Finder boots into previous desktop

I have had this happen 2x in the past week. After restarting my computer my desktop shows old files from a day or 2 before. Anything I was working on for the current day has disappeared and files and folders from a previous day are showing up. When I go into mail, all messages appear like they did from a previous day, and any messages that I received today are not there. When I look at the clock in the upper right, the day and time are correct but my Mac has otherwise booted into a previous day!
The first time I panicked and needed my files right away. I used time machine to recover my files. All was good after the restore with the exception of my mail messages
Ok so it happens again today, my computer restarted and it shows the desktop as it appeared from a day or 2 ago. I did not want to do a restore so I forced it to restart again. Well now it is back showing the correct desktop and today's emails, as if nothing happened
I did verify the disk using Apple's Disk Utility but I am concerned. What if I cannot get it to restart and display the correct desktop?
Very weird, almost like my machine has temporary amnesia. How can it boot up into a previous days' desktop status?!?

Disconnect all peripherals from your computer. Boot from your install disc & run _*Repair Disk*_ from the utility menu. To use the Install Mac OS X disc, insert the disc, and restart your computer while holding down the C key as it starts up.
Select your language.
Once on the desktop, select Utility in the menu bar.
Select *Disk Utility.*
Select the disk or volume in the list of disks and volumes, and then click *First Aid.*
Click _*Repair Disk.*_
Restart your computer when done.
Repair permissions after you reach the desktop-http://docs.info.apple.com/article.html?artnum=25751 and restart your computer.

Similar Messages

[SOLVED] Arch does not start into gnome desktop

I installed arch from the scratch into a new hard drive due to a disk failure in the old one. After installing it, I booted into gnome3 desktop without problems.
Today I have upgraded it by performing:
#pacman -Syu
and also I have installed some other no important packages mplayer, banshee, etc... also I have seen that my kernel has been upgraded into 3.11.4-1-ARCH fro 3.10.10-1-ARCH.
After rebooting, my arch does not boot, even in fallback mode. It starts cleaning blocks from the partitions, and then after it is done, cursor is blinking and no other messages are printed out. It stays with cursor blinking forever. I have a GUID Partition table and a LVM2 where all paritions are made.
I can log in into console by pressing CTRL+ALT+F2. Once I have prompted I have no network interfaces, only lo (loopback). If I do:
#ip link show
#ip addr list
I only get lo (loopback) interface listed, others like wifi and ethernet cable does not appear.
If I perform below:
#journalctl -xn
I do not see any problematic message, only this one:
Failed to open private bus connection
Any ideas why arch is not booting and get into gnome session (login window)?
UPDATED:
The problem is that once I have performed the full system update with:
#pacman -Syu
My kernel images has been upgraded and successfully generated into 3.11.4-1-ARCH but I have seen that my kernel, after log in to console and performing:
$uname -r
it says kernel version continues being 3.10.10-1-ARCH so at startup images genereated into 3.11.4-1-ARCH do not match so cursor remains blinking forever....
I am trying to update the kernel but now I have no internet connection, no network interfaces are shown.... so how to do this now? chrooting?
Last edited by toni (2013-10-12 18:32:10)

ewaller wrote:Check the output of uname -a and of pacman -Qi linux and ensure that the versions match. If they don't, you are somehow starting using the wrong kernel and it cannot find its modules.
You are right, see my updated post, for some reason image were successfully generated into 3.11.4-1-ARCH but kernel has not been updated and it remains in 3.10.10-1-ARCH.... so they do not match and arch does not boot.... so cursor remains blinking forever....

Can the MBP 13 boot into earlier versions of the OS via firewire?

Apologies if this is addressed elsewhere, but I can't find a definite answer.
I have the current v. of the MBP 13 (just purchased this week.) I would like to use it to boot into 10.4.x on an external drive via firewire. I've tried every which way, and it just doesn't seem to want to do it.
(I can select the disk/system in the start up disk pane, but the result is a stalled blank screen and the operation has to be aborted. The external disk also appears when starting with the option key, but when I click on it, the cursor freezes.)
This used to work perfectly with my old intel white macbook. It appears that the new MBPs can't boot into previous OSs. Is that the case? I just want to make sure it's not something I'm doing wrong.
(The reason I want to do it is that my admittedly old Adobe stuff (Photoshop/Dreamweaver/etc) won't run with 10.6 and I can't afford to upgrade it at the moment. I can still use those programs with the old macbook but it is quite literally crumbling to pieces on my lap despite layers and layers of duct tape and it's not gonna last long.)
So: can the MPB 13 boot into earlier OSs or not? Anybody know?

