SOLVED Kernel_task making laptop run very slow

[MattJ33]

Out of nowhere in the afternoon, my 2015 MacBook Air running the latest Monterey became very sluggish. After checking activity monitor, kernel_task remains at 200-300% over the last couple days of troubleshooting. It stays there despite just logging in with no applications running, no fan sounds, no warm areas. Also when pressing and releasing the power button to turn on, a brief mechanical zip sound of a disc starting to spin is heard, but it doesn’t turn on. I have to hold the button down for 5+ seconds to turn on.

Diagnostic found no issues. I tried resetting SMC & PRAM. I reinstalled the OS from recovery mode since kernel_task remains high in safe mode. No issues running first aid in disk utility. I have 38 GB of free space. I scanned for malware. I’m not sure what to try next. Any ideas? Thank you.

 

[TonyAguila]

Out of nowhere in the afternoon, my 2015 MacBook Air running the latest Monterey became very sluggish. After checking activity monitor, kernel_task remains at 200-300% over the last couple days of troubleshooting. It stays there despite just logging in with no applications running, no fan sounds, no warm areas. Also when pressing and releasing the power button to turn on, a brief mechanical zip sound of a disc starting to spin is heard, but it doesn’t turn on. I have to hold the button down for 5+ seconds to turn on.

Diagnostic found no issues. I tried resetting SMC & PRAM. I reinstalled the OS from recovery mode since kernel_task remains high in safe mode. No issues running first aid in disk utility. I have 38 GB of free space. I scanned for malware. I’m not sure what to try next. Any ideas? Thank you.

Looks like you know what you’re doing, so at this stage what I would recommend is installing and running Onyx.app (free).

Titanium Software | Operating System Utilities for Mac - OnyX

OnyX is a multifunction utility that you can use to verify the startup disk and the structure of its system files; run tasks of cleaning and computer maintenance; configure some hidden parameters of many Apple applications; and more.

www.titanium-software.fr

There is a version for each macOS version running, so pick the one for Monterey. So when your copy is downloaded and ready to run, reboot into Safe Mode. Launch Onyx and select Maintenance. Turn ON all the switches (at default, only the ones under Rebuilding will not be all turned on). Then click on Run Tasks. After it finishes, reboot, take out your rabbit’s foot, and see if anything has changed, hopefully for the better.

Since you previously reset your parameter ram (PRAM), you should turn TRIM back on. The Terminal command is:

sudo trimforce enable

Good luck.

 

[MattJ33]

Looks like you know what you’re doing, so at this stage what I would recommend is installing and running Onyx.app (free).

Titanium Software | Operating System Utilities for Mac - OnyX

OnyX is a multifunction utility that you can use to verify the startup disk and the structure of its system files; run tasks of cleaning and computer maintenance; configure some hidden parameters of many Apple applications; and more.

www.titanium-software.fr

There is a version for each macOS version running, so pick the one for Monterey. So when your copy is downloaded and ready to run, reboot into Safe Mode. Launch Onyx and select Maintenance. Turn ON all the switches (at default, only the ones under Rebuilding will not be all turned on). Then click on Run Tasks. After it finishes, reboot, take out your rabbit’s foot, and see if anything has changed, hopefully for the better.

Since you previously reset your parameter ram (PRAM), you should turn TRIM back on. The Terminal command is:

sudo trimforce enable

Good luck.

Thank you for the suggestion. Unfortunately it’s still running the same and kernel_task is at 250%.

 

[TonyAguila]

Thank you for the suggestion. Unfortunately it’s still running the same and kernel_task is at 250%.

How about this: If you have only one admin user on the Mac, create a new one. It needs to have admin privileges. Restart and log in as the new user. See if the system behaves any differently.

 

[MattJ33]

How about this: If you have only one admin user on the Mac, create a new one. It needs to have admin privileges. Restart and log in as the new user. See if the system behaves any differently.

Interesting, same behavior, so it’s not something on my user that’s causing it.

 

[TonyAguila]

Interesting, same behavior, so it’s not something on my user that’s causing it.

That could be good news. Have you tried reinstalling the system? Your MacBook will run on Monterey. You should get the latest version, macOS Monterey, Version 12.7, Build 21G816. I reinstall the system routinely, whenever my Mac starts displaying unusual behavior that don’t point to data in the data partition (user). I just keep a copy of the latest installer and it usually takes about 15 minutes to complete—assuming I have up-to-date backups (Time Machine and Carbon Copy Cloner).

It’s always better if you have an external bootable drive that can perform an installation and restore in case it gets to the point that you have to wipe the entire startup drive.

 

[MattJ33]

That could be good news. Have you tried reinstalling the system? Your MacBook will run on Monterey. You should get the latest version, macOS Monterey, Version 12.7, Build 21G816. I reinstall the system routinely, whenever my Mac starts displaying unusual behavior that don’t point to data in the data partition (user). I just keep a copy of the latest installer and it usually takes about 15 minutes to complete—assuming I have up-to-date backups (Time Machine and Carbon Copy Cloner).

It’s always better if you have an external bootable drive that can perform an installation and restore in case it gets to the point that you have to wipe the entire startup drive.

