Sleeping iMac

I have a 2011( 3.1gz) 27" iMac with 4 gigs of memory. I have had it now for about 3 years a do a lot of photography on the computer (Adobe Photoshop, Lightroom..etc.etc.) I sometimes have 2-3 external hard drives connected to it and each external is about 1 - 2 Tbs. My computer now is constantly is now going to sleep on me even though I don't have the computer set to go to sleep at anytime. It doesn't seem to matter how hot the computer is or how many peripherals I have connected. I have also changed the power source many times using different outlets in the house and I keep having the same problem. When it first happens (usually after the computer has been on for about 15-30 minutes) I will press the power button half way a couple of times and the computer screen will come back on. Then the intervals at which the computer goes to sleep keep getting shorter until pressing the power button down half way won't do anything. I usually will re-start the computer but the same scenario usually will take place again until the computer is totally shut down for about an hour. I have taken the computer to an authorized Apple Care service center in China and they believe that the whole circuit board might have to be replaced. Is there anything I'm overlooking before I have this done. The computer is still under Apple Care warranty so it won't cost me anything to do this. I also want to know if using so many peripherals on my computer is not a good thing to do with only 4 gigs of memory which I plan to change to 8 in the coming week. One last thing is that the computer has a 1000gb capacity but right now I only have 11gb available. Should I not be using this much space and is this causing problems for the computer. Any kind of feedback would be appreciated.

Several things to advise you on:

1. Your hard drive is too full. Your iMac needs space for a swap file which you no longer have.

2. Your iMac can be fitted with 32 GB of memory. I can't imagine why you have not upped the memory to at least 8 GB long ago.

3. Try doing an SMC reset before you allow anyone to swap out the logic board. To do a SMC reset, shut down the iMac completely - power off. Remove the plug from the AC outlet and let the machine set for around 15 minutes. Plug it back in and restart.

However, until you free up space on your hard drive, you may continue to have problems. Also, I don't know how steady the power is in China but I suspect that it's probably not clean and varies a great deal. You really should invest in an UPS but not just any UPS. You need one with a line leveler built in. One that will give you clean steady power.

Dirty power and power that varies can cause your iMac to go to sleep.

Thanks so much............

Sorry I didn't reply sooner but my computer availability has been a little intermittent for the above reasons I mentioned in my first message. Thanks so much for you reply and I will begin deleting files and making room on my Mac. I suspected it was to full as you say. Secondly I had never heard of 'dirty power' but it makes a lot of sense because every time I took the computer to the repair place the iMac seem to work fine there and they couldn't see what I was talking about. I tried doing the SMC thing a number of times but it didn't fix the problem. Could you please explain what an UPS is ? I'm guessing that that means uniform power source ? I'm sure I can find it here in Hangzhou, China but I just need to know more specifically what I should be looking for and for about how much. If you could fill me in that would be helpful.

Lastly yes I know the 4 gig memory is pretty small but it's just one of those things I have been putting off but I already ordered 8 gigs of new memory to be added to my computer and that will make my total 12gigs. Thanks so much for you prompt response. It means a lot to me seeing as how I'm a little isolated here and use the internet for all of my resources. Your forum is a real God send and it is really a wonderful thing regardless of whether it can solve this problem or not.

Thanks again so much.

UPS = Uninterruptible Power Source

However, as I stated in my previous reply you need a special UPS. One that will provide line leveling and steady clean power. Dirty power and varying voltages can cause the iMac to go to sleep and possibly damage its power supply. I'm sure you can find one there where you're at in China since they make all sorts of electronics.

Ups

I spoke with Apple Support in China and they told me the same thing you said about regarding the UPS. Apparently my area of China has a lot of problems with this kind of thing and that Hangzhou in particular where I live, has a 280v power line for much of the city. Since my computer is recommended for only up to 240v.....this may be the source of the problem. Although I'm not sure why because I have been using the computer successfully for the last few years up till now. But maybe there has been a change in the city's electrical grid. I'm assuming that what I should be shopping for is a small transformer device similar to what people use to change 110 to 220 v and vise versa when traveling. I went online to look for UPS devices and it seems there's a myriad of types to choose from. Could you possibly send me a link to some site which shows what kind of UPS I should be looking for. The Apple support tech said that in China it should only cost less than 100 RMB which is less than $20. So I'm guessing that I'm not looking to buy something very big........

