Lesson 28—Troubleshoot Startup and System Issues Flashcards
How does a Mac with Apple silicon or an Intel-based Mac with the T2 chip ensure security during
macOS Big Sur startup?
A Mac with Apple silicon or an Intel-based Mac with the T2 chip verifies every step of the startup
process to ensure that the hardware and software haven’t been tampered with.
What are the primary system initialization stages in macOS Big Sur? What visual and audible cues do
these stages provide?
Each primary stage of system startup can be indicated by the following cues:
• Firmware—Power on. POST. Startup chime.
• Booter—The booter process starts. The Apple logo appears in the center of the main display.
• Kernel—Kernel startup. The progress bar appears.
• System launchd—Starting other items. The Apple logo is replaced with the login window.
What does the firmware do? What’s the Power-On Self-Test (POST)?
The firmware initializes the Mac computer’s hardware and locates the startup file on a system volume.
The POST checks for basic hardware functionality when a Mac powers on.
What role does launchd serve during Mac startup?
launchd starts macOS Big Sur processes, manages macOS Big Sur initialization, and starts the
loginwindow process.
What are two locations for launchd to find preference files that control how various processes are
configured?
During macOS Big Sur startup, launchd uses preference files for LaunchDaemons in the following
locations:
• /System/Library/LaunchDaemons
• /Library/LaunchDaemons
What are the primary user session stages in macOS Big Sur? What visual and audible cues do these
stages provide?
Each primary stage of a user session can be indicated by the following signs:
• The login screen appears.
• launchd loads apps such as the Finder after user authentication.
• The user environment is active any time a user logs in to macOS Big Sur.
What are the differences between launch daemons, startup items, launch agents, and login items?
The launchd process (with the process identification number of 1) launches all other system processes,
including launch daemons and startup items, during Mac startup. When a user logs in, the launchd
process running on behalf of the user account processes launch agents and login items.
What are Safe Sleep, Standby, and Power Nap?
Safe Sleep and Standby are modes the Mac uses to reduce power usage and to safeguard data. When a
Mac goes to sleep, it copies the entire contents of system memory to an image file on the system
volume. This way, if your Mac stays in sleep mode long enough to completely drain the battery, no data
is lost when your Mac has to turn off.
• Safe Sleep—Your Mac enters this mode if the battery becomes completely drained or if you leave your
Mac idle for a long time. To wake your computer, restart your Mac as if it was shut down. All MacBook
computers that are compatible with macOS Big Sur support this mode.
• Standby—Your Intel-based Mac enters this mode as a power-saving standby when it’s in sleep mode
and completely idle for more than three hours. To wake your Mac, interact with the keyboard, trackpad,
or mouse. You don’t need to restart your computer.
• Power Nap—Power Nap is a state that periodically runs updates while your Intel-based Mac is in sleep
mode. The type of updated information varies depending on whether your Intel-based Mac is running
on battery power or plugged into a power adapter.
What happens during user logout?
During user logout, the user’s loginwindow process performs these actions:
• Requests that user apps quit
• Automatically quits user background processes
• Runs logout scripts
• Records the logout to the main system.log file
• Quits the user’s loginwindow and launchd processes
What happens during Mac shutdown?
When a Mac shuts down, loginwindow logs users out and then tells the kernel to quit the remaining
macOS Big Sur processes. Then the Mac shuts down.
How do you start up a Mac with Apple silicon in safe mode
For a Mac with Apple silicon, turn the Mac off. Then press and hold the power button until startup disks
and Options appear. Press and hold the Shift key, then click Continue in Safe Mode.
How do you start up an Intel-based Mac in safe mode?
For an Intel-based Mac, press and hold the Shift key during startup to initiate safe mode. Release the
Shift key when you see the login window.
For a Mac with Apple silicon, which keyboard shortcut can you use to temporarily choose another
startup disk?
For a Mac with Apple silicon, turn the Mac off. Then press and hold the power button until startup disks
and Options appear. Select your startup disk (with your pointer or with the Left arrow and Right arrow
keys), then click Continue or press Return.
For an Intel-based Mac, which keyboard shortcut can you use to temporarily choose another startup
disk?
For an Intel-based Mac, press and hold the Option key during startup to open Startup Manager. Then
you can temporarily choose another startup disk.
What changes are made when macOS Big Sur starts up in safe mode?
Startup in safe mode performs the following permanent actions:
• Verifies your startup disk and, if there are issues, attempts to repair the system volume structure
• Deletes kernel cache and other system cache files
• Deletes font caches