I did already try the reinstall option from recovery mode (briefly mentioned in my first post) without using backups (I don’t own any drives large enough at the moment). Does that have the same result as what you proposed?

It took a very long time, nearly 3 hours before I got to a login screen, then after entering my password another update progress bar appeared with an estimated 30 minutes. When that got to “less than a minute remaining,” it stayed on that for another 90 minutes so I left it charging and open when I went to sleep. In the morning it was back on the login screen and I was able to log in, so I’m only assuming it reinstalled successfully.

At this point am I looking at having to spend money by either taking it in somewhere, or buying a 500 GB usb drive for $50 to make a backup on and doing a factory reset?

 

[TonyAguila]

A factory reset will entail erasing the internal drive and installing a fresh copy of macOS so you do need a full backup if you want to restore all of your user data. That means relying on Recovery to do the initial reinstallation of macOS. What would make it easier and faster is if you had an external bootable drive to get around dealing with the time it will take to do the Recovery over the internet.

But if you have already tried logging in with a second user account with no difference, then it’s probably hardware-related involving the internal drive specifically. The only way to test this, by bypassing the internal drive altogether, is to boot from an external drive with a fresh installation of macOS that has no relation to your present setup. If you know somebody with an external bootable drive, you could test this theory before spending money on getting a new drive unnecessarily. But you will always need to have good backup, primarily Time Machine, on the long run.

 

[MattJ33]

A factory reset will entail erasing the internal drive and installing a fresh copy of macOS so you do need a full backup if you want to restore all of your user data. That means relying on Recovery to do the initial reinstallation of macOS. What would make it easier and faster is if you had an external bootable drive to get around dealing with the time it will take to do the Recovery over the internet.

But if you have already tried logging in with a second user account with no difference, then it’s probably hardware-related involving the internal drive specifically. The only way to test this, by bypassing the internal drive altogether, is to boot from an external drive with a fresh installation of macOS that has no relation to your present setup. If you know somebody with an external bootable drive, you could test this theory before spending money on getting a new drive unnecessarily. But you will always need to have good backup, primarily Time Machine, on the long run.

Thanks for explaining the difference. I do have a 32 gb drive, so I loaded the installer on there and installed Monterey. Sadly the kernel problem persists, so I ran diagnostic again- 3 times in a row- still no issues found. Could it be a hardware issue that diagnostic isn’t detecting?

 

[TonyAguila]

Thanks for explaining the difference. I do have a 32 gb drive, so I loaded the installer on there and installed Monterey. Sadly the kernel problem persists, so I ran diagnostic again- 3 times in a row- still no issues found. Could it be a hardware issue that diagnostic isn’t detecting?

Not sure I completely understand. So I assume the 32 gigabyte drive is an external drive. Is it a spinner or an SSD? SATA or NVMe? How does it connect—USB, Thunderbolt, what exactly? You loaded the installer, meaning what? How was the system installed on it? Is it running macOS Monterey? Where did the user data come from? 32 gigabytes is a tad small for running a complete system. Caches, swaps, and other temporary files will immediately overwhelm it and immediately slow things down.

 

[MattJ33]

Not sure I completely understand. So I assume the 32 gigabyte drive is an external drive. Is it a spinner or an SSD? SATA or NVMe? How does it connect—USB, Thunderbolt, what exactly? You loaded the installer, meaning what? How was the system installed on it? Is it running macOS Monterey? Where did the user data come from? 32 gigabytes is a tad small for running a complete system. Caches, swaps, and other temporary files will immediately overwhelm it and immediately slow things down.

Oh my bad, I thought the point was to bypass the source of the installer, so I installed Monterey from a 32gb usb drive onto my affected hd, not thinking I had to install it on an external drive. If I leave the installer on the 32gb usb and attach a second usb to install Monterey on, how much storage would it need to have? Assuming I don’t need to load a backup of my files onto it as well if a new admin user has the same problem. Or does the installer need to be on the same usb I’m installing Monterey on?

 

[TonyAguila]

Oh my bad, I thought the point was to bypass the source of the installer, so I installed Monterey from a 32gb usb drive onto my affected hd, not thinking I had to install it on an external drive. If I leave the installer on the 32gb usb and attach a second usb to install Monterey on, how much storage would it need to have? Assuming I don’t need to load a backup of my files onto it as well if a new admin user has the same problem. Or does the installer need to be on the same usb I’m installing Monterey on?

My previous suggestion regarding installing the system on an external drive is to see if you will still experience the slowdown when running independent of the internal drive. If I were in your place, I would first make sure I have a full backup of all my data, then I would boot into recovery, open Disk Utility and format/erase the internal drive (the reason for the full backup!), and then install the system from what Recovery will allow you to—I assume Monterey.

Once the installation is done, DO NOT import your current data. Instead set up yourself as a new user so that you will start out without any of the detritus from your previous system. Then if things work out fine, we will next deal with how to migrate your backed up data into the new system.

