Why is my computer slow?

I bought my computer 3ish years ago, and about 1-2 years ago it slowed way down.  I have a 13 inch MacBook Pro, and it is exceedingly slow (You should know that currently I barely use a fraction of the available computer memory).  In the beginning I noticed nothing because it was very gradual, however it became noticable.   A bit after I had noticed how slow it was I spilled milk on my computer.  Because of this spill I had to replace everything in my computer apart from the bottom cover on the case.  The screen, the top unibody, and the entire inside of the computer was replaced, apart from the memory.  It was a very pricy investment.  However, after this, my computer became even slower than before.  It was very sluggish and if I was running more than one application at a time it would become almost impossible to use.  I brought my computer into the Genius Lab, and the Lab guy told me to load all of my information on an external drive, and re-install snow leopard on my computer.  I did so, and then reloaded all my information onto my computer.  It was not any faster.  I am fed up with my computer being so slow.  HELP!

How much free space  on the disk?
Right or control click the MacintoshHD icon. Click Get Info. In the Get Info window you will see Capacity and Available. Make sure you always have a minimum of 15% free disk space.
If you need to free up space, click here.   http://www.thexlab.com/faqs/freeingspace.html
Good suggestions here.   http://hints.macworld.com/article.php?story=2004011205473937

Similar Messages

  • Why has my computer slowed after updating with mavericks

    i updated to mavericks .since i did this my computer has slowed and i am also getting problems with streaming can i revert back to mountain lion.

    how much RAM do you have?
    how full is your hard drive?
    what apps are you trying to run when things are slow?
    do you have any crapware installed, like
    antivirus software
    defragmenters
    "cleaners"
    "optimizers"
    how long has it been since you updated? Spotlight may be updating, that can take a while, and things may be slow while it does. 
    Boot into your recovery partition (hold down ⌘R at restart until you see the Apple symbol), go to Disk Utility, and repair your hard drive. While you're there, repair permissions too. OSX Tips Using the Recovery HD
    Try a safe boot (hold down shift and restart) : Mac OS X: What is Safe Boot, Safe Mode? . If this works, it means that the problem is with some third-party software you have installed.
    Try a test user account: Isolating an issue by using another user account .
    That is: if you want, we could try to fix what is wrong. Otherwise, you could certainly go back to ML if you want. How you would get there would depend on how your computer originally came, either with OS installer discs, or with the OS already installed. osx - Roll back from OS X Mavericks ( or any newer OS) to Mountain Lion - Ask Different

  • Why has my computer slowed down since I downloaded Mavericks?

