Is your M1 Mac crashing? You're not alone

It started with an electrical static crackling sound, and then my MacBook Air rebooted. The crash alone wasn't good, but the electrical static crackling sound increased my worry.

As it turns out, the sound was just that, a speaker sound, not electronics frying. Also, as it turns out, I wasn't alone.

Also: Do you trust Apple?

ZDNET Recommends

The best Macs

Apple's Mac lineup can be confusing as the company transitions from Intel processors to its own Apple Silicon processors. But we're here to help.

Read now

The error that was reported was "SOCD report detected: (AP watchdog expired)". SOC stands for System on Chip, which is what the M1 processor is. SOCs integrate many of the computer's logic board components that used to be in separate chips, including often memory, I/O, etc.

Also: Migrating to M1 Macs: How I'm upgrading my small fleet of older Apple desktops and laptops

It's not exactly clear what the "D" in SOCD means, but it's a fair assumption given the M1, that the SOC portion means what we think it does. I haven't quite figured out what "AP watchdog" means.

There are a number of discussion board posts by others who have described their similar problems. This post on the Apple Communities forum runs 14 pages, filled with folks detailing their similar experiences.

Some people on the boards reported that the error occurs when an external drive is connected to one of the Thunderbolt 3 ports. But I didn't have a drive connected. I do have a CalDigit TS3 Plus dock installed, providing power to the machine as well as managing my HDMI monitor and hardwired Ethernet connection.

Also: How much does it cost to own a small fleet of Macs? Total cost of ownership explained

Reading through page after page of discussion board postings revealed a lot of speculation. It's not unique to just MacBook Airs. Folks have experienced this across the M1 line. Most people who are experiencing the problem have something plugged into the Thunderbolt 3 ports. Given that M1 Macs barely ship with any ports, it's likely that most people will utilize Thunderbolt 3 to enable some level of expansion or another. I also have my USB-based SD card reader plugged into that dock.

ZDNet did reach out to Apple for comment, but is it really any surprise that Apple did not deign to provide us with a  response? Nah. 

As for me, knock on particle board, I haven't had any recurrences of the crash. It happened while running MacOS Big Sur 11.4. I'm now on 11.5.2 and hoping it's smooth sailing.

Also: Migrating from Intel iMac to M1 MacBook Air: My five-day journey

That said, new reports have been cropping up, even from folks who updated to 11.5. So stay tuned. Hopefully, this problem will disappear in a future update. No doubt we can count on Apple to remain silent, even if they have fixed the problem.

Share below if you've experienced anything similar. And stay tuned. If we get any more news, I'll update this article with whatever I find out.

Apple

Apple Vision Pro review: Fascinating, flawed, and needs to fix 5 things

I've tried Vision Pro and other top XR headsets and here's the one most people should buy

Apple M3 MacBook Air hands-on: These 3 new features stood out to me most

Apple doubles the lifespan of your iPhone 15's battery, no update required

Apple Vision Pro tricks: How to take perfect screenshots and recordings (and avoid weirdness)

• Apple Vision Pro review: Fascinating, flawed, and needs to fix 5 things
• I've tried Vision Pro and other top XR headsets and here's the one most people should buy
• Apple M3 MacBook Air hands-on: These 3 new features stood out to me most
• Apple doubles the lifespan of your iPhone 15's battery, no update required
• Apple Vision Pro tricks: How to take perfect screenshots and recordings (and avoid weirdness)

You can follow my day-to-day project updates on social media. Be sure to follow me on Twitter at @DavidGewirtz, on Facebook at Facebook.com/DavidGewirtz, on Instagram at Instagram.com/DavidGewirtz, and on YouTube at YouTube.com/DavidGewirtzTV.