What is causing random shut downs on new iMac?

I have a new iMac which is shutting down without any warning! Anyone know if this is a known issue? Is it software or hardware?

Hi FPMS
That sounds like partially seated or a dislodged ram module! I would first check to see if they are both seated correctly, you'll need to push real hard on each module with both thumb's. Use the iMac Installing or replacing memory link below to assist you if someone else installed them for you.
http://docs.info.apple.com/article.html?artnum=306204
Dennis

Similar Messages

Is it necessary to shut down my new imac each night?

is it necessary to shut down my new imac each night?

NOPE!
Read the user manual for recommendations on when to sleep & shut down.
CLICKY CLICK---> iMac (2012/2013) PDF Manual (direct download)

What's causing hard shut downs?

My mid-2011 iMac has been intermittently shutting down without warning. The first time this happened it would not restart. I took it to the Apple Store where a Genius ran a diagnostic check and then suggested it was probably power supply related. He unplugged the power cord from the back of the iMac and then the iMac would restart. He said it may never happen again or could repeat. Nothing I needed to do immediately.
I experienced two more hard shut downs during the next 3 months. Each time I was able to restart the iMac. A few days ago it did three hard shut downs in a space of two hours. I again took it to the Apple Store where a diagnostice check was run. It indicated a failing hard drive due to bad sectors (the 500 GB hard drive has about 400 GB free space). Disk Utility showed no problems. I'm assuming the Apple diagnostic check can find problems that Disk Utility misses.
Apple has now had the iMac for three days running "stress tests" to try to duplicate the hard shut down problem without success. Apple recommends replacing the hard drive, but has nothing to say regarding the cause of the hard shut downs.
My undestanding is a bad hard drive does not cause hard shut downs. Does a hard shut down not leave some sort of system log that might point to a cause?

You're clearly thinking about the problem logically. I agree a failing HD should not mimic a "loss of power". Is it possible that your home power outlet is flakey? Voltage drop low enough to cause a trip? I know ground bounces happen at home and the power company will put a meter on one of your outlets. Do you ever see the lights in your home brighten or dim?
When you get the mac back, you should try a different outlet (a UPS would be even better).

Windows randomly shutting down with new built pc

Morning folks, I'm typing this from my other laptop right now. I just built a tower for gaming and I'm having an issue with windows 8.1. It will randomly turn off anywhere from a minute or less after launching and logging in to 5 minutes after
launching and logging in. I can't seem to tell what's triggering it either. If I try to do anything a screen comes up with a sad face emoticon and tells me that something is wrong but I can never read the full message before the computer shuts
down completely. It's not a soft landing either it's as if I held down the power button. If you can tell me what information to give you I'll try my best. My concern is I won't be able to get error or crash logs because if I try to do anything
the computer shuts down. I'm currently sitting here not moving and letting it sit at desktop to see if anything happens. So far it seems stable to it's only when I'm actively doing stuff.
Concerns I've seen people bring up, yes it is a legal version of 8.1 and yes I did activate the product, I wasn't able to set up my wireless adapter before the computer would shut down so I had to activate it over the phone, it didn't crash during that.
From there I was able to install the wireless drivers successfully and actually access the internet. But as I was heading to a speedtest page the window came up and my computer shut down again. From there it has shut down multiple times after just
minutes of trying to get online and install a game.
I've gone into BIOS and disabled the fast boot that someone has mentioned and I changed my power settings to be on high performance and turned off the timed shutdowns/sleep/driver shut down. I don't think it was any of that though because, 1, it's
still happening and 2, those things were if it was shutting down after so long mine seems more random and in a much shorter time span.
Any help would be greatly appreciated, thank you.
edit: I'm going to keep this updated, I'm at the moment installing my motherboards drivers/utilities. Apparently I forgot to do that from the disk. If that's the case and fixes it then I'll let you all know. I still need to install these
and whatever is on the disk saying 'afterburner' lol. This is my first time ever building a pc and I'm doing it with no help so bare with me. Took me all night to figure out I had a couple things wired wrong with the hard drive and a couple fans.

