Security Update 2007-005 (#3/#4): Keychain issues; Mail issues; Problems starting up/logging in; more

The latest Security Update is causing problems with startup/login and AirPort for some users.

CNET staff

Sept. 2, 2009 1:30 a.m. PT

9 min read

[May 29th update]

VPN authentication -- slowness, other issues We've received a handful of reports indicating VPN access issues after applying Security Update 2007-005.

One reader reports extremely slow authentication:

"One thing I have noticed, now when I connect using VPN connection a long delay takes place when Authenticating the connection. I thought it might be a onetime thing but each time I connect I get a long delay when doing so."

A poster to VersionTracker, meanwhile, reports that his VPN connectivity has been lost completely:

"After applying update I can no longer access pages when connected to my office vpn via my home wifi (broadband and apple base) connection. It all works when I connect to internet through my mobile phone (bluetooth) though."

Keychain issues Some users are experiencing keychain authorization issues after applying Security Update 2007-005.

MacFixIt reader Robert writes:

"My email system has gone haywire- disconnected and requiring my password and keychain authorization multiple times. Very tedious. I will only be able to send this by restarting the machine."

Many of these issues can be resolved through the solutions listed in our Keychain tutorial.

In particular, if you are persistently asked for passwords in various applications that you have specified should be remembered in a keychain, your "login" keychain may not be active for one reason or another.

Navigate to ~/Library/Keychains/ (this is the Library folder inside your user home folder). Find the file named login.keychain and double-click it, which should launch the Keychain Access application. Select the "login" keychain within the Keychain Access application and make sure it is the default keychain by going to the "File" menu and selecting "Make 'Login' Default."

Mail.app issues: lost mail and more Security Update 2007-005 makes modifications to the fetchmail mechanism in Mac OS X, which could be the cause for some mail difficulties users are having after applying the update, including problematic interaction with IMAP servers that could result in the loss of mail messages.

One reader writes:

"(Security Update 2007-005) put my sent mail in the trash, leaving zero posts in the sent box. It also through in some inbox posts with that bunch. Some of my inbox posts are not readable, and now say that they've haven't been downloaded from the server yet, in spite of the fact that I have already read them. But the worst part is that my sent mail now only goes back to May 18th, at 0350, and my years of sent posts are now history."

If you are experiencing a similar issue, please let us know.

iCal crashes Some users are reporting issues with iCal crashing after the applying Security Update 2007-005.

One reader writes:

"Since I applied the latest security update iCal is constantly crashing. It will remain open for a few minutes then abruptly quit. I can be working in iCal, another app, or only have iCal running with the same results. I ran all of the MainMenu scripts and still iCal crashes. I must say this is the first update that has caused my system to have problems. I haven't made any system changes or program changes that I can also attribute this too."

If you are experiencing a similar issue, please let us know.

Kernel panics Meanwhile, some users are reporting kernel panics after the update.

A reader writes:

"Since installing Security Update 2007-005 (via Software Update) the day it was issued, I've had two kernel panics. One came almost immediately after the 'double reboot,' then I just had another one, about 8:30p EDT 5/27. Never had one before and I've made no other changes."

If you are similarly experiencing kernel panics after the update, see this tutorial and let us know if any of the listed solutions work.

[May 28th update]

Problems starting up/logging in An unusually high number of users are reporting an inability to properly startup after applying Security Update 2007-005, never reaching a fully launched Finder. Lumped under the same umbrella is a problem that afflicted Security Update 2007-004 and appears to be recurring with this release, where users are chuted to console mode ("Welcome to Darwin," sometimes with the error message username:/dev/console: Operation not supported by device.) instead of properly logging in.

Some typical reports:

"After applying the new security update 2007-005. The mac will not start into the (normal) window. It instead revert to the (console) window mode."
"After reboot the computer shows "OS X start up progress bar" then shows blue screen minus desktop pattern, but never reaches the Finder. Partitions on the drive,including the start-up partition are visible on a network from my Macbook."
"Since performing the update, the system will not boot. I have a second drive with a system on it that has not been updated and it boots fine. I?ve run Disk Utility but it reports no problems. I?ve removed memory to just 1GB as I?ve had some memory problems before but since it can boot off the one drive with no problems but not off the updated drive I?m going to assume the update caused the problem."

Fixes by problem type

Startup fails completely If you become stuck at the gray (spinning wheel) screen, while the blue progress bar is loading or earlier in the boot process, see our tutorial "Startup fails (particularly after a system or security update); solving".

Pay particular attention to the section "Disconnect external devices/internal cards." We received one report from a reader whose startup issues were resolved through the removal of a Giga Designs CPU upgrade.

