Macbook going slow and spontaneously switching off

[Ahelion]

Hi,

I've got a macbook pro running 10.9.5 recently it I have started to see the rainbow wheel appearing more and more frequently. Also it has started rebooting itself while I am working on it.

I can't pinpoint any specific programmes as being as being the cause.

I've copied the log below, but it is absolutely meaningless to me.

Any help would be very gratefully received.

Thanks.





Anonymous UUID: 1030BC28-C726-FDEE-C228-7E4850030100

Thu Apr 2 12:35:11 2015
panic(cpu 2 caller 0xffffff7fa0ad9f7c): "GPU Panic: [<None>] 5 3 7f 0 0 0 0 3 : NVRM[0/1:0:0]: Read Error 0x00000100: CFG 0xffffffff 0xffffffff 0xffffffff, BAR0 0xc0000000 0xffffff80c6478000 0x0a5480a2, D0, P2/4\n"@/SourceCache/AppleGraphicsControl/AppleGraphicsControl-3.6.22/src/AppleMuxControl/kext/GPUPanic.cpp:127
Backtrace (CPU 2), Frame : Return Address
0xffffff80b47bb140 : 0xffffff801e623139
0xffffff80b47bb1c0 : 0xffffff7fa0ad9f7c
0xffffff80b47bb290 : 0xffffff7f9f0caf1b
0xffffff80b47bb350 : 0xffffff7f9f19450a
0xffffff80b47bb390 : 0xffffff7f9f19457a
0xffffff80b47bb400 : 0xffffff7f9f413056
0xffffff80b47bb530 : 0xffffff7f9f1b7ba9
0xffffff80b47bb550 : 0xffffff7f9f0d196d
0xffffff80b47bb600 : 0xffffff7f9f0cf478
0xffffff80b47bb800 : 0xffffff7f9f0d03f6
0xffffff80b47bb8e0 : 0xffffff7fa00ef9c2
0xffffff80b47bb920 : 0xffffff7fa00ff37f
0xffffff80b47bb940 : 0xffffff7fa012d33b
0xffffff80b47bb980 : 0xffffff7fa012d39b
0xffffff80b47bb9c0 : 0xffffff7fa0104e15
0xffffff80b47bba10 : 0xffffff7fa00d0b5e
0xffffff80b47bbaa0 : 0xffffff7fa00ccae7
0xffffff80b47bbad0 : 0xffffff7fa00ca636
0xffffff80b47bbb00 : 0xffffff801eacfe43
0xffffff80b47bbb90 : 0xffffff801ead1d3f
0xffffff80b47bbbf0 : 0xffffff801eacf85f
0xffffff80b47bbd40 : 0xffffff801e6b6e18
0xffffff80b47bbe50 : 0xffffff801e626d81
0xffffff80b47bbe80 : 0xffffff801e613af5
0xffffff80b47bbef0 : 0xffffff801e61e1d3
0xffffff80b47bbf70 : 0xffffff801e6ca13d
0xffffff80b47bbfb0 : 0xffffff801e6f4ca6
Kernel Extensions in backtrace:
com.apple.nvidia.classic.NVDAResmanTesla(8.2.4)[D61B2BB9-4289-318D-9197-5E1E13B1FF32]@0xffffff7f9f07b000->0xffffff7f9f2e3fff
dependency: com.apple.iokit.IOPCIFamily(2.9)[2852ACFE-FD28-3C37-9B39-885201BB8D25]@0xffffff7f9ecc1000
dependency: com.apple.iokit.IONDRVSupport(2.4.1)[D41125CE-69BD-32E7-9B1D-4E83431662DD]@0xffffff7f9f06b000
dependency: com.apple.iokit.IOGraphicsFamily(2.4.1)[75D81741-64C1-3941-ADFA-9D6B6C434EE4]@0xffffff7f9f028000
com.apple.nvidia.classic.NVDANV50HalTesla(8.2.4)[B0E6AAA7-E970-3D81-8B43-145D56A3A4AC]@0xffffff7f9f2ee000->0xffffff7f9f597fff
dependency: com.apple.nvidia.classic.NVDAResmanTesla(8.2.4)[D61B2BB9-4289-318D-9197-5E1E13B1FF32]@0xffffff7f9f07b000
dependency: com.apple.iokit.IOPCIFamily(2.9)[2852ACFE-FD28-3C37-9B39-885201BB8D25]@0xffffff7f9ecc1000
com.apple.GeForceTesla(8.2.4)[B0074750-2FC6-3E26-BEA0-5AD5469686CF]@0xffffff7fa00af000->0xffffff7fa0179fff
dependency: com.apple.iokit.IOPCIFamily(2.9)[2852ACFE-FD28-3C37-9B39-885201BB8D25]@0xffffff7f9ecc1000
dependency: com.apple.iokit.IONDRVSupport(2.4.1)[D41125CE-69BD-32E7-9B1D-4E83431662DD]@0xffffff7f9f06b000
dependency: com.apple.iokit.IOGraphicsFamily(2.4.1)[75D81741-64C1-3941-ADFA-9D6B6C434EE4]@0xffffff7f9f028000
dependency: com.apple.nvidia.classic.NVDAResmanTesla(8.2.4)[D61B2BB9-4289-318D-9197-5E1E13B1FF32]@0xffffff7f9f07b000
com.apple.driver.AppleMuxControl(3.6.22)[32862231-50BC-3AF6-87A2-703321AE4F90]@0xffffff7fa0acb000->0xffffff7fa0adefff
dependency: com.apple.driver.AppleGraphicsControl(3.6.22)[AA46D551-BE0F-33DA-93A3-8F46197BB36F]@0xffffff7fa0ac3000
dependency: com.apple.iokit.IOACPIFamily(1.4)[045D5D6F-AD1E-36DB-A249-A346E2B48E54]@0xffffff7f9ef2e000
dependency: com.apple.iokit.IOPCIFamily(2.9)[2852ACFE-FD28-3C37-9B39-885201BB8D25]@0xffffff7f9ecc1000
dependency: com.apple.iokit.IOGraphicsFamily(2.4.1)[75D81741-64C1-3941-ADFA-9D6B6C434EE4]@0xffffff7f9f028000
dependency: com.apple.driver.AppleBacklightExpert(1.0.4)[80899285-3952-30DA-A0F9-357C51E104CF]@0xffffff7fa0ac6000

