This is actually, I think, a simple question.
What is the name that I would find listed in the output of top for the process(es) that run when I copy one large file from one FireWire external volume to another FireWire external volume?
?
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Below follows why I want to know.
After updating my iMac G5 from 10.4.4 to 10.4.5 using the Combo Updater, it began to hang every time I tried to copy a large (over 2 GB) file. It usually hung about 1% or so through the copying, after only 70 - 160 MB had been transferred.
The only way I could find to regain control of the machine was to forcibly power it down or use sudo shutdown or sudo reboot.
As I troubleshoot this, it would be nice to perhaps be able to use sudo kill -9 on the pid that is stuck, hence this query.
(I have installed Combo Update 10.4.5 successfully on my iMac G4, but it has broken FireWire ports and only USB 1.1, so it's not testable for this operation. I'll try my PowerBook G4 after I make this inquiry.)
What does not solve the problem:
1) reboot
2) Disk Repair and / or Disk Warrior on the external volumes
3) permissions repair
4) logging in as a different user
Pending tests: reinstalling the 10.4.5 Combo Updater (I had to go to work before I could test the result).
Thanks to all.
mark hunte
02-20-2006, 05:17 PM
Have you tried a different file? of similar size.
Also I think re-launching 'Finder' may be get you out of the copy freeze.
giskard22
02-20-2006, 06:07 PM
There may be a separate process, but my guess is that the copy is just a thread running inside the Finder. I don't think top shows that stuff.
Sumleilmus
02-20-2006, 08:00 PM
Thanks.
I've tried it with several different files of different sizes, with the same result.
On my PowerBook, there's no problem copying a 5.5 GB file from a FW external volume to a USB2 external volume.
Forcing (ha!) the Finder to relaunch by COMMAND-OPTION-ESCAPE is useless for this problem: the spinning rainbow ball continues to spin. The hung copy process prevents GUI commands such as restart or shutdown, but can't resist the dulcet coo of sudo shutdown -h now.
I was hoping to be able to kill that process alone and regain use of the finder for further troubleshooting, but alas.
hayne
02-20-2006, 09:10 PM
I think the process that is doing the copy is Finder itself.
Sumleilmus
02-20-2006, 10:35 PM
I'm still reeling a bit from this one. FireWire enclosures for THREE different external volumes all failed within 24 hours.
This was the cause of the problems. Since by bad luck I chose pairs of the partially failed external volumes for testing when I was reasoning well, if I can't copy from HD1 to HD2, can I copy from HD3 to HD 1?
Since all copying of big files failed, I was seeking a cause in software.
Now, I'm in the market for hardware.
Thanks to all who offered comments above.
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