If you are using Windows for many years then you’ve developed a muscle memory in pressing (Ctrl + Alt + Delete) when their computer acts up to open the Task Manager and end any lazing app running on your system and it becomes part of our daily life.
As you know, the task manager is a native feature on Windows computers. Though, Mac also has a similar component, which is known as Activity Monitor. As the name suggests, it will let you view and monitor all kinds of activities that are running on your Mac. Do you own a MAC device, and If this is your first time to open Task Manager for Mac to use, then you might find it difficult to get acquainted with the happening with the device shortcuts and the apps as well, and to be frank this is a common thing and the main problem is app navigation is a very different one from Windows and has its own way of finding shortcuts and opening apps as well. Your Gift Here: How to Open Task Manager In Mac OS X. Task Manager, which goes by the name of Activity Monitor on Mac OS X, is an app. Task Manager on Mac, which goes by the name of Activity Monitor Mac OS, is an application that allows you to view and monitor all active processes running on your computer. It lets you monitor what’s happening on your computer and provide you with the ability to shut down the processes and file system which are creating problem to your system.
But what about the Mac Task Manager? Do you ever think
Most of the Mac users, says it does not require the Apple Task Manager. Because the Mac runs smoother and better compare to the PC running on Windows. But most of the time you needed a task manager to force quit Mac apps to stop system lagging.
Now, The Question comes “How To Open Task Manager on Mac”. Well, they’re already a Mac Task Manger or OSX Task Manager comes as pre-installed called “Apple Activity Monitor”.
Table of ContentsWhat is Activity Monitor?
The Activity Monitor is a pre-installed application on Mac allows users to keep tracking all the activities of the app running on the dock or the background of Mac OS. Well, this guide is basically for the Windows users how recently switch to the Mac and wondering how to open task manager on Mac.
Activity Monitor is an OSX Task Manger similar to the task manager available in Windows. a utility that explains how significant memory your Mac processes are handling and which apps are currently alive (even if the app isn’t started), permitting you force quit delayed ones if you can’t finish them the conventional way.
In case if you haven’t used Apple Activity Monitor before then it takes a lot to take in but we here to help you out without having a hassle.
Activity Monitor Features
These are some of the features that you can easily be available to access on OSX Task Manager.
CPU:
The First tab that you’re able to access in Activity Monitor is CPU. Which tells you all the Mac processes running on your Mac. The tab shows all the extra percentages of power the app consuming and much more.
Memory:
The second tab shows how much RAM does each app is taking on the Mac System. This is one of the most useful tab from all. The RAM is most of the important factor to speed up the Mac performance speed. You can easily get rid of the app taking more memory.
Energy:
This tab comes to handy if you’re running your Macbook without plugging into the power slot. With the help of this tab, you can easily lookup for the apps on Mac that consuming more battery and drained your Mac battery fastly.
Disk:
Technically, this tab shows, how several processes interact with the hard disk of your Macbook. In case if you’re going to install any malware app you find it processes here and end it without having a hassle.
Network:
The tab shows, how much data did each application send and received that you’ve installed on your Macbook. It comes handy to find out which app sending more data online and ends its task or process.
Cache:
If you’re using macOS old version than High Seria then you might be able to see another tab called Cache. This tab comes handy to find out how much data your network devices have cached.
How To Open Task Manager on Macbook
Unluckily, the Windows there is no keyboard shortcut (Ctrl + Alt + Delete) to open Mac Task Manager. But there are almost 3 ways to open Task Manager on the Mac.
Access Activity Monitor Via Spotlight
- Press ⌘ + Space to open Spotlight
- Now, type Activity Monitor
- Activity Monitor comes up highlighted, Press the Enter button.
Access Activity Monitor Via Finder:
- Click on Finder in your Dock
- Go to the Applications on the sidebar
- Select Utilities in the Applications window
- Click on the Activity Monitor icon to open it.
Access Activity Monitor Via Dock:
Apple Task Manager Mac
If you used Activity Monitor on the daily purpose then you must put it on the Dock which is absolutely worth it. Its an easy way to access it in just one click.
But it’s important you use both the above methods first to active activity monitor. After that follow these steps to put Activity Monitor on Dock.
- Right-click on the Activity Monitor icon in Dock
- Choose Options
- Select “Keep in Dock”
How To Force Quite An App on Mac
If you don’t use Activity Monitor in Mac until now then you don’t know how to force quit on Mac the running apps. Generally, there are two ways to quit the app on Mac using Activity Monitor.
Using Activity Monitor:
- Go to CPU or the Memory tab and locate the slow process
- Click to highlight
- Hit the X icon within the toolbar
- Agree that you’re sure you want to quit the process
Use Force Quit Applications:
- Press ⌘ + Option + Esc keys
- Select the program you want to quit
- Hit the Force Quit
Final Words
Now, you know all about the Activity Monitor on Mac which is similar to Task Manager of Windows. You can easily take control of all the processes on the Mac without having a hassle. Hopefully, you find this article informative then share it among others.