Okay so after installing the drivers and doing some updates after things were installed the computer ran well for a good few hours. In the mean time I was watching youtube and reading a different forum while I was downloading a game. A couple
hours in the computer BSOD'd again but this time I think it's more manageable as I was actually able to read what it said and it was the more common one saying an issue occurred, and your computer needs to restart and it is collecting data. It then shut
down very quickly as if it were a hard shut down and did not reboot on its own.
I'm going through the same actions again and waiting to see if it reoccurs or if it was a fluke. I don't have the DMP files at the moment because I had to change the setting after reading the guide because it the folder wasn't in windows. It
still isn't there after I made the changes and rebooted but I think that's because an incident hasn't happened yet in order to create the file. In the mean time I turned off fast boot as it seems to be a common instigator of the problem. I'll get
back to you if the problem arises again with the proper logs and dump files as it seems the computer is stable enough to actually navigate there now. Woo! Progress!

Jumpy mouse and shut-downs on G4 mirror door when putting to sleep or just random shut down after install of new 2nd internal WD IDE 320 gig hard drive, OS 10.4.11, orig HD is WD 80, RAM = 2 gig. Help!

Jumpy mouse and shut-downs on G4 mirror door when putting to sleep or just random shut down, is now occuring after install of new 2nd internal WD IDE 320 GB hard drive, running OS 10.4.11, orig HD is WD 80 GB, RAM = 2 gig. Help!

Hi Ted,
At this point I think you should get Applejack...
At this point I think you should get Applejack...
http://www.macupdate.com/info.php/id/15667/applejack
Ignore the MacKeeper ad no matter what else you decide.
After installing, reboot holding down CMD+s, (+s), then when the DOS like prompt shows, type in...
applejack AUTO
Then let it do all 6 of it's things.
At least it'll eliminate some questions if it doesn't fix it.
The 6 things it does are...
Correct any Disk problems.
Repair Permissions.
Clear out Cache Files.
Repair/check several plist files.
Dump the VM files for a fresh start.
Trash old Log files.
First reboot will be slower, sometimes 2 or 3 restarts will be required for full benefit... my guess is files relying upon other files relying upon other files! :-)
Disconnect the USB cable from any Uninterruptible Power Supply so the system doesn't shut down in the middle of the process.
Just sits there occupying very little space & never interfering, unless you need to invoke it in Single User Mode.
After installing, reboot holding down CMD+s, (+s), then when the DOS like prompt shows, type in...
applejack AUTO
Then let it do all 6 of it's things.
At least it'll eliminate some questions if it doesn't fix it.
The 6 things it does are...
Correct any Disk problems.
Repair Permissions.
Clear out Cache Files.
Repair/check several plist files.
Dump the VM files for a fresh start.
Trash old Log files.
First reboot will be slower, sometimes 2 or 3 restarts will be required for full benefit... my guess is files relying upon other files relying upon other files! :-)
Disconnect the USB cable from any Uninterruptible Power Supply so the system doesn't shut down in the middle of the process.
Just sits there occupying very little space & never interfering, unless you need to invoke it in Single User Mode.

Yesterday for the first time i turned on my macpro 2011 model and i got a crazy gray screen with lines all over it ,so i held down the power button and turn off then restarted and all was ok could someone help me with this,what caused this shut down. werd

yesterday for the first time i turned on my macpro 2011 model and i got a crazy gray screen with lines all over it ,so i held down the power button and turn off then restarted and all was ok could someone help me with this,what caused this shut down. werd

Are the lines like psychedelic herringbone? If yes, I had that happen once, it was something serious, like the
Logic board. The good news is that it was fixed without any loss of data on the hard drive. Take it in to have Apple look at it ASAP. I took it to TekServe at the time, they are very nice about preserving your data and user library when possible.
Good luck and don't panic.

My 2008 15in macbook pro randomly shuts down while in sleep mode. What can I do?

I have a 2008 15in macbook pro that when it goes to sleep it will randomly shut down. Most times when I try to wake it up from sleep it will just shut itself down as well as when I close and reopen the computer it will just shut down. When I try to turn it back on it generally takes 2 to 3 tries to get it to finally come back on. What should I do? I think it might be a Hard Drive problem. Anything helps!

Hello californiabears and welcome to Apple Support Communities,
Try resetting SMC:
http://support.apple.com/en-us/HT201295
If you think you have a HD problem look at the HD in System reports:
Apple menu - About this Mac - More Info - System Report - SATA
Under SMART status does say "verified"?
Otherwise:
Using Disk Utility to verify or repair disks - Apple Support
Is that the original disk from 2008? If so it's due.

