---
tags:
  - macOS
  - Tahoe
  - kill
  - terminal
  - processes
  - troubleshooting
title: Terminating Processes with Kill on macOS Tahoe
---

# Terminating Processes with Kill on macOS Tahoe

Sometimes applications freeze or background processes become unresponsive. While you can use Activity Monitor to force quit apps, the `kill` command in the terminal offers precision and scripting capabilities.

## Finding the Process ID (PID)

To kill a specific process, you first need its unique Process ID (PID). You can find this using the `ps` or `pgrep` commands.

### Using pgrep
The easiest way to find a PID by name:

```zsh
pgrep Chrome
```

This returns the PIDs of all processes matching "Chrome".

### Using ps
For more detail:

```zsh
ps aux | grep "Chrome"
```

## The Kill Command

Once you have the PID, use `kill` to send a signal to the process.

### Standard Termination (SIGTERM)
By default, `kill` sends a `SIGTERM` (15) signal. This asks the process to stop nicely, allowing it to save data and close connections.

```zsh
kill 12345
```

*(Replace 12345 with your actual PID)*

### Force Kill (SIGKILL)
If a process is completely frozen and ignores the standard kill command, use the `-9` flag to send a `SIGKILL` signal. This stops the process immediately.

```zsh
kill -9 12345
```

## Killing by Name: killall

If you want to kill all instances of an application by name without looking up the PID, use `killall`.

**Example:** Force quit all Chrome processes.

```zsh
killall "Google Chrome"
```

*Note: The name must match the process name exactly. It is case-sensitive.*

## Summary of Signals

| Signal | Number | Description |
| :--- | :--- | :--- |
| **SIGTERM** | 15 | Polite request to terminate (Default). |
| **SIGKILL** | 9 | Immediate, forceful termination. |
| **SIGHUP** | 1 | Hang up. Often used to reload configuration files without stopping the process. |

For graphical process management, refer to Troubleshooting Performance with Activity Monitor on macOS Tahoe.