weird macbook pro issues...any ideas?

[tinythps]

Hi all,

I have a mid-2012 15-inch Macbook Pro running Catalina.

Over the last three weeks or so, my computer has been randomly shutting off with increasing frequency. Sometimes it'll run normally for a few hours, other times I can't get it to last more than 2 minutes (or it won't boot up at all).

This has happened in the past, but only for the stretch of a day or so before roughly going back to normal.

When it does crash and is unable to turn back on, the sleep light habitually flashes and a clicking sound can be heard, as if it's trying but failing to start. Sometimes, when it's not starting, resetting the SMC will bypass the clicking and it'll force-turn on. I've reset my PRAM as well, but to no avail. This issue is made stranger by the fact that, when it's experiencing a spell of habitually turning off, the computer will not turn on without being plugged in, even though all the battery specs read normally (I think).

It has been suggested to me that the motherboard is failing, but I'm not sure if this would this explain the fact that it must be plugged in to turn on. Any idea what this could be? The computer still runs like a dream otherwise. Thanks!

PS - in case it's useful, my laptop is partitioned, and the Windows has the same problem. Also, I've replaced my harddrive and upgraded my RAM in roughly the last year or so.

 

[chscag]

What about the condition of the battery? Have you verified that it's okay? You state that you think the battery specs read normally. You can get a good idea of the battery condition by downloading and running "coconut battery". (The clicking sound is probably coming from the optical drive.)

coconutBattery 3.9 - by coconut-flavour.com

With coconutBattery you are always aware of your current battery health. It shows you live information about the battery in your Mac and iOS devices (iPhone, iPad)

www.coconut-flavour.com

 

[tinythps]

What about the condition of the battery? Have you verified that it's okay? You state that you think the battery specs read normally. You can get a good idea of the battery condition by downloading and running "coconut battery". (The clicking sound is probably coming from the optical drive.)

coconutBattery 3.9 - by coconut-flavour.com

With coconutBattery you are always aware of your current battery health. It shows you live information about the battery in your Mac and iOS devices (iPhone, iPad)

www.coconut-flavour.com

Hey chscag, thanks for your response. I have coconut, and everything seems to be normal? See below:

 

[chscag]

Actually, your battery looks to be in real good condition which is surprising for a 2012 machine. Cycle count is normal and charge capacity is good.

The symptoms you described could also be caused by a failing DC input board or indicate logic board problems. Do you have a spare Mag-Safe charger that you can try? Sometimes a flaky Mag-Safe charger can act the same way.

 

[tinythps]

No mag-safe charger on hand, unfortunately. I did notice, though, that issue still happens even after I've booted the laptop on while plugged in and then unplugged. It doesn't happen immediately, but turns off in pretty short order.

Are there any tests, etc. I can run to test for DC input board/logic board problems? (Thanks again for your help!)

edit: also, ran first aid in recovery mode and it seemed to be fine (minus something about "volume could not be unmounted," whatever that means).

When I tried to run in diagnostic mode, I got the Cannot Load 'EFI/Drivers/Testsupport.efi' message. Not sure if relevant, but alas.

 

[DeltaMac]

I would disagree about the condition of the battery.
Almost 2,400 charge cycles is well past the suggested design life of 1,000 cycles.
Status (battery health) might be reported as "Good", but is less than 84%, close enough to the "edge" of 80%, where Apple would consider the battery depleted. Kind of amazing with that many charge cycles.
And, it appears to be the original battery - it has served a good life...

Bottom line... If your MBPro shuts off "in pretty short order" after unplugging the power adapter - I would suggest that if you want to continue using your MBPro, battery replacement is the next step.
I replaced the batt in my 2012 MBPro a few months ago.

NinjaBatt Battery A1286 A1382 for Apple MacBook Pro 15" [ONLY for Early/Late 2011 2012] - Long Lasting [10.95V/77.5Wh]

NinjaBatt Battery A1286 A1382 for Apple MacBook Pro 15" [ONLY for Early/Late 2011 2012] - Long Lasting [10.95V/77.5Wh]

smile.amazon.com

Working great, I think not too much to spend to get some more use out of a 10 year-old laptop (if you want to do that), particularly if you want to be "portable" again

 

[tinythps]

Hey Delta, thanks for your response. The reason why it seems like the battery is unlikely as a culprit (or the sole culprit, at least) is because it continues to shut off even while plugged in. At the moment, it won't stay on for a longer than a minute or two after booting up, even while plugged in.

 

[DeltaMac]

One test that could help you eliminate the battery -- disconnect the battery, and use your MBPro for an hour or two, maybe long enough to tell if it seems to continue to run without randomly shutting off (with no battery connected)

 

[chscag]

I was thinking for some reason that 2000 cycles was normal, however, after looking that up @DeltaMac is correct. The battery is still able to charge to 83.7 % which is still workable. Anyway, try what was suggested and let us know.

 

[BrianBaughn]

A bad battery can muck up the works even when plugged in.

 

[Fishrrman]

OP:

This is a UNIBODY MBP 15", with a DVD drive, is this correct?

If the battery is original, THE VERY FIRST THING I would recommend is that you change it out for a fresh one.

Go to ifixt.com to see what's involved.
This is not difficult in any way, but YOU NEED THE RIGHT TOOLS to do the job properly.
So make sure you get the right tools as well as the battery.

Hmmm... if you've changed out the drive already, you know how to open the back, etc.

Ifixt can sell the battery, but according to reports I've read on this forum, their batteries can range from OK to "so-so".

Other World Computing sells batteries, along with all sorts of ebay sellers.

DON'T CHEAP OUT on the battery.
Also, BE AWARE that buying laptop batteries is a crapshoot at best -- you can get a good one, or...?

As others have mentioned above, there's also something called the "DC-in board" that can go bad.
It's a cheap part and relatively easy to replace.

I would try a new battery first. I reckon there's a high probability this will solve your problems.
If things are still acting up, I'd try replacing the DC-in board.

However... after 10 years of usage... have you considered it might be time for a replacement...?

 

[tinythps]

Hi all, I wanted to follow up on this now that some time has passed.

My laptop had reached the point where it consistently wouldn't stay on for longer than a minute or two before shutting off. I opened up the back to check for signs of battery swelling/remove the battery entirely, but stopped when I realized that I didn't have the appropriate tools to remove it.

Since opening up the MacBook pro and closing it again, my computer has not crashed once. It's been a week.

Anybody have any ideas about what was going on/could still be going on? I bought a new (used) MacBook air already, but it's still in the box and I'm preparing to return it.