OSX Lion, stuck on grey screen at startup w/ spinning gear.

i believe i have tried everything i could find, so any info is good.
about a week ago my 2009 macbook pro 15 inch stopped starting up, always going to a grey screen with the apple logo and spinning gear.
what i have done so far.
reset nvram
repair disk and disk permissions.
try startup with various combinations of periferials
i am obviously able to start into lion recovery, but my time machine backups are on the other side of the world.
when i do a safe boot if stops with two entrys of nstat_lookup_entry failed: 2
any help is much appreciated

You can do two things
1: Install Lion over itself via the Recovery, won't touch your files or most programs.
Any program has a kernel extension file in System/Library/Extensions folder, that will get kicked out. Thus those few programs won't work and require a reinstall of their software
2: Install Lion on a blank powered external Disk Utility > Erase with Zero + GUID OS X Extended Journaled formatted hard drive, hold the option key and boot from it, same named user, and then access your internal drive to recovery files, disconnect then do #1
 Cheat sheet to help diagnose and fix your Mac
https://discussions.apple.com/community/notebooks/macbook_pro?view=documents

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Macbook air Lion stuck at grey screen and spinning wheel

HI
I have a Macbook air with Lion installed. I pressed the On button, but it gets stuck at grey screen, apple logo and spining wheel. I then managed to get it to startup in Safe Mode.
How can I find out what the problem was?
Please could you let me know if there are some simple steps to fix this?
Thank you in advance.

Please carefully read Gray screen appears during startup, Apple will tell you how to trouble shoot the issue. I suspect your HD has crashed, not a big deal if you have been backing up. However if you haven't then you're probably about to learn a lesson on why backup is critical.

MacBook Pro mid 2012 stuck on grey screen on startup

Hey guys.!
I need an advice from you guys.
I updated my Mbp few hours ago... It asked for a restart , I did after sometime but now while starting up I can't get passed through the grey screen with an apple logo and circle loading sign. Before this showed a loading bar also with it.
I can't figure out is there a problem with it or just takes time to finalise the updating or something .
Would love to get replies ASAP
Thanks,
A fellow MBP user
Aakash

Did you try Repair Disk instead of Verify Disk? The latter does nothing.
It is possible the drive has failed. It's also possible the drive just needs to be reformatted which you would do were you to try my second suggestion:
Install or Reinstall Lion/Mountain Lion from Scratch
Be sure you backup your files to an external drive or second internal drive because the following procedure will remove everything from the hard 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.
Erase the hard drive:
1. Select Disk Utility from the main menu and click on the Continue button.
2. After DU loads select your startup volume (usually Macintosh HD) from the
      left side list. Click on the Erase tab in the DU main window.
3. Set the format type to Mac OS Extended (Journaled.) Optionally, click on
        the Security button and set the Zero Data option to one-pass. Click on
      the Erase button and wait until the process has completed.
4. Quit DU and return to the main menu.
Reinstall Lion/Mountain Lion: Select Reinstall Lion/Mountain Lion and click on the Install button.
Note: You will need an active Internet connection. I suggest using Ethernet if possible
            because it is three times faster than wireless.

Stuck on Grey Screen During Startup

I updated to Yosemite on Saturday and everything has been working fine, I have been able to shut down and startup as normal until today.
Last night I forced my Early 2011 MacBook Pro to shut down and today it will no longer get to the login screen.
I hear the chime, the Apple appears with the Yosemite status bar underneath, it takes a long time to get about halfway then both the Apple and status bar disappear leaving just a blank grey screen.
- I can get into Single User mode, using "fsck -fy" it reports that everything is OK.
- I can't get into Safe Mode.
- I have reset PRAM
- I have NOT reset SMC (is it worth a try?)
- I have a bootable Yosemite USB, holding option I can select that but instead of presenting the Utilities window it just brings up the Apple and status bar then grey screen. For some reason my WiFi network isn't in the list either. Also, the image of my hard drive that appears has a custom icon that I haven't used for at least 5 years, very odd indeed.
I'm at a loss, any help would be greatly appreciated.
NOTE
My left fan is faulty, I have ordered a new one online. I have been using SMCFanControl to monitor it, if the computer has been feeling hot I have been increasing the RPM for a minute to cool it just to be safe until the new fan arrives. Last night I increased the RPM and SMCFanControl became unresponsive which is why I forced the computer to shut down because I couldn't reduce the fan speed back to normal.