Is that the case?
Yes.
(48299)

Can't boot into desktop

Hi, I own an iMac 20-in early 2008. I've installed Mavericks (10.9.5) on it and it's been running perfectly being used by our accounting person. One day the computer boot up and the usual chime & apple logo shows up. The loading circle shows up indicating that it's loading all the system files etc, then when it disappears just as it's about to go to the desktop view it's stuck. The Apple logo is still there, but the display slightly dims (kinda like when colorsync/calibration kicks in).
I tried Verbose Mode (Command + V) and it loads all the kernels without a problem. Once it loaded, back to the same grey screen with Apple logo and it just stuck there.
I've tried booting into safe mode and it works fine so it's probably not hardware.
I can't start Diagnostic Test on it since I don't have the CD anymore.
So since most of the files are store on a server, I did a target disk mode, backed up some small amount of data and reformated the computer using a USB stick loaded with a freshly downloaded Mavericks.
Installation went on without a problem, but as soon as it restarted, it did the same thing again.
Here's what I've done so far:
Reset PRAM (cmd + opt + P + R buttons) 3 consecutive times
I booted using the USB stick and used disk utility to repair permission as well as repair disk. Not much to repair there since it's a freshly installed system
I did single user mode and did the /sbin/fsck -fy command twice until it says the HD is ok.
Took off the power cable to reset SMC (or PMU whatever that thing is called now)
I'm baffled. Since it's been running since 2008, could it be the PRAM battery? I know in my old powermac the logic board has that... but I'm not sure about the new intel Macs.
I live in a country where there's no Apple Store so I'd really want to make sure I've tried everything before giving the machine to an authorized service center where it will sit 3 weeks if I can kinda pinpoint what's wrong and bring it to a local shop to change parts real quick if needed.
It's out of warranty (obviously) without any Applecare.
Anyone might have a clue to what's wrong with this machine?
Thanks very much.

Reinstalling OS X 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 OS X: Select Reinstall OS X 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.
Also see:
Reinstall OS X Without Erasing the Drive
Choose the version you have installed now:
OS X Mavericks- 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.

Boot straight into KDEmod desktop

How do I boot straight into the KDEmod desktop, not the login window but the desktop itself (if using kdemod is relevant)?
I switched to windows from linux and now after 6 months going back to linux so I've kind of forgotten some things.
Last edited by KCE (2008-02-07 02:36:49)

I assume you mean bypassing KDM's login screen and going directly into KDE desktop.
You can use the..
x:5:once:/bin/su PREFERED_USER -l -c "/bin/bash --login -c startx >/dev/null 2>&1"
method mentioned in the "Start X at Boot" wiki like you've done but I just thought I would let you know that
KDE lets you change this inside control center.
Control Center --> System Administration --> Login Manager --> Convenience

PowerBook G4 17" Boots into Open Firmware; Won't boot from HD or Disk

This PBG417 (1GHz/512MB/60GB) has an complex recent history directly related to this problem. It was thought to have a dead logic board, and was given to me for a very insignificant amount of money. I discovered today (at an Authorized Apple Repair center) it merely had a ribbon cable disconnected from the logic board which kept it from powering on, which, when rge cable was reconnected it did on the spot, fully booting (imagine my satisfaction). However, upon getting home, it booted into Open Firmware instead, and offedrs a choice of typing mac-boot or shut-down. Mac-boot takes it to the grey screen where the question mark/Finder guy blink and nothing happens. I put a grey PowerBook G4 17" system disk in, but not the one that shipped with it, hoping it would do. When I try to boot from disk, it goes to Open Firmware, I enter mac-boot, it goes to happy Finder with no question folder, but stays there with the optical drive occasionally making movememts and sounds. If you enter any command besides shut down or mac-boot, iot says unknown word; the command prompt itself is 0> .
I'm not sure the hard drive is seated correctly. When I got the computer, the drive was removed; I put it in an enclosure and installed Tiger on it and put it back in, but apart from connecting the ribbon cable, it just sat in its bay not fixed down. However, it booted correctly the first time it was successfully started.
Finally, the previous owner removed all 23 bottom case screws when he took out the drive and lost them; the Apple repair tech mustered up about 9 and put them in the crucial locations but it's still not screwed down everywhere, although the one time it booted correctly, it had no screws in it.
It seems the computer doesn't read the hard drive or the disk, but the hard drive mau be installed wrong and the disk, while for a 17" was not the one that shipped with this PowerBook 17". The computer is missing many case screws, bnutg booted properly only when there were none it place. I also tried resetting the PMU but am not sure I did reset it because the Apple article isn't clear about which models have which processes. I tied Target Disk Mode but it woujldn't mount/boot.
How can I get the disk out and how to make it boot to the desktop?