    Here is my EtreCheck
    Hardware Information:
              MacBook Pro (13-inch, Mid 2009)
              MacBook Pro - model: MacBookPro5,5
              1 2.26 GHz Intel Core 2 Duo CPU: 2 cores
              2 GB RAM
    Video Information:
              NVIDIA GeForce 9400M - VRAM: 256 MB
    System Software:
              OS X 10.9.2 (13C64) - Uptime: 0 days 9:35:36
    Disk Information:
              Hitachi HTS545016B9SA02 disk0 : (160.04 GB)
                        EFI (disk0s1) <not mounted>: 209.7 MB
                        Macintosh HD (disk0s2) / [Startup]: 159.18 GB (11.19 GB free) (Low!)
                        Recovery HD (disk0s3) <not mounted>: 650 MB
              HL-DT-ST DVDRW  GS23N 
    USB Information:
              Apple Inc. Built-in iSight
              Apple Internal Memory Card Reader
              Apple Inc. Apple Internal Keyboard / Trackpad
              Apple Computer, Inc. IR Receiver
              Apple Inc. BRCM2046 Hub
                        Apple Inc. Bluetooth USB Host Controller
    FireWire Information:
    Thunderbolt Information:
    Startup Items:
              CiscoVPN: Path: /System/Library/StartupItems/CiscoVPN
    Launch Daemons:
              [System] com.adobe.fpsaud.plist 3rd-Party support link
              [System] com.cisco.anyconnect.vpnagentd.plist 3rd-Party support link
              [System] com.google.keystone.daemon.plist 3rd-Party support link
              [System] com.microsoft.office.licensing.helper.plist 3rd-Party support link
    Launch Agents:
              [System] com.cisco.anyconnect.gui.plist 3rd-Party support link
              [System] com.google.keystone.agent.plist 3rd-Party support link
    User Launch Agents:
              [not loaded] com.adobe.ARM.[...].plist 3rd-Party support link
              [not loaded] com.adobe.ARM.[...].plist 3rd-Party support link
              [not loaded] [email protected]
              [not loaded] jp.co.canon.Inkjet_Extended_Survey_Agent.plist 3rd-Party support link
    User Login Items:
              iTunesHelper
              Canon IJ Network Scanner Selector EX
              Dropbox
              Google Drive
              AdobeResourceSynchronizer
    Internet Plug-ins:
              o1dbrowserplugin: Version: 5.2.4.18058 3rd-Party support link
              Default Browser: Version: 537 - SDK 10.9
              OfficeLiveBrowserPlugin: Version: 12.3.6 3rd-Party support link
              AdobePDFViewerNPAPI: Version: 11.0.06 - SDK 10.6 3rd-Party support link
              FlashPlayer-10.6: Version: 12.0.0.77 - SDK 10.6 3rd-Party support link
              DivXBrowserPlugin: Version: 2.0 3rd-Party support link
              Silverlight: Version: 5.1.20913.0 - SDK 10.6 3rd-Party support link
              Flash Player: Version: 12.0.0.77 - SDK 10.6 3rd-Party support link
              QuickTime Plugin: Version: 7.7.3
              googletalkbrowserplugin: Version: 5.2.4.18058 3rd-Party support link
              iPhotoPhotocast: Version: 7.0
              AdobePDFViewer: Version: 11.0.06 - SDK 10.6 3rd-Party support link
              SharePointBrowserPlugin: Version: 14.3.9 - SDK 10.6 3rd-Party support link
              JavaAppletPlugin: Version: 14.8.0 - SDK 10.9 Outdated! Update
    Audio Plug-ins:
              BluetoothAudioPlugIn: Version: 1.0 - SDK 10.9
              AirPlay: Version: 2.0 - SDK 10.9
              AppleAVBAudio: Version: 203.2 - SDK 10.9
              iSightAudio: Version: 7.7.3 - SDK 10.9
    iTunes Plug-ins:
              Quartz Composer Visualizer: Version: 1.4 - SDK 10.9
    User Internet Plug-ins:
              BrowserPlus_2.9.8: Version: 2.9.8 3rd-Party support link
    3rd Party Preference Panes:
              BrowserPlus  3rd-Party support link
              Flash Player  3rd-Party support link
    Old Applications:
              /Library/Application Support/Microsoft/MERP2.0
                        Microsoft Error Reporting:          Version: 2.2.9 - SDK 10.4 3rd-Party support link
                        Microsoft Ship Asserts:          Version: 1.1.4 - SDK 10.4 3rd-Party support link
              /Applications/Cisco
                        Cisco AnyConnect Secure Mobility Client:          Version: 3.0.08057 - SDK 10.4 3rd-Party support link
                        Uninstall AnyConnect:          Version: 3.0.08057 - SDK 10.4 3rd-Party support link
              SLLauncher:          Version: 1.0 - SDK 10.5 3rd-Party support link
