Macbook pro folder with question mark blinking appear whent I turn on, When I press the Option key Grey lock screen appear asking for a password, can anyone help me please?

Provide the computer's firmware password. If you don't know what it is, contact the person you got the computer from or Apple.
(91589)

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Trying to install mountain lion on a 2008 macbook when i press the option key a lock shows on the screen andneeds a pass word just bought this off ebay thanks

just caught a 2008 macbook when i started it up i pressed the option button to load but a lock show up on the screen and wants a pass word any help
thanks

you have to email or contact the seller to get the password from him.

Macbook pro folder with question mark

I am working on a neighbors macbook pro here.
When I startup the laptop, a folder with a question mark appears. It will not go away and nothing else happens.
This laptop was working fine until bootcamp was installed, then he erased all the contents of the hard drive in firewire mode using another computer, so I am pretty sure it is not any kind of hardware problem.
I CAN hold down the T key and boot into firewire mode. When I do this the hard drive and system appears ok in my powerbook that it is connected to.
I went to the apple store and bought the latest tiger 10.4.6, but I am hearing that this will not work with the intel based macbook pro's.
I tried booting holding the c key, the command key, option key etc, all with the same result, the flashing folder with a question mark.
Does anyone know for sure if the Install discs for the macbook pros are different than the one I just bought from the mac store?
We do not have the original discs that came with this computer, It is the 15 inch macbook pro.
Any help here is greatly appreciated!

The Tiger retail install package is not the same as the Tiger install package that ships with an Intel Mac.
Since Intel Macs are new and all ship with Tiger pre-installed, the Tiger retail install package is for PPC Macs only since there is no reason for Apple to supply a retail version that is compatible with Intel Macs. The next OS X version when released (retail install package) will be compatible with both PPC and Intel Macs or provided separately for each.
The install package that ships with a new Mac purchase is very important and should be kept in a safe place. For one and a very important reason, it includes all additional software provided with the new Mac purchase that is not included with a Tiger retail install package.
Your neighbor needs to contact AppleCare or visit the local Apple Store and request a replacement Tiger install package that shipped with this Mac. Although not provided for free, the cost will probably include covering shipping and handling only but I don't speak for Apple.

Macbook Pro - Folder w/Question Mark; Internet Recovery

Hello everyone,
I have a 13" Macbook Pro that I purchased (new) in February 2013.
Yesterday I was working on it with an external mouse plugged into one USB, a bicycle light charger plugged into the other USB, and an external monitor connected in that port with the Apple connector, plus the power cord was plugged in. I had Word documents open, an Excel doc as well, plus iTunes running, and I had Chrome open as my browser. I had to quickly leave so unplugged all of them quickly, then closed the cover.
A few hours later when I opened the computer I had no cursor. I gave it a few minutes to "wake up" but nothing happened. I then turned the computer off with the power button. When it came back on I had a folder with a question mark and it was blinking.
In looking through the discussion forums, I tried holding down the Control button. This too me to Internet Recovery. Now I'm at the OS X Utilities and it has four options: Restore from Time Machine, Reinstall OS X, Get Help Online, or Disk Utility.
I back up the computer frequently with T.M. to an external HD, but I'd rather not erase the HD and start over.
I have seen some suggest resetting the PRAM when this issue occurs. As the computer was not dropped, I hope it was more of an overload issue when I unplugged so many things at once and shut it down.
I am definitely not a skilled computer fixer, so wanted to see if anyone with more knowledge could offer the best steps to take.
Thank you!

The folder with question mark means your firmware doesn't know what or where is your volume it's supposed to boot from normally.
1: Shutdown the machine by pressing and holding the power button.
2: Press and hold the option/alt key down. Boot the machine.
3: Startup Manager appears and hopefully your boot drive (along with RecoveryHD) appears, select your boot drive and click the arrow.
4: In System Preferences, set your statup disk again. Done.
Folder with question mark issue
If this fails to work, then do reset the NVRAM and try the steps above again.
If your boot volume fails to appear, then your OS X is corrupt and is not recognized as a bootable option, but it can be fixed.
..Step by Step to fix your Mac
The worst thing is your boot drive is dead, lets hope you have backups of your data off the machine.
My computer is not working, is my personal data lost?

