Recently, Apple has taken Mac users to the warmer places by killing its series of mountain themes and naming the newest macOS version after Mojave desert. Apart from the new name and appearance (which, by the way, can be changed), macOS 10.14 is packed with lots of goodies that should give your Mac a performance boost.
Enough mountain climbing, it's time for desert heat! Recently, Apple has taken Mac users to the warmer places by killing its series of mountain themes and naming the newest macOS version after Mojave desert.
Check Available Disk Space. This first fix can be done before you even attempt to install the update. Slowbot's power will decrease over time reducing its speed and headlight brightness. Embed Buttons To promote Slowbot and grow its popularity ( top games ), use the embed code provided on your homepage, blog, forums and elsewhere you desire. Your computer's startup disk may not have enough free disk space. To make disk space available.
Apart from the new name and appearance (which, by the way, can be changed), macOS 10.14 is packed with lots of goodies that should give your Mac a performance boost. Dark Mode, Stacks, Continuity Camera – these are only some of the awesome improvements you'll find in macOS Mojave, which is now available as a free update in the Mac App Store.
From preparing your Mac for the update to the moment you can start enjoying the blackness of the Dark Mode, it should take you less than two hours to make the install. But not everything is lightning fast in macOS 10.14. As it often happens with new updates, you may find yourself falling asleep in the attempt to open an app on your Mac.
Online forums and communities are buzzing with discussions, which all reflect upon the same issue – Mojave freezing or running extremely slow. Clearly, the new OS hampering your Mac's performance is simply not fun. But hey, we are all a little slow when it comes to doing something new.
Quick Problem Navigation
Why is Mojave running slow?
Prior to making any conclusions and cursing at Mojave, try to get to the root of the problem. Here's the list of major reasons why an upgrade to macOS Mojave is impossible or leaves you with a slow Mac:
- Compatibility issues
- Not enough free disk space
- Too many apps running at the background
- Some apps are outdated
- Hardware problems (SMC or PRAM could be corrupted)
- Mojave's new display effects cause slow performance
- Malware
How to find out what is slowing Mojave down?
If your Mac runs slow on Mojave, this guide should help you get things right. Check out the most common problems with macOS 10.14 performance to ensure none of that is affecting your Mac.
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macOS Mojave won't download
Did you recieve the error messages when trying to download Mojave? It's possible your Mac simply won't download the macOS 10.14 Mojave installer and shows error messages like 'macOS Mojave download has failed' or 'try again later.' Re-downloading Mojave over and over again won't always help and, besides, could be quite irritating.
What could be wrong?
Mojave won't download for a variety of reasons. It could be that too many people are trying to download it at the same time. Poor internet connectivity is another possible cause. Lastly, the download will fail in case there's not enough storage space on you Mac.
How to fix Mojave download error?
That being said, there are three fixes one of which should apply to your download problem:
- Check Wi-Fi connection. In case there are any connectivity issues, raise your complaint to Internet Service Provider.
- Look into the live status of the Apple server to ensure it's all good on Apple's side.
- Ensure you have enough storage space: Apple menu > About This Mac > Storage. There should be at least 12,5 GB free, so that you could make the download.
macOS Mojave installation failed
The issue: Mac won't finish installing
Why does Mojave fail to install? What to do if your Mac freezes during software installation? In this case, you'll most likely see the message like 'Installation of macOS couldn't continue.'
What could be wrong?
The model of your device is incompatible with the macOS Mojave, or there's less than 4 GB of RAM and/or less than 15 GB of free disk space.
How to fix Mojave install stuck
You need to have a supported Mac version. That's the rule number one and if you fail to follow it, you simply won't get to experience Mojave perks. Seems like a no-brainer, but compliance is the first thing you should check.
As a rule of thumb, all the Macs released before 2012 are incompatible with macOS 10.14. These oldies simply don't have the required graphics power and are technically not fit for the newest macOS. So, if your Mac is older than 6 years, sorry – you won't be able to enjoy the darkness of Mojave.
If you're using a supported Mac version, check RAM and available storage:
Apple menu > About This Mac > Overview (for RAM) / Storage (for free disk space).
As necessary, you'll need to buy some extra RAM and / or reclaim more storage – easy to do with CleanMyMac X. On any Mac, there's a whole bunch of outdated cache files, app leftovers and logs, eating up a large amount of disk space.