You can try to reset NVRAM here is KBase from apple site:
http://docs.info.apple.com/article.html?artnum=42642
and after that reset PRAM in your unit, here is the kbase:
http://docs.info.apple.com/article.html?artnum=2238
If needed you can also tried to reset PMU, here is the kbase:
http://docs.info.apple.com/article.html?artnum=14449
Make sure you choose the correct step for your unit.
If after all the steps your unit still booting up to open firmware then there is possibility that you have corrupt NVRAM which could not be fixed by doing reset except replacing logic board.
Good luck. Hope this help
Flippo

Intel Mini will only boot into safe mode - hangs on ANY Mac OS volume

I have an Intel Mac Mini... the core2duo 1.83GHz or whatever.
I acquired it from it's previous owner, as it was "broken".
He could not get it to run an install disc.
It will not boot any of the Mac OS install media (DVD or CD - 10.4, 10.5, 10.6).
It will not boot/install a Linux disc (I haven't tried, but that's what I was told).
It WILL boot/install Windows !?!?
So... anyway, I removed the HDD, and installed OS 10.6 Leopard on it (FW Target mode installs kept failing at the end - regular retail DVD). I then reinstalled the HDD back into the machine.
The system keeps hanging at the same point it would when trying to boot an install DVD - after the screen turns blue, it goes back to the gray screen, then immediately freezes.
However, I eventually discovered that it WILL boot into safe mode !
Everyone kept saying it's the logic board failure, but if it boots into safe mode, can that be true ? It doesn't seem to me that it would be hardware based in that case - unless it's just a specific component, like the Airport module or something.
The last line displayed in Verbose mode when it hangs is:
"athset_txchainmask[5124] sc->sc.config.txchainmask 5 mask 5"
It also says something about the Airport just before that.
I tried removing the Airport module and it still hangs.
I also tried different RAM, with the same results.
I ran the 10.6.2 combo update in Safe Mode. It still hangs. Haven't tried 10.6.3 yet, though I do have it downloaded and ready to install.
This thing is driving me crazy. Please tell me there's a fix, OTHER than replacing the logic board ?!?! It just doesn't seem like it should be so complicated considering that it runs in safe mode.
It's rare I can't figure out a Mac problem - please help !
Message was edited by: maxtechsystems

Very strange, and getting stranger !
Ok... so, from safe boot mode, I installed Windows XP Pro using the boot camp assistant.
Everything installed perfectly. I started up from Windows, and put in the Mac Mini recovery disc, in order to load the drivers. The Boot Camp software started with Auto Run, and I clicked through to install everything. The drivers start loading...Windows reacts positively, with the system tray announcing "new hardware installed" every 30 seconds or so. Airport/WiFi IS working (in Windows), as it detected my router/network...this is where it gets F'ed up - when the installer gets through with the drivers, and installs the boot camp software for Windows - the system reboots, goes through the usual Windows startup...the desktop background appears, but no icons or start menu - then it reboots again...same thing, again, over and over in a loop.
Went back into OS X (safe boot mode). Installed reEFIt (a bootloader utility), to see if maybe I can bypass the Mac OS/Boot Camp bootloader. No luck. Install worked, but still had the same issues.
For the heck of it, I try installing Linux Mint 8. The live CD starts up OK, but only as far as the boot menu. I tried the installer first - after the splash screen, it hangs on a plain gray screen (w/o the normal linux installer language selection menu - just solid grey).
I tried running the live CD w/o the installer - the actual OS. Same thing - after the splash screen, it hangs, only it's a black screen this time. If I use verbose mode, it still seems to hang on the WiFi card.
Here's the strangest thing yet - Ok, remember, it wouldn't boot normally into ANY Mac OS volume - including the installer DVDs - only in safe boot mode...
So, I try the "hackintosh" IPC osX86 10.5.6 DVD - it boots into the installer with NO problem, WITHOUT safe boot mode ! I tried installing it unsuccessfully. I forget now which options I choose, if any, though I may try it again later and pretend it's just a non-apple PC with the same specs as the Mini (or try just the "base system", and the bootloader - then run the official Apple updates)
This last thing really makes me think it has something to do with the EFI/bios - however, I've only been able to find info on how to update it, not replace or restore it - and it's only from a working install, not forced from a flash drive or CD (plus when I do try the installer from safe boot mode, it says it's current and unneeded).
I still haven't changed the hard drive. After almost successfully installing Windows, I made the assumption the -hardware- was OK, and reassembled everything.
Currently, I'm trying a direct installation of Windows XP Pro SP2 with which I'll try installing the drivers WITHOUT the boot camp software, to see if the WiFi (Airport card) and everything else is indeed working OK (remember too that the system passed ALL the ASD 3S116 tests).
So anyway, that's the current status. Any new ideas anyone ?
Thanks.
Message was edited by: maxtechsystems

