Blank grey screen on startup issue

I have started up my G4 powerbook and am met with a blank grey screen.
I had previously been using the laptop for connecting to a projector for a presentation and having been met with this problem I reconnected the laptop to a projector and the image of the desktop was viewable on the projector screen and thus I could manage the laptop via this. How can I get the screen on the laptop back to where it should be that I can see the what I am doing?
I am sure its something obvious and possibly relating to screen sharing or such like but I cannot think of the solution just now. Any thoughts?
Many thanks for you time.

Hello again,
In order to try to resolve this I need to connect the laptop to a projector to be able to see the desktop image and open such things as System preferences. This takes me bait longer than it should thus the delay in adding to this discussion.
I did connect it up to the projector. Switched off the mirroring and tried a few switching off and on's etc. I have also tried resting the PRAM and the PMU but to now avail. There appears to be a disconnect between the screen and the system. I reckon it is maybe to do with the fact that the last time is was used and functioned as usual was when I was using the laptop with the projector.
It is of course frustrating as the laptop in question though of a certain vintage is in very good condition and operates very well other than this issue.

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Another blank blue screen at startup issue

Can anyone shed some light on this?
The iMac was operating fine up until a few nights ago. I had been using the machine all day without a hitch then in the evening tried switching to another user account and the system hung up stuck with the spinning pinwheel before login. I forced a reboot and got the blank blue screen.
I did all the recommendations I've seen posted here before. Repair Permissions and Disk Repair from the Install Disc (neither of which returned any issues) I rebooted in Safe Mode which runs fine but after rebooting I had the same problem. I booted Safe Mode again and tried making new accounts, that wasn't any help. I then went into single user mode to wipe out the preferences and netinfo database. No luck. reset SMU, reset PRAM, reset NVRAM, unplugged all external devices and pulled out the 3rd party RAM (bought it in 2005 from Crucial when I bought the iMac). No Go.
I reinstalled OSX using the Archive feature and that didn't fix things. Then I reinstalled OSX and let it wipe the entire HD clean after using Safe Mode to back-up my essentials onto external USB HD first. Even the clean install didn't help. It certainly runs a lot more zippy but it only runs in Safe Mode.
I ran the extended hardware tests from the Install CD/DVD and everything passed OK.
Now, there is one issue I can't solve myself and I have to wonder if this may be the cause of the problems, even though hardware tests don't reveal any problems. When I opened the case to pull the RAM, I noticed two capacitors on the logic board that had leaked, however the leaks are all dried up and crusty, not wet like a recent leak. Here's a photo:
http://www.mikepipes.com/sketchbook/imac-1.jpg
Is there anything I may have missed?
Now I have seen the other posts regarding the repair programs Apple has for certain model of iMac, and my serial number does fall within the range (QP519XXXXXX), however this is a 2nd generation iMac and the page states that only 1st gen iMacs are elligible. Wonder if the photo of the leaky caps could sway them to make an exception?
I'm trying to get as far as I can through troubleshooting because the closest Apple Store or Apple tech is 3 hours away.

Present you case to Apple. If you don't get anywhere w/them then ask to be transferred (or call them yourself) to Customer Relations - 1-800-767-2775.
Otherwise, you will have no alternative but to take your computer to your local AASP.
If you have AppleCare, you can have the repair tech come to your home (under certain conditions). Read the small print in the AC booklet.
You can also check AASP or AASP's Outside of the USA to find a repair shop closer to you.
*PS Thank you for providing detailed info about your troubleshooting efforts. It was a great help.*

My computer on startup is stuck on blank grey screen

My iMAC is stuck on blank grey screen at startup. Keyboard is not active, won't function at all. Anyone have any suggestions to resolve?

Please begin troubleshooting using Apple's Gray screen appears during startup advice letter.
Also please complete your profile, we know nothing about your system, what version of OS X, the specific model etc. Here is how you do it, click the Your Stuff link in the upper right of this page then select Profile and look on that page where you can add and edit. The process will take less than a couple of minutes.