I am able to get into Internet Recovery Mode but eventually the globe disappears and it's right back to the Apple and status bar then grey screen again.
When holding Option only my hard drive shows, there is no recovery drive option.

PB G4 stuck on grey screen at startup

I've got a PB G4 running 10.5. Everything was going fine until a couple of weeks ago when startup started stalling at the grey screen, sometimes with the apple logo and spinny thing sometimes just blank grey. After reading up on this, I popped in the original discs and ran disk utility. It ran for a while (there were lots of red errors flying by, most of them said the same thing, something about reserved file does not have data...?), and at the end it said one volume was repaired and one volume could not be repaired. I tried the repair permissions button, but that wouldn't work.
Last night, I had to yank out the HDD so I could get files off of it for work. Assuming that my HDD is working (picking up an enclosure tonight; fingers crossed) and that I can cram everything back in and close up the PB, is there anything to be done? I understand that this laptop is quite mature, but was hoping to get some more time out of it.
Thanks!
Brian

When you get a volume cannot be repaired message from Disk Utility, you have a few options. If the error is a soft error, that is, where pointers or index are scrambled, a program like Disk Warrior or TechTool Pro can usually straighten things out. If those programs can't fix it, then it's usually a hardware problem. You could erase the hard drive writing zero's to it to see if that fixes it, although that may be temporary. If that doesn't work, buy a new hard drive, which may cost less than Disk Warrior and TechTool Pro. A program like SmartUtility can show you the SMART sensor indicators, which can sometimes help you with making a decision on buying a new drive. You can download from http://www.volitans-software.com/smart_utility.php

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My Macbook Pro has been dead for slightly more than 6 months now (I don't use it as regularly as my school laptop). A few days before its death earlier this year, I upgraded the OS from Mountain Lion to OS X Mavericks (not sure exactly which version). A few days after that, connected to terrible internet, the Dropbox app tried to sync a load of files and then all of sudden, my Macbook Pro shut down. Now every time I turn it on, all I see is the infamous grey screen with the Apple logo and the spinning wheel. I tried fixing it multiple times, following instructions on other discussions, but to no avail. I'm also hesitant on taking it to the Apple store because I have some important files (read: holiday photos) on it which haven't been backed up yet and I don't want to lose them. Hope somebody can provide me with easy-to-follow instructions on how to revive it! Thank you.

If you have not tried this, try this.
Go step by step and test.
http://support.apple.com/kb/ts2570
http://support.apple.com/kb/PH14062
Startup in Safe Mode
http://support.apple.com/kb/PH14204?viewlocale=en_US
Repair Disk.
Steps 1 through 7
http://support.apple.com/kb/PH5836
Reset PRAM
http://support.apple.com/kb/ph14222
Reinstall OS X Mavericks
http://support.apple.com/kb/PH13871

Macbook Won't Chime Or Boot Past Grey Screen W/ Apple Logo & Spinning Gear

So i took my Macbook into the apple store to get looked it, cuz i sensed it was a little too hot and maybe overheating........... I DJ so my Macbook is bascially used for that and that only, so after he ran a diagnostics he seen i needed a new fan, but they didn't have that fan in stock, so i went home.... Laptop still working fine until i went to boot it up and it didn't chime and was stuck on the grey screen with the apple logo and spinning gear. Does this indicate i need a new logic board or a new hard drive

Hi ds,
Sorry to hear you're having such trouble!
Unfortunately, the best thing you can do at this point is reinstall Leopard (and then attempt to install the combo updater, too). If you don't have a backup of your machine, you could boot it into Target Disk Mode (by holding down T at startup) and then attach it via FireWire to another computer to salvage your files.
I recently had to repair a machine with this exact same problem, and after messing around with that for several hours, I'd have to say that I think that an Erase and Install is the way to go. If you then migrate over your user data and start having troubles, you at least know where the problem lies. I suspect, though, that having a clean machine with all of the new updates applied will be the end of the issue.
Sorry to be the bearer of bad news. There are a few other things you could try first; you could, for example, manually download the relevant combo updater from Apple's website and attempt to install it to your damaged machine while it's in Target Disk Mode. If you have a copy of Disk Warrior, that too is certainly worth a shot (and in some cases may be the saving grace). In my experience, though, a failure of this magnitude isn't easy to resolve.
Hope that helps.
—Hazy

IMac G5 doesn't go past grey screen with apple and spinning gear

I have an iMac G5 (Ambient Light Sensor) running Mac OS X 10.5.2 Leopard. Last night my computer froze while using QuickTime. I had to force shutdown the computer by holding the power button for 5 seconds after everything else failed.
Now it won't start. I hear the chime, the apple logo on grey screen appears and I see the spinning gear. But it stays like that indefinitely. I can boot with the Leopard DVD with no problem. I verified/repaired the boot disk. I verified/repaired the permissions. Everything is super fine. Made sure the selected startup disk was the correct one. I can even start up in FireWire Target Mode. I've resetted the PRAM and the SMU. Starting in single user mode also works.
How can I solve this startup issue. Are there things I could try before resorting to a archive install or clean install of Leopard. My HD is 232GB and I have 197GB of data.
Thanks for the help.