Cannot boot into Arch using Gummiboot and Intel fake RAID

This is my first time installing Arch Linux in a few years. The installation seemed to go fine, but I can't boot into it. At this point, when I try to boot into it this is my console output: http://pastie.org/9389435
First of all, what confuses me about this output are the RAID lines. My system currently has two RAID arrays: My RAID0 array where Windows 7 is installed and my RAID1 array where I'm attempting to install Arch Linux. My fstab nor Gummiboot entry files refer to the RAID0 array at all. Why does it activate the partitions on the RAID0 array but not the RAID1 array?
Second of all, lines 10, 11, 14, and 16 refer to /dev/sdd3. When I mount the partitions on my RAID array using the Arch live CD, I have to refer to them as either /dev/md/RAID1_0p1-4 or /dev/md124p1-4. The /dev/sda-sdd seem to refer to the individual drives. Why is it different when I try to boot into the system?
Here is my current fstab: http://sprunge.us/bQCT
The reason fstab is using labels is because the genfstab command generated an fstab that mounted the partitions on the RAID array with their /dev/md124p1-4 names. I noticed these names sometimes changed if I booted back into the live cd, so at one point I changed those names to the /dev/md/RAID1_0p1-4 names. Then in another attempt to fix the problem I'm currently having, I gave each of the partitions labels and I'm now referring to them by their labels in fstab. I also removed the commented UUID's since a few of them had changed since this fstab was generated. Everything to the right of the labels was kept from the original genfstab command.
Here is my gummiboot arch.conf entry file: http://sprunge.us/HPVb
I'm also referring to my root partition by label in this file, rather than the UUID which seems to be the norm. The reason for this is because I was previously getting an error saying that it couldn't even find the root partition based on that UUID. As you can see, I left the UUID line commented in case I have to use it again later.
Here is my mkinitcpio.conf file, which I'm thinking the problem has something to do with this since it's the part I understand the least: http://sprunge.us/IFDL
The modifications I made to this file were based on what I read in the fake raid article on the Arch wiki. All I did was make sure dm_mod and dm_mirror were added to the MODULES line and dmraid was added to the HOOKS line. At first I also had chipset_module_driver in MODULES, but it just generated warnings when I ran `mkinicpio -p linux` so I took it out. I don't know what that module would be for, since it only says "if necessary" on the wiki.
As for the emergency shell it puts me in when it fails to boot, there's not really much I can do from there. The filesystem it puts me in looks entirely different from the root filesystem I can mount from the live cd.
At this point, I'm stumped and I'm not sure where to go from here.

x:5:respawn:/opt/kde/bin/kdm -nodaemon
This is the line that's causing it. It's probably not because of this line, but because kdm isn't starting properly (possibly erroring) and being re-run because of the respawn option.
Try booting into single user mode, changing the default run level to 3, and debugging it from there (figure out why kdm doesn't want to start right).

