Desperate, won't boot. Screen shows file folder with question mark??

I'm out of applecare warranty. My PB G4 won't boot. All I get is a gray screen with a small file folder in the center that has a question mark alternating with a little smiling face. Does this mean that my hard drive is fried and the system can't find my OS X software to boot from?
Is there anything that I can do to remedy this? I'm desperate. This post is being performed with a Dell using Windows

If the drive appears in Disk Utility then it isn't dead. That you cannot repair it nor install the OS suggests that there's serious damage to the directory if not the partition table. If you haven't backed up recently and have data you really don't want to lose, it might be worth getting DiskWarrior to attempt repairing the drive or retrieving some data. No guarantees.
Whether you do try that or not, eventually it's back to rebooting with the CD and returning to Disk Utility. Click on the erase tab. Do you have that option? If not, click on the partition tab and select 1 partition scheme and try that. If you can erase or partition the drive you will, of course, have erased everything.
If you succeed only time will tell if the drive went south because of a hardware issue or software. So, were I you, I'd become very careful about frequently backing up the important info on your computer.

Similar Messages

IMac won't boot and has flashing folder with question mark on gray screen

I just bought a new iMac. I have been trying all week (with no success) to transfer files and apps from my previous iMac. The last time I tried to transfer, I used target mode on the old computer. It looked as if it was finally working, so I left with 2+ hours remaining on the transfer. When I returned, the computer was frozen and nothing would work. So I held the power button to turn it off. When I tried to turn it back on, there was only a gray screen with a flashing folder with a question mark. I feel like I have tried everything listed in other discussions. The only thing I am not able to try is to reinstall Lion because the new computer did NOT come with an OSX disc of any type. Any suggestions?

Go to > OS X Lion: About Lion Recovery

I powered up my macbook and there is a file folder with question mark on the screen flashing. What does that mean?

Powered up Mac book and screen showing file folder with question mark flashing?

A flashing question mark appears when you start your Mac
Hope that solves your issue.

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.

Help please! My macbook air (2015) startup showed a folder with question mark so i tried "Command R" for internet recovery but after few minutes it stopped and showed error.. Please hepl me!

Help please! My macbook air (2015) startup showed a folder with question mark so i tried "Command R" for internet recovery but after few minutes it stopped and showed error.. Please hepl me!

Startup – Question Mark
Startup Issues - Resolve
Startup Issues - Resolve (2)
Startup Issues - Resolve (3)

Switched on my imac 24inch intel based and all I get on screen is a folder with question mark flashing,I had backup on external hard drive but when I try to reinstall it can not find my mac hard drive

Hi when I started my intel based imac this morning all I am getting is a folder with question mark in the middle flashing,I have external hard drive with backup,but when run disc utilities it does not show my mac hard drive.hope someone can help.(it's running mountain lion, well it was)

Try starting up your Mac while holding down the Option key. That should prompt the Startup Manager window where you can select the startup disk then click Restart.
The question mark folder indicates your Mac cannot find a system folder to boot from.
A flashing question mark appears when you start your Mac

Restarted and received a blinking file folder with question mark image.

I left my computer sitting while I was working on homework long enough for the screen saver to come on (I'm not sure exactly how long it was). Earlier in the day, I had to force quit safari and then later it unexpectedly quit several times. While my computer was sitting, it looked like it does when it restarts. I waited until it started to come back up, and instead of coming up to the desktop, it came up with a blinking file folder and question mark. I had not done anything unusual with it, and had not tried to restore it. My dad was working on trying to fix it, and inserted the OS X disk. When the options came up, in the repair feature, the disk could not locate my harddrive. I was wondering if anyone else had encountered this problem, and if so how it was resolved. If anyone had any tips or ideas of things I could try that would be great. I can't really get it to an apple store soon, and I'm a student so my computer is very important to me. Thanks.

Mornin' John,
I also have an OWC external firewire drive that I tried to install OSX Tiger to but was told that I could not install OSX Tiger on the external drive.
What Format is that Drive? GUID/MacOS Extended? It should work if the right format.
Is there any way to run Disk Warrior from the external hard drive ... to try and rectify this issue, or at least get my data off the dead drive (if it is so)?
From the external only if you can get OSX installed.
What version is it? Do you mot have the CD?
or from my PowerBook G4
Possibly, with the MaBook in FW Target Mode
http://docs.info.apple.com/article.html?artnum=58583
If DiskWarrior can't fix it, you might try Data Rescue II...
http://www.alsoft.com/DiskWarrior/
http://www.prosofteng.com/products/data_rescue.php
(Has a Free Demo to see if it could or not, but you'll need another drive to recover to).

Large file folder with question mark is flashing on screen.