Help my iPhone 3GS randomly shuts down, what is wrong?, Help my iPhone 3GS randomly shuts down, what is wrong?

My iPhone 3GS randomly shuts down for no reason, and apparently I am not the only person having a problem with this. This happens regardless of how much battery life my phone shows, or whichever application I am using. IS THERE A FIX FOR THIS!!!!!!! I understand that cell phones are not built to last forever, but my phone is in to good of a condition to go out and purchase a new one.

Before you get your knickers all in a twist, try the basic troubleshooting steps Apple recommends:
Basic troubleshooting steps clearly outlined in the User Guide are restart, reset, restore from backup, restore as new device.
If you have been through ALL of the troubleshooting steps and you're still having problems, then you'll need to bring your phone to Apple for investigation.

Macbook Pro Randomly Shuts Down and Restarts

Hi There,
This issue appears to have occured for other people in different forms but there does not appear to have been a conclusive answer to the problem, so here's hoping someone here might be able to provide some further insight into the issue, and with some luck, a solution.
I have an early 2008 MacBook Pro running OS X 10.7.2 (plugged-in to power) that has started to randomly shut down and then restart itself (goes through all the start up screens; Apple logo etc.). It doesn't appear to be just a straight restart of the machine, but it shuts down, and then a couple of seconds later, reboots, as though it is two different actions...
The computer does this pretty randomly, and now quite often. It happens when applications are running, Safari for example, and when nothing is running and i just go to open Finder or use Spotlight.
I haven't had this issue in the past (some 3+ years of full time use now) and as far as i'm aware, nothing changed on the computer immediately prior to the issue occuring (no updates, installs etc.).
I've checked the systen log which, each time the issue occurs, returns the message 'Previous Shutdown Cause: -128'. I've sought reference as to what this refers to, but it would appear to be a mystery to the WWW.
I have tried the following solutions with no success:
- Proper restart and reboot of system;
- Repair permissions;
- Reset SMC;
- Reinstall OS X.
Any thoughts on what the problem is, what the '-128' refers to, or what more i can try to solve the issue?
Your help is much appreciated! Thanks.

I know this is a really old thread, and everyone's probably already bought new computers now. However, I'm still using my 2010 MacBook Pro and have been experiencing this very frustrating issue. However, I think I just found a way to open a finder window that prevents the shut down. In Finder>Preferences>General, under "New Finder windows show", I had "All my files" selected (BAD?), which probably was the cause, because setting that to "Desktop" instead has prevented shut downs, for now. Just thought I should share this tip, in case anyone else suffers from this annoying issue. If anyone has a better tip or a real fix, please post a reply! There are still people, like myself, working on these older machines who would appreciate the info. THANKS!

Macbook Pro Randomly Shuts down...SMC Reset only temporarily

I have a somewhat concerning problem with my 2011 Macbook Pro (15").
It started two nights ago, didn't happen yesterday, and happened again today. It has also fried two iPhone chargers. Here's the story:
On Sunday night, my Macbook randomly shut down. Wouldn't restart, nor would it even charge (the LED on the charger didn't even come on). So after trying everything I could (namely, PRAM, SMC, etc.), I finally took the bottom of the computer off, unplugged the battery internally, did a hard reset of the SMC, and everything was back up and running. That night, I got a strange error when I plugged my iPhone in to charge: USB is using too much power and has been disabled, or something along those lines. Weird--but my computer didn't shut down again, so I shrugged it off.
Fast forward to tonight--all worked fine until I plugged a NEW iphone charger into the computer. This same cord worked fine this afternoon, but I got the "USB drawing too much power" message and then nothing. The computer shut off, had to unscrew the bottom and do another hard reset, and here I am.
I've tried to figure out just what might have caused this. I did buy a charger from my university's bookstore that I do not think was Apple branded. Is it possible that it somehow fried my battery? Or do I have a bigger issue - motherboard, RAM, etc.? The computer (when I get it to finally power back up) works fine and no files have been lost, so I don't think it's harddrive related.
If anyone can shed some light on this problem, please let me know. I've searched for a long time to find a problem similar to mine and haven't found any answers other than the generic "Reset SMC," or "Reset PRAM." I know how to and have done both of these things. Do I need a new battery? I ordered a charger directly from Apple and have only used it since the first shut down.