Hp 8560w booting into black screen, seems to be booting without display

Hi,
Ive got this elitebook 8650w from a friend who asked me to help him try to get it to run.
First thing noticable that something was wrong with this machine is when it started shutting down/rebooting randomly, i suspected overheating since it hadnt been cleaned and doing these shutdowns while it was running 3d games.
I told my friend he had to get it cleaned or it could sustain damage.
The next day the system started to reboot right after it completed windows logon, getting into a loop.
I suspected the temprature failsafe was doing this, because after the system did one cold start,it would boot to windows,reboot on its own and then wouldnt get through the boot process alltogether and just showed a black screen with the cooling fan running at top speed, capslock blinking.
It wasnt even showing the hp bios startup screen anymore.
I tried hooking up a monitor to the external vga, but the monitor goes into standy and remains black.
I know it did boot onto windows eventhough it was showing a blackscreen because i could type in the logon password, wait a bit and then shutdown the system with pressing alt-f4, enter.
clearly the system boots but just the display isnt working. but it isnt giving off any beeps or showing anything on boot.
So i took out the cooling parts and cleaned it to redo the thermal paste.
the job had previously been done by hp, and turned out to be done very very poorly,   half the GPU didnt even have thermal paste onit, a big airbubble prevented contact for more then 2/4th of the gpu surface.
i feared a burnout, but the surface didnt show discoloration and it had been working like this since he got it.
Eventhough it was a poor job done, it didnt seem to be burnt and the temperature failsafe just saved it from burning out.
After thouroughly cleaning the big blobs of paste hp put there most of it ending up next to the gpu and cpu instead of onit,blobs big enough to cover atleast 4 of the same type gpu's/cpu's
I redid the thermal paste using arctic silver number 5, the way it should be done and then reinstalled the blocks and heatpipes.
It all went smoothly into place and i reassembled the parts taken off the laptop.
Confident i rebooted, nothing changed and the problem persisted, it seems to be booting, but the screen doesnt display a thing, and stays completely black.
Shining a light onto the screen doesnt reveal any unlit graphics due to a broken backlight or anything.
Since it went through this loop often and me and my friend have been pressing keys to see if it would boot into a bios screen or anything i suspected the bios might have gotten screwed up, so i decided to try and restore default bios.
But how to do that without a screen?   i tried locating a bios jumper to do this but didnt find any.
Then i found a text the hp forom saying i could force factory setting by pressing f10 repeatedly 5x times during startup, then f5 for default and then f10 to safe and exit,enter.
I did try that a couple of times, but the machine doesnt reboot as it should when you safe an exit bios, s i dont even know if i get into bios in reality.
Now ive come across a few known problems with this machine in my forumcrawling.
2 problems wich results in the same behaviour are : 1 a faulty mobo and 2 a faulty board for the webcam behind the top of the display somehow preventing the screen to work properly.
So , dear hp support -  are there any known problems and sulotions to them other then, drain power and boot again?
If this machine did appear on the market with some of em having a faulty mobo, like some mssges say, why is that not on the official forum, and could i be dealing with such a machine, how do i find out?
If im dealing with a broken display, could that have been caused by a videocard overheating?
You can help me by telling me:
-Can i force bios default without having an active screen? if so, how? just pulling the battery and draining power didnt change a thing.
-Can i find out if GPU is broken (the system does seem to boot in the dark on a cold start)
-Can i find out if the display is broken by blinking messages or someting?
-Are there other known problems with this machine that give these failures as a result?
Can it be theres a broken inverter for the backlight? i geuss not, the vga port would be working then.
hopefull for an answer,
A friend's computer fixer.

I brought it into the Apple Store and I was completely denied of the 8600m GT recall. I am not paying $800 for a **** logic board replacement! Seriously, what the ****!?
I find this problem just as bad as the 8600m GT failures because this isn't the only forum I've been too that have people complaining about the same thing.
I don't know what to do anymore. Money doesn't grow on trees and I need a working laptop for school.
If anyone has any other suggestions please don't hesitate to let us know here.
Good luck to the rest of you!

Do not upgrade to an IvyBridge processor if you need to boot into 32-bit mode with Lion

I recently upgraded to a MBP running the Ivybridge processor and tried to boot into 32-bit mode. Although it did boot after a short period (3-5 mins) it totally crashed a locked up. This was precursored by a graphics error and then the mouse cursor could be moved but nothing else could be done and it was only solved by a hard shut down (holding down the power button). Previously I had been running a MBP with the Sandybridge architecture and this booted fine into 32-bit mode and worked without a problem.
I spent a lot of time on the phone with Apple care who said they'd not had any reports of this issue and we went right though my system until they said there was nothing else they could do and I should try a re-install of Lion. I did this onto another hard-drive, booted into it and managed to get the machine to crash again... leading me to understand that it's nothing to do with my setup.
Thinking it might be an issue with my firmware on the mac today I visited an Apple store and tried booting 5 MacBook Pro's and a MacBook Air - all running IvyBridge - into 32-bit mode and managed to cause the same crash on all of them. If the machine is just booted an left with finder it didn't seem to want to crash but when I opened programs, mainly mac mail, it didn't take too much longer for the crash to occur.
If there are any Apple engineer reading this could you try and reproduce the issue and look at fixing this please as a lot of people still use 32-bit and if I'd known that the IvyBridge processors weren't going to work in 32-bit mode I would have stayed with the Sandybridge MBPs.
Many Thanks,
Adam Peters,

