2009 iMac upgraded to SSD keeps Freezing yet mouse still works & music still plays.

Late 2009 iMac freezes

As many I have the same symptom.

Based on countless attempts to fix this I believe I know now the reason of the problem. I believe that in MY CASE, it is the video card.

I upgraded to a SSD HD and it did not fix the issue. I installed many small software that helped me get a better idea as to what could be wrong, but none gave me the right answer.
Again, in my case, it seems that it is also related to the mouse scrolling.

If I scroll fast there is a good chance it will freeze on me, if I do it slowly, it may not. The one other issue I have been having is the disappearance of some software at reboot. That is still a mystery.

I am still using the original ATI Rateon 4850 with 512 mg of ram, and for now over 7 years. This iMac has a lot of hours of usage, and considering an upgrade for the video card ATI Rateon 5750 is at this point not the smart move due to the high cost for it (anywhere from $300 to over $500).

One small application I found extremely useful, is SSD Fan Control. I too had problems controlling the fans, but with this incredible app. it has resolved an annoying issue and will allow you to adjust the speed of the fan to keep the HD and video card at a cooler temperature, which also helps limit the locking problem.

Reading one of the posts somebody suggested that the life span of an Apple computer is 4-5 years therefore I consider myself lucky for over 7 of great work and perhaps is time to retire it.

In any case, just want to thank all the people that has posted in regard of this problem and I hope this will put some of you at ease.

All the best,

S.

Speedmeades said:

Hi guys having exactly the same issue

iMac late 2009 i7
16gb ram
OS: macOS Sierra
SSD upgrade to Samsung evo 500 - 500gb

Freezes usually when scrolling in safari. Starts scrolling a little bit shaky then freezes, mouse still works but can't click on anything or use keyboard functions. Clock stops.

Any ideas on how to address this?

Click to expand...

@speedmeades, were you able to find the fix? My iMac has exactly same specs with yours. I wonder if you were lucky to find a fix. Thank you in advance.

Samsung EVO drives do not mix well with pre 2010 Macs. There are other threads about this and it seems the 6Gbps speed is simply too much for older Macs.

And if it is a late 2009 iMac did you use a heat sensor cable available from OWC?


https://blog.macsales.com/27918-owc...or-solves-imac-hard-drive-compatibility-issue

Thank you for the time to reply.
I used OWC set(SSD plus sensor with cable) for Imac. Everything worked out perfect, except this exact issue stated above. Btw, its iMac 2010 Mac OS Sierra. I'm still searching online but no luck so far. I wonder if @2muchmark found any fix since the time the thread posted.

Hi Everyone,

I'm very sorry, but I forgot to post an update regarding this issue.

As it turns out, my problem is SAFARI.

My Mac NEVER hangs when using any other browser such as Chrome or FF. But if I run Safari, it definitely seems to have this weird hanging issue. (Everything is un-clickable and I can't type, but music still plays, videos still play, Network activity is still happening in the background (FTP for example). It's as if the computer itself doesn't hang, but Safari "takes over" then crashes, locking me out of doing anything else.

This happens on all versions of the OS. I've updated it with each new release. I've reported it to Apple but their only answer is to have me bring the computer in so they can re-install the OS, which, let's face it, I'm just too lazy to do.

Anyway if you have the same problem, try running Chrome instead of Safari. If you must open Safari, close it right after you use it. My mac NEVER hangs when Safari is not running.

Good luck!

Well I think it is over due for a format and clean install of the operating system.

personally never upgrade machines,always burn USB thumb drive, format and do a cleaninstall then migrate everything over from my Thunderbolt external SSD.