There's only a limited amount of things you can do on a laptop repair-wise: tiny and tightly packed components are a far cry from yesteryear's huge boxes with individual removables.
Is the USB error coming in regardless of which USB slot you use? Have you reproduced this error with other USB devices that draw a charging current or significant power?
If the problem is indeed that USB is drawing too much power, it could be a short in the USB circuitry, or it could be a short with your phone. Try charging someone else's iPhone. The concept with current is that it's "pushed by voltage" and "drawn by a resistance in a closed circuit." If the voltage is too high, or if the resistance is too low (short circuit), then you will end up where you're at.
Also, it could be helpful to review your system log. In spotlight, write "terminal" then type in the shell prompt (without the quotes) "cp /var/log/system.log ~" this will put a file on your desktop that you can open with a text viewer, search for the word "USB" towards the end of the file, and see what you can make of it. Post anything here that seems suspicious. Warning: it'll be cryptic and hard to read!
So,
- Try different USB slots on your computer
- Try different USB power-drawing devices
- Try different iPhones or iPods
- Review the system log and post any suspicious lines

MacPro randomly shuts down after upgrading to GTX 660

So I've had the EVGA GTX 285 mac edition in my MacPro 3,1 for a while now and decided to upgrade to the EVGA GTX 660 because I wanted a card that would provide more power for my 3d work and allow more gaming potential when I'm not working. After the upgrade I have been experiencing random shut downs. At first I thought it was during heavy loads (from my 3d software) but yesterday a shut down occured when I was just typing up an email with hardly anything running in the background. I've tried to diagnose the problem but to no avail. I believe the power supply is enough because the older card uses 2 of the power ports inside the MacPro while this new card uses just one. It's not overheating because everything runs at around 30C - 50C (rarely spiking to 58C.) Anyone know what could be the cause? I am working on my Windows partition by the way.

How interesting...we've noticed the same thing on 3 different occasions as recently as this a.m.. My wife was online for school, and the screen suddenly went "almost" black. There was nothing to do but shut down and turn it back on.
In 3 years since we've had this iMac, and running on 10.4, we never had this problem, so we're also hoping the community out there has some input on this issue.
Thanks!

Since installing OSX 10 my iMac randomly shuts down and restarts. I can not determine why this is happening. Any ideas?

Since installing OSX 10, my iMac randomly shuts down and restarts. I can not determine why this is happening. Any ideas?

