How To Successfully Remove SMC FAN CONTROL? (Apple told me it messes with firmware)

[HappyDude20]

Just got back from the Apple store after an appointment at the genius bar.

I went in cause my mid-2009 13in MBP's battery last less than 2 hours when running on battery. This is with the bluetooth and wifi off, brightness set halfway and only having Pages open to edit an essay.

They noticed I use SmcFanControl and mentioned that that program messes with the firmware that apple sends out cause it overrides the fan control.....iono, but its what they told me. They said that its best to get rid of that program...

I currently have it running, at 2000RPM, the lowest setting I believe...with my MBP @ 127*F. Its not uncommon when on youTube, Hulu, or watching a movie in iTunes for the temp. to rise to 175*F plus...which is when the SMCFanControl speeds up the fans to 5000RPMs.

Anywho....aside from being curious as to what other Mac users think about this....i'd also like to make sure I delete SMCFanControl as if it was never there...I know I can go the route of throwing SmcFanControl into AppCleaner or something but i'm hoping I don't leave any fan speed settings from FanControl even after deleting it.

 

[inket]

smcFanControl is harmless, it just sends variables (fan speeds obviously) to the SMC. I think it's necessary in summer, but can do without in winter.

smcFanControl only changes the fans' settings when you open it; You can trash the app, I don't think it will leave something behind.

 

[JNB]

Whatever the problem is, it ain't smcFC. Mine is active full time, and with the usual power-saving measures I get at least 5-6 hours, on the same era & model of MBP you have. When it was brand-new, but with smcFC installed and enabled, I saw 8-10 hours.

Yeah, a lotta crap's been added to my overhead since then.

 

[HappyDude20]

I deleted it already...played a movie in iTunes and it didn't get too hot...but I gotta admit, I do kinda enjoy SMCFanControl...

but..

The guy at the apple store wouldn't help me out cause I had that program installed. He said they're not responsible for applications that mess with apple's own.

 

[TuffLuffJimmy]

I deleted it already...played a movie in iTunes and it didn't get too hot...but I gotta admit, I do kinda enjoy SMCFanControl...

but..

The guy at the apple store wouldn't help me out cause I had that program installed. He said they're not responsible for applications that mess with apple's own.

That dude's a douche. What exactly do you need done on your computer?

 

[HappyDude20]

That dude's a douche. What exactly do you need done on your computer?

Well I took the MBP considering the battery issue of it not lasting that long. I called AppleCare and they said the battery shouldn't be draining that quickly and they set up an appointment with me at my nearest apple store so they could take a look at it. They even said I should hva no trouble being able to leave it there and have it serviced, especially under the warranty considering I just extended it for another 2 years.

But that apple genius bar guy didnt even seem to care.

 

[inket]

Well, remove smcFanControl, take your MBP to that douche and tell him to fix it. (battery replacement I think) After that, just reinstall smcFanControl. 🙂

 

[RyanRoga]

smc + 15" Retina MBP

Okay, pretty critical error...

Installed smc, set the fan to run higher to cool it down while I watched a movie in bed (it was only 65 c but still). Now I have NO DEFAULT ACTIVITY. Meaning, if I set smc to higher settings, then quit, it doesn't revert to default control. Furthermore if I restart my computer (not having smc run automatically on startup) my computer stays in the setting it was last set at.

My computer, basically, no longer automatically manages fan control. This is a major issue. Taking any and all suggestions.

 

[renton69]

I have SMC Fan Control on my comp and find that once you open it for some reason it overrides the fan speed control settings and doesn't revert once you quit the app.

However, I did a test and found that if you DON'T start the app when you start up the computer, the controller will revert back to normal once the system finishes booting.

Try that and see if it fixes the bug for you.

 

[kensic]

general questions.

1. SMC F.C. only shows 1 temperature. does anyone know which component it refers to (cpu, gpu, ram)?

2. i also have Istat pro that shows all different temperatures, and all of them are mostly about 10-15 C degree lower then what SMC F.C. shows. so which one is accurate?

 

[iLog.Genius]

Okay, pretty critical error...

Installed smc, set the fan to run higher to cool it down while I watched a movie in bed (it was only 65 c but still). Now I have NO DEFAULT ACTIVITY. Meaning, if I set smc to higher settings, then quit, it doesn't revert to default control. Furthermore if I restart my computer (not having smc run automatically on startup) my computer stays in the setting it was last set at.

My computer, basically, no longer automatically manages fan control. This is a major issue. Taking any and all suggestions.