I opened the back cover according to the instuctions in the manual to check the internal battery (which is fine and strong according to my little battery tester). I followed the steps in the support article "iMac G5: Troubleshooting when your computer won't turn on". According to the LED, my power supply is fine. I turned on my computer with the back cover off using the internal power button. It turned on, chimed, did the usual SuperDrive sound and did a complete boot. I took a peek at the screen by lifting a corner cause it was laying face down on a soft towel on my bed. And I saw the user prompt asking me my password, and the galaxy theme desktop picture. So I turned this off and placed the cover back on. But it still won't start using the external power button. Thanks with all your help Miriam. I'm now gonna look for a solution with the external power button issue.

TS3148 my mackbook air starts up with a persistent grey screen, apple logo and spinning gear

my mackbook air starts up with a persistent grey screen, apple logo and a spinning gear. It will not show the login window

Press and hold the power button down to force a hardware shutdown (emergency use only!)
Next find the Shift key and hold it and press the power button, the machine will boot into Safe Mode.
Next backup your files to a external drive just in case.
Emergency backup procedure
Drag and drop copy your users file folders (music, pictures, documents etc) to a regular external powered drive as soon as possible.
Do not use, setup or trust only TimeMachine at this troubled time as it will copy corrupted data and we need just your users files safe just in case. TimeMachine cannot be used with a Windows PC.
Unmount and Disconnect all external drives once the backup process is completed.
Note:
If you have any over 4GB sized files, those won't copy to a standard formatted FAT32/MSDOS drive from the factory, if you need to save these 4GB+ files use another blank/empty drive and use Disk Utility to format it 1 Partition, Option: GUID, Format: OS X Extended Journaled (or the standard default one for older Mac's).
Mac's cannot copy to nor format a NTFS drive. ExFAT format to be used with a Windows machine must be right click formatted by Windows, not OS X (does it wrong) XP macines can install a free exFAT update from Microsoft. Vista-Win 8 can format exFAT.
Formatting a drive will erase all data on it.
Most commonly used backup methods
Your problem is likely due to a incompatible third part at boot kernel extension file that some program installed into OS X at some time.
If you can recall which programs you installed using your Admin password then that's a good place to start and update or uninstall those programs.
The next solution is a #8 Reinstall Just OS X + Software Update fully, this will replace OS X with a new copy, fix OS X if it's the cause and kick out ALL third party kext files out of OS X.
You also can manually drag and drop the third party kext files (if you know what they are) out of of the System/Library/Extensions folder and reboot.
..Step by Step to fix your Mac
Solving at boot kext issues in Snow Leopard

