I,m getting a flashing question mark in a folder on startup

When i started up earlier i verified disk and it said i should restart and hold command and r and then repair disk using disk utility which i did and then restarted using the usual startup disk. Since then every time i turn my imac mid 2011 on 10.9.4 mavs on i get a flashing question mark in a folder. I have over 800 gb of movies id like to transfer to ext hard drive before i try anything else preferably...ive read online reinstalling the osx may wipe everything so i thought id ask the experts before trying anything else.

OK, this is a little different then we started out trying to solve...the erasing of swap and other files has damaged the Mac OS X pretty seriously since we don't know all of what was removed.
If you have the Seagate external drive and it has not been formatted, and you want it to be a Mac OS X drive, attach the Seagate, restart holding the Command and R keys, go to Utilities and open Disk Utility. When that opens, select the Seagate from the drives shown in the left sidebar of the DU window. In the main window, choose Partition from the buttons across the top, center of the window pane. If you want more than one partition, select how many you want, or just keep the default of one. Name the drive (partition), keep the default format as Mac OS X Extended (Journaled), and the default partition table as GUID. Apply that to erase and format the Seagate drive.
When that is finished, still using Disk Utility, select Restore as the function you want to do. Now drag the internal drive (Macintosh HD, typically) to the Source box in the main window of DU, and drag the name you have given the Seagate external to the Destination box in the main window of DU. Look things over to be sure you have done this correctly, the internal drive contents is the source material and the external drive is where you want to put it...what you are about to do is clone the internal drive to the external drive. If all is correct, Restore.
That will take some time since you have a lot of material to copy. When it is done, you should have an exact copy of your internal drive and its contents, i.e., your movies.
Now that you have an exact copy of your contents, you can do what you need to do with the internal drive, such as erase the drive and reinstall Lion or whatever you want to install. After doing so you can copy your movies back if you want, but DO NOT do a restore as that will mess up the operating system.

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Got the flashing question mark and mac folder on startup.

I've seen other questions on here about it. It happened after the last Safari update. Safari and Quicktime were the last updates I did. I have gone through all of the steps that I've read on here to no avail. (Safe Mode, Holding "x", Reset the PRAM, Checked the PRAM Battery) I tried starting up holding the option key...and no startup disks show up. It wont boot up in single use mode, so I cant try fsck... I ran Disk Utilities from the startup disk and it says my hard drive is not mounted. Is there a way i can mount it? Am i screwed?

It sounds like you have already tried to run Disk Utility so you're now at the stage of trying to rescue your data using the various utilities aBrody mentioned, or trying to repair your directory with Diskwarrior. Some prefer to rescue their files before trying other utilities in case using the repair utilities makes things worse. Rescuing has the downside that you have to have an empty drive to which to rescue items. Some rescue software packages have versions you can try for free which will look at your drive and say if they think they can do anything with it before you buy. The advantage to repair is if it works it will restore your old drive and you don't have to reassemble the whole thing from bits and pieces of rescued files, and repairing doesn't require a second hard drive. You will have to decide on how to approach this. Typically people will try Diskwarrior and if that doesn't work they will go with a rescue package. The big downside is that each software package will set you back $80-$100. (Item for consideration, you can get a backup drive for just over $100 and save yourself a lot of hassle in the future.)
Personally I'd download one of the trial versions and let it have a look. If it can't see things then (and maybe I'm wrong and others will chime in) your chances of getting anything to see the drive are remote.
Oh, there's also a package called Techtool Pro. DW is generally considered premier in repairing directories, but TTP can do some things DW can't. Ideally a person would have TTP, DW and a recue package, but as you're seeing that can add up fast.

Flashing Question Mark in a Folder

Hello All:
I have an iMac 24" (Model A1225; Mid 2007) running 10.7.3. The CPU will rarely boot up and will boot up with the Flashing Question Mark in a folder most of the time. I can start up from a OS DVD (Snow Leopard) or Lion on a Flashdrive, but the HDD will not appear when I attempt a reinstall. I was able to boot up once from my Lion Flashdrive and reinstall 10.7.3 with a normal restart. The HDD checkout fine using disk utility and I repaired my disk permissions. The CPU seemed fine and this morning the Flashing Question Mark is back.
I can start up the Target disk mode and I will see the FireWire icon, but the HDD will not appear on the desktop of the host CPU. I have a new iMac on order, but do you think it is wise to pull my data from the HDD via the Target disk mode or my Time Capsule? I guess I am not sure if it is the logic board or a bad HD.
Thanks in advance,
Irv

