Endless restart after spinning gear

I've got a MacBook Pro that continually restarts after about 45 seconds on the spinning gear at the gray Apple start-up screen. I've tried:
1. Holding shift on start-up
2. Resetting PRAM
3. Running DiskWarrior from the machine, but it says it can't rebuild because of a disk error or something
4. Running DiskWarrior off another Mac through Target Mode on the MBP.
I'm still currently running #4, but it's been going for a good 12 hours and so far the "Speed reduced by disk malfunction" is at 155 and is still "locating directory data".
I need to get some files off of the machine which is why I'm willing to wait this long.
Is doing an archive and install the next step? Is there a change that will corrupt whatever is going on more?
Any help is appreciated.
Thanks everyone.

You cannot do an Archive and Install on a drive with a damaged directory such as yours (assuming there aren't more extensive problems.) All you can do is reformat the drive unless DW is successful in repairing it.
Basics of File Recovery
If you stop using the drive it's possible to recover files that have not been overwritten with recovery software such as Data Rescue II, File Salvage or TechTool Pro. Each of the preceding come on bootable CDs to enable usage without risk of writing more data to the hard drive.
The longer the hard drive remains in use and data are written to it, the greater the risk your files will be overwritten.
Also visit The XLab FAQs and read the FAQ on Data Recovery.
In the future I suggest you adopt a backup strategy:
Basic Backup
Get an external Firewire drive at least equal in size to the internal hard drive and make (and maintain) a bootable clone/backup. You can make a bootable clone using the Restore option of Disk Utility. You can also make and maintain clones with good backup software. My personal recommendations are (order is not significant):
1. Retrospect Desktop (Commercial - not yet universal binary)
2. Synchronize! Pro X (Commercial)
3. Synk (Backup, Standard, or Pro)
4. Deja Vu (Shareware)
5. PsynchX 2.1.1 and RsyncX 2.1 (Freeware)
6. Carbon Copy Cloner (Freeware - 3.0 is a Universal Binary)
7. SuperDuper! (Commercial)
8. Intego Personal Backup (Commercial)
9. Data Backup (Commercial)
The following utilities can also be used for backup, but cannot create bootable clones:
1. Backup (requires a .Mac account with Apple both to get the software and to use it.)
2. Toast
3. Impression
4. arRSync
Apple's Backup is a full backup tool capable of also backing up across multiple media such as CD/DVD. However, it cannot create bootable backups. It is primarily an "archiving" utility as are the other two.
Impression and Toast are disk image based backups, only. Particularly useful if you need to backup to CD/DVD across multiple media.
Visit The XLab FAQs and read the FAQs on maintenance, optimization, virus protection, and backup and restore. Also read How to Back Up and Restore Your Files.
Although you can buy a complete FireWire drive system, you can also put one together if you are so inclined. It's relatively easy and only requires a Phillips head screwdriver (typically.) You can purchase hard drives separately. This gives you an opportunity to shop for the best prices on a hard drive of your choice. Reliable brands include Seagate, Hitachi, Western Digital, Toshiba, and Fujitsu. You can find reviews and benchmarks on many drives at Storage Review.
Enclosures for FireWire and USB are readily available. You can find only FireWire enclosures, only USB enclosures, and enclosures that feature multiple ports. I would stress getting enclosures that use the Oxford chipsets (911, 921, 922, for example.) You can find enclosures at places such as;
Cool Drives
OWC
WiebeTech
Firewire Direct
California Drives
NewEgg
All you need do is remove a case cover, mount the hard drive in the enclosure and connect the cables, then re-attach the case cover. Usually the only tool required is a small or medium Phillips screwdriver.