BSD process name corresponding to current thread: WindowServer

Mac OS version:
13F1066

Kernel version:
Darwin Kernel Version 13.4.0: Wed Dec 17 19:05:52 PST 2014; root:xnu-2422.115.10~1/RELEASE_X86_64
Kernel UUID: 45486BF2-BDDE-34CB-8C71-606FF3FE181B
Kernel slide: 0x000000001e400000
Kernel text base: 0xffffff801e600000
System model name: MacBookPro6,2 (Mac-F22586C8)

System uptime in nanoseconds: 429374148979429
last loaded kext at 427708492110943: com.apple.filesystems.cddafs 2.6.0 (addr 0xffffff7fa0c2f000, size 24576)
last unloaded kext at 427664699529046: com.apple.filesystems.cddafs 2.6.0 (addr 0xffffff7fa0c2f000, size 20480)
loaded kexts:
com.paceap.kext.pacesupport.snowleopard 5.9
com.m-audio.driver.firewire 1.10.2
com.apple.filesystems.cddafs 2.6.0
com.apple.filesystems.smbfs 2.0.3
com.apple.driver.AudioAUUC 1.60
com.apple.driver.AppleHWSensor 1.9.5d0
com.apple.driver.AGPM 100.14.34
com.apple.filesystems.autofs 3.0
com.apple.driver.AppleMikeyHIDDriver 124
com.apple.driver.AppleMikeyDriver 2.6.3f4
com.apple.driver.AppleHDA 2.6.3f4
com.apple.driver.AppleMuxControl 3.6.22
com.apple.GeForceTesla 8.2.4
com.apple.driver.AppleUpstreamUserClient 3.5.13
com.apple.driver.ACPI_SMC_PlatformPlugin 1.0.0
com.apple.driver.AppleMCCSControl 1.2.5
com.apple.driver.AppleSMCLMU 2.0.4d1
com.apple.driver.AppleIntelHDGraphics 8.2.4
com.apple.driver.AppleIntelHDGraphicsFB 8.2.4
com.apple.driver.AppleSMCPDRC 1.0.0
com.apple.iokit.BroadcomBluetoothHostControllerUSBTransport 4.2.7f4
com.apple.iokit.IOUserEthernet 1.0.0d1
com.apple.iokit.IOBluetoothSerialManager 4.2.7f4
com.apple.Dont_Steal_Mac_OS_X 7.0.0
com.apple.driver.AppleHWAccess 1
com.apple.driver.AppleLPC 1.7.0
com.apple.driver.SMCMotionSensor 3.0.4d1
com.apple.driver.AppleUSBTCButtons 240.2
com.apple.driver.AppleUSBTCKeyboard 240.2
com.apple.driver.AppleUSBCardReader 3.4.1
com.apple.driver.AppleIRController 325.7
com.apple.AppleFSCompression.AppleFSCompressionTypeDataless 1.0.0d1
com.apple.AppleFSCompression.AppleFSCompressionTypeLZVN 1.0.0d1
com.apple.AppleFSCompression.AppleFSCompressionTypeZlib 1.0.0d1
com.apple.BootCache 35
com.apple.iokit.SCSITaskUserClient 3.6.7
com.apple.driver.XsanFilter 404
com.apple.iokit.IOAHCIBlockStorage 2.6.0
com.apple.iokit.AppleBCM5701Ethernet 3.8.1b2
com.apple.driver.AppleUSBHub 683.4.0
com.apple.driver.AppleFWOHCI 5.0.2
com.apple.driver.AirPort.Brcm4331 700.20.22
com.apple.driver.AppleAHCIPort 3.0.5
com.apple.driver.AppleUSBEHCI 660.4.0
com.apple.driver.AppleSmartBatteryManager 161.0.0
com.apple.driver.AppleACPIButtons 2.0
com.apple.driver.AppleRTC 2.0
com.apple.driver.AppleHPET 1.8
com.apple.driver.AppleSMBIOS 2.1
com.apple.driver.AppleACPIEC 2.0
