How to force quit an unresponsive application on a Mac?
Jul 17, 2025 am 01:41 AMWhen the Mac application is unresponsive, there are three ways to force exit: 1. Use the shortcut Command Option Esc to pop up the "Force Exit Application" window, select the unresponsive application and click "Force Exit", which is suitable for daily GUI applications; 2. Find and end the process that occupies resources through "Activity Monitor", which is suitable for troubleshooting background problems; 3. After using ps aux | grep "application name" to obtain the PID in the terminal, enter kill or kill -9 to terminate the process, which is suitable for advanced users to handle complex situations.
Sometimes the application on the Mac suddenly gets stuck, clicking the button does not respond, and the menu cannot be used. The most direct way at this time is to force exit. Don't rush to restart your computer, try these methods first.
Use the "Forced Exit" shortcut key (most commonly used)
This is the most familiar method for most people: Press Command Option Esc and a "Force Exit Application" window will pop up. Select the unresponsive application and click "Forcibly Exit".
- If you find that the application is just a short stutter, you can wait a few seconds before operating
- Some programs may automatically restart after forced exit (such as the system's own finder)
- This method works for most GUI applications, but is not effective for background processes
This method is fast and convenient, suitable for daily use.
End the process with Activity Monitor (more thorough)
If the shortcut key doesn't work, or if you want to see which process is secretly eating resources, you can use "Activity Monitor".
- Open Applications → Utilities → Double-click Activity Monitor
- Find the program or process you want to close in the list
- Click the "X" button in the upper left corner and select "Exit" or "Force Exit"
- If you are not sure which process is which program, you can sort it by CPU or memory to check it
- Forced exit from the system-level process may cause some functions to be abnormal. It is best to confirm clearly before operation.
This method is more in-depth than shortcut keys and is suitable for advanced users.
End the program with terminal commands (suitable for advanced users)
If you like to use the command line, or the graphical interface is completely invalid, you can use Terminal to kill the process.
- Open the terminal (can be found in "Applications" → "Utilities")
- Enter
ps aux | grep "應(yīng)用名稱"
to find the process ID (PID) - Enter
kill PID
orkill -9 PID
to terminate the process
-
kill
is a normal exit request,kill -9
is a forced kill - It is recommended to confirm the PID before operation to avoid killing other processes by chance.
Although this method is a little more complicated, it can handle some hidden processes and background services.
Basically, there are only these three methods. Most of the time, it is enough to use the first one. If it really doesn’t work, then change the next two. It is not complicated but easy to ignore that even if some programs are forced to exit, they will still restore the last state (especially the document) when opened next time, which is quite convenient.
The above is the detailed content of How to force quit an unresponsive application on a Mac?. For more information, please follow other related articles on the PHP Chinese website!

Hot AI Tools

Undress AI Tool
Undress images for free

Undresser.AI Undress
AI-powered app for creating realistic nude photos

AI Clothes Remover
Online AI tool for removing clothes from photos.

Clothoff.io
AI clothes remover

Video Face Swap
Swap faces in any video effortlessly with our completely free AI face swap tool!

Hot Article

Hot Tools

Notepad++7.3.1
Easy-to-use and free code editor

SublimeText3 Chinese version
Chinese version, very easy to use

Zend Studio 13.0.1
Powerful PHP integrated development environment

Dreamweaver CS6
Visual web development tools

SublimeText3 Mac version
God-level code editing software (SublimeText3)

According to industry insider Mark Gurman, Apple’s Apple Intelligence will be postponed to October. In other words, it will be pushed first on iOS18.1. Apple iPhone 16 is expected to be released in September, so Apple Intelligence will not be pre-installed. 1. Apple Intelligence Apple Intelligence is a personal intelligence system that uses a powerful generative model to provide new functions for iPhone, iPad and Mac to assist users in communicating, working and expressing. 2. Natural language understanding The large model embedded in Apple Intelligence has a deep understanding of the meaning of language.

BenQ has just announced the MA270U and MA320U, a pair of 4K monitors targeted at MacBook users. They're designed to be paired with the company's Display Pilot 2software, which simplifies screen settings adjustments without having to fiddle with the O

With the promise of a significant free update in 2025, Balatro continues to build on the hit deck builder with the second of three free updates. The “Friends of Jimbo” update brings theming options to the face cards of all four card suits. Despite ea

PHP is a widely used programming language for web development and you can install PHP on your Mac by following these steps

There are three ways to enable NTFS hard disk write permission on macOS: 1. Use third-party software such as ParagonNTFSforMac, TuxeraNTFSforMac or free Mounty, and automatically support read and write operations after installation; 2. Enable the write function by manually editing configuration files through terminal commands, and SIP needs to be turned off and there is a risk of data corruption, which is suitable for advanced users; 3. Format the hard disk into compatible formats such as exFAT or FAT32 to realize two-way read and write support between Mac and Windows, but will clear the original data.

To use the iPad as a Mac sub-screen, you can use the Sidecar function. The steps are as follows: First, make sure the device meets the requirements (Mac will run macOSCatalina and above after 2016, and iPad requires iPadOS13 or above); then go to "System Settings" > "Display" on the Mac, click "Add Monitor" and select iPad to connect; if it is unable to connect, you need to check whether Wi-Fi and Bluetooth are on, and make sure the two devices are in the same network environment. In terms of connection mode, wireless is suitable for daily office work but may have delays, while wired is more stable and supports charging. The display mode is divided into two types: extension and mirroring. It is recommended to use extension mode to improve work efficiency. In addition, it can also be achieved through preferences

To share files between two Macs on the same network, first make sure that the two devices are connected to the same LAN, then enable file sharing on the host, set shared folders and access permissions, and then connect from another Mac through the access sidebar or manually enter the SMB address, and finally you can browse, copy or transfer files. Common problems include waiting or restarting the network when the device cannot be discovered. If the permissions are incorrect, you need to check the username, password and sharing settings. If the connection fails, you can try the SMB address. If the firewall blocks, you can temporarily close the test.

To free up Mac storage space, you can use three methods to find and process large files: 1. Use the system's own storage management tool to view the "big file" list in "About Native" - ??"Storage"; 2. Set file size and modification time in Finder to search for large files; 3. Use third-party tools such as DaisyDisk, OmniDiskSweeper or GrandPerspective to scan and visualize disk usage. Each method has its own advantages, the system tools are convenient and fast, Finder provides more accurate search options, and third-party software provides stronger analysis functions. Remember to clear the wastebasket after deleting it to avoid remaining space.