I have just updated my MBP to Maverick OS. I am unable to shutdown or log off. When i press the shutdown button, a black screen appears which goes off on pressing any key. The shutdown or log off dialog does not appear. Your kind help is much appreciated.

I have just updated my MBP 17 / retina display to Maverick OS. I am unable to shutdown or log off. When i press the shutdown button, a black screen appears which goes off on pressing any key. The shutdown or log off dialog does not appear. Your kind help is much appreciated.

The button response has changed.
Short press : sleep
Medium press (2-3 sec) : restart, shutdown, sleep dialog
Long press : force shutdown. (Same as before)

Folder with Question Mark Blinking

I was doing a lot of video work yesterday and knew my hard disk was low on memory. I thought I had about one gb of space left when I shut it down. I tried turning it on and now I can do nothing all I get is a folder with a question mark blinking. Is there anyway I can get onto my computer and delete some flies? Am I kind of screwed at this point? Any help resolving this would be great. Or any ideas as to what I can do to remedy the situation would be awesome...

I found my answer insert the install cd and hold c.

Was using my mac pro book lap top when all of sudden my screen s was showing shaded folder with question mark blinking. any ideas? thanks ami 1670

was using my mac book pro when all of a sudden my screen shanged to shaded folder with blinking question mark. any ideas? thanks ami1670

usually it happens when you start the mac up, not in the middle of using it. Nonetheless, read this: http://support.apple.com/kb/TS1440

2011 macbook pro 15' -Taking so long to see the select menu when I press the option key

I keep pressing option key and try to choose which hard drive I would like to boot, here is the problem. If I connect with network cable then I'll have to wait almost 2 minutes to show the select screen!!! On the other hand, If I didn't connect the network cable, I only take 11 seconds to see that select screen. I have tested over ten times with or without connected my macbook pro to the network cable, and the result is the same as I mentioned above. So...what's the problem? Is that a bug in 10.6.7 or It's a hardware problem.... Anyone help plz ?????

Its a keyboard shortcut to mirror or un mirror screen. Then you can use your mouse and what not. My macbook air fell about 1.5 feet to carpet and thanks to the thin design of the metal parts turned the dam n screen into a knife and sliced the wires for the screen, wifi, Bluetooth, and camera... Well one wire was still attached, the one that powered the screen. So all i had was a white screen. I know its accidental damage and all but to have it fall and break a week after my warranty ran out ***?!?! Apple must employ ninjas!

Mac Mini 1.42 G4 will not boot Folder With Question Mark Plus more....

I have a major problem with my mini, It was working ok one minute then it froze completely so I had to shut down via the power button, But when I restarted it I got the folder icon with the question mark in, I've tried various things to get it to boot, I also put in the 10.5 disc to do a hardware test,I've since found out that that is the wrong disc to do a hardware test with. Now I can't get the disc out I;ve pressed the eject key and pressed the mouse button on start up with no look, Also when I press the Option key to select the start up disc all I get are a round arrow and and arrow pointing left. When I press the right arrow key on the keyboard I get some text on screen saying something about firmware and an option to type shut-down or mac-boot, If I type mac-boot the screen goes grey and nothing seems to happen.
So I'm stuck now with a Mac Mini with my 10.5 disc stuck in it and refusing to boot.
Any one any ideas as to what I can do?
Thanks
Ade