It sounds more like a failing drive or a drive in need of repair. Have you tried repairing it?
Repair the Hard Drive - Lion
Boot from your Lion Recovery HD. 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, then quit DU and return to the main menu. Select Restart from the Apple menu.
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.
If the drive is repairable then you will need to reinstall Lion:
Reinstalling 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. Alterhatively, 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.
Reinstall Lion: Select Reinstall Lion and click on the Continue button.
Note: You can also re-download the Lion installer by opening the App Store application. Hold down the OPTION key and click on the Purchases icon in the toolbar. You should now see an active Install button to the right of your Lion purchase entry. There are situations in which this will not work. For example, if you are already booted into the Lion you originally purchased with your Apple ID or if an instance of the Lion installer is located anywhere on your computer.
If none of this works then I would definitely backup your data, but not with Time Machine. I would make a backup to a separate drive, not the Time Capsule, using Carbon Copy Cloner.

Gray screen with flashing question mark inside a folder icon

Screen was unresponsive, cursor would move, but nothing else. Turned power off, turned power back on, now has a gray screen with a folder icon and flashing question mark in it. any ideas to correct or should i take it to Best Buy for service ( Geek squad) ?

Before taking it in for service, I'd folllow this article. Although it's possible it's a drive issue, it's equally likely to be something else. That article walks you through steps to fix it if it's not the drive.
Note: For the archive & install, if you're on 10.6, follow the disk instructions, if you're on 10.7 or later, you'll want to boot into the recovery partition. To do that, just boot the computer while holding down the Command+R button. No need for disks.
Regards,
Gnomish8

TS2570 i have an intel imac and im getting a grey sceen. I get the flashing question mark folder. iv changed the H.D 2x and tired to install a new os into it but no luck. The mac isnt going into safe mode or anything. help?

Intel imac 2009. Grey screen with question mark folder. Changed harddrives 3 times now. Tired 5 keyboards on all Usb ports and a hub and keyboard wont boot to startup or safemode of anything but hub gets power. disc drive wont eject or accept a disc cuz keyboard commands not being sent to computer. Help?

Keyboards must be connected directly to the USB port, not through a hub.
Reinstall OS X without erasing the drive
Do the following:
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 the Combo Updater for the version you prefer from support.apple.com/downloads/.

I get the flashing question mark on my G5/10.5 system. When I booted up on the install disc and ran first aid which failed and stated "Volume check failed Error -9972 Vol 1 could not be repaired. What to do next? Do I try the hardware diags first?

I've never had to reload the original software and would like to avoid it unless absolutely necessary. Anyway any comments on what i should do next?

HW Diags aren't likely to help.
https://discussions.apple.com/docs/DOC-1687
You must repair the HD, if Disk Utility or fsck should fail to repair it, your best bet is DiskWarrior from Alsoft, you'll need the CD to boot from if you don't have another boot drive...
http://www.alsoft.com/DiskWarrior/
Your best bet is DiskWarrior, you need the CD/DVD though.
http://www.alsoft.com/DiskWarrior/
But others that may work…
Drive Genius…
http://www.prosofteng.com/products/drive_genius.php
TechTool Pro…
http://www.micromat.com/index.php?option=com_content&task=view&id=31&Itemid=83

Is there a CD you can pick up for Imac as cant get past flashing question mark with troubleshooting.

Any help would be gratefull.

If you do not have the original OS X install disks you will have to contact Apple. They will send you the correct DVDs for that system for a nominal charge.
Call
U.S. iPod, Mac and iPad technical support:
(800) APL-CARE (800-275-2273)

Not booting from DVD drive | Flashing Question mark and face folder SOS!

Hey there! I am hoping one of you folks can help.
I noticed my iMac running really slow.
I could not find my OS disks, so I bought OS X Leopard
When I tried to boot from DVD it would flash the question/face folder for about 30 seconds then reboot normal. (I was able to install the OS. Just can't boot from the disk in order to run disk utility)
Time got away from me and now my system is REALLY slow...
I went and bought Disk Warrior
Same issue, only my drive spits out that disk. (I can run and burn other disks)
I won't discuss my failed attempts at getting help from the Apple store and by having the geniuses (not) call me. I would rather not pay an arm and a leg to have an approved repair center run the disk utility for me. I've already spent $169 on the OS and $100 on Disk Warrior... PLEASE HELP