com.apple.driver.AppleAPIC 1.7
com.apple.driver.AppleIntelCPUPowerManagementClient 217.92.1
com.apple.nke.applicationfirewall 153
com.apple.security.quarantine 3
com.apple.driver.AppleIntelCPUPowerManagement 217.92.1
com.apple.driver.AppleUSBAudio 2.9.5f8
com.apple.AppleGraphicsDeviceControl 3.6.22
com.apple.kext.triggers 1.0
com.apple.driver.DspFuncLib 2.6.3f4
com.apple.vecLib.kext 1.0.0
com.apple.driver.AppleGraphicsControl 3.6.22
com.apple.driver.AppleBacklightExpert 1.0.4
com.apple.driver.AppleHDAController 2.6.3f4
com.apple.iokit.IOHDAFamily 2.6.3f4
com.apple.driver.IOPlatformPluginLegacy 1.0.0
com.apple.driver.AppleSMBusController 1.0.12d1
com.apple.iokit.IOFireWireIP 2.2.6
com.apple.nvidia.classic.NVDANV50HalTesla 8.2.4
com.apple.nvidia.classic.NVDAResmanTesla 8.2.4
com.apple.driver.AppleSMBusPCI 1.0.12d1
com.apple.iokit.IONDRVSupport 2.4.1
com.apple.iokit.IOBluetoothHostControllerUSBTransport 4.2.7f4
com.apple.iokit.IOFireWireAVC 4.2.2
com.apple.iokit.IOAudioFamily 1.9.7fc2
com.apple.kext.OSvKernDSPLib 1.14
com.apple.iokit.IOSurface 91.2
com.apple.iokit.IOGraphicsFamily 2.4.1
com.apple.iokit.IOSerialFamily 10.0.7
com.apple.iokit.IOBluetoothFamily 4.2.7f4
com.apple.driver.IOPlatformPluginFamily 5.7.1d6
com.apple.driver.AppleSMC 3.1.8
com.apple.driver.AppleUSBMultitouch 240.10
com.apple.iokit.IOSCSIBlockCommandsDevice 3.6.7
com.apple.iokit.IOUSBMassStorageClass 3.6.0
com.apple.iokit.IOUSBHIDDriver 660.4.0
com.apple.driver.AppleUSBMergeNub 650.4.0
com.apple.driver.AppleUSBComposite 656.4.1
com.apple.iokit.IOSCSIMultimediaCommandsDevice 3.6.7
com.apple.iokit.IOBDStorageFamily 1.7
com.apple.iokit.IODVDStorageFamily 1.7.1
com.apple.iokit.IOCDStorageFamily 1.7.1
com.apple.iokit.IOAHCISerialATAPI 2.6.1
com.apple.iokit.IOSCSIArchitectureModelFamily 3.6.7
com.apple.iokit.IOEthernetAVBController 1.0.3b4
com.apple.driver.mDNSOffloadUserClient 1.0.1b5
com.apple.iokit.IOUSBUserClient 660.4.2
com.apple.iokit.IOFireWireFamily 4.5.5
com.apple.iokit.IO80211Family 640.36
com.apple.iokit.IONetworkingFamily 3.2
com.apple.iokit.IOAHCIFamily 2.6.5
com.apple.iokit.IOUSBFamily 686.4.1
com.apple.driver.AppleEFINVRAM 2.0
com.apple.driver.AppleEFIRuntime 2.0
com.apple.iokit.IOHIDFamily 2.0.0
com.apple.iokit.IOSMBusFamily 1.1
com.apple.security.sandbox 278.11.2
com.apple.kext.AppleMatch 1.0.0d1
com.apple.security.TMSafetyNet 7
com.apple.driver.AppleKeyStore 2
com.apple.driver.DiskImages 371.1
com.apple.iokit.IOStorageFamily 1.9
com.apple.iokit.IOReportFamily 23
com.apple.driver.AppleFDEKeyStore 28.30
com.apple.driver.AppleACPIPlatform 2.0
com.apple.iokit.IOPCIFamily 2.9
com.apple.iokit.IOACPIFamily 1.4
com.apple.kec.pthread 1
com.apple.kec.corecrypto 1.0