1. This is a comment on what you should and should not do to protect yourself from malicious software ("malware") that circulates on the Internet. It does not apply to software, such as keystroke loggers, that may be installed deliberately by an intruder who has hands-on access to the victim's computer. That threat is in a different category, and there's no easy way to defend against it. If you have reason to suspect that you're the target of such an attack, you need expert help.
If you find this comment too long or too technical, read only sections 5, 6, and 10.
OS X now implements three layers of built-in protection specifically against malware, not counting runtime protections such as execute disable, sandboxing, system library randomization, and address space layout randomization that may also guard against other kinds of exploits.
2. All versions of OS X since 10.6.7 have been able to detect known Mac malware in downloaded files, and to block insecure web plugins. This feature is transparent to the user, but internally Apple calls it "XProtect." The malware recognition database is automatically checked for updates once a day; however, you shouldn't rely on it, because the attackers are always at least a day ahead of the defenders.
The following caveats apply to XProtect:
It can be bypassed by some third-party networking software, such as BitTorrent clients and Java applets.
It only applies to software downloaded from the network. Software installed from a CD or other media is not checked.
As new versions of OS X are released, it's not clear whether Apple will indefinitely continue to maintain the XProtect database of older versions such as 10.6. The security of obsolete system versions may eventually be degraded. Security updates to the code of obsolete systems will stop being released at some point, and that may leave them open to other kinds of attack besides malware.
3. Starting with OS X 10.7.5, there has been a second layer of built-in malware protection, designated "Gatekeeper" by Apple. By default, applications and Installer packages downloaded from the network will only run if they're digitally signed by a developer with a certificate issued by Apple. Software certified in this way hasn't necessarily been tested by Apple, but you can be reasonably sure that it hasn't been modified by anyone other than the developer. His identity is known to Apple, so he could be held legally responsible if he distributed malware. That may not mean much if the developer lives in a country with a weak legal system (see below.)
Gatekeeper doesn't depend on a database of known malware. It has, however, the same limitations as XProtect, and in addition the following:
It can easily be disabled or overridden by the user.
A malware attacker could get control of a code-signing certificate under false pretenses, or could simply ignore the consequences of distributing codesigned malware.
An App Store developer could find a way to bypass Apple's oversight, or the oversight could fail due to human error.
For the reasons given above, App Store products, and other applications recognized by Gatekeeper as signed, are safer than others, but they can't be considered absolutely safe. "Sandboxed" applications may prompt for access to private data, such as your contacts, or for access to the network. Think before granting that access. Sandboxing security is based on user input. Never click through any request for authorization without thinking.
4. Starting with OS X 10.8.3, a third layer of protection has been added: a "Malware Removal Tool" (MRT). MRT runs automatically in the background when you update the OS. It checks for, and removes, malware that may have evaded the other protections via a Java exploit (see below.) MRT also runs when you install or update the Apple-supplied Java runtime (but not the Oracle runtime.) Like XProtect, MRT is effective against known threats, but not against unknown ones. It notifies you if it finds malware, but otherwise there's no user interface to MRT.
5. The built-in security features of OS X reduce the risk of malware attack, but they're not absolute protection. The first and best line of defense is always going to be your own intelligence. With the possible exception of Java exploits, all known malware circulating on the Internet that affects a fully-updated installation of OS X 10.6 or later takes the form of so-called "Trojan horses," which can only have an effect if the victim is duped into running them. The threat therefore amounts to a battle of wits between you and the malware attacker. If you're smarter than he thinks you are, you'll win.
That means, in practice, that you always stay within a safe harbor of computing practices. How do you know what is safe?
Any website that prompts you to install a “codec,” “plug-in,” "player," "extractor," or “certificate” that comes from that same site, or an unknown one, is unsafe.
A web operator who tells you that you have a “virus,” or that anything else is wrong with your computer, or that you have won a prize in a contest you never entered, is trying to commit a crime with you as the victim. (Some reputable websites did legitimately warn visitors who were infected with the "DNSChanger" malware. That exception to this rule no longer applies.)
Pirated copies or "cracks" of commercial software, no matter where they come from, are unsafe.
Software of any kind downloaded from a BitTorrent or from a Usenet binary newsgroup is unsafe.
Software that purports to help you do something that's illegal or that infringes copyright, such as saving streamed audio or video for reuse without permission, is unsafe. All YouTube "downloaders" are outside the safe harbor, though not all are necessarily harmful.
Software with a corporate brand, such as Adobe Flash Player, must be downloaded directly from the developer’s website. If it comes from any other source, it's unsafe. For instance, if a web page warns you that Flash is out of date, do not follow an offered link to an update. Go to the Adobe website to download it, if you need it at all.
Even signed applications, no matter what the source, should not be trusted if they do something unexpected, such as asking for permission to access your contacts, your location, or the Internet for no obvious reason.
"FREE WI-FI !!!" networks in public places are unsafe unless you can verify that the network is not a trap (which you probably can't.) Even then, do not download any software or transmit any private information while connected to such a network, regardless of where it seems to come from or go to.
6. Java on the Web (not to be confused with JavaScript, to which it's not related, despite the similarity of the names) is a weak point in the security of any system. Java is, among other things, a platform for running complex applications in a web page, on the client. That was always a bad idea, and Java's developers have proven themselves incapable of implementing it without also creating a portal for malware to enter. Past Java exploits are the closest thing there has ever been to a Windows-style virus affecting OS X. Merely loading a page with malicious Java content could be harmful.
Fortunately, client-side Java on the Web is obsolete and mostly extinct. Only a few outmoded sites still use it. Try to hasten the process of extinction by avoiding those sites, if you have a choice. Forget about playing games or other non-essential uses of Java.
Java is not included in OS X 10.7 and later. Discrete Java installers are distributed by Apple and by Oracle (the developer of Java.) Don't use either one unless you need it. Most people don't. If Java is installed, disable it — not JavaScript — in your browsers.
Regardless of version, experience has shown that Java on the Web can't be trusted. If you must use a Java applet for a task on a specific site, enable Java only for that site in Safari. Never enable Java for a public website that carries third-party advertising. Use it only on well-known, login-protected, secure websites without ads. In Safari 6 or later, you'll see a lock icon in the address bar with the abbreviation "https" when visiting a secure site.
Follow the above guidelines, and you’ll be as safe from malware as you can practically be. The rest of this comment concerns what you should not do to protect yourself.
7. Never install any commercial "anti-virus" or "Internet security" products for the Mac, as they all do more harm than good, if they do any good at all. Any database of known threats is always going to be out of date. Most of the danger is from unknown threats. If you need to be able to detect Windows malware in your files, use one of the free anti-virus products in the Mac App Store — nothing else.
Why shouldn't you use commercial "anti-virus" products?
Their design is predicated on the nonexistent threat that malware may be injected at any time, anywhere in the file system. Malware is downloaded from the network; it doesn't materialize from nowhere.
In order to meet that nonexistent threat, the software modifies or duplicates low-level functions of the operating system, which is a waste of resources and a common cause of instability, bugs, and poor performance.
To recognize malware, the software depends on a database of known threats, which is always at least a day out of date. Most of the real danger comes from highly targeted "zero-day" attacks that are not yet recognized.
By modifying the operating system, the software itself may create weaknesses that could be exploited by malware attackers.
8. An anti-malware product from the App Store, such as "ClamXav," doesn't have these drawbacks. That doesn't mean it's entirely safe. It may report email messages that have "phishing" links in the body, or Windows malware in attachments, as infected files, and offer to delete or move them. Doing so will corrupt the Mail database. The messages should be deleted from within the Mail application.
An anti-virus app is not needed, and should not be relied upon, for protection against OS X malware. It's useful only for detecting Windows malware. Windows malware can't harm you directly (unless, of course, you use Windows.) Just don't pass it on to anyone else.
A Windows malware attachment in email is usually easy to recognize. The file name will often be targeted at people who aren't very bright; for example:
♥♥♥♥♥♥♥♥♥♥♥♥♥♥!!!!!!!H0TBABEZ4U!!!!!!!.AVI♥♥♥♥♥♥♥♥♥♥♥♥♥♥.exe
Anti-virus software may be able to tell you which particular trojan it is, but do you care? In practice, there's seldom a reason to use the software unless an institutional policy requires it.
The ClamXav developer won't try to "upsell" you to a paid version of the product. Other developers may do that. Don't be upsold. For one thing, you should not pay to protect Windows users from the consequences of their choice of computing platform. For another, a paid upgrade from a free app will probably have the disadvantages mentioned in section 7.
9. It seems to be a common belief that the built-in Application Firewall acts as a barrier to infection, or prevents malware from functioning. It does neither. It blocks inbound connections to certain network services you're running, such as file sharing. It's disabled by default and you should leave it that way if you're behind a router on a private home or office network. Activate it only when you're on an untrusted network, for instance a public Wi-Fi hotspot, where you don't want to provide services. Disable any services you don't use in the Sharing preference pane. All are disabled by default.
10. As a Mac user you don't have to live in fear that your computer may be infected every time you install software, read email, or visit a web page. But neither should you assume that you will always be safe from exploitation, no matter what you do. The greatest harm done by security software is precisely its selling point: it makes people feel safe. They may then feel safe enough to take risks from which the software doesn't protect them. Nothing can lessen the need for safe computing practices.