Just turned on computer for the first time and a large file folder with a question mark is flashing on the screen. I am unable to do anything and have restarted and it does the same thing. Please help!

It does this when it can't see the operating system. You didn't give much information but I'm assuming it's a brand new mini and you aren't using any external drives for the operating system. If that's the case then yes, reinstall OS X. Put your install DVD into the optical drive and reboot. As soon as you hear the chime, hold down the "C" key on your keyboard (or the Option key until the Install Disk shows up). That will force your Mac to boot from the install DVD in the optical drive.
If reinstallation isn't possible, or if the problem continues after reinstallation, then you need to exchange it for another, because something is keeping the operating system on the drive from being read.

Cannot get into mac. I get a white screen and flashing file folder with question mark inside. What can I do?

2012/13 MacBook Pro froze up, so I did a hard shut down. Now, when I try to start up, it makes 3 unusual beeps, then I get a white screen. After a couple minutes, a flashing file folder with a question mark appears and remains. What is wrong and what can I do to fix it.

Three beeps usually means a RAM or RAM slots problem. The Question Mark means there is no bootable system found.
A flashing question mark or globe appears when you start your Mac
Question (?) Mark, Blinking Folder, or Gray Screen at Startup
These are related but not identical issues. Their causes are outlined in Intel-based Mac- Startup sequence and error codes, symbols. Solutions may be found in:
A flashing question mark or globe appears when you start your Mac
Mac OS X- Gray screen appears during startup
In most cases the problems may be caused by one or more of these:
a. Problem with the computer's PRAM - See Resetting your Mac's PRAM and NVRAM.
b. Boot drive's directory has been corrupted - Repair with Disk Utility.
c. Critical system files are damaged or deleted - Reinstall OS X.
d. The disk drive is physically non-functional - Replace the hard drive.
Note that the information I have provided is what Apple recommends, If other users suggest different solutions than found here, then be sure what they recommend does not impact on your warranty, if any, or ability to get continuing Apple service.
Please don't start removing drives or changing cables unless you know what you are doing and have exhausted other non-invasive alternatives outlined here. If you perform any work yourself that is unapproved by Apple, then you will void any warranty you may have and lose all further Apple Support.
Repair the Hard Drive and Permissions
Boot from your Snow Leopard Installer disc. After the installer loads select your language and click on the Continue button. When the menu bar appears select Disk Utility from the Utilities menu. 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 installer.
If DU reports errors it cannot fix, then you will need Disk Warrior and/or Tech Tool Pro to repair the drive. If you don't have either of them or if neither of them can fix the drive, then you will need to reformat the drive and reinstall OS X.
The main difference if you are using Lion or Mountain Lion is that you must first boot from the Recovery HD. Simply boot from the Recovery HD to perform the above.
Reinstall Snow Leopard Without Erasing The drive
1. Repair the Hard Drive and Permissions
Boot from your Snow Leopard Installer disc. After the installer loads select your language and click on the Continue button. When the menu bar appears select Disk Utility from the Utilities menu. 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 installer.
If DU reports errors it cannot fix, then you will need Disk Warrior and/or Tech Tool Pro to repair the drive. If you don't have either of them or if neither of them can fix the drive, then you will need to reformat the drive and reinstall OS X.
2. Reinstall Snow Leopard
If the drive is OK then quit DU and return to the installer. Proceed with reinstalling OS X. Note that the Snow Leopard installer will not erase your drive or disturb your files. After installing a fresh copy of OS X the installer will move your Home folder, third-party applications, support items, and network preferences into the newly installed system.
Download and install Mac OS X 10.6.8 Update Combo v1.1.
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.

HELP! Gray Screen & File Folder with Question Mark!

Hello!
If anyone can offer suggestions or if you've dealt with this before I would love feedback so that we can fix this problem!
I recently converted my husband from a PC user to a Mac user (it was a happy day). A little over 1 month ago we bought a brand new 20" iMac and since then everything has gone quite smoothly, he's even said how happy he is with the switch!
Then yesterday morning as I lay sleeping in the other room a noise similar to dial up internet woke me. I went into the office to find the internet up on the screen of our iMac, Firefox wouldn't shut down so I tried force quitting, but that too did not work. Finally I pushed the power button, and went back to bed.
A few hours later as I went to check my email I powered on the iMac and got a gray screen. Nervous, I turned if off, and then back on in safe mode. I still got a gray screen but now with a file folder with a question mark inside flashing at me. Thankfully we're within the 1yr. warrenty so we took it back and they're diagnosing the problem....but I'm worried about the outcome.
Has anyone else had this problem? What was the result? What caused it? We save most everything onto external hard drives (thankfully!) so it's not as if the machine was being overloaded. It kept making that weird dial up noise too... kind of a bleeb, fans running, trying to work noise. Obviously my husband isn't so thrilled with Macs now. Any help would be greatly appreciated!! Thanks!