Inadvertently logging into console mode If you're being forced into console mode instead of being normally logged into the Finder, try these fixes:

Delete QuickTime components It appears that certain third-party QuickTime components may be interfering with login on systems that have received Security Update 2007-2005. If you have installed EyeTV or another application that places DivX QuickTime components on your system, you may want to try removing the files via one of the following routines:

1. Startup from an alternate boot volume, such as an external FireWire drive, or use another Mac to boot the problematic system in FireWire target disk mode (connect the two machines via a FireWire cable, and boot the target [problematic] system while holding down the "T" key), then navigate to the /Library/QuickTime on the problematic volume, and drag the following files to the trash:

DivX 6 Decoder.component

DivX Decoder.component

DivX Encoder.component

EyeTV MPEG Support.component

3ivx D4 4.5.1 for OSX

2. If you are forced into single-user mode (a text-based interface) after applying Security Update 2007-005, and don't have access to a separate startup volume, you can use the following commands at the single-user prompt to delete these files:
rm -rf "/Library/QuickTime/DivX 6 Decoder.component" rm -rf "/Library/QuickTime/DivX Decoder.component" rm -rf "/Library/QuickTime/DivX Encoder.component" rm -rf "/Library/QuickTime/EyeTV MPEG Support.component" rm -rf "/Library/QuickTime/3ivx D4 4.5.1 for OSX"
Try restarting and check for normal login after removing these files.

You may also want to temporarily other third-party QuickTime components you find in the /Library/QuickTime/ directory.

Booting in safe mode Restart your Mac and hold down the Shift key while the system is booting. If the system boots properly, check the /Library/StartupItems and /System/Library/StartupItems directories for potentially problematic files, then use try some of the workarounds listed below in the "Common fixes" section. Also, try deleting the appropriate .plist files as listed below in "Delete .plist files." After attempting repairs, restart your Mac and check for normal login behavior.
Run fsck If you are presented with the single user mode screen aforementioned, try running the fsck command by typing the following, then pressing return:
/sbin/fsck -fy

If the message ***** FILE SYSTEM WAS MODIFIED ***** appears, keep typing the above command and pressing return until the message ** The volume (name of volume) appears to be OK
Delete .plist files If you have an alternate means of booting the Mac in question -- e.g. a separate startup drive, or another Mac connected via FireWire target disk mode -- you can try deleting the following files from the problematic Mac's primary startup drive [the tilde (~) represents the home user directory]:
~/Library/Preferences/com.apple.loginwindow.plist

~/Library/Preferences/loginwindow.plist

AirPort connectivity lost Some users have reported an inability to connect to AirPort networks after applying Security Update 2007-005.

One reader writes:

"After installing this latest security update through software update my MacBook Pro 2.33GHz Intel core 2 Duo did two restarts and seems fine. Did however, immediately lose my airport extreme network connection and am now, so far, unable to get the airport extreme recognized to reconnect or set up again. I get the dialog " There was an error joining the network XXXXX. I've restarted, disconnected airport extreme, router and DSL modem, etc"

In some cases, the solution to this problem is as simple as creating a new location (by selecting New Location from the Locations: menu in the Network pane of System Preferences). In other cases, the fix may be one of those listing in our AirPort troubleshooting tutorial.

Finder crashes... again! As noted in coverage late last week, we are again receiving reports of the Finder persistently crashing then re-launching after applying Security Update 2007-005. The same issue occurred for a number of users with Mac OS X 10.4.9 and QuickTime 7.1.6.

Previously successful fixes for this issue include:

Re-apply combo updater The tried and true method of re-applying the Mac OS X 10.4.9 combo updater has proven successful for some users experiencing this issue. Download links are as follows:

Mac OS X 10.4.9 Update Intel, Combo [310 MB]

Mac OS X 10.4.9 Update PowerPC, Combo [163MB]

Mac OS X Server Update 10.4.9 Intel, Combo [350 MB]

Mac OS X Server Update 10.4.9 PowerPC, Combo [216MB]

Note that after re-applying the Mac OS X combo updater, you should re-apply Security Updae 2007-005, or other issues may ensue.

Delete Finder .plist In many cases, Finder crashes can be resolved by deleting the files: com.apple.finder.plist and com.apple.sidebarlists.plist from the following directory:

~/Library/Preferences

then restarting. [note, this is the Library folder inside your home user folder].

Remove third-party contextual menu items Though it is usually useful only for a situation where the Finder crashes when control-clicking (or right-clicking) an item to access its contextual menu, it may also be applicable in cases of inexplicable Finder crashes.

Check the following folders:

~/Library/Contextual Menu Items/

/Library/Contextual Menu Items/

for recently added third-party contextual that could be causing the crashes. Try temporarily removing all items, then logging out and back in (or restarting) and check for persistence of the freeze. If the problem is gone, add files back one-by-one to determine the culprit.

Notorious culprits for this issue include StuffItCM.plugin.

Check for corrupt/bad fonts, clear font caches Repeated Finder crashes can be caused by corrupt or otherwise problematic fonts or font caches.

First, try clearing font caches with a tool like Font Finagler. Failing that, inspect the following directories:

~/Library/Fonts (the tilde [~] represents the current home user directory)

/Library/Fonts

/System/Library/Fonts

for recently added fonts that may be causing the problem. Temporarily remove them and check for persistence of the issue. For a list of all the fonts installed by Mac OS X by default, see Knowledge Base article #301332.

Look for problematic login/startup items Look in the following folder:

/Library/StartupItems

for any third-party startup items that could be causing the issue. You can also open System Preferences, then the "Accounts" pane and turn on or off specific startup items for each user. In some cases, processes that start here can interfere with normal Finder operation.