From The Top..
I have returned to this problem, so I could document it carefully
and find the cause. This is long, but it's laid out in order of events
over the last 2 weeks: (I felt it was better than whining)
So, if anyone feels like being a "sleuth", here it is:
G5 power pc Freezes
Symptom:
screen freeze
Frequency of Freeze-ups:
20 minutes to 2 hours of use
Kinds of freezes:
screen freeze---
mouse and keyboard freezes up, machine must be re-started
with power button
If iTunes was playing, it will go into an endless sound-loop
Computer re-starts quickly and functions normally.
Freeze-ups are not noted in the Console or in Crash report, only force-quits and re-starts. The clock freezes also.
In the Console, it's like it never happened.
programs used during freeze:
Safari or Firefox
Can I re-create the freeze?
yes.. by using the mouse and opening up Safari or Firefox, and having an Ethernet connection
When does it NOT freeze up?
When there is NO Ethernet cable hooked up...
(One night I ran Firefox all night, with ethernet dissconnected... and it did not freeze until 7 hours later when I plugged in the ethernet cable, and used the mouse.)
I attempted to use Proxies; but the computer still froze up.
I attempted to use Firefox's No Scripts, but there were still freezes.
So this is a Java problem?.... crashing the browser, which brings down the whole system?
Or, is this a Hardware Problem?
RAM:
3 gigs: 2 one-gig sticks
2 512mb sticks
RAM arrangement:
512-1MB-1MB-512 (as per Apple diagrams)_
HD size:
Maxtor 80 gig, about 20 gigs free
(also have a Maxtor 250 gig HD, 230 gigs free; I am
alternating between the two, to isolate the problem)
System:
HD 1: Mac OSX 10.4.11
cloned from Mac Mini G4
HD 2: MAC OSX 10.4.11 fresh install, from System Install Disc
-Computer has a Mac Refurbished tag and number
-Computer was known to be fully functional before
-Computer was shipped to me in original box; no apparent damage.
THE FOLLOWING STEPS TAKEN HAVE SOME EFFECT ON THE FREEZES.... each step has improved things slightly. But later
the problem comes back again....
-------------------------
I found the RAM incorrectly arranged; I re-arranged it as per Apple diagrams. It helped stop the kernel panics but not the freezes in Firefox
or Safari.
I ran the machine with 2 pairs each, to rule out one of the pairs; only when arranged in the wrong order did the
computer not completely read them. In the right order, they all read ok.
I have tested them four times.
I replaced the PRAM battery with a new one
I reset the PRAM, NVRAM, PMU, etc
I switched out the older 250 gig HD for an 80 gig HD with a cloned OSX 10.4.11 (from my G4.)
I wiped the 250 gig HD and re-installed OSX 10.4.11 via the Apple system install disk, and ran days of
system updates. This didn't eliminate the freezes at all; either HD operates beautifully until it freezes.
The cloned HD, and the 'new' HD operate exactly the same.
I "repaired disk permissions" numerous times from Disk Utility, and from the Apple Install Disk
I installed "COCKTAIL", "APPLEJACK", and "MEMTEST", and ran all the tests
I removed my wireless mouse and replaced it with a
standard Apple Mouse
I removed the keyboard and used a different Apple keyboard
I used a different USB port for the keyboard/mouse
I checked all fans
(the fans run normally and do not go into turbo mode)
I checked for dust inside; it appears very clean
I have cleaned the RAM contacts with rubbing Alcohol and re-seated the cards
I removed the Ethernet cable during a crash, no effect, the machine stayed frozen (had to restart)
I ran 'fsck' in single-user mode, twice, and no problems reported.
I installed and ran Rember, to further test the RAM.
No hardware test showed any problems; permissions were occasionally off, but then were fixed.
No bad files were found.
After 3 crashes, I placed a small bowl of ice cubes inside the computer (yes, that is right)... next to the
Graphics Card. The computer still froze in about twenty minutes. Inside temp was cool enough.
