Your Mac restarted because of a problem
What to do if your computer restarts or shuts down unexpectedly, or you get a message that your computer restarted or shut down because of a problem? Most important is at first back up your data asap, because you may require to format and reinstall the Operating system. Sometimes it resolves the problem if it’s a software issue. If it’s still not resolved the problem then there would be a hardware issue. Before you go that far please try the following steps, or book an appointment to visit our support center https://mymaccomputer.com.au/appointment.
Unexpected restarts of your Mac
Your Mac might experience a software or hardware issue that requires it to restart. When it starts up again, you might see a message that your computer was restarted because of a problem.
Software installed on your Mac or devices connected to it can usually cause unexpected restarts. If the issue causes your Mac to restart every time it attempts to start up, your Mac might eventually shut down. Use the steps below to check the software and hardware on your Mac.
Check your Mac’s software
If the issue is caused by software on your Mac, one of these steps might help:
- Install all available software updates.
- If your Mac suspects that a particular app caused the restart, it might ask whether you would like to move the app to the Trash. Click Move to Bin, then contact the software developer to see if a software update is available.
- Use safe mode to try to isolate the cause of the issue.
- Reinstall macOS. If the issue continues after reinstalling macOS, check your hardware.
Check your Mac’s hardware
How to check your connected devices and other hardware.
Check peripheral devices first
If you don’t have any devices attached to your Mac, skip to the next section.
- Shut down your Mac.
- Disconnect all peripheral devices, such as hard drives or printers. Make sure you only have a display, keyboard, mouse, or trackpad connected if you have a desktop Mac.
- Turn on your Mac.
- Use your Mac for the amount of time that it would usually take for an unexpected restart to occur.
- If an unexpected restart occurs, follow the steps to check the internal RAM and third-party hardware.
- If an unexpected restart doesn’t occur, turn off the Mac and connect one peripheral device at a time until an unexpected restart occurs.
Check RAM and third-party hardware
Certain models of Mac computers have removable memory (RAM). If you’ve recently installed memory or a hard disk (or SSD), make sure that it’s compatible and installed correctly. If possible, remove it and test with the original memory or disk.