Computer randomly shuts down

MacBook Air randomly shuts down whether plugged in or on battery power but not when hooked up to a monitor and using bluetooth keyboard and mouse. Any suggestions? Battery fully powered.

These instructions must be carried out as an administrator. If you have only one user account, you are the administrator.
This procedure is a diagnostic test. It makes no changes to your data.
Please triple-click anywhere in the line below on this page to select it:
syslog -k Sender kernel -k Message CSeq 'n Cause: -' | tail | awk '/:/{$4=""; print}' | pbcopy
Copy the selected text to the Clipboard by pressing the key combination command-C.
Launch the built-in Terminal application in any of the following ways:
☞ Enter the first few letters of its name into a Spotlight search. Select it in the results (it should be at the top.)
☞ In the Finder, select Go ▹ Utilities from the menu bar, or press the key combination shift-command-U. The application is in the folder that opens.
☞ Open LaunchPad. Click Utilities, then Terminal in the icon grid.
Paste into the Terminal window by pressing the key combination command-V. I've tested these instructions only with the Safari web browser. If you use another browser, you may have to press the return key after pasting.
Wait for a new line ending in a dollar sign ($) to appear below what you entered.
The output of the command will be automatically copied to the Clipboard. If the command produced no output, the Clipboard will be empty. Paste into a reply to this message.
The Terminal window doesn't show the output. Please don't copy anything from there.