That is a pain then. Pretty much all of the OS included applications (finder, Mail, iTunes, Safari,...) are all fully 64-bit programs now (since Lion) so I can see where launching them when booted into 32-bit mode could cause stability issues.
If you boot into 32-bit mode and just run the Tascam software without launching anything else, will it work?
Was it alright in 10.6? And if so, how about keeping 10.6 in a virtual machine or on a separate disc or partition?

Kernel Panic, but I can still boot into windows? :(

Hi folks,
2007?'ish MBP 2.2
machine (normally) boots right in to SL (latest rev).
holding option, I can choose SL or Windows XP.
I have a firmware password set up (i know the password if i need it)
the problem: when i turn my mac on, it will not boot into Mac right away. I get an error that it's "unable to find driver for this platform: \ "ACPI\".\n"@/SourceCache/xnu/xnu-1486.2.11/iokit/Kernel/IOPlatformExpert.cpp.:1 389
there's more, but I won't type it just yet b/c I just thought of a possible reason:
I was reviewing photos with a client for a slideshow (everything is backed up..no worries) and she had a thumb drive with more photos. I plugged it in the USB, but it wouldn't read or open in finder.
No worries - I ran downstairs to my mac pro, it worked. Dragged the pics off.
Shut down my macbook pro b/c I wasn't using it and when I tried to turn it on later, this problem is there.
What I've tried:
resetting SMC
resetting PRAM
can't do the TDM - read the article about needing to install the software to open passwords, but hard to do if the computer is down (unless they mean installing it on the machine from which I'm trying to access it?)
i tried holding option to key in my firmware password, but the same thing happens - can't access the Mac side of things. I can access the Windows section and as I'm typing this, it looks like I'm able to access the install disc
Just thought I would post this for 2 reasons:
1. to see if there's anything else I can do (I am going to try disk utilities to repair the disc)
and 2. to help anyone else out in case they have the same issue.
Cheers,
Keebler

Backup what you can, boot from a compatible installer DVD, erase the hard drive, then reinstall OS X.
Alternatively, you can try the following:
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.) 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, then quit DU and return to the installer.
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.

Is it possible to bypass the number of partitions limitation (no more than 2) when trying to boot into windows by not using boot camp assistant, and instead just partitioning the drive manually?

I can't find a specific answer to this question.
I did have a functioning Windows 8 installation on my MacBook Pro previously. I tried to make a third exFAT partition so as to have a drive mutually readable/writable to both operating systems. This made it so I could no longer boot into my Windows installation.
I know I'll need the boot camp drivers installed on the Windows installation after the fact, but would manually creating a partition and installing the OS without Boot Camp Assistant work? And would I be able to boot from it while having a total of 3 partitions?

That's the spirit!
Just be sure to have your OS X junk safe in a tested backup, in case the whole thing craps out and you end up having to do a low-level partition and erase of the entire drive.
And like I said, the problem is not OS X. I've set up mine at least once with 4 partitions holding as many flavors of OS X as can run on the hardware, all perfectly bootable on demand.

Mountain Lion only boots into Recovery mode after using iCould lock

Hi everyone!
I have searched the forums for hours now, but I can't seen to find an answer to my question, so I'd like to ask it.
Recently my system partition failed due to frequent kernel panics caused by a cable in the screen I think. The kernel panics still occur, but I don't know what to do with them.
I managed to save my files and reinstall my osx, which is Snow Leopard (the disc came with the computer). Then I wanted to install my purchased copy of Lion through Appstore, but it said it's no longer available in my country and I couldn't download it again.
Then I decided to buy a copy of Mountain Lion which I tried to install. I managed to do it, and I tried to explore my new operation system.
I tried the iCloud app as well, including the Lock. It locked the computer, and rebooted, but ever since I couldn't unlock it.
When it asks for the password I enter it and it accepts it, but doesn't unlock, only lets me into Recovery mode. Now I reinstalled the whole thing over again and when the Mountain Lion install finishes, it only boots into the Recovery HD without asking.
So if I reboot my computer, no matter what I do it only boots into Recovery Mode.
Please help!!
Mike

