Mac needs to cool down

[kakkalla]

Hi all. I have had this problem for over a year now. My Mac Mini (running Sequoia 15.7.2; 3.2 GHz 6-Core Intel Core i7) will not sync my photo library. I always get the message "Syncing with iCloud Pauded. Mac Needs to Cool Down).

I have used ChatGPT and wasted many hours trying different things to get it going. My CPU temperature according to CleanMyMac is 63° which is well within limits. I have even had ice cubes in a container sitting on top of the Mac Mini and syncing still does not occur.

Does anyone have a method to solve this? Every time the system software gets updated, I pray that the problem is fixed . Alas, still no joy.

Thanks in advance.

 

[casperes1996]

There’s not a button to sync anyway? I haven’t had this message for cooling but for other reasons and there you often have a “resume” Button.

You can try installing the program Stats and tell it to run the fans at max for a bit and see if that helps.

 

[kakkalla]

No, there isn't a "resume" choice. Just the statement that it need to cool down.

 

[casperes1996]

In addition to trying maxing out the fans for a bit I also recommend completely turning off the machine for 15 minutes potentially even unplugging the power connector to flush capacitors

 

[Bigwaff]

When you see this message, are the fans in your mini spinning high? Can you hear them?

 

[EugW]

Hi all. I have had this problem for over a year now. My Mac Mini (running Sequoia 15.7.2; 3.2 GHz 6-Core Intel Core i7) will not sync my photo library. I always get the message "Syncing with iCloud Pauded. Mac Needs to Cool Down).

I have used ChatGPT and wasted many hours trying different things to get it going. My CPU temperature according to CleanMyMac is 63° which is well within limits. I have even had ice cubes in a container sitting on top of the Mac Mini and syncing still does not occur.

Does anyone have a method to solve this? Every time the system software gets updated, I pray that the problem is fixed . Alas, still no joy.

Thanks in advance.

What is your SSD temperature?

Typically syncing photos isn't really very CPU intensive, which is reflected by your 63°C CPU temp. However, I suspect it isn't your SSD either. Looking online it seems a bunch of people have the same issue, and their machines don't seem to be running hot either.

 

[kakkalla]

When you see this message, are the fans in your mini spinning high? Can you hear them?

No, I can’t hear the fans. I’ve decided to take it to an Apple authorised repairer and have it cleaned and the thermal paste replaced. It is 7 years old so a service is warranted.

I’ve asked for a quote. If it’s too much, I’ll have to live with it until the next Mac Mini is released.

Thanks to all for your comments.

 

[Boyd01]

Assuming you have the i7 2018 Mini? I have one and push it very hard. Started having overheating problems a few months ago and was concerned. But a quick look revealed that all the air vents were really clogged (I have two cats, one with long hair). It was very simple to clean, for starters I just vacuumed out the slots in the bottom cover. They were very clogged, but were effective in filtering out junk from getting sucked farther inside. I then just vacuumed out the vent holes after removing the bottom cover (pops right off, no tools needed).

The difference was quite remarkable! Mac started running much cooler and no more throttling. Anyway, that might be the first thing to check. If not that, then how much memory do you have and what kind of display are you using? There a several old threads where people were driving 4k screens on base 2018 Mini's with only 8gb RAM. They were overheating due to heavy swapping from lack of memory. Apparently, this only happened when using scaled display resolutions instead of native resolution.

 

[Fishrrman]

OP wrote:
"I’ve decided to take it to an Apple authorised repairer and have it cleaned and the thermal paste replaced. It is 7 years old so a service is warranted."

You didn't tell us where in the world you are, but here in the USA, my guess (and it's ONLY "a guess") is that an Apple Store genius bar wouldn't do a job like this.

I believe that the 2018 Mini is now on Apple's "vintage" list, and they may decline to work on them at all.

I'd suggest you do what Boyd suggests in reply 8 above -- clean it yourself.
If you're unsure about opening the bottom, go to ifixit.com and they'll show you how to "get into" it.

Final thought is...
... it's time to start shopping for a replacement. I'd suggest an m4 Mini, 32gb RAM and 1tb SSD.
There may be an m5 Mini at some point in the future, but no firm date yet...

 

[EugW]

OP wrote:
"I’ve decided to take it to an Apple authorised repairer and have it cleaned and the thermal paste replaced. It is 7 years old so a service is warranted."

You didn't tell us where in the world you are, but here in the USA, my guess (and it's ONLY "a guess") is that an Apple Store genius bar wouldn't do a job like this.

I believe that the 2018 Mini is now on Apple's "vintage" list, and they may decline to work on them at all.

I'd suggest you do what Boyd suggests in reply 8 above -- clean it yourself.
If you're unsure about opening the bottom, go to ifixit.com and they'll show you how to "get into" it.

Final thought is...
... it's time to start shopping for a replacement. I'd suggest an m4 Mini, 32gb RAM and 1tb SSD.
There may be an m5 Mini at some point in the future, but no firm date yet...

They only completely stop service on obsolete products. Apple will work on vintage products if parts are available. However, that's the key. Often parts are no longer available for vintage products.

I agree with you that it may be time for an upgrade, but it's unfortunate in the case of the 2018 model since that one is still quite performant and sufficient for most mainstream users.