                        /Library/Application Support/Microsoft/Silverlight/OutOfBrowser/SLLauncher.app
              Solver:          Version: 1.0 - SDK 10.5 3rd-Party support link
                        /Applications/Microsoft Office 2011/Office/Add-Ins/Solver.app
              /Applications/Microsoft Office 2011/Office
                        Microsoft Graph:          Version: 14.3.9 - SDK 10.5 3rd-Party support link
                        Microsoft Database Utility:          Version: 14.3.9 - SDK 10.5 3rd-Party support link
                        Microsoft Office Reminders:          Version: 14.3.9 - SDK 10.5 3rd-Party support link
                        Microsoft Upload Center:          Version: 14.3.9 - SDK 10.5 3rd-Party support link
                        My Day:          Version: 14.3.9 - SDK 10.5 3rd-Party support link
                        SyncServicesAgent:          Version: 14.3.9 - SDK 10.5 3rd-Party support link
                        Open XML for Excel:          Version: 14.3.9 - SDK 10.5 3rd-Party support link
                        Microsoft Alerts Daemon:          Version: 14.3.9 - SDK 10.5 3rd-Party support link
                        Microsoft Database Daemon:          Version: 14.3.9 - SDK 10.5 3rd-Party support link
                        Microsoft Chart Converter:          Version: 14.3.9 - SDK 10.5 3rd-Party support link
                        Microsoft Clip Gallery:          Version: 14.3.9 - SDK 10.5 3rd-Party support link
              Epson Printer Utility 4:          Version: 9.19 - SDK 10.5 3rd-Party support link
                        /Library/Printers/EPSON/InkjetPrinter2/Utility/UT4/Epson Printer Utility 4.app
              /Applications/Microsoft Office 2011
                        Microsoft PowerPoint:          Version: 14.3.9 - SDK 10.5 3rd-Party support link
                        Microsoft Excel:          Version: 14.3.9 - SDK 10.5 3rd-Party support link
                        Microsoft Outlook:          Version: 14.3.9 - SDK 10.5 3rd-Party support link
                        Microsoft Word:          Version: 14.3.9 - SDK 10.5 3rd-Party support link
                        Microsoft Document Connection:          Version: 14.3.9 - SDK 10.5 3rd-Party support link
              Microsoft Language Register:          Version: 14.3.9 - SDK 10.5 3rd-Party support link
                        /Applications/Microsoft Office 2011/Additional Tools/Microsoft Language Register/Microsoft Language Register.app
              vpndownloader:          Version: 3.0.08057 - SDK 10.4 3rd-Party support link
                        /opt/cisco/anyconnect/bin/vpndownloader.app
              Microsoft AutoUpdate:          Version: 2.3.6 - SDK 10.4 3rd-Party support link
                        /Library/Application Support/Microsoft/MAU2.0/Microsoft AutoUpdate.app
              Microsoft Communicator:          Version: 13.1.3 - SDK 10.5 3rd-Party support link
    Time Machine:
              Skip System Files: NO
              Auto backup: YES
              Volumes being backed up:
                        Macintosh HD: Disk size: 148.25 GB Disk used: 137.83 GB
              Destinations:
                        My Passport [Local] (Last used)
                        Total size: 465.41 GB
                        Total number of backups: 4
                        Oldest backup: 2014-02-03 21:42:50 +0000
                        Last backup: 2014-03-27 03:40:40 +0000
                        Size of backup disk: Excellent
                                  Backup size 465.41 GB > (Disk size 148.25 GB X 3)
              Time Machine details may not be accurate.
              All volumes being backed up may not be listed.
    Top Processes by CPU:
                   4%          WindowServer
                   3%          mdworker
                   1%          EtreCheck
                   1%          Google Drive
                   0%          Dropbox
    Top Processes by Memory:
              165 MB          com.apple.WebKit.WebContent
              86 MB          Safari
              84 MB          Mendeley Desktop
              63 MB          DashboardClient
              47 MB          WindowServer
    Virtual Memory Information:
              42 MB          Free RAM
              559 MB          Active RAM
              526 MB          Inactive RAM
              332 MB          Wired RAM
              1.54 GB          Page-ins
              34 MB          Page-outs