Similar Messages

Sunfire X2250 endless restarting after putting on all 'security' updates

Hello all, yeserday I did a fresh Solaris install and once that was done i ran updatemanager. I selected only the 'security' updates. They downloaded and then installed. I then got a screen prompted me to reboot, so i ticked the box and let the machine do its thing. So the machine goes through and installs the remaining patches and the reboots. Upon reboot right after grub where i select Solaris to boot i get the Sun solaris copyright screen and right after that a bunch of 'unknown symbol' messages all over the place. The machine doesn't even get back to the desktop or login and enters maintenace mode. I was stuck at this point, I didn't know what to do and couldn't go any further and so I did a complete reinstall of the OS again. Once it came back up I again ran updatemanager and selected only the 'security' updates. It did the same thing again! upon the shutdown/reboot sequence the system hangs again, endless reboot loop. Why are these basic security patches messing up the machine? is there a known bad patch that bonks everything? I now have everything reinstalled again (3rd OS reinstall) and it's running great but i'm scared to run the patches again. Can anyone please help or provide an explaination? thank you very much in advance

Thanks for your reply, scapesuiter.
I suppose i can rule out third party software, as, after i reinstalled my OS after the first freezing (after 2007-003), i did not add anything else. At that point there was nothing on my computer but what came on the original install disks. I tried downloading and installing 2007-003 again and the same thing happened, and i had to reinstall again.
However, i do have 1GB RAM that i did not order from Apple. My computer originally came with 512 but i bought more some time ago (can't remember exactly when).
I also bought a new hard drive, also not from Apple, at around the same time.
But i should say again that i've had no problems since getting the new hardware, other than with these particular security updates (2007-003 and 2006-007). All the other security updates went well, as well as all other software updates.
(I also did a hardware check with my Apple Hardware Test disk and it indicated that everything was working fine.)
PowerBook G4 Mac OS X (10.3.9) Ti 800MHz 1GBRAM 100GB Internal Drive

Computer only shows progress bar on startup (spinning gear) after PRAM wipe

I used to work for a company that was trained by Apple years ago, but this issue is one I had never seen.
My computer was running a bit slow, so I chose restart from the Apple menu and then performed a PRAM reset. When my computer was booting back up, it just stays on the progress wheel (spinning gear) and after about 1 and a half minutes it restarts again. When I was working there, we were told that it was searching for the hard drive to boot up to.
I've tried another PRAM reset and an SMC reset. No change.
Also Option key on startup to choose my hard drive as the startup location. No change.
I booted up to my Windows partition and it booted up fine, with boot camp still working properly. However, it said it recovered from a fatal error. No change on mac side.
Tried Verbose mode and a force disk check. Nothing wrong with Mac HD volume.
If it were a hard drive crash, the Windows side wouldn't work, correct?
So is there any way I can fix this without taking it into an Apple store?
My Applecare Protection is now up, and funds are lacking.

Welcome to the Apple discussions.
Find your original OS X disks that came with your system. Insert the first one and reboot holding the C key down, which will cause it to boot from the OS X disk. From the utilities menu bar, bring up Disk Utility and run repair disk on the internal hard drive. While there, also repair permissions. Does repair disk give you any error messages? I know this will sound repetitive to doing the check disk from the boot volume, however, let's be sure it's not a hard drive issue.
Then reboot holding the D key down, this should bring up the Apple hardware test. When prompted, run the extended test. Does this indicate any hardware problems?

Persistent spinning gears after factory reset. Tri...

Hi, I factory reset my phone today through the settings menu. I was having a minor problem after installing the most recent update last night and decided reluctantly that a hard reset might iron out the problems, though I wasn't looking forward to reinstalling all my apps and re-entering my info. Anyway, the phone is stuck on spinning gears and has been for hours. I see that others were having the same problem so I tried some of the solutions here. I held the volume down and power buttons simultaneously and let the phone restart. I let the power drain out and restarted it by plugging it into a charger as outlined in another post. I held the volume down button and restarted it in the hopes of seeing an exclaimation mark (!), but no joy. I held the volume down, power and camera buttons, let go of power after the phone vibrated and let go of the rest after five seconds and nothing. Can anyone help, please?