Ideally, before you upgrade to the new macOS, you should clear up all system junk on your Mac. There are two ways to empty the caches: manually – by deleting file by file, or with just a few clicks – through a cleaning software like CleanMyMac. This app can remove all the junk from every corner of your hard drive. What's more, you can pick specific kinds of material that should be cleared away: mail attachments, photo junk, useless old downloads, etc. The whole process is really a three-click deal.
To delete junk files in seconds use CleanMyMac X:
- Open the app
- Click Smart Scan
- Remove the junk from suggested folders.
The issue: Installation stops at 99%
You know what hurts the most? When the installation is almost finished and your Mac, suddenly, gets stuck on the message 'About a minute remaining.'
What could be wrong
Most likely, Mojave won't install on your Mac, because you've been using an older version of OS.
How to complete Mojave installation?
You'll need to update your OS to the newest version available and then switch to Mojave. For instance, if you've been using macOS Sierra 10.12.4, try upgrading to Sierra 10.12.6 before you update your Mac to macOS 10.14.
Mojave is running slow after the update
The issue: Mojave seems really slow to boot/startup
When things go wrong right from the start, that's frustrating. Slow macOS startup is the common problem for those making acquaintance with macOS 10.14. For sure, if you have to spend over two minutes on booting your Mac, productive work is out of the question. But don't rush into downgrading – one quick-fix solution can give your Mac blazing speed.
What could be wrong
There could be different reasons why your Mac is running slow on startup. If you think you're waiting too long, one of the following could be the issue:
- There are too many auto-runs hampering your Mac's performance.
- Some hidden launch items affect the startup speed.
- The startup disk is almost full.
- A Solid State Drive is required.
Unless you're a slow life fan, all of these issues with startup speed should be fixed. The good news is, if you know where to look, that's quite easy.
How to speed up Mojave boot time
Slow Boat Mac Os X
Step 1. Close auto-run programs
Unnecessary apps running at the background when you try to login or boot the Mac can be root of all problems. Because there are many auto-run programs that launch automatically during startup, your Mac is under pressure here. Not only is it booting your OS, but a range of other programs – most of which you don't need – as well. Obviously, this makes your Mac stop or delay while starting up.
To prevent programs from starting automatically just disable them:
- Go to System Preferences.
- Open Users & Groups.
- On the right side of the screen, you'll see your username.
- After selecting the username, click Login Items on the left side of the screen.
- Decide what programs shouldn't launch during startup and check boxes next to them.
- Click – (minus) at the bottom of the screen.
Step 2. Identify and remove hidden launch agents
While closing auto-runs seems easy-peasy, it's a bit more tricky with hidden items. There are some small satellite apps or other software products that will launch each time you're trying to boot the Mac, but won't show themselves. These hidden launch agents may cause your Mac slow down significantly, although everything seems fine on the surface.
With CleanMyMac X, you get rid of hidden junk in a matter of seconds:
- Open the app.
- Select Optimization under the Speed module.
- Click Launch Agents and you'll see the list of hidden launch agents.
- Use check boxes to disable or remove the items.
Step 3. Free up startup disk space
A full (or almost full) startup disk may be another reason why your Mac isn't running at full speed after the update. For sure, without solving the 'startup disk full' problem, you can't fix slow Mojave. To free up as much disk space as possible, you can either go for a long-term solution – CleanMyMac X is tidying up your disk automatically – or make a range of quick fixes:
- Clean up cache files.
- Remove localization files. Many localized apps that support different languages come in 'language packs.' Since you most likely don't need all the files from the pack, you can remove them: Open Finder > Applications > Ctrl + click on an app > Show package contents > Contents > Resources. From there, move unnecessary files ending in lproj. to trash.
- Get rid of old iOS and iTunes library backups. Keeping backups on your Mac is, clearly, a waste of space. To remove any backup folder, go to Finder, click Go > Go to Folder, and select the type of backup files you don't need on your Mac (Music/iTunes libraries, Application Support, MobileSync, etc.)
- Remove the apps you don't use.
- Delete iOS software updates from Mac. Once any of your devices gets updated, you no longer need the files, downloaded previously on this device. Find the updates that can be removed from Mac here: Finder > Go > Go to Folder > Library/iTunes/iPad (iPhone) Software Updates.
