Do you encounter a frozen app on your Mac and can’t quit it normally? That spinning beach ball makes you crazy? Instead of just sitting and getting more frustrated, force quit an app that’s not responding. Thankfully, you’ve got options to close the unresponsive apps.
We’ve prepared five Mac force quit ways, so you can pick the one that works best for you. Moreover, we’ll tell you how to prevent the programs from hanging and what to do if your whole Mac stops responding.
How to Force Quit Mac Applications
May 01, 2020 Here are the steps to force quit an app using the activity monitor – Press the Command+Space button to bring out the spotlight search bar. You can also click on the search button manually on the top of your screen. Type activity monitor in. Jun 07, 2018 How to force an app to quit Press these three keys together: Option, Command, and Esc (Escape). This is similar to pressing Control-Alt-Delete on a. Select the app in the Force Quit window, then click Force Quit. While in the app you want to quit, hold down Shift while you tap on the Apple menu at the top left corner of the screen. Look down the drop down menu that appears and you should see Force Quit and the name of the app you are in. Select the command to quit the app. 3 Ways to Force-quit an Unresponsive Program in Windows 10 PC. When using apps/programs on the computer, sometimes one program might experience long pauses or periods of unresponsiveness. You even cannot close the program by clicking the X button in its upper right corner. In this case, you would want a way to force the program to quit.
Force quit from the Apple menu
Here’s how to force quit an app from the Apple menu:
- Click on the Apple logo in the top left corner of your screen.
- Select Force Quit.
- Choose the app that’s not responding.
- Click on the Force Quit button.
Force quit from the Dock
If you wonder how to force quit an app on Mac using the Dock, check out these simple steps:
Force Quit Isn't Working Mac
- To open the dock menu, right-click on the application icon you want to shut down or click on the item and hold.
- Hold an Option (Alt) button, so the Quit menu changes to Force Quit.
- Click Force Quit.
As simple as that!
Force quit using the keyboard shortcut
Alternatively, you can use a force quit Mac shortcut to close an unresponsive app. Do the following:
- Press and hold the following keys: Command + Option + Esc.
- Select the program you want to quit from the dialogue box.
- Click Force Quit.
This method of force quit command Mac is especially useful if your mouse cursor is lagging a bit.
Force quit using the Terminal
If you prefer a command line method to solve the problems, you can quit an unresponsive app via Terminal. Here’s what you should do:
- Launch the Terminal.
- Type the following command: killall [application name]. For example, if Safari isn’t responding, type killall Safari.
- Click Enter. Your application will be shut down immediately.
Note that the killall command works at the system level and the auto-save option doesn’t work. Be careful not to lose your unsaved data.
A better way to force quit apps — CleanMyMac X
A smart maintenance app like CleanMyMac X has a problem of force quit on Mac covered. You can easily force quit program on your Mac with an Optimization utility. It has a special Hung Applications tool that allows to identify and fix the unresponsive app right away.
A direct access saves you time and allows to fix a frozen app in a matter of seconds. CleanMyMac also takes care of other performance issues, so if you want to get alerts when something goes wrong on your Mac, download CleanMyMac X for free and give it a try.
Fixing an app that hangs frequently: Short tips
You may notice that a particular app freezes quite often. It is natural to assume that there is something wrong with that application. But don’t worry, there are a few things you can do to fix the hanging app.
First of all, update an app to the latest version. App developers are constantly working on improvements, trying to deliver the best experience to users. The latest update may resolve all problems with the freezing app.
The next step is to clear the app’s cache, especially if you use it frequently. If there’s not enough free storage, a program won’t run smoothly. Once you delete the cache files, an app may start working normally.
You may also try to delete an app and reinstall it. Usually it resolves the problem of a frozen app.
What to do when your Mac freezes
Typically it’s just an app that hangs, but on rare occasions the Mac may freeze entirely and become completely unresponsive to anything. This is often accompanied by fans that work quite loudly, demonstrating a fully frozen Mac. To solve the problem, you need to shut down your computer and boot it again.
Here’s how to force reboot your Mac:
- Hold down the Power button until your Mac shuts down completely. This may take about 5 seconds.
- Wait a few seconds and then hit the Power button again to boot the Mac.
As you may presume, this method is not perfect. Any unsaved information may be lost due to the sudden shutdown. However, sometimes it’s the only way to make your computer running.
