How to safe start an iMac

My iMac freezes during the boot startup. It seems to stop at the same place in the sliding bar. I wonder if a particular program is causing the problem but can't get it to start. I have had the problem for several days and so far it have eventually started but this is frustrating.

Start up in Safe Mode.
http://support.apple.com/kb/PH14204?viewlocale=en_US
Repair Disk
Steps 2 through 8
http://support.apple.com/kb/PH5836

Similar Messages

  • How to safe start

    Can't get rid of blue screen at start up

    I think instead you need to do this:
    Repair 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 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.
    If this doesn't fix things then you are going to have to reinstall OS X which you can do as follows:
    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.

  • How do I start up iMac with volume muted?

    I have a 21.5-inch, Late 2012, 3.1 GHz Intel Core i7, OS X 10.9.2 (13C64) and would like it to start up with the volume muted. I am NOT talking about the START-UP chime. I am talking about the Volume icon on the top of the screen showing no volume lines or Mute. Or System Preferences showing Mute. So, if I send an email there is no sound. If I play a song there is no sound. I want to have to turn on the volume to hear a sound after the computer starts.
    Is there a way I can make the computer start up in this state without muting the computer after it starts?
    I have tried going into System Preferences, Sound, Output and Sounds Effects, Mute. Not Muted on restart or logging out and back in.
    Any suggestions. Terminal command? Or is this not possible?
    Aloha

    I have muted it before shutting down and it starts up NOT muted. Doesn't work. Putting it to sleep could work except the USB ports stay active and that keeps other accessories active.
    Surely there is a better way? Come on this is an Apple. There must be a way. :=)

  • My iMac started and locked onto a white screen. Rebooted and all was well. How do you do a safe start i.e. what key do you press?

    My iMac started and locked onto a white screen. Rebooted and all was well. How do you do a safe start i.e. what key do you press?

    It should according to http://support.apple.com/kb/ht1455. Review that and try again.

  • I have an iMac with OS Lion. The Smartart feature for Office for Mac will not work when I am logged on to my personal user account. It works with other user accounts on the same computer, and it works after "safe start". How can I fix the problem?

    The Smartart feature of Office for Mac will not work in my user account. It works for all other user accounts on the same computer, and it works after a "safe start". How can I fix the problem?

    You may also want to search/ask in the forums run by the people who make the product which is causing you problems:
    http://answers.microsoft.com/en-us/mac/forum/macoffice2011

  • How do I start up an iMac G4 on an external Firewire hard drive using Tige?

    How do I start up using Tiger from an external Firewire hard drive? I have a 1 GHz iMac G4 with 768 MB RAM. The hard drive failed last week. I don't want to buy and install a new hard drive for the iMac G4. I have access to an Intel based iBook and a brand new copy of OS X 10.5 (Tiger) which I can use to install the copy of Tiger on an external Firewire hard drive that I have that's not being used. What are the steps for installing Tiger on the external Firewire hard drive and then using that external drive as the startup disk for the iMac G4?

    Hi
    Attach the external firewire drive to the iBook, launch Disk Utility and erase the drive use Mac OS Extended as the format type. Insert the Installer Disk, restart the iBook and hold down the 'C' key. Progress through the usual setup assistant prompts until you get to the point where you select the destination disk. You should see the external firewire disk. Select this and carry on with the installation. When the install is done, restart the iBook and verify you can boot from the drive. You can proceed with the Setup Assistant and create the default User Admin account if you want, or you can quit, shut down the iBook and disconnect the drive.
    Next attach the drive to your iMac, switch on your iMac. The mac should find for itself the first bootable system it 'senses'. It should boot thereafter. You could forego this and simply attach the drive, boot the iMac and hold down the alt key. This should bring up startup disk manager which should show any or all valid bootable systems. Select the one you want and click the right hand arrow.
    Tony

  • How can i get my imac proceed to home page from restarting endlessly?  it will start then start booting then chime then bck to step one, not even hitting the start up page.... plssss help!

    how can i get my imac proceed to home page from restarting endlessly?  it will start then start booting then chime then bck to step one, not even hitting the start up page.... plssss help!