This seemed to work for me:
It took quite a few attempts, but persitance paid off. Best of luck.
http://lumia920spinninggears.blogspot.in/2013/07/get-rid-of-spinning-gears-screen-of.html#comment-fo... Monday, July 8, 2013
Get rid of Spinning gears Screen of lumia 920... A Solution that is 100% working
Once my Lumia 920 was messed up with lots of applications and I thought of Reset it from settings menu. When phone restarted, it struck at Spinning Gears screen. I waited for 20 minutes and then i took that to Nokia Care. The Care centre was going to close in evening and they said it takes 30-45 minutes to reboot. I came back, waited for 2 hours but phone was still struck at spinning gears. Battery got drained automatically, i plugged the charger and after some time, spinning gears started again . I waited for 30 minutes again and nothing happened and then I found the solution from Net and that works perfectly.... wolla phone is back to life..Ahhh.
Solution :
( please read the steps first and then perform) :
1. While gears are spinning, Press VOLUME DOWN and POWER BUTTON together, keep pressed till phone goes blank, vibrates and NOKIA appears and then release the buttons.
2. Immediately press following buttons in sequence ONE by ONE i.e. press release..press release :
VOLUME UP
VOLUME DOWN
POWER
VOLUME DOWN
after this, phone will restart or gears will continue to spin or you will feel you are struck at NOKIA...but it wont take more than 5 minutes and your phone will be back to life.
I DID IT and you will also.. Enjoy.
Please share if u find it useful.

HT1455 I have started my computer in safe mode as recommended but not long after the grey Apple icon appears with the spinning gear it automatically shuts down! any suggestions?

I have started my computer in safe mode as recommended but not long after the grey Apple icon appears with the spinning gear it automatically shuts down! any suggestions?

Try these options:
Credit Kappy.
This support article addresses a 'blue scree';
http://support.apple.com/kb/PH7212
Ciao.

MacBook Pro won't boot after trying to install 10.7.3 update. Start up stalls at Apple logo and spinning gear.

MacBook Pro won't boot after trying to install 10.7.3 update. Start up stalls at Apple logo and spinning gear. Computer won't even start in safe mode.

My daughter's MacBook Pro was doing exactly the same thing. I don't know if it had anything to do with the latest update. She called me about a week ago saying that her MacBook began running slower by the day . She then called me Friday and told me that it wouldn't get past the gray screen and the gear just kept on spinning. I did everything I could over the phone including Safe mode which it wouldn't go into and thought maybe it was the hard drive. She took it to the Apple store. Originally, they also thought it was the hard drive. It ended up being a corrupted operating system (Lion). Apple genius simply re-installed Lion and she's back up and running. Good thing she backed up right before it crapped out. She'll be restoring everything tonight. Don't know if re-installing Lion will help your situation, but it did the trick for my daughter.

Spinning gear on startup after update

After updating my mac mini to OS 10.9 all I get is the spinning gear upon startup. Tried booting in safe mode but got the same result. Is there a way to fix this without reinstalling the OS. Thanks

According to the link below, this is a problem with the display server crashing and that you can boot the Mini if you unplug the display, give it a few minutes, and then plug in the display:
http://medievalcode.com/blog/2013/07/30/osx-mavericks-developer-preview-4-boot-s tuck-on-wheel/

After successful restore, spinning gear at startup

I have a MacBook Pro with a new HD (free repair from Apple). Got it home and restored my last Time Machine back up. It reported a successful restore. Upon restart all I get is the grey apple logo and spinning gear. It never starts up. What am I doing wrong?

