How to Stop Spinning Wheel on Mac

If you’ve ever used a Mac, you’ve probably encountered the dreaded spinning wheel at some point.

Also known as the beach ball of death, this spinning wheel can be incredibly frustrating and seems to appear at the most inconvenient times.

Whether you’re in the middle of an important project or trying to watch a movie, the spinning wheel can bring everything to a halt.

But fear not! There are several potential solutions to try when it comes to fixing the spinning wheel on a Mac.

In this blog post, I’ll go through each of these solutions step by step so you can get back to using your computer without any interruptions.


Restart Your Mac

One of the simplest solutions to try when it comes to fixing the spinning wheel on a Mac is to simply restart the computer.

Sometimes the spinning wheel can be caused by a temporary issue that can be resolved by restarting the computer.

This can help clear any temporary files or processes that may be causing the issue.

To restart your Mac, follow these steps:

  1. Click on the Apple menu in the top left corner of the screen.
  2. Select “Restart” from the dropdown menu.
  3. A dialog box will appear asking if you want to save any open documents. Make sure to save any important documents before continuing.
  4. Click “Restart” to begin the restart process.
  5. Your Mac will shut down and then start up again. This may take a few minutes, so be patient.

Once your Mac has restarted, see if the spinning wheel issue has been resolved.

If it has, great! If not, don’t worry. There are several other potential solutions to try.

Check Your Activity Monitor

If simply restarting your Mac didn’t fix the spinning wheel issue, the next step you can try is checking your activity monitor.

The activity monitor is a built-in utility on a Mac that allows you to see which programs and processes are using up the most resources on your computer.

This can be helpful in identifying which programs or processes may be causing the spinning wheel.

To open the activity monitor, follow these steps:

  1. Click on the Launchpad icon in the Dock (it looks like a rocket ship).
  2. Type “Activity Monitor” into the search field.
  3. Click on the “Activity Monitor” icon to open the utility.

Once the activity monitor is open, you’ll see a list of all the processes that are currently running on your Mac.

The CPU and Memory tabs at the top of the window can help you see which processes are using the most resources.

If you see a process that is using an unusually high amount of resources, it could be causing the spinning wheel issue.

To close a process, simply select it from the list and click the “X” button in the top left corner of the activity monitor window.

Make sure to only close processes that you are sure you don’t need, as some processes are important for the proper functioning of your Mac.

If closing a process resolves the spinning wheel issue, you may want to consider uninstalling the program associated with that process to prevent the issue from occurring again in the future.

If the issue persists after checking the activity monitor, move on to the next potential solution.

Close Programs and Files

Another potential cause of the spinning wheel on a Mac is having too many programs or files open at once.

When you have a lot of programs and files open, it can put a strain on your computer’s resources and cause it to slow down or display the spinning wheel.

To see if this is the cause of the issue on your Mac, try closing some of the programs and files that you have open. Here’s how to do it:

  1. Click on the program or file that you want to close.
  2. In the top menu bar, click “File” and then select “Close” from the dropdown menu.
  3. Repeat this process for any other programs or files that you want to close.

If closing some of the programs and files resolves the spinning wheel issue, try to be mindful of how many programs and files you have open in the future to help prevent the issue from occurring again.

If the issue persists after closing programs and files, move on to the next potential solution.

Check for Updates

Outdated software or drivers can sometimes be the cause of the spinning wheel on a Mac.

If you’re using an old version of a software program or an outdated driver, it can cause compatibility issues and lead to the spinning wheel.

To see if this is the cause of the issue on your Mac, try checking for updates to your software and drivers. Here’s how to do it:

  1. Click on the Apple menu in the top left corner of the screen.
  2. Select “System Preferences” from the dropdown menu.
  3. In the System Preferences window, click on the “Software Update” icon.
  4. The Software Update window will open and check for any available updates. If any updates are found, they will be listed in the window.
  5. To install the updates, click on the “Update Now” button. You may be prompted to enter your administrator password.
  6. Follow the on-screen prompts to complete the update process.

It’s a good idea to regularly check for updates to ensure that your Mac is running the latest versions of all its software and drivers.

This can help prevent issues like the spinning wheel from occurring.

If updating your software and drivers resolves the spinning wheel issue, great! If the issue persists, move on to the next potential solution.

Repair Disk Permissions

Disk permissions are essentially a set of rules that dictate which programs and users have access to certain files and folders on your computer.

If these permissions become corrupt or are not set correctly, it can cause issues like the spinning wheel.

To see if this is the cause of the issue on your Mac, try repairing the disk permissions using Disk Utility.

Here’s how you can do it:

  1. Click on the Apple menu in the top left corner of the screen.
  2. Select “Restart” from the dropdown menu.
  3. While your Mac is restarting, hold down the Command and R keys until the login window appears. This will boot your Mac into Recovery Mode.
  4. From the Utilities menu, select “Disk Utility.”
  5. In the Disk Utility window, select your startup disk (usually named “Macintosh HD”) from the list on the left.
  6. Click on the “First Aid” tab.
  7. Click on the “Repair Disk Permissions” button.
  8. Wait for the repair process to complete. This may take a few minutes.
  9. Click “Done” when the process is complete.
  10. Restart your Mac as normal.

If repairing the disk permissions resolves the spinning wheel issue, great!

If the issue persists, move on to the next potential solution.

Reinstall Affected Software or Drivers

If none of the above solutions have fixed the spinning wheel issue on your Mac, it’s possible that the issue could be caused by a problem with a specific software program or driver.

In this case, uninstalling and then reinstalling the affected software or drivers may help resolve the issue.

To uninstall a software program or driver, follow these steps:

  1. Click on the Apple menu in the top left corner of the screen.
  2. Select “System Preferences” from the dropdown menu.
  3. In the System Preferences window, click on the “Software Update” icon.
  4. The Software Update window will open. Click on the “Installed Software” tab.
  5. Select the software program or driver that you want to uninstall from the list.
  6. Click on the “Uninstall” button.
  7. Follow the on-screen prompts to complete the uninstall process.

To reinstall the software program or driver, you’ll need to download it from the manufacturer’s website or from the App Store.

Once you have downloaded the software or driver, follow the on-screen prompts to install it.

If reinstalling the affected software or drivers resolves the spinning wheel issue, great!

If the issue persists after trying all of the above solutions, it’s possible that there may be a hardware issue with your Mac.

In this case, it may be necessary to seek the assistance of a professional.


Conclusion

In this blog post, I’ve gone over several potential solutions for fixing the spinning wheel on a Mac.

I covered everything from restarting the computer to repairing disk permissions and reinstalling affected software or drivers.

If you’re experiencing the spinning wheel on your Mac, I recommend trying each of these solutions one by one until the issue is resolved.

It’s also a good idea to regularly check for updates to ensure that your Mac is running the latest versions of all its software and drivers.

This can help prevent issues like the spinning wheel from occurring in the future.

Finally, don’t forget to regularly clean up programs and files that you no longer need.

This can help keep your Mac running smoothly and prevent issues like the spinning wheel from popping up.

I hope that these tips have been helpful in resolving the spinning wheel issue on your Mac.

If you have any other questions or need further assistance, don’t hesitate to reach out.