    You've got some Cisco VPN software. Do you need that? You might want to make sure that it is up to date and compatible with 10.9. The same for Google Drive and DropBox.
    Try a Safe Boot, which will disable all the third-party extensions. Does that improve matters?

  • Why does my computer slow down when I connect an external hard drive

    I've been using a 2TB western digital external hard drive with USB connection.  It was working fine, but once it was up to 1.95TB, my macbook pro froze up.  Looking at my activity monitor,  my memory dropped to nil once the hard drive was connected.  The same hard drive works fine on my PC and I have no issues accessing all the files, just not on my mac. Any suggestions? 

    Thanks Eustace,
    When I disconnect the external hard drive, and look at the activity monitor, the memory climbs back up to about 4 to 6GB free.
    I have software system version: OS X 10.8.3 (12D78)

  • HT4689 why is my computer running so slow

    my mac seems to be running very slow since i did the last update any idea why???

    Activity Monitor – Monitor Performance Problems  
    Performance Guide
    Why is my computer slow
    Why your Mac runs slower than it should
    Things you can do to resolve slowdowns  see post by Kappy

  • Why is my computer running slow since upgrading to os x yosemite?

    I upgraded my MacBook 13" Aluminum (2008) to OS X Yosemite earlier this year, and ever since, my computer has not been as fast as it was on OS X Mountain Lion or before.  It ran fine then, but my speed has fallen harshly.  Is there a way to make my computer operate faster?

    Activity Monitor - Mavericks  also Yosemite
    Activity Monitor in Mavericks has significant changes
    Performance Guide
    Why is my computer slow
    Why your Mac runs slower than it should
    Slow Mac After Mavericks
    Things you can do to resolve slowdowns  see post by Kappy
    Try running this program and then copy and paste the output in a reply. The program was created by Etresoft, a frequent contributor.  Please use copy and paste as screen shots can be hard to read.
    Etrecheck – System Information
    Unless you've added RAM since you bought the computer, you could probably increase the performance by adding RAM. The 2 places I’ve seen recommended most to buy reliable RAM are below. I have purchased RAM several times from Other World Computing and have always been very satisfied with the product and service. They have on-line instructions on how to replace the RAM. OWC has also tested RAM above what Apple states is the maximum. I now have 6GB installed on a machine supposedly limited to 4 GB.
    Crucial
    Other World Computing

  • Why is my computer running slower after upgrading to Maverick?

    So my computer seems to be running slower, doing anything at all after I installed the newest OS, Maverick.  Anyone have an idea as to why that might be?  What can I do to make it better?
    Thanks,
    Snoopynorthw
    Nevermind, I found this other discussion below.  Thanks.

    Activity Monitor - Mavericks  also Yosemite
    Activity Monitor in Mavericks has significant changes
    Performance Guide
    Why is my computer slow
    Why your Mac runs slower than it should
    Slow Mac After Mavericks
    Things you can do to resolve slowdowns  see post by Kappy
    Try running this program and then copy and paste the output in a reply. The program was created by Etresoft, a frequent contributor.  Please use copy and paste as screen shots can be hard to read.
    Etrecheck – System Information
    Unless you've added RAM since you bought the computer, you could probably increase the performance by adding RAM. The 2 places I’ve seen recommended most to buy reliable RAM are below. I have purchased RAM several times from Other World Computing and have always been very satisfied with the product and service. They have on-line instructions on how to replace the RAM. OWC has also tested RAM above what Apple states is the maximum. I now have 6GB installed on a machine supposedly limited to 4 GB.
    Crucial
    Other World Computing

  • Why is my computer so slow and now constantly freeze up after installing OS X Yosemite?

    Why is my computer so slow and now constantly freeze up after installing OS X Yosemite?

    Activity Monitor - Mavericks  also Yosemite
    Activity Monitor in Mavericks has significant changes
    Performance Guide
    Why is my computer slow
    Why your Mac runs slower than it should
    Slow Mac After Mavericks
    Things you can do to resolve slowdowns  see post by Kappy
    Try running this program and then copy and paste the output in a reply. The program was created by Etresoft, a frequent contributor.  Please use copy and paste as screen shots can be hard to read.
    Etrecheck – System Information

  • Why is Start up slow on MacBook Pro after Lion installation?