I was afraid the Apple Store wasn't going to be an option.
Based on your previous post, I was under the impression you could download Mountain Lion, but when you installed it, it locked up again. Not true?
I don't know how to remove it. You can try contacting Apple support through the link below to see if they can help you get this unlocked.
Apple Support Contact
Are the kernal panics new since all this happened?
Here is some information about kernal panics.
Kernel Panics - About
Kernel Panics - Avoiding and Eliminating
Kernel Panics FAQ
Kernel Panics FAQ (2)
Kernel Panics - Understanding and Debugging
The articles discuss where kernal panic reports are filed. After you have a kernal panic, copy the report and post it here. Please copy and paste rather than using a screen shot. There are several people who can read them and they can suggest what to do next. Reading kernal panic reports isn't something I've totally figured out yet.

{Solved} Can not successfully boot into systemd

I will first start off by saying I have read though the following threads:
https://bbs.archlinux.org/viewtopic.php?id=151633
https://bbs.archlinux.org/viewtopic.php?id=151885
And have tried to follow the Systemd wiki. I started out by switching to the new initscripts configuration system. I have the current systemd package installed. I then installed systemd-sysvcompat which of course had me remove sysvinit. I then removed initscripts which moved my rc.conf to rc.conf.pacsave.
I had to manually create /etc/hostname, /etc/locale.conf, and /etc/vconsole.conf as (mentioned in a previous post) I could not do with any "ctl" commands as I had not yet booted into a systemd setup.
This also caused an issue with trying to set up the timezone as:
# timedatectl set-timezone America/New_York
resulted in:
Failed to issue method call: Launch helper exited with unknown return code 1
So at this point I decided to try a reboot and I get:
Welcome to emergency mode! Type "systemctl defualt" or ^D to enter default mode.
Type "journelctl -b" to view system logs. Type "systemctl reboot" to reboot.
Give root password for maintenance
(or typed Control-D to continue): [ 71.520184] radeon_cp: Failed to load firmware
"radeon/R300_cp.bin"
[ 71.520205] [drm:r100_cp_init] *ERROR* failed to load firmware!
[ 71.520224] radeon 0000:01:05.0: failed initializing CP (-2)
[ 71.520237] radeon 0000:01:05.0: Disabling GPU acceleration
I entered emergency mode which brought me to the root terminal. I first attempted to mv rc.conf.pacnew to rc.conf expecting there to possibly be an issue with the daemons I had running or attempted to run but after reboot I got the same thing. Not sure what is going on with the radeon firmware because it's obviously there.
So I re-imaged the hard drive and decided to try again. This time I installed systemd-sysvcompat (removing sysvinit) and DID NOT remove initscripts. I rebooted and got the exact same thing as above. So at this point I am at a loss of ideas with moving forward. Why is systemd-sysvcompat causing the failure of the radeon firmware to load? I use Arch on my laptop, desktop as well as my server. Systemd is coming so I am trying with the laptop first to convert to pure systemd. If I am just missing a step please let me know and I appologize for posting. But hopefully others have run into this issue and could possibly give me a nudge in the right direction. It could be I am reading the wiki wrong or just not interpreting it correctly.
Thanks in advance for your guidance and assistance,
All the best,
Ian
Last edited by ichase (2012-11-16 16:55:10)