- Remove photo junk. It's not only tons of selfies that cause the problem – you also have to get rid of service files and caches, generated each time you use Photos for Mac or iPhoto. Again, CleanMyMac X is the best option for cleaning up your photo gallery. Not only does it save your precious time, the app helps determine what can be removed safely, without harming your OS or losing an important system file. If you have too much time on your hands, you can also remove photo junk manually – file by file: open Finder, then go to Photos library and click Show Package Contents. In the Master/Modified/Original/Preview folders, you'll find photos that have the copies you can choose to remove.
- Delete or archive movies and music downloads. You don't have to tell us, removing the best series of Game of Thrones from your Mac is painful. But with tons of downloads, the chances your new OS gets a speed boost are close to zero. Go through your music and movie downloads, deleting everything you don't need. If saying goodbye is too much, you can also archive some files, by turning them into compressed versions: Ctrl + click the file > click Compress.
- Clean up your desktop. Yes, everything that is kept on your desktop also takes up RAM space. If you're too busy to sort it all out, there's a smart desktop organizer for you – Declutter app, so that you could keep the front page of your Mac nice and tidy.
Step 4. Get flash-based solid state drive (SSD)
In case you're using an oldie – a device equipped with Fusion drives or HDD – no wonder it's taking forever to startup. To expand storage and add some serious speed, switch to a SSD and see how it gives your Mac better performance and durability.
The issue: The apps are running slow after the update
Slow Boat Mac Os Catalina
Your new OS isn't able to run all apps at full speed – that's a pretty common problem.
What could be wrong?
The apps you have in your Mac should also be compatible with Mojave, so that they don't slow down the overall performance. On top of that, power-hungry apps could also cause problems with speed.
Mojave fixes in a single pack
Here's all you need to keep your macOS in a good shape. Grab the best utilities to fix Mojave problems.
How to fix apps freezing and crashing
Step 1. Update outdated apps
If you're using Setapp, you don't have to care, because all the updates are made automatically, by default. In other cases, you'll have to ensure third-party apps are compatible with Mojave: Go to the Mac App Store, click on Updates and you'll see all apps that are available for update at the moment. If there are more than one, just click Update All and you won't have to bother anymore.
Step 2. Close power-hungry apps
Power-hungry apps running in the background can be another reason attributed to slow Mac performance. Because too much RAM and CPU is occupied by these apps, there's little left to Mojave. If that's the case, Activity Monitor is your key to solving the problem here.
Here's a quick primer on how to stop resource-hungry apps from slowing down your Mac:
- Go to Applications and select Utilities.
- Open the Activity Monitor.
- Click on the CPU option.
- View applications that are taking up most of the CPU in '%CPU' column list.
- To close the app, click on the 'X' at the left top corner.
In case you want to close all the apps, you can click Quit or Force Quit. Choose the first option to save changes before closing the apps (could take a while), or shut down all apps through Force Quit if you don't care about the unsaved changes.
The issue: Slow performance is complemented by battery drain
On top of Mojave running slow, users often experience battery drain problems after the update.
What could be wrong?
The new Dynamic Desktop feature, as well as improved display effects, affect Mac's performance.
The 'dark-light-dark-repeat' mode is fun – no question. And while the new macOS 10.14 is packed with lots of useful features, Dynamic Desktop is, probably, the most lightweight yet most exciting of all. In case you didn't know, this is the feature that makes your desktop change from dark to light mode, depending on the time of the day. Sadly, Dynamic Desktop can also be the reason why Mojave runs slow.
Another problem relates to improved display effects like transparency and motion. For sure, Mojave became not only the most solid, but also the most visually-pleasing OS. But that which glitters is not always gold, right? Fancy display effects exhaust your Mac, which, eventually, causes slow performance in Mojave.
How to fix battery drain issues?
Step 1. Disable Dynamic Desktop
White rose (demo) mac os. Below are the simple steps to disable Dynamic Desktop on your Mac:
- Go to System Preferences.
- Select Desktop and Screen Saver.
- Pick a wallpaper you want to use.
Step 2. Change display settings
If speed is your priority, you can change display settings in a few steps:
- Go to System Preferences.
- Click Accessibility.
- Select Display.
- Check mark boxes next to Reduce motion and Reduce transparency.
If none of that works and Mojave is still running slow?
Apart from what was mentioned, slow performance can also be caused by malware or hardware problems.
Here are the last-resort measures that could help you solve the problem.
Reset SMC and PRAM
System Management Controller (SMC) and PRAM are two powerful mechanisms, governing a range of functions on your Mac – from battery management to screen resolutions. Basically, anytime when your Mac is behaving strangely, resetting SMC and PRAM could be a good idea.
