs: 260GB SAM-FS metadata (mm) and 1.999TB SAM-FS data (mr).
For SAM-FS, the LUNs form two file systems: one "residing" in the 3510, the other "residing" in the 3511 expansion. Cabling is according to the manual and checked several times by several independant people. Operating system is Solaris 10, hardware is a V880.
The problem we observe: SAM-FS I/O on LUNs on disks inside the 3510 is fine. With iostat, I see 100MB/s read and 50MB/s write at the same time. On the SAM-FS file system which is running on the two LUNs in the 3511, the limit seems to be at 40MB/s read/write. Both SAM-FS file systems are configured the same in regards of block size.
In case I have activity on both SAM-FS file systems, I see 100MB/s+ on the LUN running inside the controller shelf and another 40MB/s on the disk runnin in the 3511 expansion chassis. So, the controller is easily capable of handling 150MB/s.
Cache settings in the 3510 controller are default I think (wasn't installed by me), batteries are fine.
Is this 40MB/s we experience a limitation by the expansion shelf? Don't think so. Anybody has any ideas on this? What parameters to check or to change? Any hint appreciated. I can also provide further details if needed. Thank you.
wolfgang

SUN300G disks sound like 300GB FC disks.
Depending on how many files are in the SAMFS file system, sharing the mm and mr devices on the same RAID array can be a pretty horrible idea. In my opinion and experience, it's almost always better to NEVER put more than one LUN on a RAID array. Period. Putting more than one LUN on an array results in IO contention on that array. And large, unnaturally configured (9+1? Why?) RAID arrays will have problems from the start.
What are the block sizes used on the RAID arrays? It wouldn't surprise me to see that the RAID array on the expansion tray has a very large block size. Larger block sizes are, in general, not better. Especially for SAMFS metadata - which IIRC is something like 8k or 16k blocks.
I suspect what is happening is most of the metadata updates are going to the mm device on the new array, contending with the IO operations on the file data.
How much space is left on each mm device? What does "iostat -sndxz 2" show when you're having the IO problems?

I just updated the software on my iPad and now I cannot update my Aps or install new ones. I ran a diagnostic and that resulted in "power issue." It wouldn't let me select what my options were. Any ideas?

Don't know where to get help. I just updated the software and I am having issues with not being able to update Aps or install new ones. The circles just spin and Aps just say "waiting." I tried running a diagnostic with the apple store and it came back with "power issues" (?) as a result. It wouldn't let me select an option to see what steps I could take to fix it, it just backed out of the page. I just don't know what to do.....

Hi,
Thank you for your reply, I did go to my general settings, but for some odd reason I don't have a restrictions setting, or a reset setting. I thought I could reset all the setting to see if it could be that, but as I said there aren't any.
My husband also has the iPad 2, and also did the software update and hasn't had any problems at all. I took both iPad's and compared the settings thinking maybe there could be a setting that could have been changed when the update was done.

TS4088 I have a MacBook pro that has power issues and will not start but the hardrive is fine. I do not want to lose all of my files so I was wondering if it's possible to transfer my hardrive from a older Macbook pro to a new one if I were to purchase o

I have a MacBook pro that has power issues and will not start but the hardrive is fine. I do not want to lose all of my files so I was wondering if it's possible to transfer my hardrive from a older Macbook pro to a new one if I were to purchase a new one? Also, the software is not updated as the computer hasn't worked for about 2 months.
Also, if it is possible to transfer the hardrive, would my iTunes music transfer as well? It is not saved in the cloud.
Thanks for your help, it is much appreciated.

You computer is probably perfectly repairable, but if you want a new one anyway, it is perfectly possible to transfer the data from the faulty one.
But it would be a mistake to simply put the old HD in the new computer.
These are the steps:
Remove Hard drive from faulty computer. (very easy on Unibody MBPs, do-able but not so easy on older MBPs)
Put it in a cheap enclosure
Connect it the new computer
Boot up new computer.
If the new computer has never been run before the Setup Assistant will ask if you want to import your apps, data, settings etc from either another mac, another HD connected to the Mac or a Time Machine back up.
Obviously chose the second option (another HD connected to this Mac) and follow prompts.
If the new computer has already been run (so Setup Assistant doesn't run when you boot it up), you will need to use Migration Assistant...or run the installer again so that Setup Assistant runs again.
Message was edited by: Mike Boreham...added sec on line

