Nevertheless, there are times when you need itespecially if an app refuses to respond.
We’ll teach you how to launch the Mac equivalent of Task Manager.
It can find apps, files, and prefs in just a few keystrokes.
Smartmockups
It’s much faster than browsing around manually to find what you need.
To open Spotlight, just pressCommand + Spaceon your Mac.
Then, start typingActivity Monitor(the first few letters should bring it up) and pressReturn.
In a moment, you’ll see the Activity Monitor window.
Don’t want to use Spotlight for some reason?
Lastly, you could also find Activity Monitor in theApplicationsfolder on your Mac.
Open a new Finder window, selectApplicationsfrom the sidebar, and click theUtilitiesfolder to find and open it.
However, this shortcut disappears once you quit the app.
If you use Activity Monitor often, you may want to keep it on the Dock.
From now on, you’ve got the option to access Activity Monitor right from your desktop.
The easiest way to do this is to use theForce Quit Applicationswindow on your Mac.
To open it quickly, simultaneously pressCommand + Option + Escape.
From there, grab the unresponsive app and hitForce Quit.
When prompted for confirmation, clickForce Quitagain.
Alternatively, you could access this window by clickingApple menu > Force Quitfrom the menu bar.
ClickForce Quitwhen prompted to confirm, and the app will shut off.
What Does Your Mac’s Task Manager Do?
For example, sorting by% CPUshows any processes that are doing a lot of intensive tasks.
If you consistently see an app here that isn’t actually doing hard work, it may be misbehaving.
Energycomes in handy if you’re using a MacBook and want to get as much battery life as possible.
Sorting byEnergy Impactlets you see which apps draw the most power.
it’s possible for you to close them to make your MacBook last longer before needing a charge.
Activity Monitor has a few handy options in the menu bar you should know about.
TheViewtab lets you choose which processes to show.
Instead ofAll Processes, you may want to see onlyActive Processesto filter out noise, for example.
you’re free to also use theColumnsoption to hide or show more info for each process.
And under theWindowmenu bar item, you’ll find a few optionslikeCPU UsageandGPU Historythat open small windows.
These let you monitor resource usage without keeping the full Activity Monitor window open.
These views are great if you like to monitor the performance of your Mac, especially while gaming.
It’s easy to open Activity Monitor and keep an eye on what’s happening on your Mac.