To reset SMC:
- Plug in the power source to the device.
- Press and hold Control + Shift + Option + Power.
- Turn on the power button to reset SMC.
To reset PRAM:
- Power your Mac down and then switch it on in few seconds.
- Press and hold Option + Command + P + R.
- Hold the keys down until the Mac restarts.
Reinstall Mojave
There's another ridiculously simple solution: reinstall the macOS. There are two ways to give Mojave a fresh start:
- Install a new copy of macOS over the existing one
- Clean install Mojave.
Although the latter will fully erase your startup disk and you'll have to reinstall the apps, it's usually much more efficient.
Check if your Mac has adware or malware
In case Mojave won't speed up, the good idea is to scan your Mac for malware. Use the tools like MalwareBytes for Mac or run a one-click scan with Malware Removal available on CleanMyMac X.
As you see, many perks that you gain with Mojave come at the expense of dealing with slow Mac performance issues. The good news is you can solve all of them.
There are many users who, amazed by Dark mode and other Mojave goodies, rushed into the new system unprepared. And it's very likely that most of them have already rolled back to High Sierra. While each OS has its pros and cons, we recommend you fully experience the capabilities of Mojave, which could only be possible if your Mac is ready for the update.
First of all, check device compatibility – not every Mac model is fit for the newest version of macOS. Clean up your hard drive, deleting all old files, app leftovers, and downloads to make enough room for Mojave. Lastly, perform a system backup to ensure no important files will get lost in the shuffle after the update. You can set up the backup process, using Time Machine, or choose a third-party app called Get Backup Pro – an awesome utility with four different backup modules: simple copy, clone, incremental, and versioned.
You know what they say – failing to plan is planning to fail. So before you give up on the new macOS 10.14, ensure your Mac is really in a good shape for the update. After all, poor preparation of your device could be the key reason of slow performance.
Mojave has excellent tools that could skyrocket productivity and organisation for Mac users. Using all the tips above should help you make the most of the new macOS – lightning fast. Setapp has you covered with a range of apps, making your Mac run at full speed after the update – including CleanMyMac X, Get Backup Pro, and Declutter mentioned in this article.
Mac Os Boot Camp
| Click here to return to the 'Fix SSD slow boot times' hint |
In my case, I bought the SSD pre-installed in my iMac 27 inch. I only have the option of booting from the SSD. It is the default position with no alternative offered.
Also, I use SuperDuper! to make a clone and all you have to do is partition your EHD and clone the SSD to Partition 1 which is automatically rendered re-bootable; and the Internal HD (called HD2 by Apple) to Partition 2. No need for Images and the rest. Easy & straightforward.
Ian
- Do Time Machine backup of old laptop. Turn old laptop off.
- Plug Time Machine volume into new laptop.
- Mac OS X asks if I want to restore from the TM backup. I said yes.
- Go get coffee.
- Log into new laptop and continue my work from where I left off.
Did you boot from a CD or something? A new SSD is formatted for Windows and is completely blank. Werewolves alpha mac os.
The SSD came in my new laptop. I didn't buy it separately.
But you're right, booting from a CD and formatting it is a fine way of going about it.
Mac Os Boot Drive
For those who want to use this procedure, which has the advantage of not requiring a $30 Universal HDD Adapter but has the disadvantage of not allowing you to test your SSD before you install, the steps are:
1. Log in as a user who does *not* have FileVault enabled and do a Time Machine backup.
2. Open up the Mac (using instructions from iFixit.com) and swap the two drives.
3. Insert your system recovery/installation DVD in your optical drive. Restart your computer and press and hold the 'C' key as soon as you hear the chimes until the Apple appears.
4. When you get to the screen saying 'Install Mac OS X,' do not press the 'Continue' button. Instead, go to the Utilites menu and select 'Disk Utility.'
5. Format your SSD as HFS Extended (Journaled), 1 partition. Quit Disk Utility.
6. Go back to the Utilities menu and select 'Restore System From Backup,' choosing your Time Machine backup. The restore should take about three hours.
7. Restart. Go to System Preferenences, set the startup drive, and you're done.
I went to System Preferences/Startup Disk and there were two disks, the new SSD (named Mac OS X 10.6.7 on MacBook_HD) and the Network Startup.
I selected MacBook_HD and I took exactly 30 seconds to reboot.
So, I guess this hint didn't work for me.
This is not specific to SSDs; I have heard of issues where people have had this long wait becuase their regular hard drive was not selected is Startup Disk.