 

[Cory Cooper]

Hello and welcome.

Sorry we didn't get back to you sooner.

From the log, it seems you have a MacBook Pro (15-inch, Mid 2010) running Mac OS X Mavericks 10.9.5. Slowness and/or the infamous SBOD/SPOD (Spinning Beach Ball of Death or Spinning Pizza of Death) can be caused by many things including outdated software, low free HD space, third-party apps like MacKeeper or anti-virus software, etc.

I notice two things from the panic log:

-GPU Panic
panic(cpu 2 caller 0xffffff7fa0ad9f7c): "GPU Panic: [<None>] 5 3 7f 0 0 0 0 3 : NVRM[0/1:0:0]: Read Error 0x00000100: CFG 0xffffffff 0xffffffff 0xffffffff, BAR0 0xc0000000 0xffffff80c6478000 0x0a5480a2, D0, P2/4\n"@/SourceCache/AppleGraphicsControl/AppleGraphicsControl-3.6.22/src/AppleMuxControl/kext/GPUPanic.cpp:127

-Audio interface and outdated driver
com.paceap.kext.pacesupport.snowleopard 5.9
com.m-audio.driver.firewire 1.10.2

-How much free HD space is left
-Do you have any other external devices connected other than mouse/keyboard/M-Audio interface?
-Is the M-Audio interface always connected and have you looked for a newer driver for it?
-Has the slowness been a recent development or happened over time?
-Do you have any third-party utilities (MacKeeper/Google Drive/Dropbox) or anti-virus software installed?

We can go from here,

C

 

[Ahelion]

Hi Cory,

Thank you very much for getting back to me. it's really appreciated.

Unfortunately, the M-Audio Firewire card is now obsolescent and has become what they quaintly call a "Legacy Product" so there are no new drivers.

I currently have 134gb of HD space.

I have an external hard disk attached at all times.

I think the problem has developed over a little time but I couldn't specify a starting point.

The only third party utility I have installed is Dropbox.

