You should understand that closing a frozen Mac app is the same as killing the symptoms, but the factors lead to apps freezing, such as virus, may be still on your computer. Way 1: Close a Frozen App from Mac Dock Panel. The most convenient way to close a frozen app is Mac’s Dock Panel, which is located the bottom of the screen. Which is why human App Reviewers ensure that the apps on the App Store adhere to our strict app review standards. Our App Store Review Guidelines require apps to be safe, provide a good user experience, comply with our privacy rules, secure devices from malware and threats, and use approved business models.
Before we get our hands dirty, here’s a word of warning. If you’re wondering how to reboot a MacBook Pro, bear in mind it’s the last resort when all other methods to unfreeze your Mac had failed. Don’t try it too often as it may harm your system. No question, your Mac can handle rapid power losses and your hardware most likely won’t be hurt. What’s at risk though, is your data because each time you force reboot a Mac it affects the consistency of the file system. Now that you’ve been warned, let’s go.
Symptoms your frozen Mac needs a force restart
- Applications are not responding
- Pointer is not responsive
- Loud fan noise
- The screen goes black
- Mac unable to restart
Can you move the cursor? If yes, try this
Before you force restart a Mac, it’s always recommended to first try a software solution.
Go to the Apple menu
Choose Restart
Click Restart in the menu that appears
Two ways to force restart a Mac
The simplest method: hold down the Power button till your Mac shuts down. Press the button again to restart it.
If your Mac hangs for good and the pointer is inactive:
Hold down Control + Command while pressing the Power button.
This is an alternative key combination to force restart a Mac. By the way, if you are on an iMac, the Power button is found on the back of your Mac. Voila!
Is Shut Down any different from Restart?
The difference between Shut Down and Restart is quite self-explanatory. When you perform a restart, your Mac will turn on again loading its previously active apps. As for shut down, your Mac won’t start until you press the Power button again. Interestingly, all new Macs have an automatic reboot feature built-in. So even if you sit and do nothing, your frozen Mac would eventually reboot by itself, though it takes a bit of patience.
How to force shut down a frozen Mac
If you need to force shut down a MacBook Pro or MacBook Air, all you need is again to press a Power button on your Mac’s keyboard.
Press and hold Power button for 2 seconds
Choose Restart, Sleep or Shut Down in the menu that appears
If you don’t want to reload the baggage of your previously opened apps, tick off “Reopen windows when logging back in”. We do recommend you to deselect this option when your Mac is slow in order to lighten the weight on your RAM.
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If your Mac won’t shut down:
Press and hold Power button for about 6 seconds
Hold the button until the Mac shuts down.
Needless to say that when you force restart a Mac all your unsaved projects may be lost. It’s unfair, we know.
Why does my Mac keep freezing?
The obvious explanation is your Mac lacks memory. Or to put another way, there are too many active processes running on your Mac. First off, go to Activity Monitor to check your memory usage.
Go to Applications > Utilities > Activity Monitor
Click the Memory tab
Now, look into how heavily your Memory is loaded. Quit apps that eat up too much memory for no reason. While this may work as a temporary solution, it doesn’t stop your Mac from freezing up again. You can either force reboot your Mac each time or opt for a radical solution. Below are a few more ideas you can try.
More ways to fix a frozen Mac
Restart your Mac in the Diagnostics mode
Shut down your Mac and reboot while pressing D key. Within the menu that appears, launch the Apple Diagnostics tool. This will check your Mac’s drive for errors. From then, follow the prompts to finish the diagnostics.
Clean up your Mac
Remove old unused apps, system junk, and pervasive browser extensions. For this purpose, try running CleanMyMac application on your Mac.
It’s quite effective in removing all junk from your Mac and has a number of helpful utilities, like RAM free up or app uninstaller. Download it for free here .
Reinstall your macOS
This is the most radical of all methods, that’s why it’s so effective.
Check out how to clean install macOS Sierra
Instructions for macOS High Sierra
How to clean install macOS Mojave
How to clean install macOS Catalina
Hope this guide has helped you. Before you force shut down this article, feel free to share it, using the social buttons below. Cheers!
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There is nothing more frustrating than a frozen computer, and if you are using an expensive device like a MacBook, then you expect it to work smoothly instead of freezing up every few days.
So, there could be several reasons behind a frozen Mac. It could happen due to an app that has become unresponsive or it is possible that you are out of storage space. If you have installed any 3rd party apps or any add-ons that are not compatible with the device or the Mac simply seeks an update, this issue might creep up. Don’t get too depressed as there are ways to fix the Mac frozen issues. The methods are detailed below in this article.
Part 1: If Mac Freezes on Specific Apps
If the Mac you are using is getting frozen on specific apps then you will be able to fix the problem by simply force quitting the app. There are several ways to perform the task. Here’s how to unfreeze Mac:
Way 1: Force Quit via the Apple Menu
You will be able to access the Force Quit command in a very simple way. Just change the app which works properly on the device, then click on the Apple icon visible at the top. A drop-menu will be visible where you can select the Force Quit option.
