Electronics

[glb613]

If it wasn't my main computer, I wouldn't be having the difficulty deciding when to reset my iMac.  It's running so slow, I have to do something.  I'm doing a backup as I write the post with the plans to reset my computer soon.  My question is, will restoring from this backup just put it back into the condition I'm trying to eliminate? 

I've always started fresh when I've restore a computer or tablet.  I've saved everything separately rather than using a backup file.  In my mind, making a backup of a problem computer would simply restore it to the same problem condition.  Has anyone reset or restored their Apple computer using a backup and been successful?  Thanks. 

[Mz iMac]

@glb613

Do you use time machine?  If so, you can pick & chose what you want to bring  back.

How much storage space do you have?  How much is left?  15% of storage space can drasticly slow a Mac.

How much RAM do you have and/or is it maxed out? 

Which model iMac do you have?

FWIW....

Have been an iMac user since 1999 & have never "restored" because it's "slow."  There are many many reasons why a Mac can become slow.

Unlike PCs, "restoring" should be a last resort on a Mac if other troubleshooting methods do not work.

I have always maxed out my RAM on every iMac I've owned.  I purchase RAM from 3rd parties because purchasing from Apple (which uses the exact same RAM as 3rd parties) is just too expensive.

My current iMac, I purchased RAM from a 3rd party & had the Apple Store install it (for free) at my home since I have AppleCare.

To answer your question, I have only backed up when upgrading an OS.  I manually select what I want to bring back (using TM).  Always sucessfully.

[gardenman]

The big question is: "Why is it slow?" If it was a Windows PC (and I know it's not) I'd pop into Task Manager and check the CPU and memory usage, make sure all the RAM is showing (a memory stick can come loose or fail losing as much as half your RAM.) I'd check to see how much hard drive space I had. I'd check the CPU and GPU temps. Both tend to throttle back if overheated, significantly slowing the computer. I'd check for programs that start on launch and remove unnecessary ones. I'd run a virus and malware scan to be sure nothing's stealing resources. I'd shutdown (maybe even unplug it for a bit) and then reboot and see if the problem remained. Some newer motherboards still let you recharge devices through a USB port even with the power off, so there's still power to the motherboard and potentially keeping the problem alive even when the computer is turned off. Pulling the plug solves that issue.

Now, you'll have to translate those steps to a Mac, but on a Windows PC, those steps should show you the problem. Both operating systems use roughly the same hardware these days, so the same problems exist on both platforms.

Generally speaking these days, the OS stays functional after updates and won't slow down a computer, so a clean OS install doesn't change much. You set yourself up for hours of downloading and installing the accumulated updates, but the problem would likely persist.

Once you identify the problem then you move on to fixing it. My best guess would be overheating might be the culprit. CPU coolers are notorious for pulling in junk to clog the radiator fins and heat up the CPU. A few bursts of compressed air might just get the speed back.

A longshot guess would be a failing power supply. Sometimes they just peter out and slowly lose power making the computer dole out the remaining power as available. Typically they fail more dramatically, but some just peter out over time. If nothing else appeared wrong, a new power supply might just be the answer.

A failing hard disc could be another option, but they tend to get noisy as they're failing, so you generally know there's an issue.

Now, once again, that's the Windows guide to diagnosing a slow computer. Macs have their own software that I'm not fluent in. Find a Mac version of Task Manager though and it should help guide you to the problem. I suspect it's not the OS however.

[glb613]

Gardenman, I have 8GB of memory and when I check, it still shows 8 GB of RAM.  I removed over 200GB of data off of the hard drive so there is more free space than used.  I've used CCleaner to get rid of unnecessary files but I haven't tried to erase free space.  I wonder if I did that, would it run better. 

When I say it runs slow, I'm talking about loading programs.  When I open any program, it takes forever to load.  If there is a task manager to check what is using resources, I have no idea what it is or how to access it.  I've cleared all programs out of the startup group and run regular scans which show no malware.  I've run First Aid on the hard drive and it's shows everythinng is OK. 

I have considered a failing hard drive but, there is no noise and I know it doesn't always gives any warning.  I also have problems with external hard drives being so slow to be ready to use.  It seems to take forever for the computer to recgonize the external drive and be ready for use.  The performance of the computer no matter what I try to do is slow, slow, slow. 

[Buster43]

Activity Monitor may be able to help you isolate possible problem areas. It is similar to Task Manager. Look in your Utilities folder...on my Macbook Air it's in a folder called Other. 

It helped when my computer used a lot of battery power although I can't remember exactly what gave me the answer right now. 

[gardenman]

Ah! Just being slow loading programs, but running fine once loaded tends to indicate a system cache/directory issue. Hard drives tend to put stuff, here, there, and everywhere, but the computer keeps track of where the bits and pieces are through a system cache/directory. If that system cache/directory gets a bit scrambled and the computer loses track of where something is, or thinks it's in multiple places, instead of going directly to the right spot, it has to hunt around on the hard drive to find what it's looking for. That could be your issue. It could also be a hard drive slowly dying, but you can typically hear that. In theory a computer is constantly updating the system cache/directory as it runs. It should remove old entries as it's making new ones, but it's a computer and they don't always do what they're supposed to do. If you can clear the old system cache/directory the computer should rebuild it from scratch and get you back up to speed. Assuming that's the problem and it may not be. It's something else to try however and shouldn't hurt anything.

[glb613]

Gardenman, I'll give it a try.

[anin]

backup ur mac and reset ur system..