    Hi
    My Powerbook was the same. Only fix is to reinstall OSX from the install CD but be sure not to pick the Format and install clean. Once you boot with the install CD pick the preserve user data and settings.
    On My machine the reinstall looked perfect. My network, email, files and all the programmes were all there. Most apps worked fine but Adobe CS2, Virtual PC and NetBarrier all needed reinastallation as they reported a few files or registration was missing. I went for the 10.4.3 upgrade again and it worked fine.
    Good luck
    D

  • TA21888 how to start a iMac with cd in the cd port

    How to start a IMAC 2010 / 2011 with cd in the tray thanks kids1

    What Disc (CD) is in the Optical DVD Drive...?
    If your trying to startup from the OS X Disc, see > Startup Manager
    If your trying to eject a stuck Disc, see > Quick Tip: How to Force Eject a Stuck Disc

  • How do you start the hardware test on an imac with bluetooth keyboard

    How do you start the apple hardware test on an imac with a bluetooth keyboard as the instructions is to press the D key whilst restarting? And of course the imac cant see the keyboard whilst booting up as the bluetooth connection has yet to be established

    Have you tried following the directions for running it from the DVD? The instructions are on the Hardware Test link.If you are correct and it cannot due to the wireless keyboard not making a connection you will need to borrow a wired USB keyboard.  

  • How do I start firefox in safe mode on a Mac as the equivalent of holding option key whilst starting doesn't open dialogue on Mac?

    I am trying to reset toolbars and am following firefox's help instructions. How do I start firefox in safe mode on a Mac as the equivalent of holding option key whilst starting doesn't open a dialogue box on the Mac?

    Thanks Morbus.. I hadn't noticed that but it was already set at Mac. I tried it again and it worked this time... but alas my main problem persists:
    My back and forward buttons don't work in Firefox and I've lost all of my bookmarks! I've tried a few of the suggestions but without success at the moment.
    Particularly unhelpful are the instructions to back-up your lost bookmarks - which I can't do cos they're lost!!

  • Last week I've install Mac OS X Mountain Lion and then after the installation finish my IMAC start up in verbose mode. How can I turn off this mode and start my IMAC normally. I've try to key in the code "sudo nvram boot-args=" in terminal also.

    Last week I've install Mac OS X Mountain Lion and then after the installation finish my IMAC start up in verbose mode. How can I turn off this mode and start my IMAC normally. I've try to key in the code "sudo nvram boot-args=" in terminal also.
    Thank you for all of your answer.

    I've seen it mentioned on here that a PRAM reset may solve it:
    Reset PRAM
    Shut down the computer.
    Locate the following keys on the keyboard: Command, Option, P and R.
    You will need to hold these keys down simultaneously in step 4.
    Turn on the computer.
    Press and hold the Command-Option-P-R keys. You must press this key combination before the gray screen appears.
    Hold the keys down until the computer restarts and you hear the startup sound for the second time.
    Release the keys.

  • How do I start up in safe mode

    I have a message saying I have no start up disk space and it won't let me gain access to all of my apps and programs.  How can I start my computer in safe mode so that it can run a disk utility, delete, or transfer files to an external hard drive?

    To start up in safe mode, hold down shift at the chime.

  • How do I start Imac from scratch and the install my backup stuff anew

    How do I start Imac 10.9.2 from scratch and the install my backup stuff anew

    See:
    Mac Maintenance Quick Assist,
    Mac OS X speed FAQ,
    Speeding up Macs,
    How to Speed up Macs,
    Macintosh OS X Routine Maintenance,
    Mac troubleshooting: What to do when your computer is too slow,
    Essential Mac Maintenance: Get set up,
    Essential Mac Maintenance: Rev up your routines,
    Maintaining OS X, 
    Five Mac maintenance myths and
    Myths of required versus not required maintenance for Mac OS X for information.

  • How do i upgrade my iMac to two TB hard drive start to finish?

    How do I upgrade my Imac to two TB hard drive start to finish?

    Those are definitely good drives. The OP lists his iMac as a 2011 unit, so it should have a Thunderbolt port on it. If money isn't an object, he could probably put together a RAID unit using Thunderbolt. I think OWC is selling an Thunderbolt hub of some sort. He could do all this, get good performance, and not even need to bother cracking the case. It's a lot easier and convenient working on an external drive than it is having to service an internal drive. He just needs to steer clear of some of the low power/backup drives.
    Just my two cents, of course.

  • I bought a mac 2 days ago and transferred some files on there using migration assist which I did not want to. How do I restore my imac to factory settings so I can start again?

    I bought a mac 2 days ago and transferred some files on there using migration assist which I did not want to. How do I restore my imac to factory settings so I can start again?

    Look in /Users folder. You can go to System Preferences > Users & Groups, open the lock and "-" delete the account it created.
    This is a problem whenever you use migration assistant after the initial install. The proper way to run Migration Assistant is in Setup Assistant when you first boot your Mac. I don't know why Apple isn't clearer about this issue.

Maybe you are looking for