If you found no solutions to your problem(s) listed in the various Knowledge Base Articles see if the following suggestions are of any help:
Except for the keyboard & mouse, disconnect all devices/peripherals from your computer.
Step 1: Restart into Safe Mode by holding down the Shift key during startup. The comp will run a complete & lengthy file systtem check, then start up w/only the required kerenel extensions & w/o running any Startup items that you installed.
Try starting up normally again. If you are still stalling, restart in Safe Mode & move on to Step 2........... Mac OS X: Starting up in Safe Mode
Step 2: Open Library>Startup items folder-the root level Library, not the one in your user name folder. Look for potentially problematic 3rd party items such as virus scanning software components, etc. Remove 1 or more items to a location outside the Library folder, such as the Desktop, then restart normally & see if your Mac stalls. It it does, try removing all the items in the Startup items folder & restart. If all’s now well, place the items back into the Startup items folder 1 by 1, restarting each time you put one back. If and/or when the stall resurfaces, you just identified the faulty component. If the above does not work, then it’s time to move on to Step 3.................
Step 3: WARNING-This step can be tedious-removing .plist files from the /Library/Preferences folder. Remove the entire Preferences folder from the Library folder on your startup drive then place the files back 1 by 1 until you see the problem return. *The Mac will automatically create a new Preferences folder in the Library folder*Alternatively, you can take half of the items out (all non-Apple .plist file, for example), restart to see if your Mac stalls, then move to a smaller set of items, repeatingn the process until the culprit is found. Or you can use Preferential Treatment which is a FREE utility that does all the work for you.
==============
http://docs.info.apple.com/article.html?artnum=301287 My computer stops responding during startup
Boot up from your install DVD and run "Repair Disk" from the Utility menu.
If none of the above works, return MBP to repair shop ASAP.

Stuck at spinning gear after Security Update

Hi all,
I recently installed the latest Security update, and after the reboot, the Mac is hanging on the gray screen with the Apple Logo and the spinning gear. I noticed before rebooting that "ls" was seg faulting.
I've seen similar reports here, so I'll head off the expected reply (as per http://discussions.apple.com/thread.jspa?threadID=1849702&tstart=0) -- I don't have another Mac around.
I had 25GB free of 150 total, so unlike other reports I've browsed, disk space is not likely to be an issue.

To Apple Discussions!
Except for the keyboard & mouse disconnect all devices from the computer & try the suggestions mentioned in Article http://docs.info.apple.com/article.html?artnum=301287 My computer stops responding during startup
Are you aware that you installed the security update on an outdated OS? That may be the issue you're having. Strongly recommend that you update your OS and install all the other updates that goes along w/it.

Grey screen with spinning gear after downloaded maverick from snow leopard.

I have downloaded a osx maverick from my original snow leopard. It downloaded successfully but by the time need to restart,the grey screen appear with a spinning gear without any further progress,it jz hang there. What should I do? I have tried to re-download it for three times,it still the same. I have performed a disk utility repair, safe boot,nvram/pram reset but I haven't re-install it from a disk. Can anybody tell me what to do further? I'm not a computer genius.

Have you seen this Apple note on gray screen/spinning wheel boots?

After Time Machine restore,now apple logo and spinning gear

Ok, so my iMac crashed recently. I used Time Machine to restore. I got the "Successful" message,and clicked to reboot. Upon re-boot, it gets to the grey screen with the apple logo and the spinning gear and it freezes up there. I've turned off and on numerous times and get nothing different. I'm frustrated to say the least....
I know I've seen a topic here somewhere similar to this, but can't find it now. Is there anyone out there that can help me figure this out? I've done the disc utility and everything checks out fine...
Thanks in advance

Does it boot into Safe Mode?
If not, does it boot into Recovery System? If so, launch Disk Utility there and repair the HDD.

Upgrade from 10.3.9 to 10.4.3 - Problems freezing/spinning gear

Hello and Happy Holidays,
I have an 867mHz Titanium G4 Powerbook w/1gig memory, and the stock 30 gig hd. Recently, I upgraded my OS from 10.3.9 to 10.4.3. Since then, I have had weekly freeze-ups and perpetual spinning gears at startup.
Specifically, the freeze-ups occur after the computer has been asleep over night (no joke intended) and awakened. The only way out of this freeze is to restart the powerbook, which then leads to a continuous spinning gear. After this, it becomes necessary to reboot from the Tiger cd, and repair permissions. Upon concluding this step, the computer is operational once again.
Significantly, in 10.3.9 the computer ran beautifully with nary a problem, so I must conclude that the problem is Tiger–not the Tibook. Anyone with some useful thoughts on this will be greatly appreciated. Thanks.
Glenn
PowerBook G4 867 mHz 1gig ram Mac OS X (10.3.9)