    I've noticed that it takes a while for my MacBook to turn on and start-up since I installed Lion. Any ideas why or how to correct? Thanks!!

    Your machine is likely too dated to run 10.8 adequately.
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    Why is my computer slow?
    How to revert your Mac to Snow Leopard
    How to erase and install Snow Leopard 10.6

  • Why is my computer running so slowly?

    Everything takes over a minute to load. I can't type quickly because the input latency is so bad. What can I do to make my very new MacBook Pro run as fast as it should?

    How large is you HD and how much space do you have left?
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    User Tip:  Why is my computer slow?
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    Activity Monitor in Mavericks has significant changes
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    Why is my computer slow
    Why your Mac runs slower than it should
    Slow Mac After Mavericks
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  • Question: why is my computer booting up slow? can the battery have anything to do with it?

    why is my computer booting up slow,can the battery have anything to do with it?

    Hi tecknik!
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    Follow us on Twitter @VZWSupport

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    Use your Activity Monitor, sort the %CPU column to identify what process is hogging your resources.

  • Why is my computer so slow and now constantly freeze up after installing OS 10.10 Yosemite?

    Why is my computer so slow and now constantly freeze up after installing OS X Yosemite?

    If your Mac runs slowly:
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      Start up in Safe Mode. http://support.apple.com/kb/PH18760
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    Remove  unnecessary software like CleanMyMac2.
    Run EtreCheck: https://discussions.apple.com/docs/DOC-6173
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  • Why is my computer so slow? Not sure how to read etrecheck info.

