What happens if mac hangs

If you are finding this is happening more often, maybe it's time to look at long-term solutions. Maybe you've not updated your operating system recently? If that is the case, then you should note a new one comes out soon.

At the same time, you may need to declutter the Mac, removing old files and long-forgotten documents to avoid troublesome Mac freezes. Macs are fairly powerful, durable devices. It takes a lot to slow them down, or a simple issue of the Mac running too many programs, apps and browser tabs all of then use processing power. Like with any computer, when too much is stored and too many apps are fighting for CPU processing power, you're stuck with a spinning wheel and your beloved Mac not responding to clicks and pleas.

Apps crashing are some of the most common reasons behind a Mac freezing. Usually, an app freezing won't crash the whole Mac, but that is a risk when your memory is full, or there are lots of applications running at once. Let's start with a bit of obvious advice: don't panic, don't do anything you'll regret, don't push every button.

In this part we'll go over unfreezing a Mac and preventing issues in the future. Depending on your current trouble, we'll try to determine the core reason and what to do in each case. First, you need to bring your Mac back to life. When it's unresponsive - either as a result of an app or the computer is struggle to function — you can either click Restart, from the main menu, or press Command-Control-Power Eject for keyboards and iMacs to get it to restart.

If neither of those solutions works, then you can hold the power button down which will restart the device. Not an ideal solution, since you can lose anything unsaved, but at least that should restore it to normal. What if you resurrected your Mac and realized some of the files are missing? Don't worry just yet, install Disk Drill , the world's premier data recovery software for macOS. It was created for the cases when Mac crashed and you lost data and when you accidentally deleted files.

Disk Drill is powerful enough to retrieve long-lost, mistakenly deleted files from Macs, external hard drives and USB drives and camera cards. Simply open the app and scan the chosen drive or partition, preview to find exact files you want to restore and restore them. Apps may running in the background, freeze and crash. Try to determine which apps cause the crash.

You start at this: when does the crash happen? If it's when you turn on or work in a specific app, maybe you need to either reset it or remove it entirely. FIX: To remove apps or set them to back default, use a Mac optimizer app called CleanMyMac , it's has a specific Uninstaller module which can safely perform the task. CleanMyMac is available on Setapp collection and you can use it for free during the trial period.

To reset an app, repeat the first three items and then right-click on the arrow near the app name and select Application Reset instead. Resetting an app to default settings and cleaning up its cache can help if you're sure you really need the app and you can't afford to simply remove it. Also, don't forget to check for app's updates, there's a change your problems sprout from an outdated version.

When an app freezes, which becomes obvious when an application is unresponsive in the middle of something, or you are shown the spinning beachball of despair, you can Force Quit either in the app, from the dock or main menu. An unresponsive app can cause the entire computer to freeze and glitch. Normally, you would instantly force quit the program through the Dock.

But what do you do if it makes your cursor stuck as well? There are other ways to exit applications that you can read about below. Sometimes Finder simply gets stuck. Whether while moving some files or seemingly out of blue, it can be disastrous when such a fundamental utility is down.

Mail is known as a source of bugs and glitches on Mac. Some popular issues include the app freezing when you try to send an email to a new recipient, or attach a weighty file. Luckily, there are ways out of any of those problems. Numerous users have reported Chrome crashing in Catalina , although it can happen in earlier macOS versions too. Lately , Mozilla users have been experiencing a problem with the browser quitting unexpectedly whenever they try to use it.

Typically, this is caused by Firefox being out of date. Check if there are any updates available: click on the Firefox menu in the top left corner of the screen, go to About Firefox and wait until the page loads. If there are new versions available, you will see the Restart to Update Firefox button. Firefox, as any other browser, is dependent on your operating system being up and running properly.

If you use plugins, they might be the cause of Firefox crashing. Mac users often experience an odd Microsoft Word crash. However, with a proper licensed version there are a few things you can do. Start by updating the app and the operating system itself. You can also repair your disk through Disk Utility: open the tool through Spotlight, click on your drive and launch First Aid. You may struggle to play music or even open the app at all — either way, there is a fix to Spotify freezing.

Otherwise, reinstall it entirely. With over 5 years of supporting Mac users, Ruslana lives and breathes everything Mac. Tech expert, Apple lover, and well, a cutie. Say hi on LinkedIn! Oops, something went wrong. We use cookies to create the best online experience. Check our Cookie Policy for details. Mac Fixes. By Ruslana Lishchuk. The spinning pinwheel of death.

Whatever you prefer to call it, the rainbow-colored ball that pops up on your Mac's screen and refuses to go away is a bad omen signaling that your computer has frozen. Apple provides a number of ways to thaw frozen Macs. Log in Social login does not work in incognito and private browsers. Please log in with your username or email to continue. No account yet? Create an account.

Edit this Article. We use cookies to make wikiHow great. By using our site, you agree to our cookie policy. Cookie Settings. Learn why people trust wikiHow. Download Article Explore this Article parts. Related Articles. Part 1. Force-quit a frozen program. If a program is frozen, but your computer is still responsive, you can force-quit the program and continue using the computer. There are several ways you can force-quit a frozen program: Click your desktop or any other open window to switch focus away from the frozen app.

Click the Apple menu and select "Force Quit". Highlight the frozen program and click "Force Quit" to close it. Select the frozen program and click "Force Quit".

Select "Force Quit" from the menu. Reboot your frozen Mac computer. If your system is not responding, or you can't open any of the Force Quit menus, you can force the computer to reboot.

There are several ways you can do this, even if you can't move the mouse. The Power button is located in the upper-right corner of MacBook keyboards, or on the back side of iMacs and other desktops. Part 2. Determine if the problem is with a program or your system. If the freezing only occurs when running a specific program, it is likely the program that is causing the problem.

If the freezing occurs randomly, or when performing everyday tasks on the computer, there is likely a problem with the operating system. If the computer is freezing when trying to use a peripheral, such as a printer or a USB drive, that device may be causing the problem. Getting a general idea of the source will help your troubleshooting efforts. Check your free space.

If your boot drive is running out of free space, it could be causing system instability. Your boot drive the drive containing your operating system files should generally have at least 10 GB of free space. If you have less than this, you may start encountering errors. Click the "Storage" tab to view your used and available space. If you have less than 10 GB of free space available, delete some files or programs that you don't need anymore.

Update your apps and operating system. The freezing you're experiencing may be a known bug that was fixed with a more recent version of the program or the OS X operating system.

Updating your software may fix the problem you're having.