Mac stuck at grey screen after startup sound. Help

Help

Take each of these steps that you haven't already tried. Stop when the problem is resolved.
To restart an unresponsive computer, press and hold the power button for a few seconds until the power shuts off, then release, wait a few more seconds, and press it again briefly.
Step 1
The first step in dealing with a startup failure is to secure the data. If you want to preserve the contents of the startup drive, and you don't already have at least one current backup, you must try to back up now, before you do anything else. It may or may not be possible. If you don't care about the data that has changed since the last backup, you can skip this step.
There are several ways to back up a Mac that is unable to start. You need an external hard drive to hold the backup data.
a. Start up from the Recovery partition, or from a local Time Machine backup volume (option key at startup.) When the OS X Utilities screen appears, launch Disk Utility and follow the instructions in this support article, under “Instructions for backing up to an external hard disk via Disk Utility.” The article refers to starting up from a DVD, but the procedure in Recovery mode is the same. You don't need a DVD if you're running OS X 10.7 or later.
b. If Step 1a fails because of disk errors, and no other Mac is available, then you may be able to salvage some of your files by copying them in the Finder. If you already have an external drive with OS X installed, start up from it. Otherwise, if you have Internet access, follow the instructions on this page to prepare the external drive and install OS X on it. You'll use the Recovery installer, rather than downloading it from the App Store.
c. If you have access to a working Mac, and both it and the non-working Mac have FireWire or Thunderbolt ports, start the non-working Mac in target disk mode. Use the working Mac to copy the data to another drive. This technique won't work with USB, Ethernet, Wi-Fi, or Bluetooth.
d. If the internal drive of the non-working Mac is user-replaceable, remove it and mount it in an external enclosure or drive dock. Use another Mac to copy the data.
Step 2
If the startup process stops at a blank gray screen with no Apple logo or spinning "daisy wheel," then the startup volume may be full. If you had previously seen warnings of low disk space, this is almost certainly the case. You might be able to start up in safe mode even though you can't start up normally. Otherwise, start up from an external drive, or else use the technique in Step 1b, 1c, or 1d to mount the internal drive and delete some files. According to Apple documentation, you need at least 9 GB of available space on the startup volume (as shown in the Finder Info window) for normal operation.
Step 3
Sometimes a startup failure can be resolved by resetting the NVRAM.
Step 4
If a desktop Mac hangs at a plain gray screen with a movable cursor, the keyboard may not be recognized. Press and hold the button on the side of an Apple wireless keyboard to make it discoverable. If need be, replace or recharge the batteries. If you're using a USB keyboard connected to a hub, connect it to a built-in port.
Step 5
If there's a built-in optical drive, a disc may be stuck in it. Follow these instructions to eject it.
Step 6
Press and hold the power button until the power shuts off. Disconnect all wired peripherals except those needed to start up, and remove all aftermarket expansion cards. Use a different keyboard and/or mouse, if those devices are wired. If you can start up now, one of the devices you disconnected, or a combination of them, is causing the problem. Finding out which one is a process of elimination.
Step 7
If you've started from an external storage device, make sure that the internal startup volume is selected in the Startup Disk pane of System Preferences.
Start up in safe mode. Note: If FileVault is enabled in OS X 10.9 or earlier, or if a firmware password is set, or if the startup volume is a software RAID, you can’t do this. Post for further instructions.
Safe mode is much slower to start and run than normal, and some things won’t work at all, including wireless networking on certain Macs.
The login screen appears even if you usually log in automatically. You must know the login password in order to log in. If you’ve forgotten the password, you will need to reset it before you begin.
When you start up in safe mode, it's normal to see a dark gray progress bar on a light gray background. If the progress bar gets stuck for more than a few minutes, or if the system shuts down automatically while the progress bar is displayed, the startup volume is corrupt and the drive is probably malfunctioning. In that case, go to Step 11. If you ever have another problem with the drive, replace it immediately.
If you can start and log in in safe mode, empty the Trash, and then open the Finder Info window on the startup volume ("Macintosh HD," unless you gave it a different name.) Check that you have at least 9 GB of available space, as shown in the window. If you don't, copy as many files as necessary to another volume (not another folder on the same volume) and delete the originals. Deletion isn't complete until you empty the Trash again. Do this until the available space is more than 9 GB. Then restart as usual (i.e., not in safe mode.)
If the startup process hangs again, the problem is likely caused by a third-party system modification that you installed. Post for further instructions.
Step 8
Launch Disk Utility in Recovery mode (see Step 1.) Select the startup volume, then run Repair Disk. If any problems are found, repeat until clear. If Disk Utility reports that the volume can't be repaired, the drive has malfunctioned and should be replaced. You might choose to tolerate one such malfunction in the life of the drive. In that case, erase the volume and restore from a backup. If the same thing ever happens again, replace the drive immediately.
This is one of the rare situations in which you should also run Repair Permissions, ignoring the false warnings it may produce. Look for the line "Permissions repair complete" at the end of the output. Then restart as usual.
Step 9
If the startup device is an aftermarket SSD, it may need a firmware update and/or a forced "garbage collection." Instructions for doing this with a Crucial-branded SSD were posted here. Some of those instructions may apply to other brands of SSD, but you should check with the vendor's tech support.
Step 10
Reinstall the OS. If the Mac was upgraded from an older version of OS X, you’ll need the Apple ID and password you used to upgrade.
Step 11
Do as in Step 9, but this time erase the startup volume in Disk Utility before installing. The system should automatically restart into the Setup Assistant. Follow the prompts to transfer the data from a Time Machine or other backup.
Step 12
This step applies only to models that have a logic-board ("PRAM") battery: all Mac Pro's and some others (not current models.) Both desktop and portable Macs used to have such a battery. The logic-board battery, if there is one, is separate from the main battery of a portable. A dead logic-board battery can cause a startup failure. Typically the failure will be preceded by loss of the settings for the startup disk and system clock. See the user manual for replacement instructions. You may have to take the machine to a service provider to have the battery replaced.
Step 13
If you get this far, you're probably dealing with a hardware fault. Make a "Genius" appointment at an Apple Store, or go to another authorized service provider.

