Getting started

What to do when you’re struggling to do anything at all

> System folder

Don’t start to panic: chances are it’s a minor and easily fixed issue that you can sort out yourself. Press and hold the power button for 10 seconds to ensure your Mac is turned off and then restart it while holding down Cmd+Opt+p+r. This resets the non–volatile RAM (NVRAM) that your Mac uses to store basic settings. Keep the keys pressed until you’ve heard the startup chime twice. No luck? Restart again but this time hold down Cmd+r. This will launch the Recovery console from which you can run Disk Utility’s First Aid feature.

> Why can’t I log in?

If your login password isn’t working, restart your Mac. When you see your user account, click on the "?" in the password field and then click "Reset It Using Your Apple ID". You should now be able to reset your password. To change other users’ passwords, go into System Preferences > Users & Groups.

> My Mac crashes on startup. Why?

It’s likely to be a software problem. If your Mac contains Apple’s M1 chip, turn on your Mac and keep pressing the power button until Startup Options appears; select your startup disk, press and hold Shift and click "Continue In Safe Mode". On an Intel Mac, just restart or start your Mac with the Shift key held down until you see the login window. If the problem persists in Safe Mode, reinstall macOS entirely; if it doesn’t, unplug external hardware and remove login items from System Preferences > Users & Groups.

> Why is this app misbehaving?

We encounter this most frequently after software updates, whether those are for an individual app or the entire macOS: an app that worked just fine in version 1.3 is weird in 1.4. The solution to both of these is exactly the same: wait for the app maker to update their app.

> My Mac keeps freezing. What can I do?

Is it your whole Mac or just Finder? If it’s the latter you can restart Finder (which includes the menu bar and your desktop) by clicking the Apple menu > Force Quit > Finder > Relaunch. If it’s your whole Mac, restart without any external hardware and see if it solves the problem: if it does, re–connect things until the problem comes back. Whatever you added most recently is likely to be the culprit, so check the manufacturer’s website for updated driver software.

> Why won’t this app run?

Some apps won’t run on Big Sur at all because they’re 32–bit: Apple stopped supporting 32–bit apps after macOS Mojave. However, other apps are blocked because your Mac blocks non–App Store apps for security reasons. You can change that setting in System Preferences > Security & Privacy > General.

> My Mac takes forever to log me in. Why?

If it takes ages to log you in, have a look under your user name in System Preferences > Users & Groups. This enables you to see your login items, which are the apps and app helpers that load when you log into your Mac — things such as cloud storage services or the little apps that live in your menu bar. The more things your Mac has to load, the longer login will take. To remove a login item, select it and then click on the "–" sign. This doesn’t uninstall it; it just stops it loading at login.

> Why does this app crash when running?

Apps can crash for all kinds of reasons: with so many possible configurations of macOS, external hardware, and apps it’s impossible to test every eventuality. However, apps that crash on launch may have faulty disk permissions: fix that in Disk Utility > First Aid. No luck? Uninstall and re– install it.

> When to use Force Quit

Normally when an app becomes sluggish we quit it from within the app and then restart it. But sometimes an app just stops working. If you can’t quit in the usual way, click the Apple menu > Force Quit to see a list of the apps that are running. If an app says “not responding”, select it, and click Force Quit to shut it down.

> Why does my Mac keep beach balling?

The spinning beach ball tells you that your Mac is struggling to do what your software wants, so it’s something you might see during intensive tasks. Use Activity Monitor (in Applications > Utilities) to see what’s putting your Mac under the most CPU load or maxing out your Mac's memory.

> How do I sync my iPad/ iPhone in Catalina or later?

With iTunes gone — and with it the traditional syncing route — syncing your devices now happens in Finder: just connect your iPad or iPhone to your Mac via USB and it should appear in the sidebar of the Finder window. If it’s your first go, you’ll need to tell your Mac to trust your device. Once that’s all done, simply click on the device in the Finder sidebar to see its sync options.