hiciu,
Here is what you requested taken from emergency mode:
/etc/mkinitcpio.conf
# vim:set ft=sh
# MODULES
# The following modules are loaded before any boot hooks are
# run. Advanced users may wish to specify all system modules
# in this array. For instance:
# MODULES="piix ide_disk reiserfs"
MODULES=""
# BINARIES
# This setting includes any additional binaries a given user may
# wish into the CPIO image. This is run last, so it may be used to
# override the actual binaries included by a given hook
# BINARIES are dependency parsed, so you may safely ignore libraries
BINARIES=""
# FILES
# This setting is similar to BINARIES above, however, files are added
# as-is and are not parsed in any way. This is useful for config files.
# Some users may wish to include modprobe.conf for custom module options
# like so:
# FILES="/etc/modprobe.d/modprobe.conf"
FILES=""
# HOOKS
# This is the most important setting in this file. The HOOKS control the
# modules and scripts added to the image, and what happens at boot time.
# Order is important, and it is recommended that you do not change the
# order in which HOOKS are added. Run 'mkinitcpio -H <hook name>' for
# help on a given hook.
# 'base' is _required_ unless you know precisely what you are doing.
# 'udev' is _required_ in order to automatically load modules
# 'filesystems' is _required_ unless you specify your fs modules in MODULES
# Examples:
## This setup specifies all modules in the MODULES setting above.
## No raid, lvm2, or encrypted root is needed.
# HOOKS="base"
## This setup will autodetect all modules for your system and should
## work as a sane default
# HOOKS="base udev autodetect pata scsi sata filesystems"
## This is identical to the above, except the old ide subsystem is
## used for IDE devices instead of the new pata subsystem.
# HOOKS="base udev autodetect ide scsi sata filesystems"
## This setup will generate a 'full' image which supports most systems.
## No autodetection is done.
# HOOKS="base udev pata scsi sata usb filesystems"
## This setup assembles a pata mdadm array with an encrypted root FS.
## Note: See 'mkinitcpio -H mdadm' for more information on raid devices.
# HOOKS="base udev pata mdadm encrypt filesystems"
## This setup loads an lvm2 volume group on a usb device.
# HOOKS="base udev usb lvm2 filesystems"
## NOTE: If you have /usr on a separate partition, you MUST include the
# usr, fsck and shutdown hooks.
HOOKS="base udev autodetect pata scsi sata filesystems usbinput fsck"
# COMPRESSION
# Use this to compress the initramfs image. By default, gzip compression
# is used. Use 'cat' to create an uncompressed image.
#COMPRESSION="gzip"
#COMPRESSION="bzip2"
#COMPRESSION="lzma"
#COMPRESSION="xz"
#COMPRESSION="lzop"
# COMPRESSION_OPTIONS
# Additional options for the compressor
#COMPRESSION_OPTIONS=""
The next items due to length are linked to pastebin;
bsdtar -t -f /boot/initramfs-linux.img
http://pastebin.com/cZEJHVHm
dmesg
http://pastebin.com/MUGs1e9H
journalctl -b
http://pastebin.com/xgbfVJP8
This is a lot to look at so do know that I am very appreciative of you and any one else looking at these files taking your time to help me with this issue.
All the best,
Ian
Edit: I also wanted to mention that I was able to get rid of the syslog-ng errors previously mentioned by performing:
systemctl enable syslog-ng.service
Then rebooting. Granted I was still put back in emergency mode but was able to fix one issue.
Last edited by ichase (2012-11-16 03:33:41)

Can't boot into anything after EasyBCD's "Write MBR"

After upgrading my windows 8.1 install to windows 10 about a week ago (week ago), I decided that I no longer wanted the Windows/Ubuntu dual boot I had setup. So, in an attempt to delete GRUB and set the bootloader back to the windows bootloader, I downloaded EasyBCD and fiddled with it a bit before finding the "Write MBR" option. I figured that would allow me to boot directly into windows, or at least delete Ubuntu's GRUB Bootloader, so I could use one of my many windows install DVD's to set the bootloader to a windows one. Unfortunately, I'm an idiot, and after doing that, I can't boot into anything. I've tried everything I could think of or find on Google to get it to boot into absolutely ANYTHING. I've tried boot into every one of the boot options, including the main boot menu, but none of them load. instead, it shows me a loading screen that displays some mobo info as if it were loading a boot option I selected, but it hangs there. Maybe it was just taking its sweet little time right? Wrong! I let it sit for hours, still nothin'. HP has a "solution" where you hold the windows key + B for one second as you start up the pc, and it should start a bios recovery. Feeling hopeless, I tried it, hoping that it would do SOMETHING. Of course, it didn't boot into that either. Just a black screen. Finally, I learned that sometimes problems like this could be cause by hardware issues, and a lot of the times its the hard drive. I highly doubted that it was a hardware issue seeing as I bought this PC late last year (around November or December of 2014) but I removed the hard drive just in case and started my computer. Same result. FML. Can someone, anyone, help this poor idiot get his baby up and running again? I don't have the money or the confidence in their abilities to give it to Geek Squad or anyone else for that matter and let them have a go at it, so i'm depending on the internet ((

but if my PC's bootloader or something related is messed up, can the neosmart forums actually help?not trying to be rude or anything, i'm genuinely curious. you see, i cant really load anything, including any recovery disks or USB's, which is why i was hoping that there would be some sort of HP utility that could help me restore my PC back to its previous state. i'll still ask the neosmart forums though. i'm pretty desperate to fix my PC at this point!

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