Blue/Grey screen on start

After Herd Drive replacement and reinstalling programmes from Time Capsul, on start up I get first a grey screen and then a blue screen for some time after which the system runs normally.
Before the hard drive was replaced the system started up much quicker than now and I would like to get back to that state.

Try performing a safe boot (restart computer and hold the left shift key until the grey Apple logo appears. After you reach the desktop open System Prefs, select Startup Disk and make sure the drive is selected as the startup drive. Then restart.
Selecting a startup disk will speed up the initial boot time (if one wasn't already selected) and rebooting in Safe Mode will repair the disk if it needed it and clear all the caches. A damaged cache can cause that blue screen flash before the Finder appears.

Similar Messages

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    Hi everyone. Sorry for the lengthy post, but hopefully you can help me - I've spent a lot of time on the boards already, but hoped you could clarify some things.
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    So some questions:
    1) Is it possible that an interrupted time machine backup will bork the drive to the point where it wont boot? (See back-story below). I wouldn't have thought so, but prove me wrong.
    2) Should I be able to boot from the install disk if the harddrive is stuffed?
    3) If it is hardware, it's either the logic board or the drive. Is there any way to determine what it is (eg: is it possible to do a remote hardware test?)
    Edit: Just tried mounting the drive in target disk mode using an iBook, but it wouldn't mount. Powerbook displays a black screen.
    Oh, and I should point out that this is well out of warranty and any fixes would have to be cheap : ). Basically I need to determine if it's the drive or the logic board, preferably without having to buy and install a new drive when it may not be the problem.
    Any help or advice would be appreciated.
    Cheers
    - Ben
    Here's the back story if it's any help; recently upgraded to 10.5, created a base install disk image of all installed and registered apps (in the event that my drive failed). Copied data etc from the previous system over. It ran fine for a few days. This morning I ran time machine for the first time, left the computer for a while, came back and the screen was black (as if it was just displaying black, as opposed to off). Thinking it was just a display issue (which I've seen before), I put the system to sleep (power button, then 's'), woke it up again; still black. So I forced a shut down (wouldn't allow me to do a normal shut down, because dialogue boxes must have been preventing it) and on boot I got the grey screen.
    -------

    Hi Ben W. I don't have a good answer for you, but based on your information and what you've done, I think I would try starting the machine after disconnecting the harddrive. That requires taking the top off first, for which instructions are on ifixit.com.
    I can conjecture that a blown HD is preventing normal operation, perhaps sucking the power down, disrupting the optical drive, etc. This is purely conjecture, but costs you nothing but your time. If this turns out to be the case, I figure the optical drive should start responding again (hold C key during reboot, etc).

  • My old MBP (2005) often crashes, freezes or shows grey screen at start up. Also track pad often does not work. I have re fomatted the HD and reinstalled system but to no avail. Genius bar says possible faulty HD, but suspect logic board, any ides any body

    My old 17" MBP (2005) often crashes, freezes or shows grey screen at start up. Also track pad often does not work. I have re fomatted the HD and reinstalled system but to no avail. Genius bar says possible faulty HD, but I suspect logic board. All checks out OK on the Apple Diagnostic bench. Can a Logic board go intermittant?? Any Ideas any body??

    Ive repaired 1000s of laptops over the years (translate: diagnose and replace parts).
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    other than becoming obsolete at some point, there isnt really any "will spoil on" data like Milk for solid state computer parts, ....alas.
    You can have a $5000 laptop die in 4 months, and a junker one keep kicking after 10 years.... Ive seen that firsthand countless times.
    Common logic dictates that "very expensive = long life" in computers,..... but all the repair people will tell you just the opposite.
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  • I'm getting the grey screen during start up and can't boot the computer. I did a cmnd R but worried it would automatically wipe my hard drive and reinstall OS.  Is there a risk at cmnd R will result in wiped HD without me actively making that choice?

    I'm getting the grey screen during start up and can't boot the computer - MacBook Pro with lion.
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    Repair the Hard Drive and Permissions - Mavericks, Lion/Mountain Lion
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    OS X Mavericks- Reinstall OS X
    OS X Mountain Lion- Reinstall OS X
         Note: You will need an active Internet connection. I suggest using Ethernet if possible because it is
                    three times faster than wireless.

  • Imac have grey screen at start up.

    Have grey screen at start with question mark in folder. Have reset PRAM. Have tried start from disk and can not. Need help.

    Your drive is shot, time for a new one. The question mark means the computer can't find a drive to boot from. If you have an external clone, you could try booting from that.

  • 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

  • Blank Grey Screen on start up cannot access MAC OSX frozen up

    Blank grey screen on start up Cannot get into the Mac osx side, even if I do not hold down the option key it goes to the Windows side but key boad / mouse does not work. I want to get into the mac side so I can delete the windows partition. HELP PLEASE!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

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

  • My G4 Apple PowerBook will not boot further than pale blue/grey screen displaying "flashing file symbol / flashing ?"

    My G4 Apple PowerBook will not boot further than pale blue/grey screen displaying "flashing file symbol / flashing ?"
    Last previous action:  Used Firewire cable and "Target Mode" to copy files from G4 eMac to the PowerBook.
    I worked from the eMac to the PowerBook, making the PowerBook the "Target".      Files seemed to transfer OK.     Won't boot from InstallDisc.  Holding down T on startup results in Target mode screen.   I have a G4 iMac and a G4 eMac.    Can I use either of these with Firewire cable to boot-up my PowerBook ?
    I'm new to using this Communities & Forums Help.   Can someone please help me to get going again ! !     Thanks for your time.  Graflood

    Hello,
    It sounds to me like the PowerBook is stuck in target disk mode.
    It's expecting the iMac/eMac to be there when booting. Seeming it's not attached, it will show a flashing folder.
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  • GREY SCREEN ON START UP WITH FOLDER WITH ? IN IT?

    keeping getting a grey screen on start up, with a folder with a question mark in it?