Thanks. Wesley

I think you're confusing a UPS with an adapter, and I think the Apple person you spoke with was confusing a UPS with a "surge protector strip" -- totally not the same thing!

A real UPS looks about the size of a small car's battery -- because that's essentially what it is.



This is what a basic one looks like, and here in Canada it would run about $50. What it does that a surge protector does NOT do is make the power uniform -- it protects against both TOO MUCH electricity and TOO LITTLE ("brownouts"), both of which can cause a great deal of damage to your computer (and it may already be too late for your machine's power supply, I would bet that this won't "fix" the problem but will just keep it from getting worse).

Thanks Chas for clarifying this up for me and yes I was a little confused because the Apple rep was speaking to my daughter in Chinese and she was translating so I really couldn't get the full on message. I was basically going on the info that the administrator was giving me to look up what a UPS on the internet. Your photo really really helps out a lot because I saw all kinds of UPS devices and some were large and expensive. I'm not to worried if the computer is already damaged just because I have the computer still under warranty and I'm assuming it will be covered........hopefully. Just a quick question though. How does the UPS device work ? I'm assuming that I plug my computer into it and then plug this device into the socket where I usually plug my computer ? Sorry I'm not a very technical person.......Thanks for your help.

chas_m said:

I think you're confusing a UPS with an adapter, and I think the Apple person you spoke with was confusing a UPS with a "surge protector strip" -- totally not the same thing!

A real UPS looks about the size of a small car's battery -- because that's essentially what it is.

This is what a basic one looks like, and here in Canada it would run about $50. What it does that a surge protector does NOT do is make the power uniform -- it protects against both TOO MUCH electricity and TOO LITTLE ("brownouts"), both of which can cause a great deal of damage to your computer (and it may already be too late for your machine's power supply, I would bet that this won't "fix" the problem but will just keep it from getting worse).

Click to expand...

Chas, I have to access my iMac remotely from time to time and have had several instances where power goes off at home, shutting it down. Would the UPS you're showing in your post be able to keep my computer from shutting down when the power goes of?. BTW, the times it's off isn't but for a few minutes historically, according to folks in my neighborhood whom I've asked. Would appreciate any recommendations. Thanks.

Yes, an UPS rated for the amount of power that your Mac and any devices attached to it requires, would be capable of keeping the machine on line during a power off.

The UPS you need should come with an optional USB connection to your Mac so that the power supply preferences can be setup correctly. That's very important because there may be a time when the power is not restored quickly. In that event, you would want your Mac to power down normally and the UPS to go off line in order to conserve its battery.

And this is what an iBox UPS is like. iBox works just great with the iMac:-


iBox, iPack Review

Thanks to Mac Forums and everyone who made an effort to help me out. All of the information was valuable and extremely helpful. Ironically when the Mac Support people came to my home to fix the computer, they suspected that maybe the issue was with the computer screen and brought with them a new one for me.

On other forums which I had read about computer 'sleeping problems' and in particular with the Apple forums, no one had ever mentioned that maybe it was a screen issue, which I found interesting and made me suspect of the Apple Care Support people's evaluation of my situation. But they were right. As soon as the screen was installed, the problem disappeared. I also (thanks to the advice of the administrator here....) installed 8 more gigs of memory and the computer is running a lot smoother than before. Anyway a hearty thanks for all of the support and help. I will recommend this forum to any other Mac user I come across in the future....

Glad to hear that the problem was the screen and not the (internal) power supply of the computer, which would have been very expensive to fix (at least for the providers). I would still recommend a UPS, and yes it works exactly as you described -- you plug it into the wall, and the computer (and a few other things) into it. And yes, to answer your other question, if the power were off for a few minutes it would keep the iMac running smoothly -- of course, if the model and router aren't also on the battery backup, then the iMac still being on will do you no good for remote use because the Internet will still be down!