Random shut down issues and more, apple recieved puter today, on hold

Ok so i have all the signs of a bad logic board or messed up puter. Mooing, random shut downs, dies during screen saver, and dies when lid is closed. I sent unit in yesterday, they got it today. Website sai on hold for infomation. So I gave them a call. They said they reseated the ram and its working and what else was wrong. I told then the mac genius did this twice and did all the other reset, then i got it home and it died again. There gonna start running more tests on it, i told her to tell the tech of the terminal thing to do to cause shut downs. ANd i told her of this post. She was extreamly nice to me and said there going to take care of me. they have had it for one afternoon, so i cant yell yet. I did ask that they replace the unit and send me a new one, she said they will run a more tests and go from there. I pointed her towards this forum as im sure many of you have and she said there going to and have been checking it out. So I guess there ontop of the issue. My bigest fear was getting the unit back andhaveing same problems. But hey thats what customer service is for so ill give applecare there fair chance first. Ill keep ya updated.

here another scientist.
Firmware is reversible by reflashing it ... it just
need another set of istruction in binary package.
My ISSUE is related ONLY with firmware,
mathematically.
Actually that's only partially true. It's only reversible by reflashing if someone has released the "reflash" package, which Apple has not. And so long as the changes it made allow a rollback of sorts. Many firmware updates will very clearly state that they can not be removed or undone. So... in your case, the previous poster was correct... it is impossible, through software to reflash your MacBook firmware
Go ahead and try to even reload the firmware, your MacBook knows it is already updated and will not allow the firmware to be reflashed.
Please, put your energy towards some other project, the SMC Firmware update, no matter how "coincidental" the timing of your RSD was, is not the root cause of the RSD.
BTW - I will echo the same comments about your experience with the so called Apple Genius, he's a tool
Call Apple or go to the Store and speak with someone else, in fact ask the Apple Genius if he is familar with the MacBook Random Shutdown. If he is not, ask to speak with one that is. The Apple Genius I spoke with was indeed familar with the problem and was simply great in processing my repair. Every instance so far has been related to a hardware problem.
Good luck
Greg

Discolouration and random shut downs - help!