    My computer is slow to start up for inter
    Problem description:
    computer slow
    EtreCheck version: 2.1.6 (109)
    Report generated January 27, 2015 11:29:22 AM EST
    Download EtreCheck from http://etresoft.com/etrecheck
    Click the [Support] links for help with non-Apple products.
    Click the [Details] links for more information about that line.
    Click the [Adware] links for help removing adware.
    Hardware Information: ℹ️
      iMac (20-inch, Mid 2007) (Verified)
      iMac - model: iMac7,1
      1 2 GHz Intel Core 2 Duo CPU: 2-core
      1 GB RAM
      BANK 0/DIMM0
      1 GB DDR2 SDRAM 667 MHz ok
      BANK 1/DIMM1
      empty empty empty empty
      Bluetooth: Old - Handoff/Airdrop2 not supported
      Wireless:  en1: 802.11 a/b/g/n
    Video Information: ℹ️
      ATI,RadeonHD2400 - VRAM: 128 MB
      iMac 1680 x 1050
      spdisplays_display_connector
    System Software: ℹ️
      Mac OS X 10.6.8 (10K549) - Time since boot: 14 days 12:51:44
    Disk Information: ℹ️
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      Macintosh HD (disk0s2) / : 249.72 GB (146.64 GB free)
    USB Information: ℹ️
      Apple, Inc. Keyboard Hub
      Apple, Inc Apple Keyboard
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      Apple Inc. Bluetooth USB Host Controller
      Apple Computer, Inc. IR Receiver
      Logitech USB Receiver
    Kernel Extensions: ℹ️
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      [loaded] com.cisco.nke.ipsec (2.0.1) [Support]
    Startup Items: ℹ️
      CiscoVPN: Path: /System/Library/StartupItems/CiscoVPN
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    Problem System Launch Daemons: ℹ️
      [not loaded] org.samba.winbindd.plist [Support]
    Launch Agents: ℹ️
      [running] com.epson.eventmanager.agent.plist [Support]
      [loaded] com.google.keystone.agent.plist [Support]
    Launch Daemons: ℹ️
      [loaded] com.adobe.fpsaud.plist [Support]
      [loaded] com.google.keystone.daemon.plist [Support]
    User Launch Agents: ℹ️
      [loaded] com.adobe.ARM.[...].plist [Support]
      [not loaded] com.spotify.webhelper.plist [Support]
    User Login Items: ℹ️
      iTunesHelper UNKNOWN Hidden (missing value)
      Microsoft AU Daemon Application  (/Applications/Microsoft AutoUpdate.app/Contents/MacOS/Microsoft AU Daemon.app)
      Spotify UNKNOWN  (missing value)
      AdobeResourceSynchronizer Application Hidden (/Applications/Adobe Reader.app/Contents/Support/AdobeResourceSynchronizer.app)
      Launch Nikon Message Center 2 Application  (/Applications/Nikon Software/Nikon Message Center 2/Nikon Message Center 2.app/Contents/SharedSupport/Launch Nikon Message Center 2.app)
      ConnectService Application  (/Library/Application Support/ArcSoft/Connect Service/ConnectService.app)
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      DirectorShockwave: Version: 11.5.9r615 [Support]
      o1dbrowserplugin: Version: 5.38.6.0 - SDK 10.8 [Support]
      Unity Web Player: Version: UnityPlayer version 2.6.1f3 [Support]
      AdobePDFViewerNPAPI: Version: 10.1.12 [Support]
      FlashPlayer-10.6: Version: 16.0.0.296 - SDK 10.6 [Support]
      Silverlight: Version: 5.1.30514.0 - SDK 10.6 [Support]
      Flash Player: Version: 16.0.0.296 - SDK 10.6 [Support]
      AmazonMP3DownloaderPlugin: Version: AmazonMP3DownloaderPlugin 1.0.15 [Support]
      CitrixICAClientPlugIn: Version: 11.2.0 [Support]
      googletalkbrowserplugin: Version: 5.38.6.0 - SDK 10.8 [Support]
      AdobePDFViewer: Version: 10.1.12 [Support]
      iPhotoPhotocast: Version: 7.0
      QuickTime Plugin: Version: 7.6.6
      JavaAppletPlugin: Version: 13.9.8 - SDK 10.6 Check version
    User internet Plug-ins: ℹ️
      Move-Media-Player: Version: npmnqmp 071101000050 [Support]
    Audio Plug-ins: ℹ️
      iSightAudio: Version: 7.6.6
    3rd Party Preference Panes: ℹ️
      Citrix Online Plug-in  [Support]
      Flash Player  [Support]
    Time Machine: ℹ️
      Time Machine information requires OS X 10.7 "Lion" or later.
    Top Processes by CPU: ℹ️
          1% WindowServer
          1% ConnectService
          0% ps
          0% fontd
          0% SystemUIServer
    Top Processes by Memory: ℹ️
      114 MB Google Chrome
      83 MB mds
      55 MB Google Chrome Helper
      39 MB Finder
      35 MB WindowServer
    Virtual Memory Information: ℹ️
      154 MB Free RAM
      549 MB Active RAM
      193 MB Inactive RAM
      177 MB Wired RAM
      68.50 GB Page-ins

    You need to purchase and install more RAM into your iMac.
    Your IMac year and model can take a total of 6 GBs of RAM Max.
    Correct, compatible and reliable Mac RAM can ONLY be purchased from online RAM sources Crucial memory or OWC (http://www.macsales.com).
    OWC only has the 6 GB RAM kit here.
    http://eshop.macsales.com/item/Other%20World%20Computing/5300DDR2S6GP/
    Install instructions here
    http://eshop.macsales.com/installvideos/imac_mid_2007_mem_h/
    Ditch ALL Googlewares. They are ALL a serious resource hogs on the OS X system.
    https://support.google.com/chrome/answer/95319?hl=en
    If you do not like Apple's Safari web browser, download, install and try Mozilla FireFox, instead.
    The current, up-to-date version of FireFox is fully compatible with OS X and is regularly updated by the great developers of the Mozilla group.
    I have, also, stopped using the Google search engine regularly (due to Google's privacy policies or lack thereof) and I now use DuckDuckGo as my default search engine.
    Good Luck!

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