Coping When Your MacBook Shuts Down Randomly
All sophisticated electronic devices such as your MacBook will shut down from time to time. If your device does this persistently there are things you can do that don’t involve wallowing in sadness. If your Mac is turning off just when things are getting good, use these steps to nail down the problem and fix it.
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Reasons Why Your MacBook is Shutting Down
The issue of MacBooks shutting down randomly is sadly one of those issues that could be caused by a variety of things. Know reasons include:
- Software issues
- Outmoded MacOS
- Malware
- Some peripheral devices may cause issues
To fix the issue you’ll have to try the following fixes one by one. You may want to visit Apple Support for more information.
Shut Down Your MacBook
The first thing to do is to shut down your MacBook and power it on again. Do this from the Apple menu. When you do this every app closes and stress on the system is reduced. Once you turn your device back on it may make the system more stable and you’ll have a workable Mac once more.
Malware
If your MacBook has been infected by malware then you’ll have to use some kind of utility or virus checker to remove it. Malware can be highly damaging. As a quickish fix, you may want to revert to earlier backups where you feel you had a more stable system to try and purge your system of malware.
Check the Battery
Your battery is not infallible. They last for a limited number of charge cycles before you have to source a replacement. The number of cycles varies from model to model. To check the battery health open:
- About This Mac from the Apple icon
- Go System Report, and click Power under the Hardware section
- Under Battery information, you’ll find the current cycle count
If your cycles are hitting the 1000 figure it is time to get a new one. Under the cycle count figure, you’ll see Condition. If Condition reads Normal it is fine.
Update Your macOS
If your MacBook is running an outmoded operating system, this could be the reason you’re seeing issues. To see if you have a pending software update go to:
- About this Mac and then Software Update
- If you have an update ready to go, you’ll see it and can update accordingly.
Reset Your System Management Controller (SMC)
Your SMC is a chip that controls the hardware side of your MacBook. Every so often, the SMC needs a reboot to work properly. There are different ways to do this depending on your model.
If your Mac has a non-removable battery, you should:
- Shut down your Mac.
- On your built-in keyboard press Shift-Control-Option on the left-hand side while the power button is pressed at the same time
- Hold all four keys for 10 seconds
- Restart your Mac
For a removable battery Mac you should:
- Shut down your Mac, disconnect the power adapter
- Remove the battery
- Press and hold the power button for five seconds
- Reconnect the battery and adapter, switch on.
If your Mac has a T2 chip
- Shut down
- Hold the shift key on the right, Option and Control key on the left for 7 seconds. Hold the power for 7 seconds.
- Release, wait a few seconds, switch on.
Hopefully, one of these fixes will solve your issue.