[srfdriver22]

Ever since I got my Mac (Dual MDD 867) I've had problems with it freezing. This happened while the "trial" AppleCare period was still in effect. So, I took it to the Apple Store and they wound up having to replace the motherboard. Everything seemed fine.

Over time I would get a few KP's here and there but nothing major.

Fast forward to yesterday. After two KP's in a row, I decided to just let the system sit there for a day. I couldn't get it to remain stable once it would boot (when it did).

So, this morning, I booted up the machine and all was well, for about 5 minutes. Then the system had a hard freeze...no screen dumps or KP messages. I've done the following:

- Removed/Swapped RAM, all are OK
- Ran hardware test CD many times, all OK
- Reset PRAM via button on Motherboard
- Reset PRAM on boot by holding Command + Option + P + R (5 times)

Now, let me describe a few "characteristics" of my machine and the setup I have here.

First, I have a Sony 19" CRT monitor that has a 4 port USB hub built into it (2 ports on either side). I have my Pro keyboard plugged into the side of the monitor, in addition to my printer. I then have my wireless MS mouse plugged into the 3rd port. The 4th port is free. I then have the USB cable from the monitor's hub going into a Belkin 4 port switch, which then goes into my Mac and my PC. I have the monitor VGA cable plugged into a Belkin 2 port switch, one goes into my Mac and the other goes to my PC.

Sometimes, I'll get a KP if my Apple mouse isn't plugged into my keyboard and I plug it in. Sometimes, when I switch from my PC back to my Mac, OS X won't recognize any USB device (the light on my apple mouse won't be on) until I move the USB hub into the other USB port on my Mac.

Could the odd setup I have be a factor? The cables won't reach to where my tower is (about 3 feet to the left of my monitor) so I can't really directly plug my keyboard into my Mac. However, since the mouse is wireless, I can do that.

Any ideas? I've been dealing with this for a while and it's really pissing me off.

[The Placid Casual]

There were once issues with OS X and some external USB hubs... I thought it was fixed with 10.3, but you never know. What vesion of the OS are you running?

I would look there first for the source of your problems.

Peace,

TPC

(I too had a bad experience with a dual 867 whioch was not stable AT ALL... hope you get yours sorted.)

[srfdriver22]

That's exactly what the genius at the Apple Store said. I'm going to rearrange my desk setup so that the keyboard can plug directly into my Mac, not having to go through my monitor's usb hub or the other belkin hub. Then I'm going to back everything up onto the second HD, format the main HD and reinstall the OS.

PS- I'm running 10.3.2.

Wish me luck!

[Cadaver]

Did Apple replace the RAM when they replaced the motherboard? Even if the Apple Hardware Test CD says the RAM is OK, all it takes is a random error to potentially lock up a machine. The RAM could have been damaged when the mobo went bad.

Also, when your machine crashes/locks up, does the mouse pointer still move, or is it frozen in place. Some have suggested a mouse pointer that freezes in place indicates a hardware problem (or at least it does for G5s).

[srfdriver22]

Nope, they didn't replace the RAM. Just 1 CPU and the Logic Board. The cursor always freezes up.

Incidentally, I ran it for 1 day smoothly without any of the USB hub nonsense. I went away for the weekend (it was off). I came back and started to import some video in iMovie 4. I took a shower...when I came back, I had a low HD Space on my second drive. Ok...I cleared up a few GB's and started importing again. I got a 1" grey curtain across the top of the screen...sound kept looping and I got text on the screen. Something about the cpu. Which log would this be under? If I can find it, I'll post it.

This sucks.

[srfdriver22]

Adding another incident...

I just went out to run some errands for about an hour or two. When I came back, the mouse worked but everything else was frozen. I turned it off, let it sit, then turned it back on and did a Verbose boot. I noticed something about AppleR2332Serial or something like that which had an early something or other. Said something was wrong. It was scrolling pretty fast so I couldn't write it down.

[reader50]

/Library/Logs/panic.log

USB funkyness is not the only thing that can cause system freezes and panics. A dying HD can do it also. Try opening Disk Utility and see what the SMART tests show for your hard drives.

[srfdriver22]

It says verified for both. Is there another location to look at other than at the bottom of Disk Utility?

I've come to the conclusion that it cannot be anything USB related. It has to either be RAM, CPU or the Logic Board. And since many of the errors I've been getting usually state something about the CPU, that maybe it would be that.

I might have to just wind up paying $250 for AppleCare and dropping it off for a week or two and just get it over with. This would be the second time in less than a year.

[Azzgunther]

Do you have an easy way to back everything up? If so, then a clean install may help solve some problems. 10.3.2 has been notoriously buggy for many users, including myself. To the point that a clean install was the only alternative. Refer to -THIS- link for more information.