Best,

A

 

[honestone]

Sometimes software gets "maliciously" installed without one's knowledge, although rarely. MacKeeper is a notorious one, so you might want to try this to see if it is installed on your system, and if it is, how to remove it:

1. See if MacKeeper is inside your Applications folder.

2. If it is, follow this:

http://www.macworld.com/article/2861435/how-to-uninstall-mackeeper-from-your-mac.html

Additionally, it would be a good idea to download three additional free products to possibly help. One is the rock steady "limited" disk maintenance, but numerous disk cleaning tasks performed by Onyx. You can get Onyx from here:

http://www.macupdate.com/app/mac/11582/onyx

You want version 2.8.8, which is listed under "Related Links".

The next one is AdwareMedic. That will get rid of "pesky" pop up messages/ads when you are using the internet. You can get it form here:

http://www.macupdate.com/app/mac/52105/adwaremedic

The last one is the virus checking/removal product called ClamXav. You can get it from here:

http://www.macupdate.com/app/mac/15850/clamxav

I suspect two of those products (Onyx and ClamXav) will be of some help. However, the issue could well be with the hard drive inside you machine. First of all, it spins at "only" 5400 rpm, which is slow. Being the rotational speed is so slow, that is why it is especially critical to keep the drive "mean and clean", so to speak. (I'll mention a couple of things below that will help with this). Secondly, even though you have 134 Gig of free HD space, the drive could be fragmented, and thus that could result in the drive having to spend more time "finding" and "placing" things. Finally (and this is worst case), the drive could be failing. As it is, and assuming it is the original drive, it is already 5 years old.

So, the first thing you need to do is to determine the health of the hard drive, and do some initial repairs. Given that you do not have a more robust disk maintenance/repair product like TechTool Pro or Disk Warrior, you'll need to rely on Disk Utility. It would be best if you boot that product "externally". In order to do that, you'll need to see if the (hidden) Recovery HD partition is on your hard drive. To do that, launch Disk Utility "normally", and when it appears, the next to the last menu heading (on the right, next to the one that says Help) is called Debug. Click on that, and near the bottom of its choices, there is one called "Show every partition". Click on that, and you'll either see or not see the Recovery HD partition. If it's not there, you need to let us know, and we can help you get it onto your machine (you'll need the Install OS X Mavericks file to do that. Normally, it is located in your Applications folder, but it goes away after an OS installation. That is why it is s good idea to have a copy of it somewhere else. If you don't have that file, you can download it from the Apple Store).

Assuming the Recovery HD partition is there, you can boot to it by holding down the Command and R keys as the machine is booting up. This link explains how to do that:

https://support.apple.com/en-us/HT201314

Once you have that up and running, one of the menu choices is "Disk Utility" (or something like that. I use TechTool Pro for my disk maintenance/repair tasks, so I do not know the exact wording). In any event, click on that menu choice, and it will launch Disk Utility for you in a more "isolated" environment. From there, you should first do a Verify and Repair Disk at the "top" level, and then at the next level, for your "main" partition (you probably only have one, and it contains all your software, files, etc.), do a Verify and Repair Permissions, and then a Verify and Repair Disk (not sure if this second Verify and Repair Disk is necessary, given that you did it at the "top" level, but it can't hurt).

The Verify and Repair Disk tasks should show how "healthy" the drive is. Even if you can successfully complete all of the above, there is still the issue of Volume and/or File fragmentation. There have been numerous discussions about the pros and cons of repairing disk fragmentation and performing disk optimization, but in my experience, with hard drives, it does help. (For my two machines now, I have SSDs inside each one, but I still have external hard drives). This is where you need another product. There are a number of disk fragmentation/optimization programs out there, but I prefer the routines for those purposes that are contained in TechTool Pro. (TechTool Pro performs a number of useful tasks, and besides Onyx and SuperDuper! (for my backups), I rely HEAVILY on it). I would strongly urge you to get such a product. (Another excellent one is Disk Warrior. It is more expensive, and does not have as many "features". But, I have read where Disk Warrior can do disk repairs that either Disk Utility nor TechTool Pro could not do).

Sorry to throw so much information your way, but that is basically what it's going to take to try and "fix" your problem.

 

[Ahelion]

"To do that, launch Disk Utility "normally", and when it appears, the next to the last menu heading (on the right, next to the one that says Help) is called Debug. Click on that, and near the bottom of its choices, there is one called "Show every partition". Click on that, and you'll either see or not see the Recovery HD partition. If it's not there, you need to let us know, and we can help you get it onto your machine (you'll need the Install OS X Mavericks file to do that. Normally, it is located in your Applications folder, but it goes away after an OS installation. That is why it is s good idea to have a copy of it somewhere else. If you don't have that file, you can download it from the Apple Store)."