 

[MattJ33]

My previous suggestion regarding installing the system on an external drive is to see if you will still experience the slowdown when running independent of the internal drive. If I were in your place, I would first make sure I have a full backup of all my data, then I would boot into recovery, open Disk Utility and format/erase the internal drive (the reason for the full backup!), and then install the system from what Recovery will allow you to—I assume Monterey.

Once the installation is done, DO NOT import your current data. Instead set up yourself as a new user so that you will start out without any of the detritus from your previous system. Then if things work out fine, we will next deal with how to migrate your backed up data into the new system.

I’ve done all that, but the same issues persist. Does that mean a hardware problem? How do I find out what exactly after diagnostic still didn’t find anything?

 

[MacsBug]

Usually the high CPU usage of the kernal task is caused by the CPU throttling to keep cool.

From my experience with this issue in the past on MacBooks, the solution was to open up the laptop and blow out all of the dust.

 

[TonyAguila]

I’ve done all that, but the same issues persist. Does that mean a hardware problem? How do I find out what exactly after diagnostic still didn’t find anything?

If the slowdown is still happening after wiping the drive and a fresh installation of macOS, then I would suspect a hardware problem with the startup drive itself. The easiest way to test this is if you can get an external drive with macOS installed and run your Mac from it, bypassing the internal drive altogether. If the external drive also shows the slowdown, then it is probably coming from another part other than your drive(s).

 

[MattJ33]

Usually the high CPU usage of the kernal task is caused by the CPU throttling to keep cool.

From my experience with this issue in the past on MacBooks, the solution was to open up the laptop and blow out all of the dust.

Usually the high CPU usage of the kernal task is caused by the CPU throttling to keep cool.

From my experience with this issue in the past on MacBooks, the solution was to open up the laptop and blow out all of the dust.

There was quite a bit of dust on the underside of the back aluminum plate. Unfortunately didn’t fix the problem. Slow to start, after logging in the background is black and the menu bar is grey for a minute or so before turning color. Kernel task is a hog. If I close the lid for even 30 seconds, when I lift it up it has shut down.

 

[MattJ33]

If the slowdown is still happening after wiping the drive and a fresh installation of macOS, then I would suspect a hardware problem with the startup drive itself. The easiest way to test this is if you can get an external drive with macOS installed and run your Mac from it, bypassing the internal drive altogether. If the external drive also shows the slowdown, then it is probably coming from another part other than your drive(s).

I was waiting for the Install macOS Monterey app to start so I could install it on a 64GB usb drive, and I came back to it having shut down after <30 mins while connected to power at 100%. So I was going to go into settings to change sleep/display settings to not shut off, but I decided to click on battery. And then I saw a triangle notification beside battery, and it says “The battery’s capacity is significantly reduced. To restore capacity, please check your service options.” Does this mean the issues will likely be resolved if I replace it?

 

[TonyAguila]

I was waiting for the Install macOS Monterey app to start so I could install it on a 64GB usb drive, and I came back to it having shut down after <30 mins while connected to power at 100%. So I was going to go into settings to change sleep/display settings to not shut off, but I decided to click on battery. And then I saw a triangle notification beside battery, and it says “The battery’s capacity is significantly reduced. To restore capacity, please check your service options.” Does this mean the issues will likely be resolved if I replace it?

That’s what it sounds like but I don’t think so. Were you installing from Recovery? Have you tried downloading the installer file first before starting the installation. Maybe it was too much work for it to first download the installer and then immediately doing the actual installation. Try downloading the installer from the App Store first before doing the installation. Or you could download the file using Terminal.

 

[MattJ33]

That’s what it sounds like but I don’t think so. Were you installing from Recovery? Have you tried downloading the installer file first before starting the installation. Maybe it was too much work for it to first download the installer and then immediately doing the actual installation. Try downloading the installer from the App Store first before doing the installation. Or you could download the file using Terminal.

That’s what it sounds like but I don’t think so. Were you installing from Recovery? Have you tried downloading the installer file first before starting the installation. Maybe it was too much work for it to first download the installer and then immediately doing the actual installation. Try downloading the installer from the App Store first before doing the installation. Or you could download the file using Terminal.

I’ve had the installer previously downloaded to my applications folder. I’m not trying to install from recovery. It finally just got past the initial verifying loading bar. I’ll continue and hope it installs successfully. I’ve been using this article as a guide:

New | Install macOS on External Drive Step by Step - EaseUS

Do you want to install macOS on an external drive? Then follow this easy guide with step-by-step induction to install any macOS version on the external drive. We will also teach you how to resue data from a faulty Mac.

www.easeus.com

 

[TonyAguila]

I’ve had the installer previously downloaded to my applications folder. I’m not trying to install from recovery. It finally just got past the initial verifying loading bar. I’ll continue and hope it installs successfully. I’ve been using this article as a guide:

New | Install macOS on External Drive Step by Step - EaseUS

Do you want to install macOS on an external drive? Then follow this easy guide with step-by-step induction to install any macOS version on the external drive. We will also teach you how to resue data from a faulty Mac.

www.easeus.com

Okay. If you still experience difficulties, restarting into Safe Mode will free up the system to unnecessary background processes and might be able to get you over the hump. Good luck.