Help, MacBook Pro is freezing/lagging all the time.

[BrownGremlin]

I have had my Macbook for a few years now and I have had next to no problems.
Last week however it has started to act weirdly. VLC player tends to freeze any video for a couple of seconds randomly several times throughout the length of a movie or tv show. The audio however keeps playing.

When I am streaming movies or tv shows over the internet I get the same problem.

The freeze can last anywhere from a couple of seconds to about 40 seconds, during which time I cant use anything (mouse keyboard) but i can still see everything on the screen and usually all audio keeps playing. After the freeze/lag is finished the screen jumps to the point where the audio is up to.

The freezing/lagging doesn't only happen whilst watching/listening to video/audio but also just when doing simple tasks as writing in this forum. In saying that it is far less frequent.

It seems to have a hard time to do any thinking its like im running servral programs at once but at the moment i only have google open to write this forum.

I have read a few forums and tried a few things clearing space disk verify/repair. Clearing cache so far nothing has helped. Please Help


The system I am running is:

MacBook Pro
13-inch, Early 2011
Processor: 2.3 GHz Intel Core i5
Memory: 4 GB 1333 MHz DDR3
Graphics: Intel HD Graphics 3000 384 MB
Software: OS X 10.9.5 (13F34)

Storage: 117.86 GB free out of 319.21 GB

I do use bittorrent a lot to download games movies and tv shows
also I use google chrome instead of safari

 

[keysofanxiety]

I have had my Macbook for a few years now and I have had next to no problems.
Last week however it has started to act weirdly. VLC player tends to freeze any video for a couple of seconds randomly several times throughout the length of a movie or tv show. The audio however keeps playing.

When I am streaming movies or tv shows over the internet I get the same problem.

The freeze can last anywhere from a couple of seconds to about 40 seconds, during which time I cant use anything (mouse keyboard) but i can still see everything on the screen and usually all audio keeps playing. After the freeze/lag is finished the screen jumps to the point where the audio is up to.

The freezing/lagging doesn't only happen whilst watching/listening to video/audio but also just when doing simple tasks as writing in this forum. In saying that it is far less frequent.

It seems to have a hard time to do any thinking its like im running servral programs at once but at the moment i only have google open to write this forum.

I have read a few forums and tried a few things clearing space disk verify/repair. Clearing cache so far nothing has helped. Please Help


The system I am running is:

MacBook Pro
13-inch, Early 2011
Processor: 2.3 GHz Intel Core i5
Memory: 4 GB 1333 MHz DDR3
Graphics: Intel HD Graphics 3000 384 MB
Software: OS X 10.9.5 (13F34)

Storage: 117.86 GB free out of 319.21 GB

I do use bittorrent a lot to download games movies and tv shows
also I use google chrome instead of safari

Please could you review the instructions below in the order they are written, to enable us to diagnose the problem. If at any point a problem is detected, you won't need to run through the remaining instructions.

1) Verify HDD SMART data by downloading SMART Utility here. If you get anything other than 'Passed', the issues are relating to a corrupted HDD and you need to replace this.

2) If SMART Utility passes, verify the Macintosh HD volume in Disk Utility. Quote this if it fails and we'll run through a repair in the recovery partition.

3) If no issues are detected in Disk Utility, restart your computer with the option 'reopen windows when logging back in' disabled.

4) If you're still having an issue, run a permissions repair in Disk Utility (no verification necessary) and restart again.

If you're still having a problem, please quote this and we'll try a few more things.

 

[BrownGremlin]

Hmm so I take it that means my HDD is corrupted then

 

[keysofanxiety]

Hmm so I take it that means my HDD is corrupted then

Could you screenshot SMART Utility please?

 

[BrownGremlin]

Please could you review the instructions below in the order they are written, to enable us to diagnose the problem. If at any point a problem is detected, you won't need to run through the remaining instructions.

1) Verify HDD SMART data by downloading SMART Utility here. If you get anything other than 'Passed', the issues are relating to a corrupted HDD and you need to replace this.

2) If SMART Utility passes, verify the Macintosh HD volume in Disk Utility. Quote this if it fails and we'll run through a repair in the recovery partition.

3) If no issues are detected in Disk Utility, restart your computer with the option 'reopen windows when logging back in' disabled.

4) If you're still having an issue, run a permissions repair in Disk Utility (no verification necessary) and restart again.

If you're still having a problem, please quote this and we'll try a few more things.

 

[BrownGremlin]

I take it my macbook is screwed then?

 

[keysofanxiety]

I take it my macbook is screwed then?

Not screwed, HDD's corrupted so you need to replace that. Easy component to replace.

May as well replace with an SSD to increase performance.

 

[BrownGremlin]

Not screwed, HDD's corrupted so you need to replace that. Easy component to replace.

May as well replace with an SSD to increase performance.

Oh ok cheers while im here I play a few video games on my mac is there a way to upgrade the graphics card in the macbook pro?

 

[keysofanxiety]

Oh ok cheers while im here I play a few video games on my mac is there a way to upgrade the graphics card in the macbook pro?

Unfortunately not, however I can advise that on your model, the VRAM is shared with the system memory because it's an integrated GPU rather than a dedicated one.

An SSD will make a positive impact to your gaming experience anyway, as textures will take significantly less time to load.

You can increase the VRAM and therefore eek the best gaming performance from the hardware by:

1) Updating to El Capitan when it is released (Sep/Oct)
2) Upgrading your RAM to either 8GB (2x4GB DDR3 1333MHz SODIMM) or 16GB (2x8GB DDR3 1333MHz SODIMM).
3) Swapping HDD for SSD (which you'll be doing anyway).

 

[Fishrrman]

1. Put an SSD into it. You don't need the "most expensive, fastest, highest capacity" drive. I'd suggest a Crucial, perhaps 240gb in size. You may need to remove a few files, I'd want to keep at least 30gb or so "free".

1a. Prepare and test the SSD BEFORE you install it into the MacBook. Use either a USB3/SATA docking station or a USB3 enclosure.

1b. Be sure you have THE RIGHT TOOLS for opening the MacBook. Use the ifixit.com repair guide for guidance.

2. Either upgrade to Yosemite, or DOWNgrade back to 10.8.5.

 

[BrownGremlin]

1. Put an SSD into it. You don't need the "most expensive, fastest, highest capacity" drive. I'd suggest a Crucial, perhaps 240gb in size. You may need to remove a few files, I'd want to keep at least 30gb or so "free".

1a. Prepare and test the SSD BEFORE you install it into the MacBook. Use either a USB3/SATA docking station or a USB3 enclosure.

1b. Be sure you have THE RIGHT TOOLS for opening the MacBook. Use the ifixit.com repair guide for guidance.

2. Either upgrade to Yosemite, or DOWNgrade back to 10.8.5.

Cheers this all sounds good. What's the benefits of downgrading or upgrading? I quiet liked mavericks. Not a fan of Yosemite at all.
I have no idea what the prepare and testing bit is. I'm living in Russia (I'm not from here, nor do I speak Russian) so getting anything here is bloody difficult. I mean if I was lucky enough to find a SSD here I'm not sure I would be able to get the other things to test it.
I'm not even 100% I could get the tools to open it up.