As you no doubt have recognized by the use of the 10.5 install disk, the folder icon with flashing question mark means that the system can't find a valid and viable MacOS installation to boot from - a problem which could have been existent for some time but not yet developed into a failure, or possibly caused directly by the forced shutdown.
Your thought to use the install disk was a reasonable one, though at this point I wouldn't have wanted to run a hardware test so much as boot to the installer and from the utilities menu once it has started up, then run Disk Utility to test the hard drive for errors, and attempt to repair any found. The reason for that approach is because while the symptoms you describe can certainly be caused by a hardware failure, it is much more common for this to be the result of a failing or corrupt drive - which at the very least Disk Utility is good at diagnosing.
However, now you've got the 10.5 install disk in the drive, the question becomes why it cannot be found by the boot loader (the screen you get when you've booted with the Option key down) and thus can't be used by the system to get it booted up.
It could be that the disk is not a valid installer for that system - in which case it would have to not be a 10.5 retail installer but instead have come from another system. Alternatively, it could be that the drive didn't correctly load the disk, thus doesn't know it is there. This might explain why trying to eject it by holding the (left) mouse button down during bootup doesn't seem to have worked.
To be clear however, you need a wired, USB mouse to eject the disk during bootup, and it must be connected directly to the system or via an Apple keyboard which is not an aluminium model. The (left) mouse button should be held down from hearing the startup chime, and until the disk pops out. If that technique doesn't work, and there is no indication of any life from the drive when you try, it may mean your mini needs to be opened up to retrieve the disk from the drive.
Also, be aware that while the boot loader screen appears relatively quickly after the Option key is held down, it can take a few minutes for a disk in the optical drive to be read and appear there. In most cases, I'm sure users typically wait long enough while wondering what, if anything, is going to happen, but it can take much longer than expected!

Folder with question mark + wont boot from disk

Hi
I am trying to reinstall a powermac g5 from the disk, using a old hard drive that works.. (formatted in NTFS) (hoping that when selected to boot from disk, mac will then erase and reformat it)this image is presented when i hold down the option key and the disk ejects this other image is presented when i hold down C (folder with question mark blinking) and the disk ejects... also presented if i boot normally.... Could some help be offered please??????
Powermac G5
Thank you in advance

Yes, you must Format it HFS+ first...
1. Insert the Mac OS X Install disc, then restart the computer while holding the C key.
2. When your computer finishes starting up from the disc, choose Disk Utility from the Installer menu at top of the screen. (In Mac OS X 10.4 or later, you must select your language first.)
*Important: Do not click Continue in the first screen of the Installer. If you do, you must restart from the disc again to access Disk Utility.*
How to format your disks...
http://www.kenstone.net/fcp_homepage/partitioning_tiger.html
(To Install OSX on an IntelMac the Drive it needs the GUID Partitioning scheme mentioned at the bottom.)
Thanks to Pondini, Formatting, Partitioning, Verifying, and Repairing Disks...
http://web.me.com/pondini/AppleTips/DU.html

My MacBook will not turn on properly. I have turned it on while holding the option key clicked the HD and now nothing. What is happening!?

I have tried everything. I don't no y my computer won't turn on. I pressed the option key while turning the computer on clicked the hd icon and now nothing just a grey screen and my mouse icon

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MacBook Pro flashes file folder with question mark and startup manager will not run

My son's MacBook Pro won't boot (gets the flashing file folder with question mark). When I try to open startup manager (holding "option" key during boot does not do it). Other posts suggest inserting the install disk, but I am pretty sure that for Lion, there was no disk, it was just off the website through the App Store. Any further suggestions?

Reinstalling Lion/Mountain Lion Without Erasing the Drive
Boot to the Recovery HD: Restart the computer and after the chime press and hold down the COMMAND and R keys until the menu screen appears. Alternatively, restart the computer and after the chime press and hold down the OPTION key until the boot manager screen appears. Select the Recovery HD and click on the downward pointing arrow button.
Repair the Hard Drive and Permissions: Upon startup select Disk Utility from the main menu. Repair the Hard Drive and Permissions as follows.
When the recovery menu appears select Disk Utility. After DU loads select your hard drive entry (mfgr.'s ID and drive size) from the the left side list. In the DU status area you will see an entry for the S.M.A.R.T. status of the hard drive. If it does not say "Verified" then the hard drive is failing or failed. (SMART status is not reported on external Firewire or USB drives.) If the drive is "Verified" then select your OS X volume from the list on the left (sub-entry below the drive entry,) click on the First Aid tab, then click on the Repair Disk button. If DU reports any errors that have been fixed, then re-run Repair Disk until no errors are reported. If no errors are reported click on the Repair Permissions button. Wait until the operation completes, then quit DU and return to the main menu.
Reinstall Lion/Mountain Lion: Select Reinstall Lion/Mountain Lion and click on the Continue button.
Note: You will need an active Internet connection. I suggest using Ethernet if possible because it is three times faster than wireless.