Uninstall/delete SMC fan control, reset SMC.

http://support.apple.com/kb/HT3964?viewlocale=en_US&locale=en_US

 

[benwiggy]

My computer, basically, no longer automatically manages fan control. This is a major issue. Taking any and all suggestions.

Uninstall the app and don't install any fan control apps.
Let the OS run the fans, and you can get back to using your Mac, rather than pretending that you are an Operating System.

All that these applications which monitor various bits of the OS do is let you worry about something that the OS does perfectly well, and then take preventative measure that makes things worse.

 

[BRAAP]

Uninstall the app and don't install any fan control apps.
Let the OS run the fans, and you can get back to using your Mac, rather than pretending that you are an Operating System.

All that these applications which monitor various bits of the OS do is let you worry about something that the OS does perfectly well, and then take preventative measure that makes things worse.

Am I interpreting your post correctly that what you are saying is that the CPU and graphics card running at 180 degrees F to 220 degrees F while both fans never go faster than 2000 RPM is OK? If so I must disagree. My mid 2012 15" MBP runs that hot with Minecraft running since I installed it the 2nd day after I bought my 15" MBP. I can not agree that 180+ degrees Fahrenheit is acceptable. (it runs sub 120 degrees F when doing much of anything else, only highly intense 3d graphics elevate the temps).

 

[turbogaming]

SMC is a major issue - killed a macbook pro motherboard

Okay, pretty critical error...

Installed smc, set the fan to run higher to cool it down while I watched a movie in bed (it was only 65 c but still). Now I have NO DEFAULT ACTIVITY. Meaning, if I set smc to higher settings, then quit, it doesn't revert to default control. Furthermore if I restart my computer (not having smc run automatically on startup) my computer stays in the setting it was last set at.

My computer, basically, no longer automatically manages fan control. This is a major issue. Taking any and all suggestions.

Must agree SMC Fan Control is a MAJOR issue. I killed a macbook pro a year back when using it. The macbook pro overheated because I tried setting SMC to DEFAULT activity - it overheated and burned up the processor and motherboard. I literally sold it for parts.
I tried it on another machine and saw it would completely override the default functionality and cause heat issues!! Please do not use it!

 

[diafebus]

Man SMC fan control is not supposed to take excessive control over SMC, it just sets the minimum fan speed, if the default speed is 1000rpm for X fan, and then u set it for 1200rpm as default, if the temperature raises higher than the acceptable value the fan will still raise it's speed, so smc fan control is not supposed to be that much intrusive that lets your mac burn… 😀

BTW this guy just asked how to totally remove SMC and he didn't get any answer…

1) Delete smcFanControl
2) Delete the following 2 files:
~/Library/Preferences/com.eidac.smcFanControl2.plist
~/Library/Application Support/smcFanControl/Machines.plist
3) Switch off your computer (not just restart) and then switch it on again
4) If you now reinstall smcFanControl, you should be able to set the fan to other values.

 

[poiihy]

Just got back from the Apple store after an appointment at the genius bar.

I went in cause my mid-2009 13in MBP's battery last less than 2 hours when running on battery. This is with the bluetooth and wifi off, brightness set halfway and only having Pages open to edit an essay.

They noticed I use SmcFanControl and mentioned that that program messes with the firmware that apple sends out cause it overrides the fan control.....iono, but its what they told me. They said that its best to get rid of that program...

I currently have it running, at 2000RPM, the lowest setting I believe...with my MBP @ 127*F. Its not uncommon when on youTube, Hulu, or watching a movie in iTunes for the temp. to rise to 175*F plus...which is when the SMCFanControl speeds up the fans to 5000RPMs.

Anywho....aside from being curious as to what other Mac users think about this....i'd also like to make sure I delete SMCFanControl as if it was never there...I know I can go the route of throwing SmcFanControl into AppCleaner or something but i'm hoping I don't leave any fan speed settings from FanControl even after deleting it.

Just delete the app
Any setting in the smc will be reset when you go to sleep and back on.
If you really want to be sure everything is reset you can reset the smc.


There is no need to remove the plists, etc, they are just configuration files keeping your settings. They have nothing to do with anything other than the app itself. Deleting them will reset the app so if you do re-install it, your settings will be reset

 

[michaelkanrs]

How to successfully remove SMC Fan Control.

I'll tell you how to delete smc securely.

Delete the following files.

Part 1:
Go to ~/Application
Delete smcFanControl.app

Part 2:
Go to finder, press "COMMAND SHIFT G"
Type in ~/Library/Application Support/smcFanCOntrol
Delete the folder.

Part 3:
Go to finder, press "COMMAND SHIFT G"
Type in ~/Library/Preferences
Delete com.eidac.smcFanControl2.plist

Youre welcome.