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cjaames

macrumors newbie
Original poster
May 5, 2017
1
0
Hi guys!

I have a MacBook Pro Mid 2012. I bring it with me on campus every day. I always put my MacBook to sleep after using it and before putting it in its sleeve and in my backpack. For some reason, a couple of weeks ago when I went to take my computer out of my backpack about an hour after using it, my backpack was emitting heat. I immediately freaked out and reached for my computer. I quickly took my MacBook out of its sleeve only to find it was obviously overheating. It had not stayed in sleep mode! This has never happened in my three years of owning this perfect computer. I have always taken great care of it--its never been dropped or been contaminated with any liquids.

The screen was black when I opened my computer but I could hear it running quietly. I pressed the power button to turn it off and let it cool down significantly before restarting it. It turned on perfectly, and no problems surfaced...until a couple days later. As soon as I picked my MacBook up off my desk the screen glitched, it froze, and then the computer automatically restarted. It seems like when I lift, tilt or carry the MacBook it does this. Sometimes when I go to wake my computer up from its sleep, it doesn't turn on and I have to manually restart it. This morning I picked it up from my desk and took it into my living room. It wouldn't wake up from its sleep, so I manually restarted it. When it was booting up, a code error was displayed. Just after I posted this thread my computer restarted without warning.

I did some research when this first occurred and all signs point to a possible RAM issue. I do not understand how that would be affected by my overheating incident. The solutions gathered from my research suggested I take apart my MacBook and remove the RAM card(s) and reinstall them. I really would prefer to not do that. Knowing my luck, I would worsen the issue. If anyone reading this has had experience removing the back of the MacBook and doing a similar procedure, let me know about it.

The problem seemed to go away for a few days, but now it's becoming more frequent. It obviously is a result of the overheating issue. I just want to get some insight before I have to take my computer into the Apple store which I am absolutely dreading. I attached a photo of the glitch. If anyone has seen this issue before I would greatly appreciate any help on how to fix my beloved MacBook. Thank you!

macbook glitch 2.jpg
macbook glitch.jpg
 
Last edited:
Hmm, the bottom picture looks like graphics failure. As the VRAM is shared with the system RAM (no discreet graphics on your laptop), that would further confirm that the RAM is faulty and needs to be replaced. Removing the RAM sticks and putting them back in wouldn't do anything really; you'd need to replace the sticks as they've failed.

Honestly it's a piece of cake to take off the bottom. Your model also has huge issues with the HDD cable failing/corroding and due to the age of your machine I'd almost bet my house that's also faulty. However Apple have a free repair program for that.

Basically if there's an Apple Store local to you and you're not comfortable taking off the bottom, they can certainly check what's what and get it solved. If you're out of warranty, it really won't cost much for new RAM sticks and I'm sure they'd be more than happy to fit new ones for you. If the cable's failing then they can sort that for free.
 
The top image looks like a kernel panic. I had that happen on my 2012 cMBP. It only ever happened once.

It might be something in your startup list. Try googling 'kernel panic mac'.
 
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