A Tiger upgrade over Panther hasn't been the best way to go.
Clone your exisiting boot drive to a blank external drive using Carbon Copy Cloner (visit their forums)
Next do a Erase w/Zero option your internal and reinstall Tiger fresh (c boot from installer cd and elect Disk Utility from the installer menu)
Update completely and then install Tiger ready apps from fresh sources.
Aviod using Migration Assistant, it misses copy protection and other things, copies blindly, take the time to clean house properly.
Install files from the clone and when your set then erase the clone and make a new clone from your optimal OS install.
Spotlight and Dashboard will take some CPU here and there and is easily disabled using software by searching Macupdate.com
Tiger 10.4.1 has tested to perform better than Panther 10.3.9 in User Interface and CPU (on some machines)

Gray screen, apple logo and spinning gear hang at start up

after a lengthy round of "bejeweled", i let my imac fall into screen saver mode. when i tried to log back in, i tapped the mouse and the imac flashed as it does when actuated outside a dialogue without clicking the okay button, and immediately returned to screen saver. i then manually shut down and restarted to the gray screen, apple logo and spinning gear hang. i then inserted the leopard install dvd, manually shut down and restarted pressing the option key and selected the install disc. it booted as usual. i selected the language preferred, used the utility drop down menu and selected DU, then selected the hard drive and verify permissions to reveal a pop up "Error: The underlying task reported failure on exit. Permissions verification complete." i immediately selected repair disc, and breathed a sigh of relief with the notification "appears to be ok". then utilities/start up disc/macintosh hd/restart. still get the hang. i have repeated this process several times, also resetting the PRAM as well to the infinite hang. as a matter of fact, the gear has been spinning the entire time creating this post. needless to say, i am truly at a loss. SOS!!!!!!! Please!!!!! SEND LAWYERS, GUNS AND MONEY!!!!

i have perused some of the threads posted per this topic and decided to attempt an "archive and install." i also have a 620gig acomdata external drive with close to a carbon copy of my internal. a few short minutes into the install, the imac reveals a pop up stating it cannot install some files on the hard drive, contact the software manufacturer or restart and try to install again. the internal drive is a 160gig with only about 60gigs of room, so i tried to archive and install to the acomdata instead as it has 180 gig of free space. i get the exact same dialogue once again. restart and a third attempt only archive and install will not highlight, only first time and/or erase and install. further, start up disc shows only the install disc and network as choices. so i attempt first time install on both drives and get the same pop up message again. DU recognizes both drives although verify/repair permissions does not highlight, but not start up disc.
i'm trying not to become frantic, but my patience is threadbare. i am in desperate need of sound advice as to what i need to do.
thanks again in advance,
bradley

Brand new MacBook Pro doesn't get past grey screen (with spinning gear)

Hello,
I'm a new Apple customer - I bought a new 15" MacBook Pro during the Black Friday sale last week. Since purchase, I've installed the software I needed (Office, CS4) and have used it to browse the web and write emails.
Today when I tried to use it, I simply got to the grey screen with the Apple logo on it and the spinning gear device underneath - got absolutely no further.
I have done the following (running from mains adaptor - but the battery indicator is reporting 7 lights anyhow):
1. Boot from the OSX Install Disc, and run the disc repair utility. It reported no problems found. Restarted... same problem.
2. Boot holding down SHIFT to go into safe mode. Underneath the spinning gears, a progress bar filled up to 100% and then disappeared; leaving the grey screen, logo, and spinning gears. Nothing further.
3. Boot holding Option, P, R as per the manual to reset the PRAM. According to the manual there should have been a chime/beep - there wasn't. It just sits on the grey screen, logo, spinning gears. Nothing further.
Right now I've got a £1300 MacBook Pro less than a week old and it appears to have just packed up.
Am I missing anything here, or should I just return it?
Thanks,
Chris

