How to Force Quit Programs on Mac

Mac, being a man-made device, shows problems when the users run programs on it. Sometimes, the running application or a program become unresponsive and doesn’t display the output on the screen. When the situation occurs, it looks like the device has entered into an infinite loop since the program is neither closing nor showing any results. What most of the users have described is a rainbow-colored ball that appears to be rotating on the screen.

When your Mac is struggling with these issues, you just cannot close the program by clicking the cross button. Are you thinking about Force Quit? If yes, then you are absolutely correct because Force Quit is the last resort to kill an unresponsive frozen program. For the new users, Mac is a complication but don’t worry if you are not able to force quit. You can get rid of the problem by following the steps mentioned below explaining how to force quit application or a program on Mac.

Here’s how to Force Quit Programs on Mac

Force Quit the Program from Menu Bar

1.       Click the Apple Logo from the upper menu.

2.       Now, click the Force Quit option from the drop-down menu.

3.       Select the Application which suddenly became unresponsive.

4.       Now, click Force Quit button.

Force Quit the Programs using Dock

1.       Select and right click on the frozen application.

2.       Now, long press the Option key from your keyboard.

3.       A menu will appear showing Force Quit.

4.       Click Force Quit to close the program completely.

Force Quit with a Shortcut Key

1.       Press the Command + Option + Esc key sequence.

2.       Now, select the unresponsive program.

3.       Click the Force Quit tab from the bottom of the box.

Force Quit using the Terminal

Before using the Terminal, remember to save all the data as the Terminal works on the system level. It will close all the programs whether saved or unsaved.

1.       Open the Terminal in your Mac system.

2.       Now, type killall {type the name of frozen application} and press the Return button.

3.       The command will perform its task, and the window will be closed automatically.

Force Quit using Activity Monitor

1.       Click the Spotlight icon from the top right corner of the screen.

2.       Now, type Activity Monitor and select it from the results.

3.       The monitor will display every running app even the background running app.

4.       Now, select the unresponsive frozen app and click the stop button from the top left corner of the window.

Mac provides several methods including a shortcut key combination, through which you can force quit the frozen application or a program. Now, perform the task to kill all the programs preventing the system from performing any further. Remember that you need to perform the whole task individually for the programs.

Aida Martin is a creative person who has been writing blogs and articles about cyber security. She writes about the latest updates regarding mcafee.com/activate and how it can improve the work experience of users. Her articles have been published in many popular e-magazines, blogs and websites.