My MacBook pro stop working and it shows folder with question mark after this update, it's not my fault, Apple should solve the problem with out ask me to make payment

After updating my MacBook pro it shows only a folder with question mark on it
It is not my fault, Apple updates problem
They should solve it fir me without make any payment
Thanks

Try starting your computer holding down the option key as soon as you hear the startup sound, and continue holding it. Hopefully, you will see the icon for your startup disk come up on your screen within a minute. Click on that icon and press return. If your machine starts up normally from there, go to System Preferences > Startup Disk and reselect your startup volume

Blinking folder with question mark! Recovery mode not recognising hard drive!

So today on my MacBook Pro 13" mid 2010, for some reason a CD that I inserted inside the DVD/CD drive didn't come out, and was stuck inside. So I looked up on how to force eject it out, and I saw someone wrote that you can force eject the CD by putting a paper clip inside the hole next to the CD/DVD drive. I did this, and it did not work. After I turned on my MacBook Pro and on the startup I found the blinking folder with question mark! I went through Internet recovery mode, and I found out that it did not recognise my hard drive!
-Do I have to replace my hard drive?
Please help! I'm fairly new with computers :(

Kazmunai wrote:
I saw someone wrote that you can force eject the CD by putting a paper clip inside the hole next to the CD/DVD drive. I did this, and it did not work.
That was for very old Mac's and PC's, it's been a long time since any modern Mac had that ability.
CD that I inserted inside the DVD/CD drive didn't come out, and was stuck inside.
Press and hold the power button down to force a hardware shutdown.
Hold the trackbutton down and the option/alt key at the same time, now boot the machine.
The disk should spit out and you should eventually see a row of icons appear on the screen, this is Startup Manager and you can pres the eject key here also to get the cd to spit out.
If you see MacintoshHD (or your OS X boot volume) click it and the arrow underneath and when you get into OS X, head to System Preferences > Startup Disk and set it again. Your problem should be resolved at this point.
If you don't see your OS X boot volume and it shows RecoveryHD only, or holding the option/alt goes to Internet Recovery, then your boot drive is dead or there is some sort of other issue/power /Mac related.
Try a #1 SMC Reset and a #2 PRAM reset and see if that fixes things.
..Step by Step to fix your Mac
If not, I then suspect because you couldn't eject the cd that something electrical bad happened to the Superdrive and as a result it also effected the power or something going to the boot hard drive.
The hard drive might still work just fine if it's removed from the machine and a SATA to USB adpater to another Mac.
My advice is to take the machine to Apple for a free hardware evaluation, then decide what you want to do from there.
My computer is not working, is my personal data lost?

Blinking folder with questions mark

A teacher just brought me a MacBook, and upon start-up there is a blinking folder with a questions mark. What does that mean, and how can I fix it?
I appreciate anyone's knowledge and help.

There are four general causes of this issue:
1. The computer's PRAM no longer contains a valid startup disk setting when there aren't any problems with the disk itself. This can be checked for by pressing the Option key and seeing if the drive appears.
2. The internal drive's directory structure has become damaged. This requires usage of an alternate bootable system to perform the repair.
3. Critical system files have been deleted. This requires usage of an alternate bootable system to reinstall them.
4. The internal drive has died or become unplugged. This is the most likely case if the computer took a sharp impact or there are unusual sounds coming from the hard drive's location.
(70455)

Macbook pro folder with question mark blinking appear whent I turn on, When I press the Option key Grey lock screen appear asking for a password, can anyone help me please?

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