MacBook crashes

Every MacBook crashes from time to time – as soon as the just-functioning image stays still as frozen, you know it’s trouble. Fortunately, the specialists at ThePhoneLab know how to deal with this. You can read about it on this blog in our Knowledge Base!

In this blog, we discuss:

• MacBook crashes
• My MacBook crashed, now what?
• How can I forcefully stop my MacBook?
• Application forced stop does not help
• My MacBook crashes again
• Check stuck apps via Activity View

MacBook crashes

You recognize a MacBook that crashes quickly enough: nothing at all happens on the screen, or a spinning waiting cursor (also called a beach ball, spinning wheel or rainbow wheel) or a blinking question mark (in a folder symbol) appears on the screen. This can have several causes. For example, an application may not work properly and/or use too much memory, an external connection such as a mouse, keyboard or printer may cause failures, or the boot or hard drive may not run as they should.

My MacBook crashed, now what?

Fortunately, just because your MacBook doesn’t do anything anymore doesn’t mean you can’t do anything either. There is always a solution! First check if your mouse, keyboard and other accessories really don’t work anymore and if they are properly connected and/or sufficiently charged. A little patience can also work wonders. Especially if you have unsaved work open while your MacBook crashes. Therefore, wait quietly first, because often your laptop recovers on its own, and no work is lost. If unfortunately that has had no effect, perform a forced stop out on your MacBook. These are two fairly simple steps:

How can I forcefully stop my MacBook?

1. Choose the “Force Stop” option from the Apple menu or hold down this key combination: Option (⌥) + Command (⌘) + Escape.
2. In the “Force stop” window that now opens, click on the app you want to close and click “Force stop.

Application forced stop does not help

Does the forced stop have no effect and your MacBook still does nothing? Then try rebooting your laptop via “Reboot” in the Apple menu. If this doesn’t work automatically, then try forcing it:

1. Press and hold the power button for 10 seconds until the Apple logo appears. Your MacBook will now turn off.
2. Restart the MacBook (if it doesn’t already do so by itself). You should now be able to pick up where you left off!

My MacBook crashes again

Did the above steps help you, but does your MacBook crash again after a while? Chances are that age and/or too much load are the cause. But we wouldn’t be ThePhoneLab if we didn’t have a solution for this too. In the Knowledge base of ThePhoneLab we help you to reinstall your reinstall your MacBook or even restore it to factory settings. Overheating can also be the cause of a slow and/or stalled laptop. Our specialists often see that the cooling system is full of dust, causing overheating. The solution? A thorough cleaning at ThePhoneLab.

Still have questions after this? Take a look at our other articles in the Knowledge Base, perhaps they can help you further. You are also welcome to visit one of our stores, so our specialists can perform a free diagnosis and possibly repair your laptop right away.

Check stuck apps via Activity View

Does your MacBook keep crashing regularly? If so, it may help to check which applications are using a lot of processor or working memory. Open Activity View via Spotlight by pressing Command (⌘) + space and typing “Activity View. In this window, you can see which processes are using a lot of CPU or memory. Select a stuck application and click the stop icon to end the process.