functionalhighground

Don’t charge your MacBook Pro from the left side. Use the right side.

Ever since September 2019 I had this issue with my MacBook Pro where kernel_task would sometimes spike up to > 1000% (!) CPU load and drain my battery – even while connected to a charger.

Second time this month kernel_task (with pid 0) decided to go nuts and drain my battery until my macbook shut down (even while connected to a power brick)

Peak #macOS?#courage #functionalhighground pic.twitter.com/diL3tcpaQ8

— Bramus! (@bramus) September 16, 2019

Upon disconnecting the charger, the load would drop back to normal levels. But on reconnecting kernel_task would be at it again.

A few weeks ago I saw this tweet float by:

Do you charge your Macbook on the left or right side? Turns out right is better!https://t.co/jV146BRR80

— Dion Almaer (@dalmaer) April 22, 2020

And yes, that totally explained my problem. As the linked StackExchange thread mentions:

High CPU usage by kernel_task is caused by high Thunderbolt Left Proximity temperature, which is caused by charging and having normal peripherals plugged in at the same time.

So the fix is simple: don’t charge your MacBook from the left side but use the right side.

Now this is not something I’d expect from a +$3000 costing machine but as the late Steve Jobs would say: “You’re ~~holding~~ charging it wrong” … ¯\_(ツ)_/¯

In Apple’s support article on it the function of kernel_task itself is explained in detail:

One of the functions of kernel_task is to help manage CPU temperature by making the CPU less available to processes that are using it intensely. In other words, kernel_task responds to conditions that cause your CPU to become too hot, even if your Mac doesn’t feel hot to you. It does not itself cause those conditions. When the CPU temperature decreases, kernel_task automatically reduces its activity.

So it’s basically kernel_task trying to steal CPU cycles from other processes, so that those processes don’t overheat the system.

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Login with root and no password on any mac running macOS High Sierra

This tweet is currently making rounds on Twitter:

You can access it via System Preferences>Users & Groups>Click the lock to make changes. Then use "root" with no password. And try it for several times. Result is unbelievable!

— Lemi Orhan Ergin (@lemiorhan) November 28, 2017

And yes, that actually works: enter root as a username, leave the password empty, and *BOOM* you’re in.

The exploit also works at the login screen, and with remote management (Screen Sharing, etc).

UPDATE 2017.11.29: Apple has released a security update, fixing this nasty bug. Open AppStore.app and check the updates section to download it. No reboot required.

As Mattias detailed a root with no pass gets created upon testing this. Awaiting a security patch from apple you can lock this user down by explicitly setting a password for its account (using Terminal.app):

sudo passwd -u root

If you’re not too fond of the shell, follow the instructions from this video.

And to say Apple already had a huge security slip-up with that Disk Utility Bug which showed the password instead of the password hint but this one is much, much worse … #functionalhighground aye?

Your iPhone’s lockscreen is unsafe

Before you know it, anyone with physical access to your ‘locked’ device could be accessing your personal photographs and contacts.

Even with the latest iOS 9.0.1 update, your iPhone’s lockscreen is unsafe →

On a sidenote: The audio stack of my iPhone crashed today — “Hello IT, have you tried …”