Where Does macOS Save Spindump Hang Reports?
Spindump hang reports land as .spin files in DiagnosticReports folders. Trigger, viewers and crash contrast.
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Spindump reports describe hangs, not crashes. When an app stops responding, the system samples its threads and writes a .spin file into a DiagnosticReports folder: system-wide under /Library/Logs, per-user under home Library. Console gathers them under Spin Reports.
That differs from crash reports on purpose. Crash files record termination; spin files record unresponsiveness with the app still alive. The sysdiagnose bundle includes a fresh spindump plus logs, while the spindump command targets one process on demand. Hang triage starts with the newest spin file.
Where macOS spindump stores this, by platform
/Library/Logs/DiagnosticReports/*.spin
System hang reports; user hangs in ~/Library/Logs/DiagnosticReports. Read in Console under Spin Reports. Distinct from .crash legacy and .ips modern crash files. Target one PID with spindump [pid], defaulting to /tmp without a path flag.
Frequently asked questions
How do I sample a hanging app on Mac?
Run spindump with the process ID, optionally naming an output file, or wait for the system to write a .spin report automatically. Activity Monitor sampling covers the same ground through the GUI. Attach the newest spin file to bug reports.
What is the difference between spin and crash reports?
Spin files capture thread samples of a live but stuck app; crash files capture termination state. Hangs produce the former in DiagnosticReports, kills produce the latter. Send developers the matching kind for the symptom.
Where do sysdiagnose bundles fit in?
They include a spindump among top samples, filesystem traces and full logs in one dated tar.gz under /var/tmp. Send sysdiagnose for mysteries spanning processes; send a single spin file for one frozen app.
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