HP Device Monitor takes 130% of CPU and 800MB of RAM while idle.

[Kevitivity]

Recently we noticed that our trusty little Mac mini (OS 10.6.7) was being very sluggish.  Whats more, we were getting error pop-ups that stated, " Your Mac OS X startup disk has no more space available for application memmory".

A restart always fixes the issue for a few days, but I wanted to get to the bottom of this when it happened again recently, so I loaded Activity Monitor to discover that "HP Device Monitor" was using 130% of my CPU and almost 800mb of RAM!!! 

Will the printer continue to function properly if I disable this program?  How is this program launched?

Once recent change we made to our computer setup was to plug in an older Epsom printer (via USB).  Could this make "HP Device Monitor" flip out?

[PrintDoc]

What printer model?  This does not sound right.  Here are a couple of alternatives

When you loaded the HP software was it marked as compatible with 10.6?  If not, you must uninstall the software using the 'scrubber' option:

Go to Applications/Hewlett Packard/ click on HP Uninstaller
Click on Continue
Highlight your device on the left pane
Hold the Ctrl, Opt and Cmd keys and click on Uninstall <<<< Scrubber Option
There will be a pop up that asks if you are sure you want to uninstall ALL hp software. (At this point, if you continue, any HP printers you have installed will need to be reinstalled)
Click Continue and let it finish

Restart your Mac

Now, run a Software Update.

Finally, download and install the "Full Featured" Driver and Software from the "Support & Drivers" link at the top of this page.  Alternatively, you could just use the basic print and scan drivers built into the OS.

[Kevitivity]

The printer is a Office Jet 6500a Plus.  The software CD states that it's for OS X 10.5 and 10.6 .  Our Mac is runung 10.6.7

[PrintDoc]

OK, uninstall the software using the uninstaller (Applications > Hewlett-Packard folder).  Restart.  Do a Software update then just use the drivers built into 10.6. You will be able to print and scan with the built-in drivers.

[Kevitivity]

How does scanning work when you don't have the HP software installed?

[PrintDoc]

Use Image Capture in your Applications folder.

[jrep]

Thanks for this advice. I have the same problem, and this work around helps.

I have additional information about my particular case, which might help HP engineers eventually fix the problem.

I installed my HP6500A into a home context where there are three computers using the printer. The printer was installed from the same computer that shows the high-CPU-huge-real-mem problem. The other two computers do not show this symptom. Here are full details, in the hope thatt they help:

System 1: has the problem

OS: 10.6.8

Role: used to install the printer, in the "configure by USB, connect wireless" mode

Notes: always on, always connected to the wireless network, always logged in. Not mobile.

System 2: does not have the problem

OS: 10.5.8

Role: HP Setup Assistant is version 2.5.16, software installed from CD, uses printer wirelessly

Notes: Laptop, always physically in the same network, always connects to this same network, but suspends and resumes often

System 3: does not have the problem

OS: 10.7.1

Role: Uses system software (no explicit install for this printer)

Notes: Laptop. Mobile: often in other networks where this printer is inaccessible. Suspends and resumes often.

All three systems print just fine, no problems noted. All three can control the printer as well (for example, all can show supply levels). The only problem observed is the run-away Device Monitor on System 1.

I have intervened to force-quite Device Monitor on occasion. It gets auto-restarted somehow. Upon restart, it's around 40MB, and does not grow appreciably while I watch. Never the less, if left running for a few days, it always reaches the >>100%cpu / >> 500MB problem state.

[PrintDoc]

Have you repaired disk permissions:

Applications > Utilities > Disk Utility.

Select your Macintosh HD on the left

Click "Repair disk permissions" along the bottom

[jrep123]

I had not repaired disk permissions before.

I just did it now, though I'm not sure how relevant that might be, since I've already done the uninstall-and-software-update trick.

FWIW, my permissions repair repaired around 2500 items.  I'm not sure how to check such a vast list for relevant details. As one check, I grepped for "HP" and "Hewlett", and neither of those strings is contained in the list of repairs.

[jrep123]

BTW: "jrep" and "jrep123" are the same person, me. Not sure why the forum apparently made me change moniker.