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Hi,
I tried to upgrade to Yosemite last night and I think there's something wrong.
At the last step process gets to a grey screen with Apple Logo with a filling bar below it. As soon as the bar hits quarter way everything disappears and I'm left with a blank grey screen...
I don't have much on this iMac few folders and pictures.
Anyone experiencing the same issue? Any advice?

I just tried to install 10.10.1 and ran into the same problem, however, in my case, I found that the login form disappeared (invisible). If you're able to move the mouse pointer, try moving it around the middle of the screen where the username and password text fields are supposed to be. If you see two places where mouse pointer turn into a keyboard prompt, type your user name in the upper one and your password in the lower one and hit the return key. You should be able to complete the installation.

My MacBook pro will not startup. I get a blank grey screen no logo appears so I can't chooseadiffer t drive nor boot from DVD. Safe mode and verbose mode also don't change blank screen.

It was running slow with the colored spining appearing often. This started happening weeks ago with Yosemite so I formatted the disk with the DVDs that came with the mid 2011 MacBook pro, 10.6.8. I then installed Yosemite on an external drive and this morning i was booted from the external hd with Yosemite and it stopped recognizong mouse clicks so I forced a restart and now I'm stuck with the blank grey screen. Safe mode and verbose mode also do not work.

Lao Bo,
yes, you can locate and copy a file from your HD to a USB key using UNIX commands. If you know the exact name of the file which you’re trying to locate, try this:
find / -iname filename -print
This command will search your entire internal disk for the particular filename. If you know that it’s within a particular user account, then you can save search time with this variation:
find /Users/username -iname filename -print
Either variation of this command will print all files found which have the given filename. Presuming that you’re able to identify the correct file, you can copy it to a USB key using the command
cp -p filename_returned_by_find /Volumes/USB_volume
If you’re not sure which volume name your USB key has, this command will show you what the possibilities are:
ls /Volumes
Please let me know if you have any trouble with these commands.

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.
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Hello again,
In order to try to resolve this I need to connect the laptop to a projector to be able to see the desktop image and open such things as System preferences. This takes me bait longer than it should thus the delay in adding to this discussion.
I did connect it up to the projector. Switched off the mirroring and tried a few switching off and on's etc. I have also tried resting the PRAM and the PMU but to now avail. There appears to be a disconnect between the screen and the system. I reckon it is maybe to do with the fact that the last time is was used and functioned as usual was when I was using the laptop with the projector.
It is of course frustrating as the laptop in question though of a certain vintage is in very good condition and operates very well other than this issue.

MBP 10,1 - Blank grey screen before login (Landing Zone Dock)

MBP 10,1, i7 core, 2.4 GHz, 8 Gb
OS X 10.9.2 (13C64)
Also running VMWare 6 with Win7 Pro when needed
I got the Landing Zone dock in December, and it has been working fine. An external "vga" monitor connected through the display port, and when needed an HDMI monitor to make 3 with the MBP display.
I always set the MBP display as the login screen.
This week, I started having problems on boot / restore from sleep.
Restoring, the screens are grey and the keyboard is unresponsive, except for the power key (I think except for).
Booting, the blank grey screen comes on after the startup tone, but will not provide the login screen.
When I disengage the dock, the login screen appears.
Help? Advice?

MBP 10,1, i7 core, 2.4 GHz, 8 Gb
OS X 10.9.2 (13C64)
Also running VMWare 6 with Win7 Pro when needed
I got the Landing Zone dock in December, and it has been working fine. An external "vga" monitor connected through the display port, and when needed an HDMI monitor to make 3 with the MBP display.
I always set the MBP display as the login screen.
This week, I started having problems on boot / restore from sleep.
Restoring, the screens are grey and the keyboard is unresponsive, except for the power key (I think except for).
Booting, the blank grey screen comes on after the startup tone, but will not provide the login screen.
When I disengage the dock, the login screen appears.
Help? Advice?