But selecting this option won’t force quit the app that is currently open whereas a list will be opened of all the open apps. Now, you just have to select the right option from the list.
Way 2: Force Quit using the Keyboard
Another effective way to fix Mac freeze is to Force Quit the app using the keyboard. The procedure is very simple;
So, press and hold “Command+ Alt+ Esc” keys on your keyboard and the Force Quit application list will be opened.
As usual, that list contains all the apps that are currently running on your Mac. The specific app that may have been causing the issue will have “Not responding” written beside it. Just, highlight that particular application and click on the “Force Quit” button.
Now, try to launch the app again and the problem could have been fixed.
Way 3: Force Quit via Dock
The main issue is that, if a certain app is not responding then the app has to be closed and launched again. But conventional methods won’t work here; you have to do it via Dock.
You will find Dock at the bottom of the screen. There you need to look for the icon associated with the app that is not responsive. After that, make a right click in order to view the Contextual menu. In the end of that menu, you will find the “Quit” option, click on it and possibly the app will get closed.
If this procedure does not work for you, then repeat the procedure again but this time don’t just click on the “Quit” option. When the menu appears, hold the “Alt” key, doing this will Force Quit the app, which is actually more powerful.
Part 2: If Mac is Completely Frozen
If the Mac got completely frozen, then there is simply no stopping it as the app process won’t work. But there are a few methods you can try which may fix the issue with your Mac. Here’s what to do when Mac freezes.
Way 1: Force Reboot a Frozen Mac
One of the best ways to unfreeze Mac is to make a Force Reboot of the device. The procedure is very simple if you are using a Macbook or Macbook Air. You just need to press and hold the Power Button on your keyboard for no more than 2 seconds.
After 2 seconds, a menu will appear where you have to choose among Restart, Sleep and Shut Down. Your obvious choice is Restart, choose it and Mac will be restarted.
Way 2: Free Up Space and Reset RAM
If you are complaining “My Mac is frozen” and already tried to force reboot the device, which hasn’t worked for you, then you can try to free up space on the device and reset the RAM in order to fix the said issue.
There are apps available to do such stuff and one of the best is Umate Mac Cleaner by iMyFone. This is a very efficient application capable of speeding up the Mac and cleaning all the junk files. The app is equipped with some very efficient features, let’s have a look;
- Quick junk files cleanup: This app can instantly locate and remove all the hidden junk files on your Mac, which includes useless system junk files, Trash bins, app caches, iTunes junk, downloads, temporary files etc. All these files are safe to be deleted and you can easily free up the space within 1 click.
- Speed up your Mac: Those startup items, apps with high memory usage, launch agents will eat up the disk space and make your Mac become frozen frequently. You can disable them with Umate Mac Cleaner and regain reclaim as much space as possible.
- Manage apps & extenstion: Another effective method provided by Umate Mac Cleaner is by uninstalling big or unused apps and plug-ins. The leftover files will also be completely removed.
All these features are proven to be very useful in improving the Mac performance and reducing the possibility of Mac freezing. The operations of Umate Mac Cleaner are quite easy and they are discussed below:
Step 1: Download and install Umate Mac Cleaner on your device and finish the installation.
Step 2: Launch this app and select the desired feature to proceed, for example, Clean up Junk. Then this software will run a throughout scanning and show the results.
Step 3: Hit the Clean button to quickly free up the RAM on your Mac. Repeat this produce for other features like Speed Up Your Mac and Manage Apps & Extensions to minimize the occurrence of a frozen Mac.
Way 3: Reinstall MacOS
Reinstalling the MacOS is easy. You need to remember that all of the files on that partition will be erased completely. So, before starting the procedure, you must make a backup of the device.
After making the backup of the device, make sure that you are signed out of everything like your iTunes, iCloud and even iMessage accounts. After that, you can proceed to reinstallation.
While reinstalling the MacOS, you need to stay connected to the internet for the verification process, if you are not, you will be asked to do so during the installation. You also have to use your Apple ID and password.
Step 1: Restart Mac.
Step 2: As the startup disk is being prepared, you need to hold “Command + R” keys on your keyboard, in order to boot from MacOS Recover.
Step 3: Then, you need to click “Reinstall MacOS”. In the following page, click “Continue”.
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Step 4: Then, you will be asked your select your disk. So, choose your “Hard Drive” or “Apple SSD”.
Step 5: After that click “Install” to start installing the operating system. Mac will be restarted after the installation.
Step 6: Then, press and hold the “Command and Q” button after completing the installation and follow the on-screen setup instructions.
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Lastly, click “Shut Down” to turn off the device. Now, your Mac is cleaned and ready to be used again. So, if you were facing a frozen Mac constantly but didn’t know how to fix frozen screen on Mac, now you know that reinstalling the OS will definitely fix the issue.
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Conclusion
App Store Frozen Mac Catalina
A frozen device really annoying, especially if you are using a Mac device that is worth thousands of dollars. Although the device can freeze for different reasons, there are only a few specific ways to fix the issue. You can follow the procedures and you can also try Umate Mac Cleaner as in most cases the issue is caused by lack of storage.