Cannot open anything

[Magoomania75]

I have a 27" iMac operating system OSX Yosemite 10.10.5.
When I attempt to log in on the main page under my name, I am not able to open any item on the dock, i.e. mail, Safari, Chrome, etc. Sometimes I see the spinning beach ball other times nothing at all. When I want to get out I have to force close any and all apps that I have tried opening.

If I sign in under Guest I have access to everything that is not associated specifically with my primary account where it would require a password.

I have no idea what direction to attempt to rectify this issue. Any and all suggestions will be greatly appreciated.

 

[honestone]

Need to obtain the following information:

1. What exact iMac model do you have? Please include the model year.

2. Have you ever done any disk cleanup/maintenance/repairs, from a software perspective? You actually can do a good amount of disk cleanup on your own, and there are some excellent programs available (both free and commercial) that can assist you in those efforts. Along with that, how much free space is on your internal drive?

3. This is critical: are you making backups to an external device? If so, what software are you using for this?

4. What third party (ie, non-Apple) software are you using? And is each program compatible with Yosemite?

Once you answer those questions, we can help you better.

 

[Magoomania75]

Thank you very much for your quick reply. I hope the following information is what you are looking for:
1. iMac 27" Late 2013; Processor 3.4 GHz; Intel Core i5. Memory 8GB 1600 DDr
Graphics NIVIDA GeForce GTX 780M 4096 MB

2. I never have done any disk cleanup/maintenance/repairs as this is the first and only problem of any kind I've experienced with this computer. 910.38 GB FREE in memory.

3. Major error on my part as I was using Carbonite to backup my computer but I let the coverage lapse last year.

4.I do not have any non-Apple software on this computer.

Thank you again for your assistance.

 

[honestone]

OK, thanks for that. I am going to make some suggestions, so here goes.

First, you really need to perform disk cleanup/maintenance/repairs, from a software perspective, on a frequent basis. You actually can do a good amount of disk cleanup on your own. One of the first places to check is your Downloads folder. Also, here are 4 free programs you should download that can help with those tasks (I have provided links):

Onyx - https://www.titanium-software.fr/en/onyx.html (Make sure you get the correct version)

AppCleaner - https://freemacsoft.net/appcleaner/

GrandPerspective - http://grandperspectiv.sourceforge.net/

Malwarebytes - https://www.malwarebytes.com/mac/

Onyx is excellent, and you can use it as often as you like. As you can see, GrandPerspective is an excellent tool for identifying large files on your Mac.

You also might want to consider investing in a "robust" disk maintenance/repair program like Tech Tool Pro or Disk Warrior. I have Tech Tool Pro, and along with Onyx, I would not be without either one! Disk Utility is OK, but either of those products are better.

Probably the first thing you should do is to make a backup right away. Then run Malwarebytes. That will help identify any adware on your machine.

Secondly, it is critical that you do backups. And do them as often as possible! I'm not familiar with Carbonite, as I use SuperDuper!. But if it makes bootable backups, that would be wonderful!

Try some of that, and see if it helps.

 

[Magoomania75]

Thank you so much for all your suggestions. As soon as I get home from work I will begin following your recommendations.

I will post on this thread the results of what worked/did not work for you and others to view.

Thank you.

 

[honestone]

You're welcome. I am certain a number of us will appreciate the follow up, and I am glad you will do that. That is not always the case "around here".

 

[Magoomania75]

You're welcome. I am certain a number of us will appreciate the follow up, and I am glad you will do that. That is not always the case "around here".

One final, I hope, question. I forgot to ask you about using the various programs you suggested. Since I am unable to access anything on line when I sign in as the primary user I must access these programs as a "Guest". Will this make any difference since guest users are excluded from being able to access certain areas?

Thank you.