How to go to finder from blank grey screen with apple icon and spinning gear

My Mac desktop won't start up, it showed blank grey screen with an apple icon and spinning gear for ages. Due my computer is vintage so I would need to backup my user files before I could re-install OS X via NetBoot. My question is how can I access to the finder to back up my user folder from the grey screen. Thanks

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 you use a wireless keyboard, trackpad, or mouse, replace or recharge the batteries. The battery level shown in the Bluetooth menu item may not be accurate.
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, 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.

Hi, After I try to load either an existing or new project in Adobe Premier Elements 9 I just get a blank grey screen with none of the timeline, etc. boxes on view. This has suddenly happened, one day OK next not! At the top of the screen I get the normal

Hi, After I try to load either an existing or new project in Adobe Premier Elements 9 I just get a blank grey screen with none of the timeline, etc. boxes on view. This has suddenly happened, one day OK next not! At the top of the screen I get the normal Pre icon, File, Edit, Clip, etc.
I am planning on purchasing Premier Elements 13, would it be better if I bought a new program rather than download an upgrade, just in case the upgrade doesn't load properly due to the error with my existing program?
If I the deleted Premier Elements 9 on my PC would I lose all my existing videos that were produced using Premier Elements 9 or would they be saved so that they can still be worked on in Premier Elements 13?
Does Premier Elements 13 work with Windows 7?
Thanks
Terry

Premiere Elements 13 absolutely works with Windows 7!
In fact, I'd highly recommend you download the free trial and give it a test run.
Meantime, go to Windows Update and make sure you have all of the latest Windows updates, including those that don't install automatically. Then go to the nVidia or ATI site and ensure you have the latest driver for your graphics card, and go to Apple.com and ensure you have the latest version of Quicktime, per the program's requirements.

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Thanks.

Yes, that is a well-known problem: http://support.microsoft.com/kb/2716529
The Fixit on that article only works on Windows 8, but I can give you a script that makes the registry modification on Windows 7. Download, unzip, then run the attached registry script.

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tom

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Have a blank grey screen on start up?

Guys, Help I have a blank grey screen on start up?

See Here > http://support.apple.com/kb/ts2570

TS2570 Grey screen on startup...

I am using 2008 White Macbook with OSX lion running on it. Recently I tried to update the OS and then I started getting a folder with question mark on startup. After that I started getting a continuous grey screen on startup. I tried various options like command + option + P + Q, then Command + R, etc. but did not get any response. After that I pressed option key on startup then there was a response. A lock icon appeared on screen asking for a password. I tried the MacBook password and it is not taking that password as well. I tired all the passwords I remembered but nothing worked. My cd drive is not working and also I do not have original OS disks with me now. The apple service centre told that they can resolbe it as it is a vintage model. I called apple care but they are asking 29 $ for a call Which is ridiculou. Pl. help me

Does the lock screen look like the one on this page…
http://osxdaily.com/2014/01/06/set-firmware-password-mac/
That is an EFI password - it stops the firmware accepting ANY startup commands so you cannot boot from other media or use the startup keys to get into recovery mode, single user mode, target disk mode etc.
If you can't remember the password you will need to remove the battery & leave it unpowered for a few days. If you are lucky it will reset. If it doesn't reset you need to open the case & remove the internal clock battery. Not something anyone should do without the skills to work on electronics - take it to an Apple Store or an Apple approved service centre would be my advice.
It is also possible that you have Filevault password instead of an EFI password - did you need to enter a password after every reboot before the OS failed. This shouldn't be confused with a normal user account password.
If you have Filevault enabled you can still try booting into recovery mode, but you must enter the password to repair the boot disk.
The 'question mark folder' means it cannot find an OS that is bootable - it need to be repaired but you can't get to recovery mode without the EFI password - a catch 22 situation.
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See Here > http://support.apple.com/kb/ts2570

Blank grey screen on startup issue

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