You are correct. If you swap your drive for an SSD, though, you'll really, really notice the delay because everything else will be so fast. The Apple discussion board has many threads on the problem, some with poor advice.
Quickest way to fix this is to do a pram reset of the computer and it will use the first available boot volume it comes across. The internal drive(s) are checked first. Useful if you just cloned your old drive to a SSD or new hard drive and swapped it out.
Trash panda (apostate games) mac os. I'd like to sum up by saying that if you're handy with a screwdriver (or know someone who is), upgrading to an SSD is a great way to make a three or four-year-old machine feel like new: applications launch 3-5 times faster and, if you have to run Parallels on occasion, launching Windows takes 30 seconds instead of 90.
You can see if your machine can be upgraded by going to 'About this Mac' under the Apple menu and then clicking 'More Info.' Under the Hardware category, click 'Serial-ATA' and see if your current drive is described. If so, an overnight clone and two hours of hardware installation will do the trick. SSDs are about $400 at present but that's still much less than a new machine with a solid state drive.
Not sure why people are discussing how to move data to an SSD, but this hint absolutely works! So odd that with only one bootable drive connected/installed, this still has an effect. But the system does seem to always take the time to search for devices without one explicitly selected.
Took my MBP with Crucial C300 256GB boot up time at a much more SSD appropriate boot speed. Good stuff!
This has nothing specifically to do with SSDs. Just a new drive. The hint should be changed to be less specific.
The problem is actually not that it can't find the new drive, but that the Mac is specifically looking for the old drive. It will wait in the vane hope of the old drive spinning up and attaching, before it times out and goes through the actually available drives.
Setting the correct disk in Startup Disk will fix the problem as noted, whether the new disk is a SSD or HDD.
I bought a 120GB OWC SSD and it died about two months later. When I say, 'died' I mean, I left my MacPro on over night and the next morning it was hung and the disk was totally dead. It would not boot, the Mac wouldn't boot if the drive was connected. It was completely toast with no chance for data recovery. Fortunately, it was warrantied and swapped by OWC for free. But unfortunately, I lost about two months of data!
So if you have an SSD, being used as a boot and Apps drive, as most would do. Make sure you clone it on a regular basis. I keep all my data on redundant disks but my startup SSD is cloned via CCC (Carbon Copy Cloner) on a scheduled weekly basis. When an SSD dies, it just outright dies, they make no noise, have no moving parts, won't start failing and get worse, they just completely fail all of a sudden without warning! So be sure to back that drive up!
Cloning is the best backup for a bootable system volume SSD drive. I run mine to boot fast and run all my Apps fast. I also keep my Fusion VM's on it. All my data is across multiple disks in an external RAID box with a second RAID box mirroring it. Critical personal data is encrypted and uploaded to an offsite server in a data center that manages backups for me. The local RAID boxes are more multi-terabyte media libraries. (Scary, I remember my first dialup ISP ran the entire operation on 1TB of storage and I have 10 times that just for my household media!
hi, i tried the 'select startup disk' solution and it didn't work because i didn't realize that in order for the system to make the switch, the secondary drive needs to be connected when doing this!
so i attached the external drive, then went to system preferences and chose the internal drive as startup, and awesome, it worked and boot time cut in half from about 30 seconds to 15! much more like i expected from an SSD.
i notice restarts are even faster, which again proves the point that you don't get the same results from restarts as you do shut downs on many operations. i always prefer a full 'shut down' rather than a restart because it just plain makes things work better after upgrades, installs, etc. the two are definitely not equal.
thank you to 'noworryz' for pointing out a simple solution to slow booting from a new SSD, your post was exactly what i was experiencing. i was really beginning to wonder what was up and what i had done wrong and how much more time it would take to solve this.
so again if you are having the slow boot issue, when you use this 'designate startup disk in system preferences' remedy just be sure to attach the backed up external drive while making the choice of the ssd in System Preferences and it does work!
Brilliant. This is exactly what I needed. I had put my original HDD into a FW enclosure, so I mounted that, then went to system prefs/startup disk, and selected the internal SDD. I also clicked the lock for good measure. Now I get to the gray apple logo almost instantly upon booting, and the whole thing takes 15 seconds.
For the record, I did the quick and dirty clone using CCC with the new SSD in the external FW enclosure (after first formatting it with disk utility), then simply swapped disks. Other than the long boot time (now solved) I haven't noticed any negative side effects from doing it this way.