    Go step by step and test.
    http://support.apple.com/kb/ts1440
    Startup Manager to select Startup disk.
    http://support.apple.com/kb/HT1310
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  • Blue/grey screen

    i have a iMac with Sniw Leopard installed. Yesterday Chrome kept crashing so I wanted to restart computer. It chimes and I hear fan but goes to blue screen and grey screen with the spinny thing and won't go any further. I put the install DVD in and held "c" not luck. And now I can't get the DVD out.  any ideas? I'm over 70 miles from any Apple stores!.

    Follow each of the steps in Apple's Mac OS X: Gray screen appears during startup to the letter, if the machine still won't start up then the final step says to visit your local Apple Store or AASP.

  • Grey Screen on Start up and Hard disk not working

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    thanks for your reply. I took my powerbook to 2 apple authorized technical service and both of them told me that they couldn't get the data using disk warrior.
    I already removed the hard drive and replace it with a new one. However I still want to recover data. I plug the hard drive to my home powermac with a usb connector and using disk utility and terminal i was able to "see" the drive but not mount it. In disk utility the drive appears as 0 bytes.
    I want to try using Terminal or Single user mode to mount the hard drive, and/or repair it and try to recover some important files that I urgently need. Do you know how?

  • Why does my 27" iMac running OS 10.6.8 hang on the grey screen at start up?

    My 27" iMac, running OS 10.6.8, has started running slowly when loading Apps and when running Safari. Also, when powered, on It has started stopping on the grey screen before the Apple logo displays. To get past this I must turn the Mac off and then back on. Does anyone know what would be causing this behaviour and what I should try for a fix?

    It could be a sign of an impending harddrive failure. If you don't backup regularly, I would strongly suggest you start. Don't run ANY anti-virus software as it really messes with your system and if you do regular software updates you'll be fine there.
    OnyX for MAC is a good application to clean out those cob webs:
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    http://www.macupdate.com/app/mac/11582/onyx
    http://helpdesk.hsc.unt.edu/wp-content/uploads/2010/02/Mac-OS-X-10.6-run-OnyX.pd f

  • Mac freezes, shows grey screen then starts back up

    For the past two weeks I have had the issue of my iMac suddenly freezing for a few seconds and then it turns to a grey screen for a few more seconds before it starts back up on my user area.
    All programs get shut down (which is annoying as I do graphic design so I'm usually on PS or AI and lose work I've done since last save). Programs which are set to start up automatically upon login do not start up. Thankfully firefox will start back up when I click it and continue from all the tabs I had open.
    I cannot seem to find a source for this to be happening... The programs which are always running when this has happened previously are: Mac Mail, finder, Messages, Spotify, Wacom Desktop Center. This morning it happened when none of my adobe programs were running.
    Has anyone had the same issue or knows what's up?
    I tried to go to apple support but it said I need to pay £35 for someone to answer my question.
    27" iMac
    Late 2012
    16GB
    1TB storage with 431gb free
    running OSX10.8.5

    Hi,
    Try ; Intel-based Macs: Resetting the System Management Controller (SMC)
    and : About NVRAM and PRAM
    to ensure the proper operation of the SMC.
    and if still issues persist,  try: OS X: What is Safe Boot, Safe Mode?
    Cheers

  • Grey screen on start up

    hey guys
    i've got a big problem with my mac.. my mum dropped my laptop from the chair while it is opened and turned on.
    It hung, so i did a cold reboot by pressing the power on button.. When it started up.. it just showed a grey screen then a folder with a question mark in it.
    I have 3 partitions inside it. I took the harddisk out and put it in an external drive and plugged it into another mac. Surprisingly and thankfully 2 of my partitions are working. The partition (main) that contains the mac os x leopard software doesn't appear on my friend's macbookpro.
    So i reinserted the harddisk and inserted the leopard dvd to enter disk utility.
    My partition was initially named "Mac OS X" is now named disk0s2 and when i tried to verify or repair disk.. it said:
    First Aid Failed
    Disk Utility stopped repairing "disk0s2" because the following error was encountered:
    Filesystem Verify or repair failed.
    Under the information:::> Mount Point: Not Mounted
    Any idea what i can do to retrieve the files?
    External HDD. failed.
    Repair Failed.
    Should i download mac recovery programs? any recommendations?
    Message was edited by: winzee

    I pretty much agree with the other posters. There's a slight chance that file recovery software could recover some of your data, but you'd be betting money on that possibility with no assurance of success.
    Here are some possibilities:
    - Disk Warrior (http://www.alsoft.com/)
    - Stellar Phoenix Macintosh Data Recovery (http://www.macintosh-data-recovery.com/)
    - Boomerang Data Recovery Software (http://www.boomdrs.com/)
    - Data Rescue II (http://www.prosofteng.com/products/data_rescue.php)

  • My MacBook Pro shows a grey screen  at start-up how do I fix this problem?

    My MacBook Pro shows a grey screen when I try to login and won't go onto my homepage. Why has this happened and how do I fix it?

    Take each of these steps that you haven't already tried. Stop when the problem is resolved.
    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.

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