The more displays you add, the more true this is. One more thing to keep in mind: if you use multiple monitors, WindowServer is going to use more CPU power in order to draw to multiple displays. If none of this works, consider resetting the NVRAM that can help in some cases. You can also try closing unnecessary windows, ensuring there aren’t too many icons on your desktop, and reducing the number of desktops you use in Mission Control. You’ll find this option in System Preferences > Accessibility > Display, and it’s been known to reduce WindowSever CPU usage, particularly on older Macs. First, check our article about speeding up a slow Mac, in particular the section about reducing transparency.
Macbook pro activity monitor windowserver mac os x#
This is still the case with Mac OS X 10.10. If WindowServer keeps using up a lot of power even when you don’t have much of anything running, there are still a few things you can try. WindowServer is the task that makes sure the right stuff is in every window, manages multiple windows in multiple positions on the screen, possibly overlapping or not, and generally manages all issues related to drawing the stuff on the screen. The speed increase is immediately notable in most actions, and you can even measure the before and after results with the FPS frame rate monitor in Quartz Debug, which depending on the hardware can be a 10 FPS or greater boost in the refresh rate of screen animations.
RELATED: 10 Quick Ways to Speed Up a Slow Mac You might have found a problem they can fix. If the RAM doesnt help, open Activity Monitor and see if there are any processes using a lot of CPU or RAM. WindowServer 3.18 (Apple) Top Processes by Memory: Process (count) RAM usage (Source - Location). If you notice this pattern, and don’t think the application should be causing that big a spike in WindowServer CPU usage, consider contacting the developer. MacBook Pro (13-inch, Late 2011) - Vintage MacBook Pro Model: MacBookPro8,1. Having said that, sometimes a bug in a piece of software can cause excessive WindowServer CPU usage. So it makes sense for games, video editors, and other constantly refreshing applications to cause a spike in WindowServer CPU usage. To some extent, this is normal: programs that constantly change what’s showing on the screen are going to use WindowServer quite a bit, which means they will use up CPU power.