That’s it. We hope this guide has helped you to force close Mac app that’s not responding. Keep in mind, with regular maintenance, your computer will be at tip-top shape, running at its best. And software like CleanMyMac X can help you keep an eye on your Mac. It can reset and delete apps, free up RAM, clean up the system, take care of the startup programs that slow down your computer, and speed up your Mac with its maintenance scripts. And that’s what will help you avoid problems with frozen apps on your Mac.
Thanks for reading and stay tuned!
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The Apple macOS is the excellent Operating System, but it’s not a stable one. When the app is crashing randomly, an app may freeze or hang, the app not responding, etc. in such situation we have only one solution that is to force quit the application. But what if the force quit not working? At that moment we are helpless and can’t do anything. Fortunately, every problem has its own unique solution, and so we would like to share how to fix force quit not working on macOS Mojave in a very most straightforward way.
In simple English, sometimes force quite won’t work cause option + command + Esc these three keys need to press together. In case of, one of key/switch not working, then Force Quit doesn’t work using the physical keyboard. Don’t worry, I’ll share alternative solution for you that is mentioned below.
we are happy to help you, submit this Form, if your solution is not covered in this article.
There are only three ways to resolve this weird issue. Let’s begin!
Alternative for Force Quit not working on macOS
In first, you can go with the regular way that you are usually doing to force close App on your Apple Mac using Activity Monitor tool.
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Solution 1: Force quit using Activity Monitor
Step #1: Launch “Activity Monitor” using Spotlight Search.
Step #2: Click “CPU” tab.
Step #3: Navigate the Application which isn’t responding and choose it.
Step #4: On the top left in the “Activity Monitor,” click on “Close.”
Step #5: When you see a dialog box asking you, “Are you sure you want to quit this process?” then hit on “Force Quit.”
The application must be closed instantly, if not then try the method below. Next way is, you can force quit App via terminal through entering command! Let’s dive.
Solution 2: Force quit via Terminal
This method very successfully works and hmm we got tons of thanks!
Step #1: Launch the Spotlight search panel and open “Terminal” from there.
Step #2: Type command ps –axand then Enter.
Step #3: You can view all the running processes that are running currently like given in the screenshot. Find the App which is misbehaving and note down the PID (Process ID) number. You can get PID number via The left part of the window is PID number.
Step #4: Now, type new command,
Kill<enter PID number>
For instance, the PID number of Skype is 1973; then the command will look like kill 1973 and hit the return key.
Once you hit enter, the app will force close. That’s it!
in case, if not then try the alternative command,
Kill -9<enter PID number>
It will look like “kill -9 1973.”
This will terminate Skype Video chat App instantly.
If you’re rare or can’t find App PID number, then the final way is Force Restart your Apple Mac mentioned below.
Solution 3: Hard Restart your Mac
Our last suggestion is to turn off the Mac directly, not by shutting down Because of it will wait until the app responds. So we will directly unplug the power cable of the Mac and if you have MacBook Pro or MacBook Air then press and hold the Power button.
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We are happy to help you! Follow the next Step if Your Solution is not in this article, Submit this form without Sign Up, We will revert back to you via Personal Mail. In Form, Please Use the Description field to Mention our reference Webpage URL which you visited and Describe your problem in detail if possible. We covered your iPhone 11 Pro, iPhone 11 Pro Max, iPhone 11, iPhone 8(Plus), iPhone 7(Plus), iPhone 6S(Plus), iPhone 6(Plus), iPhone SE, SE 2(2020), iPhone 5S, iPhone 5, iPad All Generation, iPad Pro All Models, MacOS Catalina or Earlier MacOS for iMac, Mac Mini, MacBook Pro, WatchOS 6 & Earlier on Apple Watch 5/4/3/2/1, Apple TV. You can also mention iOS/iPadOS/MacOS. To be Continued...
Now give some time to Mac so that the processor gets cool down and work properly when you start again. Now all set with your Mac then, it is not harmful to the idea to reset NVRAM of the Mac when the Mac starts.
Tips:
Force Quit Isn't Working On Mac
- Still, the application is not responding then contact the developer of the particular app if it is downloaded from the third party.
- Alternatively, if the App is developed by the Apple itself then contact for Apple support.
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