Unable to Troubleshoot Power Issues on Mac mini 2011

I have been having odd and intermittent power issues with my Mac mini 2011 and could really use some help before I resign myself to taking it into an Apple Store. It's under warranty, but I now live in another country so I hope I don't need to ship it should it come down to that.
However, I have searched this topic a lot, and not only have I tried troubleshooting it, I haven't seen any power issues with other owners of this model. That leads me to think that the power supply itself is probably OK.
First of all, I live in China and the building I live in seems to have a questionable power supply. The air conditioner for example simply would not work and the repairman spent two hours messing around with wires inside the outlet and in the breakers. That did the trick, so I wonder if I'm simply not getting enough juice?
Main symptoms:
- My monitor recognizes an analog signal but will not light up (black monitor). Unplugging and replugging adaptor doesn't do anything.
- Startup Keyboard Commands (e.g. Cmmd-R) may work, but I can't tell because the monitor won't light up. Letting the computer boot up though I can hear keyboard volume keys and such making the standard sounds. I can usually restart using the keyboard too.
- My 2T external HD more often than not dismounts as well.
- I can't hear any computer activity after the chime (hard drive, etc.).
- Since I can hear the chime and there is audio feedback through the keyboard, I think that eliminates hardware problems such as logic board failure or bad RAM.
- I can't boot even if I unplug all USB peripherals.
- Holding down the power button (I have it set to make the computer sleep as well as shut down) often won't shut down the computer, but it seems to stay in sleep no matter how long I hold it. Unplugging the computer finally shuts it down, obviously.
- Unplugging and waiting 5 minutes or so and powering up again doesn't seem to make any difference, nor does switching sockets, plugging directly into the wall, etc.
Problems began about two weeks ago, got better, and then worse again. Now I'm just keeping the computer and monitor on (never sleep 24/7).
Miraculously, after much frustration and countless restarts, suddenly the screen will turn on to reveal a fully booted system that was running all along in the background. No startup screen- the monitor just magically comes on again. Often I find that my external has unmounted, but it's no big deal to get to remount. At this stage, the Mac is still very quiet and for a while the system is sluggish, though it hops back into action in 5 or 10 minutes.
At first I thought it was just my monitor, and though that's possible I suppose, it seems I'm just not getting enough juice. Once the monitor is on though, everything is fine: I can power it off and on with no problems. But I can't just leave my computer on forever though.
Any help appreciated.

Well, with the other monitor (which did not work with the mini either but worked fine on a laptop), I was able to narrow the trouble spot down to either a faulty Mini Display to VGA adaptor or a damaged port. I could determine that all the other ports (incld. the USB drive, programs, internet, etc., were all working fine behind the big black GUI all through sound feedback, so I seriously doubted it could be a supply problem or a residential electric problem.
I took my mini and adaptor to a "Mac Shop" (reseller) here in China, and found it quite professional, just like a Mac Store. They tested my machine, and although they didn't have VGA monitors, they said I could return the new $30 USD adaptor if it didn't work. But as I'm writing this on the monitor now, the new adaptor did the trick.
The long and short of all this is that I've read a lot about display problems with the mini and I suspect that most of these problems are adaptor related. I myself tried to save some bucks by buying a third party plug and lived and learned. I hope the Apple adaptor works like a champ, and if it doesn't, I'll know the first thing to eliiminate next time.

Strange import issue .. no longer works in 2.6 or Beta 3

Strange import issue.
I use LR-2.6 everyday but have only played around with the LR-3 for a limited amount of time so the other day I decided check it out and tried to import a handful of RAW(canon) files on a SDxc-8g card via a USB card reader. I set it up to copy and convert to DNG, apply a few keywords and Metadata but when I tried it acted like it imported the first image and then froze. Card reader lights stopped blinking and just stayed on, program task bar doesn’t show any progress, not even for the first image. I then went to the folder that I was going to have the images copies to and it contained a file of the first image, but there is no indication that LR-3 even created it and it doesn’t show up in the catalog. When I tried to close out LR-3 is popped up the “in the middle of a task warning” so I just closed the program and tried it a couple more times to no avail.
So I though o well I will just open up LR-2.6 and import them from there, guess what now LR-2.6 does the exact same thing!!
I thought maybe my card reader was a POS but I was able to drag all the files to a new folder on my desktop and import them from there, nope. Tried rebooting a couple times, even opened a new catalog to test with, in both LR-2.6 and LR-3 and neither will work..
I am stumped any ideas?

Thank you for everyone's assistance
I actually figured out what the problem was, like most issues it comes back to operator error, it seem I had inadvertently chose a "rename file on import" template that I had set up to name the files based on a custom fill-in field in the Meta Data, I normally only used that template when I was exporting images that had been completely edited, so being these images were new imports that field was blank, hence it would import the first image and then do to " don't import subjected duplicates" being checked it would just stop the import process.

My 2007 Macbook pro Intel Core 2 Duo   Processor Speed 2.33 GHz has power issues with one or some of my USB powered devices. Last night I could not back up my Lacie external drives with software SuperDuper, hard drive copier. I also had a message that Tim

My 2007 Macbook pro Intel Core 2 Duo   Processor Speed 2.33 GHz has power issues with one or some of my USB powered devices. Last night I could not back up my Lacie external drives with software SuperDuper, hard drive copier. I also had a message that Time machine failed. I have two powered 12V USB
routers that are plugged into a 550VA CyberPower surge protector. I often receive these insufficient USB power for devices messages a dozen times even when I do not have devices like camera, Ipad, Ipod, and Tascam digital audio recorder plugged in. Is there a way to troubleshoot these USB routers or should I consider that one of the routers may be defective and replace them?
David

My 2007 Macbook pro Intel Core 2 Duo   Processor Speed 2.33 GHz has power issues with one or some of my USB powered devices. Last night I could not back up my Lacie external drives with software SuperDuper, hard drive copier. I also had a message that Time machine failed. I have two powered 12V USB
routers that are plugged into a 550VA CyberPower surge protector. I often receive these insufficient USB power for devices messages a dozen times even when I do not have devices like camera, Ipad, Ipod, and Tascam digital audio recorder plugged in. Is there a way to troubleshoot these USB routers or should I consider that one of the routers may be defective and replace them?
David

T400 strange power issue

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