Hi Honestone,

Many thanks for your advice and apologies for not getting back to you sooner. I opened Disk Utility via Hard Drive / Applications / Utilities / Disk Utility, is this right? I ask because I can't see any menu called Debug. The next menu to Help on the top bar is Window. However, I have downloaded opened Disk Utility using the restart and Command R option and verified and repaired disk option. I have also downloaded Mavericks from the App store.

Do you have any suggestions as to what I should do next?

Once again thank you for your help.

Ahelion

 

[honestone]

Don't know why you did not see it. I just launched Disk Utility (yes, inside the Applications/Utilities folder), and here are the menu headings:

Disk Utility File Edit Images Window Debug Help

I am just about certain it is the same with Mavericks (I am now on Yosemite).

I don't quite understand what you mean by "However, I have downloaded opened Disk Utility using the restart and Command R option and verified and repaired disk option.". You already have the Disk Utility program. But, if you mean that you pressed the Command and R keys to boot to the Recovery Partition, and launched Disk Utility from there, that's a good start.

You said that you "verified and repaired disk option". Did you do that at the "top" level for your internal hard drive? By "top level", I mean the actual name of the volume. For example, the volume name on my Mac Mini is "256.06 GB Samsung SSD 840 PRO Series Media", and "below" that is my primary partition called "Macintosh SSD HD", which contains the OS, applications, etc. (I also have 3 other "partitions" at that level. They are "EFI (hidden)", "Recovery HD (hidden)", and "eDrive (hidden, and made by TechTool Pro)". Even though they are normally hidden, I can see them in Disk Utility.

So, if it was my machine I was repairing, I would first do a Verify and Repair Disk for the volume "256.06 GB Samsung SSD 840 PRO Series Media", then do a 1) Verify and Repair Permissions, and 2) Verify and Repair Disk for the partition "Macintosh SSD HD".

Now, it's important to realize that doing the Verify and Repair Permissions in Disk Utility only does that for Apple software. So, after you do the steps above, and assuming you can re-start your machine, you should download the excellent freeware program Onyx. It also can Verify and Repair Permissions, but it does it for all software, not just stufffrom Apple. To repeat, you can get it from here:

http://www.macupdate.com/app/mac/11582/onyx

You want version 2.8.8, which is listed under "Related Links".

Let us know the results of doing all that. Wonder, though, how fragmented your hard drive is, even after doing all that. Maybe someone can recommend a "decent" freeware product to defragment/optimize the drive. I use TechTool Pro, and it contains features to do a File Optimization and a Volume Optimization (since I have SSDs inside both of my machines, Volume Optimization does not apply).

 

[Ahelion]

Hi,

I think we may have made some headway, I did verification / repair at the top line and I have run Onyx (thank you for that). I have also reinstalled Mavericks. With regard to the Debug menu, that certainly isn't visible on my computer, I have all of the other menu headings you list but not that one, not sure why that should be the case but I've checked it several times. It was because of this omission I opened Disk Utility by starting the computer and then pressing command + R. One thing I didn't come across was any hidden partitions...

Also, I used the ClamXav programme and found a number of problematic files which I deleted.

I've also noticed that I now have an extra 10gb+ of free space and the computer feels more responsive, I used it last night in a fairly intense (but not critical) situation and it seemed to be good.

Thanks again for your help.

 

[honestone]

Oops! I totally forgot that one needs to enable the Debug menu with Disk Utility! Here is how to do that:

1. Quit Disk Utility if it is open.
2. Launch Terminal, located at /Applications/Utilities.
3. Enter the following command at the Terminal prompt:
   defaults write com.apple.DiskUtility DUDebugMenuEnabled 1
   
   
4. Press enter or return.
5. Close Terminal.

Sorry about that!