I have used the computer for several hours, with iTunes, Safari (but NO ethernet connection), DVD movie playing,
and Activity Window open. No freezes or crashes. Heavy mouse/keyboard usage. Also left open iMovie and Garage Band.
Watched Activity Monitor; processor #2 constantly ran higher than #1 but never peaked.
I unplugged computer and moved it to a desk with an Ethernet Connection, hooked it up, logged onto the Internet, and it froze immediately.
I Repaired Disk Permissions with Apple Install Disk again, ran Cocktail again to clean out all prefs and permissions.
In Safari, I "disabled Runaway Java Script Timer" and "Site Specific Hacks"
I also selected Proxy settings in the System Prefs.
This worked for an hour, until a large kernel panic occurred. So I removed the Proxy preference and re-enabled Javascripts.
Last kernel event (not freeze) involved something called "Apple Onboard Audio/Platform Interface/cpp" and "Apple Topaz Plug in" in the Console log..
a search of these things in the computer brings up nothing. An online search brings up nothing. I'd delete them if I could find them.
It is not a plug-in (despite it also being called AppleOnboardAudio/Apple Topaz Plug-in); I cannot find either of these
inside the computer in any Library or Pref file.
I suspect the Ethernet connection, or a JAVA problem. We are continuing to run the unit in Firefox with JAVA disabled,
to see how long it can go without freezing up. It will run a long time, until someone operates a mouse.
Activity Monitor is open, and window shows MODERATE processor usage (no peaks) leading up to a freeze.
Again, these freezes can be replicated by opening Safari or Firefox and hooking up the Ethernet, and enabling JAVA, and moving the mouse
or typing on a keyboard. Again, the whole computer must be shut down using the power button. All work is lost.
Online forums suggest the Graphics Card, the Processors, the Motherboard, the Power Supply,
bad capacitors, or something with Quartz Extreme. While JAVA is always problematic, reports of total lock-up because of Java
or Javascripts are hard to find. Safari or Firefox doesn't just quit; the whole computer quits.
Graphics Card is GeForce Fx 5200, and is Quartz-compliant
It has been removed and re-seated
There is no current update to Adobe Flash past 10.1 for PPC computers, only for Intel computers.
If this is a hardware issue, then why can the computer be run for 12 hours or more, with many heavy programs open at once?
We have tried 2 different Ethernet connections... one with DSL Ethernet, and now with Cable Internet. There is no difference
in the frequency of the crashes.
Downloads, and tests can be run for hours without any freeze-ups.
Computer WILL freeze up in Safe Mode.
I have removed the mouse from the keyboard and plugged it into the front port on the computer, by itself
I will try a third keyboard also, to see if there is a problem with the mouse/keyboard combination.
LAST WORK DONE:
I removed both HDs and returned the original 250 gig HD to the machine. I re-installed the system AGAIN with the original Install Disk
(OSX 10.2) and then ran the 10.4 Upgrade Disk, and then ran the online upgrades to 10.4.11 and for Safari and for Java (9 of them).
I installed Adobe Flash and updated Java Releases 6,7,and 8 and maybe 9.
It is a new, clean install of OSX 10.4.11. It's very very clean.
I replaced the PRAM battery again. One day I unplugged the computer and plugged it back in; the time and date were off.
This indicates a dead battery, even though I had just put in a new one a few days earlier.
I installed another new one,
and reset PRAM, NVRAM, PMU again.
Are there any hardware tests that I can do, to see about the Motherboard or the processors, or a bad power supply, or the Graphics Card?
Are there any software tests, other than the ones listed above, that will identify a problem?
I became convinced that this was a Software issue, since it functions normally without being on the internet. But I've run out of software-testing options. And, if a software (JAVA) glitch can bring down this enormous G5,
then maybe it's a hardware problem after all.
(there is never a beachball.. it skips that part, and just freezes)