Definitely take it back!
My friend bought a new iMac from the Regents St. store a few weeks ago, just before the update to the new models came out, and after a week she couldn't get it to boot. I felt very embarrassed as I had persuaded to her to switch to Mac after years of PC woes, so a broken mac after a week didn't look do me any favours. The genius guys didn't mess around, they took back the dead one and gave her a new one, this time she got the new version, they also threw in iWork free as a good will gesture. New one is running fine.
If you haven't already got Applecare, I highly recommend buying it within the next 12 months. I have needed it on a couple of occasions after the standard warranty ran out and the tech support has been brilliant, got me working again no quibbles.

My iMacG5 will only boot to white screen, gray apple and spinning gear. Help?

My iMacG5 will only boot to white screen, gray apple and spinning gear. Help?
Also not totally sure if it's an Intel based computer, but that's what I recall. Any way to check, since I can't get to About This Mac window?
It's running on OSX Leopard 10.5.4
First symptom = running slowly - then it kind of froze with color wheel spinning - thought a forced shut down would help - help power button til off, then white screen, gray apple and spinning gear.
Have tried...
1. Turn off the computer by choosing Shut Down from the Apple menu, or by holding the power button until the computer turns off.
2. Unplug all cables from the computer, including the power cord.
3. Wait 10 seconds.
4. Plug in the power cord while simultaneously pressing and holding the power button on the back of the computer.
5. Let go of the power button.
6. Press the power button once more to start up your iMac.
Then try booting from your install disc again.
- No change
And...
Booting From An OS X Installer Disc
1. Insert OS X Installer Disc into the optical drive.
2. Restart the computer.
3. Immediately after the chime press and hold down the "C" key.
4. Release the key when the spinning gear below the dark gray Apple logo
appears.
5. Wait for installer to finish loading.
- The fan just got louder.
Thanks for your help.

You need to do an Erase and Install or an Archive and Install depending on whether the hard drive is OK or needs to be reformatted.
Start by booting from your Leopard DVD. The rest is just following directions.
How to Perform an Archive and Install
An Archive and Install will NOT erase your hard drive, but you must have sufficient free space for a second OS X installation which could be from 3-9 GBs depending upon the version of OS X and selected installation options. The free space requirement is over and above normal free space requirements which should be at least 6-10 GBs. Read all the linked references carefully before proceeding.
1. Be sure to use Disk Utility first to repair the disk before performing the Archive and Install.
Repairing the Hard Drive and Permissions
Boot from your OS X 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 Installer menu (Utilities menu for Tiger, Leopard or Snow Leopard.) 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. Now restart normally.
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. Do not proceed with an Archive and Install if DU reports errors it cannot fix. In that case use Disk Warrior and/or TechTool Pro to repair the hard drive. If neither can repair the drive, then you will have to erase the drive and reinstall from scratch.
3. Boot from your OS X Installer disc. After the installer loads select your language and click on the Continue button. When you reach the screen to select a destination drive click once on the destination drive then click on the Option button. Select the Archive and Install option. You have an option to preserve users and network preferences. Only select this option if you are sure you have no corrupted files in your user accounts. Otherwise leave this option unchecked. Click on the OK button and continue with the OS X Installation.
4. Upon completion of the Archive and Install you will have a Previous System Folder in the root directory. You should retain the PSF until you are sure you do not need to manually transfer any items from the PSF to your newly installed system.
5. After moving any items you want to keep from the PSF you should delete it. You can back it up if you prefer, but you must delete it from the hard drive.
6. You can now download a Combo Updater directly from Apple's download site to update your new system to the desired version as well as install any security or other updates. You can also do this using Software Update.

Endless restart after spinning gear

Similar Messages

Maybe you are looking for