Report Crash ~350% CPU Yosemite

Solution 1:

That process is a diagnostic aid to capture system statistics. The system starts it when it detects a potential problem or an actual problem - so you've likely got something out of adjustment or problematic installed.

It's from Apple and generally is more like a fire suppression system than something that starts the fire. To use that tool to find the initial cause of the CPU usage you'll need a few tools and some basic orientation.

First, open up Console.app and look for the Show Log List/Hide Log List button. Press it to expose the User and System Diagnostics Reports.

You can monitor the actual reasons why Report Crash is running here. If there are a lot of events, you can right click a name and Reveal in Finder ⌘ - R and delete or watch the log files more easily in Finder.

Once you have a feel for what the diagnostics look like on that Mac, a second console window can watch /var/log/system.log as you work to see what happened right before the Report Crash fires up.

Now for your specific crash. Locationd can be cancelled by turning off all network access. I would turn off Bluetooth if you don't need it and turn off WiFi and disconnect any network cables from the Mac.

Then I'd shut it down and restart. Look at the time when you log back in and watch for more crashes. Once the system is stable - turn on one item (Bluetooth or Wifi or connect one network cable) and then wait for a bit.

You can even poke locationd after the reboot by opening the Maps app and requesting your location. It should warn you about needing things turned on, and ignore those for testing.

Solution 2:

According to the man page (man ReportCrash):

launchtl can be used to disable and re-enable crash reporting. To disable crash reporting:

      launchctl unload -w /System/Library/LaunchAgents/com.apple.ReportCrash.plist
      sudo launchctl unload -w /System/Library/LaunchDaemons/com.apple.ReportCrash.Root.plist

To re-enable crash reporting:

      launchctl load -w /System/Library/LaunchAgents/com.apple.ReportCrash.plist
      sudo launchctl load -w /System/Library/LaunchDaemons/com.apple.ReportCrash.Root.plist