Stuck on Grey Screen at Startup

Hello
Recently, my PowerBook G4 was running quite slow, and froze many times. One of these times, I turned off the power by holding the power switch, and have not seen the computer go past the grey startup screen with the Apple logo and rotating wheel. I put in the original PowerBook G4 Installation Disk, ran Disk Utility, but the repair failed. The following is the error message I received.
First Aid Failed
Disk Utility stopped repairing "Macintosh HD" because the following error was encountered:
The underlying task reported failure on exit.
I'd appreciate any help I can get with this.
PowerBook G4 Mac OS X (10.4.9)

Yeah, I figured that... Now, it's not able to detect the hard drive at all when I try to reboot from the Disk Utility. I'm going to visit an Apple Store today.

27" iMac stuck in Grey screen after startup

Hi everyone, I've read nearly all the posts on this subject. According to all the tips and suggestions I've done a SCM restart, I've run applejack and done an sbin/fsck -y rebuild, I've attached it to my Macbook pro via firewire in T mode and run disk utilities, I've also tried to startup from an install disc and got nowhere and I've done a PRAM rebuild. Still nothing. Someone thought it might be a Kernal panic?? Oddly enough I think it's a video card problem. as I have a second 27" Monitor and when I plug it in I normally get both screens go blue and then a second or two later I get both screens showing their respective images. This time I got nothing. not even the blue screen. I'm going nuts here. Does anyone have any ideas what the problems is???? Please help. oh and contrary to my listing, I'm running 10.8.1, not 10.6.8 ( I must fix that)

Hi everyone, I've read nearly all the posts on this subject. According to all the tips and suggestions I've done a SCM restart, I've run applejack and done an sbin/fsck -y rebuild, I've attached it to my Macbook pro via firewire in T mode and run disk utilities, I've also tried to startup from an install disc and got nowhere and I've done a PRAM rebuild. Still nothing. Someone thought it might be a Kernal panic?? Oddly enough I think it's a video card problem. as I have a second 27" Monitor and when I plug it in I normally get both screens go blue and then a second or two later I get both screens showing their respective images. This time I got nothing. not even the blue screen. I'm going nuts here. Does anyone have any ideas what the problems is???? Please help. oh and contrary to my listing, I'm running 10.8.1, not 10.6.8 ( I must fix that)

Stuck at grey screen at startup

Never had a single problem with my iMac until this morning. The screensaver froze on the screen when I was waking it up and it sat there for around five minutes. Eventually, I turned it off with the button in back, let it sit for around a minute and then turned it back on. I get the chime at start up and the the apple with little rotating disk but it never moves progresses and starts up. I've unplugged it from the wall and tried starting it again and it did the same thing. When I started it from the install disk and tried to do a repair disk on it, it comes back saying The disk could not be unmounted. What can I try next? Or is it too late.

This is sounding a lot like your hard drive has died.
Just to be sure though, you should probably run Apple Hardware Test. Put the install DVD in the drive and hold "D" while booting. It also couldn't hurt to boot holding down the Option key. It's far from a reliable diagnostic test, but it only takes a few seconds and if your HDD isn't showing up, that means the system can't "see" it, and the drive is most likely dead.

Lion Stuck at login screen,can't type password

My OSX Lion stuck at login screen,when I type password it just "beep" and I can only type few words.I just had those problem before..But since the battery ran out,and I gonna login...then I can't type the password...please help me....
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What year and model of MacBook Pro do you have? I'm wondering if the factory installed battery is failing due to age or use. A MacBook Pro battery can be recharged about 300 times before it becomes unuseable. Is this possibly the problem?
Hope this helps

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Downloaded OSX Mountain Lion on MacBook now stuck on grey screen with spinning wheel. What can I do, will I loose everything on my laptop?

ashg23 wrote:
Thank you, I have restarted but it is still stuck at the grey page with the spinning wheel? Any idea?
Have you started up holding down Command + R and attempted to install again?
Pete

OSX Lion, stuck on grey screen at startup w/ spinning gear.

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