Welcome to Discussions - you have an intel iMac, and this is the PPC G5 forum, but even so, I would first advise you to buy Apple Care before then first year of ownership is up.
Then, I would remind you that all electronics will fail at some point, but the exact point is unknown and sometimes is much sooner than it should be. It would be interesting to hear from you what the exact failure was, there do not seem to be many reports of intel power supply failures, that seems to have been fixed since the era of the G5s.
The flashing question mark is usually a sign that the hard drive has failed and drives can fail at any point, yours may simply have some bad sectors; it could also be the logic board and again, they fail, but usually not within the first three years. Your machine may have been defective to begin with, it certainly doesn't sound as if you have been abusing it, so do please let us know what the ultimate diagnosis was.

File folder with question mark, file folder with question mark

Battery died went to turn on computer with adapter plug...
white screen with flashin file folder with a question mark???
How do i fix this?

That folder with the question mark icon means that the MacBook can't find the boot directory. That can either mean it can't find the hard drive or the Operating System data on the hard drive is somehow corrupted.
Put your install DVD into the optical drive (CD/DVD drive) and reboot. Be sure to either use the disc that came with your Mac, or, if you installed a later Mac OS X version from disc, use the newer disc. As soon as you hear the boot chime, hold down the "c" key on your keyboard (or the Option Key until the Install Disk shows up) until the apple shows up. That will force your MacBook to boot from the install DVD in the optical drive.
Or if you are running 10.7 Lion, boot from the recovery partition (Command +R on boot) and use Disk Utility to repair your OS 10.7 partition.
When it does start up, you'll see a panel asking you to choose your language. Choose your language and press the Return key on your keyboard once. It will then present you with an Installation window. Completely ignore this window and click on Utilities in the top menu and scroll down to Disk Utility and click it. When it comes up is your Hard Drive in the list on the left?
If it is, then click on the Mac OS partition of your hard drive in the left hand list. Then select the First Aid Tab and run Repair Disk. The Repair Disk button won't be available until you've clicked on the Mac OS partition on your hard drive. If that repairs any problems run it again until the green OK appears and then run Repair Permissions. After repairing use Startup Disk from the same menu to choose your hard drive for restarting from your hard drive.
If your hard drive isn’t recognized in Disk Utility then your hard drive is probably dead.

How do I get rid of file folder with question mark at startup?

Following a force quit, at startup I get, first the startup audio followed by a profile of a file folder with a question mark on it.

That folder with the question mark icon means that the MacBook can't find the boot directory. That can either mean it can't find the hard drive or the Operating System data on the hard drive is somehow corrupted.
Put your install DVD into the optical drive and reboot. As soon as you hear the boot chime, hold down the "c" key on your keyboard (or the Option key until the Install Disk shows up). That will force your MacBook to boot from the install DVD in the optical drive.
When it does start up, you'll see a panel asking you to choose your language. Just press the Return key on your keyboard once. It will then present you with an Installation window. Completely ignore this window and click on Utilities in the top menu and scroll down to Disk Utility and click it. When it comes up is your Hard Drive in the list on the left?
If it is then click on the Mac OS partition of your hard drive in the left hand list. Then select the First Aid Tab and run Repair Disk. The Repair Disk button won't be available until you've clicked on the Mac OS partition on your hard drive. If that repairs any problems run it again until the green OK appears and then run Repair Permissions.
If your hard drive isn’t recognized in Disk Utility then your hard drive is probably dead.

File Folder with Question Mark: Hard Drive Failure?

I did a search on this topic in these forums, so I think I know what's going on but want to confirm:
I shut down my MacBook Pro this morning and tried restarting it but got a blinking file folder with a question mark. Tried to restart from Disk Warrior (pressing C while restarting) but got the same thing.
Does this mean my hard drive has failed and there's no remedy I can try myself?

The flashing question mark is usually a sign that the hard drive has failed and drives can fail at any point, yours may simply have some bad sectors; it could also be the logic board. It should boot from the DiskWarrior disk though. Try again.

File folder with question mark.....

In the UK, I do not have the back up disk, i am getting the file folder with the question mark. Anyone know what i can do?

OS X version?
Read here:
http://support.apple.com/kb/TS1440

Upon restart from dead battery Macbook freezes showing gray folder with question mark. Help! Any ideas?

Upon restart from dead battery Mac Book freezes showing gray folder with blinking question mark. Help! Any guidance greatly appreciated.

Hello and welcome,
try this support site:
A flashing question mark or globe appears when you start your Mac - Apple Support
If you're lucky it just forgot where your startup disk was. If not it will be more work.

Desperate, won't boot. Screen shows file folder with question mark??

Similar Messages

Maybe you are looking for