Related Articles:
- 25 Best Task Management App (Productivity Apps) For Mac
- Notepad++ For Mac Or Use These 10 Alternatives
We never like to have problems with our computers, right? However, some of them are inevitable. Sometimes your apps don’t work, your Mac gets slow, you see a spinning wheel of death, and more. Understanding the root of some problems can be difficult; fortunately, there are some troubleshooting tools to diagnose what’s wrong with your Mac.
One of such tools is the Activity Monitor, and in this article we’ll tell you how to use it, what alternatives are out there, and how to maintain your Mac to avoid different problems. So let’s start!
Activity Monitor — The Task Manager for Mac
If you’re familiar with the Windows Task Manager, then you may wonder whether there is a twin for Mac. Don’t worry, a Task Manager exists on Macs but it has another name — Activity Monitor. Just keep in mind that Activity Monitor is the Mac Task Manager equivalent and functions in a very similar way as it does in Windows.
Activity Monitor Mac
Activity Monitor shows the processes that are running on your computer, so you can see how they affect your Mac’s performance. This important tool will help you manage your Mac’s activity, so you should know how to use it at its full potential.
How to open Task Manager on Mac
Activity Monitor is located in the /Applications/Utilities/ folder and there are a few ways to launch it. The simplest one is to use Spotlight for a quick search.
Here’s how to access Task Manager on Mac using the Spotlight:
- Press Command+Spacebar to get the Spotlight search field.
- Start typing “Activity monitor.”
- Select the Activity Monitor when it comes up. This will take you to the app.
However, if Spotlight doesn’t work or you just want to try another way to open Task Manager Mac, do the following:
- Click on the Finder icon in the Dock.
- Choose Applications from the side menu of the window that appears.
- In the Applications folder, select the Utilities folder and open it.
- Double-click on the Activity Monitor icon to launch it.
Good news, you can avoid the long ways of opening a Task Manager by pinning it to the Dock. Once you do it, you’ll be able to access the Activity Monitor by simply clicking on its icon.
Macbook Air Task Manager
Follow these steps and you won’t keep asking yourself how to start Task Manager on Mac every time you need to check some processes:
- Open the Activity Monitor using one of the ways described above.
- Right-click on the Activity Monitor icon in the Dock.
- In the menu, choose Options and then click Keep in Dock.
That’s it! The Activity Monitor will be available from the Dock of your Mac, so you can view it easily.
How to use the Activity Monitor
The Activity Monitor is a simple but very important tool. Find out what you can do with its help.
Monitor the system parameters
Once you open the Activity Monitor on your Mac, you’ll get access to the five tabs: CPU, Memory, Energy, Disk, and Network. By analyzing the data, you can identify what processes affect your Mac performance.
- The CPU pane shows how processes are affecting the processor activity.
- The Memory pane shows how the RAM is used by apps on your Mac.
- Tap on the Energy pane and you’ll see the overall energy use and the energy used by each app.
- The Disk pane shows the amount of data that each process has read from your disk and has written to it.
- Use the Network pane to identify which processes send and receive the most data.
View additional info about an app or process
The Mac Task Manager also allows you to check the additional information about every application or process on your Mac. Here’s how to view it:
- Click on the application or process you’re interested in.
- Click on the i button in the top left corner of the Activity Monitor window.
- You’ll see a pop-up window showing additional information about an app or process.
As you see, the Activity Monitor is a real gem. It helps you gain insight into many useful things. Therefore, it will be much easier to diagnose any problem your Mac has.
How to Force Quit applications from a Task Manager in Mac
Mac Task Manager Shortcut
If some application or program freezes and you can’t quit it normally, you can use the Activity Monitor to shut it down. To force quit an app from a Mac Task Manager, do the following:
- Open the Activity Monitor on your Mac and click on the application you want to force quit.
- Then click on the X button in the top left corner of the Activity Monitor window.
- You will see a pop-up window asking if you want to quit this process.
- Click Quit to close the unresponsive app.
- If the app is still open, choose Force Quit to immediately end the process.
What’s a Control+Alt+Delete equivalent on Mac?
All Windows users know this magic combination: Control+Alt+Delete. The first thing they do when an app or program hangs is using this keyboard shortcut. Fear not: there’s the similar shortcut for Macs.
In addition to the Activity Monitor, Macs have a Force Quit Applications Manager that allows to close the frozen apps and programs. To open it, hold down the Command+Option+Escape keys.
If you just need to force quit an application and don’t care how much CPU or Energy it is using, then you should launch a Force Quit Applications Manager to perform the task. It gives an immediate access to all apps, so you can quickly solve the problem of an unresponsive program.
Maintain your Mac a whole lot easier with CleanMyMac X
What if we tell you that there is a way to avoid all those frozen apps, unresponsive programs, and spinning beach balls? Most likely, you won’t even need to know how to get Task Manager on Mac because everything will work smoothly. Sounds attractive?
The secret is the regular maintenance of your Mac. And a smart utility like CleanMyMac X will help you keep an eye on your computer and take its performance to a new level. You can download it for free here.
CleanMyMac can not only clean up the system from all the junk, but also free up RAM, delete and reset apps, manage the startup items, remove cache files, and speed up your Mac with its maintenance scripts. That’s what will ensure the good health of your Mac and its top performance.
Thanks for reading and stay tuned!