I can't turn my Mac off

[Bartek Pękala]

Hi everyone. So I was a happy user of a 2014 Mini (2,6 i5, 8gb, 1tb) for almost five years and I stumbled across a small problem. Since the beginning of 2020 I am not able to turn my computer off other than by holding the power button. Once I click turn off the screen goes black indeed but then it turns back on again and proceeds to reboot. It happens both on mac os and windows. It also occurs when putting it into sleep. The other problem is wifi which stopped working about the same time as that rebooting problem has occured (I assume it's somehow connected). I tried to reset the PRAM and SMC, check the hdd using disk utility and even formatting the whole drive, but it didn't help at all.

 

[sunsetrunner]

Have you tried unchecking "Start up automatically after a power failure" option on Energy Saver settings in System Preferences?

 

[honestone33]

With the Mac unplugged, did you disconnect your router and modem, wait the prescribed amount of time for turning them back on (per your ISP), and then trying your Mac again? Also, how are you connecting to the internet with your Mac? For my late 2018 Mac Mini, I am connecting via an ethernet cable to my router, and my router is connected to my modem (again, via an ethernet cable). But for my Mac Book Air, I am using my in home network and connecting via WiFi. Works fine.

 

[Bartek Pękala]

Have you tried unchecking "Start up automatically after a power failure" option on Energy Saver settings in System Preferences?

It's unchecked. My computer is connected via Ethernet, as it can't connect to my WiFi. I have tried to reset the router as well and it connects flawlessly to all my other devices including different Macs.

 

[Fishrrman]

OP:

It -might- be a mechanical defect with the power-on pushbutton.
If you pull the plug out of the wall, then put the plug back in, does it reboot by itself?

Something else to try:
- get it powered off
- press the power on button and immediately hold down the shift key ("safe boot").
- when you get to the finder, try to shut it down this way
Does this make any difference?

 

[Bartek Pękala]

OP:

It -might- be a mechanical defect with the power-on pushbutton.
If you pull the plug out of the wall, then put the plug back in, does it reboot by itself?

It doesn't. I've tried booting into safe mode as well and it's no different.

 

[Fishrrman]

Might be time to re-install the OS, if you haven't done that yet.
If it was me, I'd:
1. Backup to a bootable cloned backup (use either CarbonCopyCloner or SuperDuper)
2. Get booted into internet recovery
3. Use disk utility to completely ERASE the internal drive
4. Install a fresh copy of the OS
5. Restore from your backup.
If it's still doing the auto-reboot routine after that, I'm going to guess it's some kind of unknown internal hardware problem (power supply?) ...

 

[Bartek Pękala]

Might be time to re-install the OS, if you haven't done that yet.
If it was me, I'd:
1. Backup to a bootable cloned backup (use either CarbonCopyCloner or SuperDuper)
2. Get booted into internet recovery
3. Use disk utility to completely ERASE the internal drive
4. Install a fresh copy of the OS
5. Restore from your backup.
If it's still doing the auto-reboot routine after that, I'm going to guess it's some kind of unknown internal hardware problem (power supply?) ...

Just did a clean install, the problem is stoll here though. I guess it's about a time to get a new computer and play around with Mini's interior. Thanks.

 

[Fishrrman]

"I guess it's about a time to get a new computer and play around with Mini's interior. Thanks."

Questions:
If you do something as drastic as pull the plug out of the wall (or use a power strip to shut off/turn on the Mini), does it always "boot right up to the finder" again?
And then... do things work as they did before the problem manifested itself?

If yes, I'd just hook it up to a power strip, and then "knock it down" at night with the "off" switch.
The next morning, I'd flip the power strip switch "on" and press the power on button.

And keep a good backup...

Might not really -need- "a new computer" yet...

 

[Bartek Pękala]

"I guess it's about a time to get a new computer and play around with Mini's interior. Thanks."

Questions:
If you do something as drastic as pull the plug out of the wall (or use a power strip to shut off/turn on the Mini), does it always "boot right up to the finder" again?
And then... do things work as they did before the problem manifested itself?

If yes, I'd just hook it up to a power strip, and then "knock it down" at night with the "off" switch.
The next morning, I'd flip the power strip switch "on" and press the power on button.

And keep a good backup...

Might not really -need- "a new computer" yet...

I mean, sure, it's not a reason to get a new one - but that dual core i5 isn't exactly doing an ok job with my workflow. 😅 However, i did try pulling the plug out and it didn't boot by itself. I have to click the power button first. Also, when i hold the button while my mac is on, it turns off and DOESN'T boot back on. I really can't figure out what exactly is going on - could be EFI related?