Solve Apple Mac problems with a detailed system information report

Apple Macs are normally very reliable, but like all computers they do occasionally experience problems. Finding the cause is not always easy but macOS tools and third party utilities help.

If you think that you'll never have a problem because you are using Apple kit, you should check out the Apple Support Communities. There are lots of posts there from people experiencing all kinds of difficulties. The cause of some errors are obvious, but this isn't always the case and a detailed system information report can help to diagnose the problem.

Knowing where to start when trying to solve a problem is difficult unless you know what you are doing and some things, such as a slow shut down process or a long startup, or a spinning beach ball can be difficult to diagnose. The causes are not obvious and help is needed.

Use System Information

There is a System Information app in the Applications/Utilities folder in all versions of macOS, but if you have ever tried to use it, you may have been overwhelmed at the amount of information it provides in some parts, It is too detailed, especially when examining the software section, and instead of helping you to solve problems, it may just confuse you.

Go to the Utilities folder and open System Information. On the File menu choose Show More Information (it already is if it says Show Less Information). If you need to know what hardware is inside your Mac, this is the place to find out. Just select the components on the left, like Bluetooth.

How much memory does your Mac have and it it upgradeable? System Information tells you.

The problem with this is that it tells you what hardware and software is installed, but little else. It does not tell you the cause of problems. It is still useful when you need to get help in Apple Discussions forums or other forums (post your problem in RAWinfopages forums for example), because you can give a detailed description of the hardware. This is often useful because some problems are specific to a certain model or year of iMac or MacBook.

Wi-Fi diagnostics

If there is a problem with the wireless network, hold down the Option key and click the Wi-Fi icon in the menu bar. Instead of the usual list of networks there is a detailed report on the current Wi-Fi network settings, like your IP address, the router's IP, rhe channel number, and so on. Some of the information is a bit technical though.

Click Open Wireless Diagnostics to run a utility that analyses the current network connection and get a report highlighting any problems. Click the blue i on the right to read the retails.

The report is not always helpful, but sometimes it is or it might point you in the right direction to find the problem. Use it whenever there is a Wi-Fi issue.

Get an EtreCheck report

A free utility app called EtreCheck is far more helpful for tracking down the cause of problems. It displays system information, but in a different way to Apple's app and if you have not tried it or have an old version, get the latest one.

Download EtreCheck, unzip the app and drag it to the Applications folder to install it. There are two versions and the one on the website is more powerful than the one in the Mac App Store. This is because Apple places security restrictions on Store apps, which limit utilities like EtreCheck, so get it from the developer's website.

Run Etrecheck and it prompts you to select the type of problem you are having. It is unimportant and is only used for the title of the report produced. Scan the system to produce the report.

There are four useful sections in the free version of the app, Major Issues, Minor Issues, Security, and Report. Click the icons in the sidebar.

The Report contains the full hardware and software report and the Review buttons take you to sections in that report. Scroll down to the bottom of the sidebar and select the report to read it.

At the top is hardware information, but further down is software. Scroll down the list and it shows kernel extensions, launch daemons, user launch agents, internet plugins and more. EtreCheck filters out all the unnecessary items and shows only what is important, making it simpler to understand than the System Information tool.

When you don't have to read pages and pages of obscure information you can discover where a problem may lie more easily. For example, you might see references to software you had uninstalled, or software you added, but unknown to you, is still running extensions, plugins or other items in the background. These may be the cause of the problem you are having. Here is an example:

Launch daemons are services that run in the background, often without showing anything on the screen to give away their presence, and there are two listed here. At the bottom are internet plug-ins. SharePoint and Silverlight are Microsoft plug-ins. You might not realise that they are running or even installed on your Mac. Plug-ins are a potential source of problems and it is not obvious what is on your Mac.

Go to the Security section and it lists items that may or may not be malware or adware. These Launchd Files load when the Mac starts up and it is a place here malware or adware can be found. Just because something is there, it does not mean there is a problem. For example, in the screenshot above are a couple of items, but the executable is clearly showing they are VirtualBox components, which is fine.

EtreCheck will not solve any problems, but it will at least show you where to look and it is worth keeping a copy of this free app on your Mac. Reports can be saved from the File menu. If you ever have to use the Apple Support Communities forums you can copy the report it produces to the clipboard and then paste it in a forum message. Its contents will help others in the forum to diagnose the problem or at least eliminate some possibilities.