100% Finder CPU Usage - A Call For Help (I Have Just About Given Up)

[sirocc0]

Ok guys, here's the deal. Randomly, i wasn't doing anything specific -- my system starts getting sluggish. I check the activity viewer -- wow, finder is at 150% CPU!

I have scoured the internet for fixes, and franky, I have tried them all (except one -- which I may need help with -- more on that later).

System: Snow Leopard with a Mac Pro (Twelve Core 2.66 Westmere)

This is what I have tried and the results:

1. Trashing com.apple.finder.plist, com.apple.systemuiserver.plist, com.apple.loginwindow.plist. -- NO FIX
2. Trashing ALL apple.* namespaced .plist files -- NO FIX
3. Turning off "calculate all sizes" in finder -- NO FIX
4. Turning off "show view options" in finder -- NO FIX
5. Disabling all startup items -- NO FIX
6. Unplugging external hard drives -- NO FIX
7. Getting rid of all data on desktop. -- NO FIX
8. Repair Disk Permissions -- NO FIX

However, if I create a new account or use my wife's account -- the FINDER CPU USAGE IS NORMAL.

I analyzed the finders cpu pattern, it goes like this. If active, its always between 70 and 150% cpu usage. If i kill it, and stay 100% idle -- it goes from 0-ish% to 100+% slowly, and the Real Memory column in activity viewer goes from 0mb to ~2gb+ slowly, and when it gets around there, it dies and cycles all over again.

Here's where I need help from people smarter than me in this area. What are some methods I can use to trace what's happening in finder?

I am pretty new to mac and this has been a big blow to me -- I am loving the rest of it after being on windows for over 17 years.

Would appreciate any help I can get!

Thanks,
-Sirocco

[ratzzo]

Can you post the model of your Mac? Are you running on Snow Leopard?

[sirocc0]

Originally Posted by ratzzo

Can you post the model of your Mac? Are you running on Snow Leopard?

Yes, sorry about that I am running Snow Leopard with a Mac Pro (Twelve Core 2.66 Westmere)

[ratzzo]

I read somewhere that if you move your entire Library>Preferences folder elsewhere, the problem might disappear (you would be creating an entirely new preferences folder). Have you tried this? Also, try resetting your PRAM and NVRAM. If everything else fails, you could just make a new admin account and move your stuff over, since the problem actually lies within your account (not within your software/hardware if when you log out to another one the problem is gone).

[sirocc0]

Originally Posted by ratzzo

I read somewhere that if you move your entire Library>Preferences folder elsewhere, the problem might disappear (you would be creating an entirely new preferences folder). Have you tried this? Also, try resetting your PRAM and NVRAM. If everything else fails, you could just make a new admin account and move your stuff over, since the problem actually lies within your account (not within your software/hardware if when you log out to another one the problem is gone).

No, i have not tried either.

I have removed all the files with the /Preferences folder for the user, but did not delete the folder itself. Will give it a show when I get home from work! Thanks!

Also, i will try resetting the PRAM & NVRAM.

[ratzzo]

Originally Posted by sirocc0

No, i have not tried either.

I have removed all the files with the /Preferences folder for the user, but did not delete the folder itself. Will give it a show when I get home from work! Thanks!

Also, i will try resetting the PRAM & NVRAM.

Just move the folder, no need to delete it. I doubt deleting it will have a different effect, but should any preference become conflicting you have the old preference folder ready.

[sirocc0]

Originally Posted by ratzzo

Just move the folder, no need to delete it. I doubt deleting it will have a different effect, but should any preference become conflicting you have the old preference folder ready.

Makes perfect sense

[satcomer]

Plus launch /Applications/Utilities/Activity Viewer and see what program is what old program is going wild.

[sirocc0]

Originally Posted by satcomer

Plus launch /Applications/Utilities/Activity Viewer and see what program is what old program is going wild.

I am sorry I don't understand? I see the finder cpu% in activity viewer -- is there something else your suggesting?!

[ratzzo]

Originally Posted by sirocc0

I am sorry I don't understand? I see the finder cpu% in activity viewer -- is there something else your suggesting?!

I didn't mention that because I thought you had indeed checked the % that way, lol

Another utility good for cases like these is Console, but I'm not too keen on how to interpret it so I'm just going to leave it as an option here, if you understand how to make use of it

[sirocc0]

Originally Posted by ratzzo

I didn't mention that because I thought you had indeed checked the % that way, lol

Another utility good for cases like these is Console, but I'm not too keen on how to interpret it so I'm just going to leave it as an option here, if you understand how to make use of it

That is how I checked it. I was hoping to get help with the Terminal in the thread to maybe find out the culprit to the finder issue.

[notjustjay]

I used to have this problem sporadically. I never bothered to "fix" it though, I just Force Quit the Finder anytime I caught it doing that.

Luckily I haven't really had a problem lately -- it has been many months since I last saw it happen -- but I'm afraid I can't pinpoint anything specific that I did to make it go away.

How often does this happen for you?

[sirocc0]

Originally Posted by notjustjay

I used to have this problem sporadically. I never bothered to "fix" it though, I just Force Quit the Finder anytime I caught it doing that.

Luckily I haven't really had a problem lately -- it has been many months since I last saw it happen -- but I'm afraid I can't pinpoint anything specific that I did to make it go away.

How often does this happen for you?

Right now, on this account, it's permanent. Even after a restart!

[notjustjay]

Originally Posted by sirocc0

Right now, on this account, it's permanent. Even after a restart!

Hmm. Ok, that's different from the problem I would have, which is that occasionally something would just get "stuck" and start using CPU like crazy. Killing and restarting Finder would fix the problem, until whatever it was happened again.

I suspect mine may have been related to some operation on the network.

[sirocc0]

im getting things when i issue the fs-usage -f filesys

18:03:19 getdirentries64 0.000401 W Path Finder
18:03:19 getdirentries64 0.000404 W Path Finder
18:03:19 getdirentries64 0.000340 W Path Finder
18:03:19 getdirentries64 0.000339 W Path Finder
18:03:19 getdirentries64 0.000535 W Finder
18:03:19 getdirentries64 0.000192 W Path Finder
18:03:19 getdirentries64 0.000326 W Path Finder
18:03:19 getdirentries64 0.000462 W Path Finder
18:03:19 getdirentries64 0.000194 W Path Finder
18:03:19 getdirentries64 0.000127 W Path Finder
18:03:19 getdirentries64 0.000410 W Finder
18:03:19 getdirentries64 0.000198 W Path Finder
18:03:19 getdirentries64 0.000600 W Path Finder
18:03:19 getdirentries64 0.000188 W Finder
18:03:19 getdirentries64 0.001019 W Finder
18:03:19 getdirentries64 0.000416 W Path Finder

any ideas? i disabled path finder after and it still happens, but with just finder.

[-aggie-]

In Console, are you getting any repeat messages?

You might try using Onyx, and just going through all the parts of it to clean up. It’s what I use when I’m stumped and it always works, after I try all the stuff you already mentioned.

[TheFridge]

When you go to activity monitor do you only see one finder process? Also can you please click on the finder process and then click on the Inspect button on the top left of Activity Monitor.

Then please post a screen shot of what the statistics page looks like and copy and paste all the entries under Open Files and Ports.

[elimarcavalli]

I had the same problem on my MBP.
I looked at the Activity Monitor and saw something like "GregorianCalendar" using a lot of process when I inspected Finder process...

It started a few minutes after the end of DST, because my mac was configured to update time automatically.

The problem has solved when I changed the hour, incrementing 1, and 1 day.

Now it's 1am and i turn the auto updates on again. The problem has permanently solved.