Also, sounds like you have made substantial progress, which is good. I would also recommend that you download the excellent freeware program AdwareMedic. You can get it form here:

http://www.macupdate.com/app/mac/52105/adwaremedic

It would also be good to invest in a more robust disk maintenance/repair program like Disk Warrior or TechTool Pro. While Disk Utility is OK for quite a few tasks, there are times where a more robust program is needed.

Finally, you also need to start making bootable backups. For that, you will need an external drive, and the excellent (in "free" mode) backup/cloning program SuperDuper!.

 

[Ahelion]

Sadly it looks like I was being hopelessly over optimistic.... my Macbook is now switching offer at increasingly frequent intervals. The only positive thing I can say is that when it restarts it restores the screen exactly as it was prior to shutting down so I haven't lost lots of work (yet). Simultaneously, i've stopped being able to recognise an external hard drive (WD 1021 Media) that I used for my Time Machine back ups as well as other important work stuff, it seems rather a coincidence...

I've now ejected my Firewire Sound Card and External Hard Drive and I'll see if that makes a difference...

I've posted my most recent problem report below:

Anonymous UUID: EA3CBA15-8A93-150C-FC84-B029AAB59D18

Fri Apr 17 10:57:28 2015
panic(cpu 0 caller 0xffffff7f84088f7c): "GPU Panic: [<None>] 5 3 7f 0 0 0 0 3 : NVRM[0/1:0:0]: Read Error 0x00000100: CFG 0xffffffff 0xffffffff 0xffffffff, BAR0 0xc0000000 0xffffff80a9d81000 0x0a5480a2, D0, P3/4\n"@/SourceCache/AppleGraphicsControl/AppleGraphicsControl-3.6.22/src/AppleMuxControl/kext/GPUPanic.cpp:127
Backtrace (CPU 0), Frame : Return Address
0xffffff8097993140 : 0xffffff8001c23139
0xffffff80979931c0 : 0xffffff7f84088f7c
0xffffff8097993290 : 0xffffff7f826caf1b
0xffffff8097993350 : 0xffffff7f8279450a
0xffffff8097993390 : 0xffffff7f8279457a
0xffffff8097993400 : 0xffffff7f82a13056
0xffffff8097993530 : 0xffffff7f827b7ba9
0xffffff8097993550 : 0xffffff7f826d196d
0xffffff8097993600 : 0xffffff7f826cf478
0xffffff8097993800 : 0xffffff7f826d03f6
0xffffff80979938e0 : 0xffffff7f836ef9c2
0xffffff8097993920 : 0xffffff7f836ff37f
0xffffff8097993940 : 0xffffff7f8372d33b
0xffffff8097993980 : 0xffffff7f8372d39b
0xffffff80979939c0 : 0xffffff7f83704e15
0xffffff8097993a10 : 0xffffff7f836d0b5e
0xffffff8097993aa0 : 0xffffff7f836ccae7
0xffffff8097993ad0 : 0xffffff7f836ca636
0xffffff8097993b00 : 0xffffff80020cfe73
0xffffff8097993b90 : 0xffffff80020d1d6f
0xffffff8097993bf0 : 0xffffff80020cf88f
0xffffff8097993d40 : 0xffffff8001cb6e18
0xffffff8097993e50 : 0xffffff8001c26d81
0xffffff8097993e80 : 0xffffff8001c13af5
0xffffff8097993ef0 : 0xffffff8001c1e1d3
0xffffff8097993f70 : 0xffffff8001cca13d
0xffffff8097993fb0 : 0xffffff8001cf4ca6

 

[honestone]

Sorry to here you are having issues. One thing to try is to reset the SMC (System Management Controller). This link explains what that is, what other things to try first, and then how to actually reset the SMC:

https://support.apple.com/en-us/HT201295

You might also want to see if there are any firmware updates for your model (MacBookPro6,2). I tried to do a google search for some, but am having issues (server-related) in trying to het to Apple's site for them. Maybe you'll have better luck.

 

[honestone]

Update to my post above: this link explains about EFI and Firmware Updates:

https://support.apple.com/en-us/HT201518

For your machine, the last EFI Firmware Update was version 2.6. If needed, you can get it from here:

https://support.apple.com/kb/DL1492?locale=en_US

And, the last SMC Firmware Update for your machine was version 1.7. You can get it from here, if needed:

https://support.apple.com/kb/DL1731?locale=en_US