Hello,
I am having serious problems with my MacBook and right now I am losing faith in Apple, frankly. I am not a troll, and I recently posted a very reasonable post asking for advice which was deleted by the admins without any explanation. What really angers me is that I develop software for this platform, and I have a best-selling novellist calling my application "the biggest advance in writing software since the word processor". Despite this, when I post my grievances (in a very reasonable and calm way) and ask for advice here, my post is deleted.
I bought a MacBook when they first came out. Whithin three weeks, it suffered from discolouration, so I phoned AppleCare and the very helpful folks there agreed to take it in for repair. So, it went in, and three days later (great!), I received it back. Whilst it was in for repair, the engineers also replaced the hard drive, as apparently during their standard tests it was revealed that the one that came with the machine was about to fail - even though it was only two weeks old. I was also disappointed to see that the engineers had chipped the polycarbonate whilst replacing the top-casing and that they had failed to replace the screen bezel, which was also discolouring. On top of this, the new top-casing wasn't fitted properly. Still, I decided to see how things went, as I did not want to be without my computer again.
Three weeks later, my machine was discoloured again, so I phoned AppleCare again. Again, they took it in and I was without my machine for nearly two weeks this time. When I got it back, they had replaced the top-casing (again), the screen bezel and the polycarbonate bottom casing. It looked brand new, so I was happy.
Happy for three weeks, that is. After that, the discolouration returned. Am I the only one who has suffered discolouration repeatedly? Is this still an issue for anyone else? Or have I just been particularly unlucky? I wash my hands, and I don't see that it can be some weird Ph problem, given that my 3-year-old white iBook has no such problems.
Anyway, after two "repairs" with no resolution, I decided to give up and put up with the discolouration. My new machine may look old and dirty, but at least it worked and was generally a joy to use... Until a couple of days ago, that is. Two days ago, I switched on my machine and three minutes later it shut itself down for now reason. I only had Mail and Camino running, nothing else. After that, every time I tried to boot up, it shut down within seconds - it barely even got to the Apple logo.
Is this the random shut down issue I am hearing about?
The only way I could get it up and running was to hold down the power button until it beeped. Once I did that, I verified the hard drive and it did have errors. So I fixed it using the install disk and hoped for the best. But two days later, upon booting up, it shut back down again. So I called AppleCare (who are always brilliant and helpful), and they walked me through resetting my PRAM. I then left my machine on, and other than the fan running more than usual, it seemed okay.
But then, when I booted up my machine this morning, it did nothing. It got to the grey screen, and then I just got lots of coloured vertical lines, nothing more. I tried restarting several times, holding down the power button etc, but nothing helped. Eventually, I just reset the PRAM again, and this managed to get the computer booted.
So now, obviously I am very worried. I thought these shut down issues only happened after start up, but about half an hour ago it happened after having the machine running for three hours. I tried calling AppleCare today but I was on hold for one hour, after which I had to hang up as I had an appointment. Frankly, I have paid £300 for AppleCare, and whilst the AppleCare reps are always great and more than helpful, it is just not good enough to pay this amount of money and then be put on hold for an hour. I have spent my savings on this machine and it looks dirty and old despite being only four months' old, and now it is shutting down randomly on me. I have lost all faith in it. I am upset, and now, to add insult to injury, mods on this forum deleted a post in which I was, if anything, over-complimentary about the way AppleCare have dealt with my issues, and they did so with no explanation. On reflection, perhaps it was the title of that post, so I hope this one will fare better, as checking the terms of agreement I believe I am abiding by them.
I would just like to know if others have suffered from similar issues with their MacBooks, and how they have dealt with them. I would really like a new machine, right now, but I will be reasonable, of course. I think this is a valid question for this forum, and if the mods feel they need to remove this post, I would be very grateful if they could e-mail me and tell me why rather than leaving me feeling like I am being silenced.
Has anybody been able to fix this random shutdown issue without sending it for repair? Have repairs been successful? Is anybody else still suffering from discolouration?
Many thanks in advance for any help and advice. Please let me reiterate: I have spent the past two years dedicating all of my spare time developing a program for OS X, so I am committed to this platform. I am not a troll, just a customer with genuine problems.
Thank you in advance for any advice,
Keith

I was in the middle of replying to your previous post when your post disappeared. That was interesting.
Two
days ago, I switched on my machine and three minutes
later it shut itself down for now reason. I only had
Mail and Camino running, nothing else. After that,
every time I tried to boot up, it shut down within
seconds - it barely even got to the Apple logo.
Is this the random shut down issue I am hearing
about?
I would say yes.
The only way I could get it up and running was to
hold down the power button until it beeped.
This throttles the CPUs to 1 GHz. Heat is somehow integral to the problem.
Once I
did that, I verified the hard drive and it did have
errors. So I fixed it using the install disk and
hoped for the best. But two days later, upon booting
up, it shut back down again. So I called AppleCare
(who are always brilliant and helpful), and they
walked me through resetting my PRAM. I then left my
machine on, and other than the fan running more than
usual, it seemed okay.
If the fan is running excessively often and loudly, try resetting the PMU:
http://docs.info.apple.com/article.html?artnum=303319
(This also resets PRAM.)
But then, when I booted up my machine this morning,
it did nothing. It got to the grey screen, and then I
just got lots of coloured vertical lines, nothing
more. I tried restarting several times, holding down
the power button etc, but nothing helped. Eventually,
I just reset the PRAM again, and this managed to get
the computer booted.
There is a bug in 10.4.7 that causes the vertical line problem after PRAM is reset. Once you have reset PRAM, go to Displays, set the screen resolution to anything else, then change it back. This trick writes to PRAM and makes the fix "stick".
Has anybody been able to fix this random shutdown
issue without sending it for repair?
Not that I know of. Some have postponed repair with repeated workarounds like the 1 GHz throttle.
Have repairs
been successful?
Apparently yes. My machine had the heat sink replaced and has not had a problem in the intervening month. Rumor has it that current repairs entail replacing the logic board and heat sink with a newly redesigned combination.

What is causing random shut downs on new iMac?

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