I think you are going in a totally wrong direction. Your profile indicates you have Leopard (10.5.X) however I don't believe that what you recently purchased. I think you purchased Snow Leopard (10.6.X), these are two totally different OS's! Unless you got extremely lucky and found someone selling 10.5.x then naturally you would have the problem you did trying to boot from it. My advice is:
1. Look to see what version of OS X you are running (click the Apple in the upper left of this screen and then choose About this Mac) then cross check what version of the OS you recently purchased.
2. If you are running 10.5.x then you will need to call Apple and purchase replacement discs for a nominal charge. Once received you should be able to boot from that disc and run Disk Utility from it.
3. If you are running 10.6.x then re post (with an updated profile) so we can determine what the next step is.
It seems like you don't know what you are doing and in an effort to save money you are probably going to spend more than taking your machine to an Apple Authorized Service Provider.
Regards,
Roger

Not booting from DVD drive | Flashing Question mark and face folder S

Hey there! I am hoping one of you folks can help.
I noticed my iMac running really slow.
I could not find my OS disks, so I bought OS X Leopard
When I tried to boot from DVD it would flash the question/face folder for about 30 seconds then reboot normal. (I was able to install the OS. Just can't boot from the disk in order to run disk utility)
Time got away from me and now my system is REALLY slow...
I went and bought Disk Warrior
Same issue, only my drive spits out that disk. (I can run and burn other disks)
I won't discuss my failed attempts at getting help from the Apple store and by having the geniuses (not) call me. I would rather not pay an arm and a leg to have an approved repair center run the disk utility for me. I've already spent $169 on the OS and $100 on Disk Warrior... PLEASE HELP

Hey,
No, I'm not running Snow Leopard. Running Leopard. 10.5.8
I'm guessing the problem is either with my computer itself, or perhaps the DVD drive. Hard to tell. Maybe even something corrupt in my software?
My problem is:
I desperately need to run a disk utility of some sort, however am not able to make my computer use my OS disk or Disk warrior as a startup disk (either by holding down C, or by assigning it in System Utilities.)
I was hoping someone might have a tip, or trick to get my machine to use one of these disks as the startup disk.
Thanks!

Flashing Question mark and Finder Folder at Start UP!

Hi there,
I just installed a new processor with upgraded firmware with mac os 9.1 as my OS. Well I have a start up tone but thats it. I have used a cd to choose which disk I want my computer to start up from but now I only get a start up tone and a gray screen during boot up. I have tried to reset my PRAM more than 4 times and it hasn't done anything. I have also reset the processor but that hasn't done anything either. I don't wish to do a clean installation because I don't want to reinstall my old 450 mhz processor. It would be great if I could have some help. thanks

Hi, DC502. If I understand you correctly, you have been able to boot to a CD with the new processor installed — is that correct? If so, what OS version is on the CD, and is the same version on your hard drive? Does the new processor (what make and speed is it, by the way?) have any minimum OS or hardware requirements, and have you checked to make sure you are meeting them? What firmware update did you apply?
If you aren't able to boot even to a CD, check the processor upgrade to make sure it is solidly seated, not crooked or uneven in its slot. Reset the CUDA after every internal hardware change. Perform all testing with all external devices except monitor, keyboard and mouse disconnected from the computer.
Please post back with further details if these ideas don't help.

TS1440 My Mac shows a question mark in a folder at startup!

Tried a few of your solutions like hold option+ command+ P+R! Then only shift. After that C! Nothing seems to help.

Often that is a sign that there is an issue with the HDD. Have you tried all of these procedures?
http://support.apple.com/kb/TS2570
Ciao.

Flashing Question Mark & Won't Boot

My Mac Mini (Core Duo 1.67) will not boot, which is annoying considering it is under two weeks old.
I get a flashing question mark on a folder icon on startup and it progresses no further.
It does however start from CD unaided (without having to C-poweron).
Apple Hardware Tools (D-poweron) says everything is OK.
The reinstall CD starts and I can get to the part that asks me to install OS X, and/or use the disk checker. Both the installer and disk checker tell me the machine has no hard drive - it just doesn't see a hard drive as present.
Zapping the cmos (alt-command-p-r) didn't help.
I then gave up and handed it to the office IT people. They took the drive out (it appears to be a standard 2.5" 60GB fujitsu SATA hard drive, also used by PC laptops) and shoved it in a PC. The PC detects the drive and can view the contents (via low level disk diagnostic software; Windows XP itself just says "I don't do Mac filesystems, want me to format this for you so I can use it?")
IT guys think it's a drive controller failure, or a loose connection (though they can't see one) or some weird firmware corruption. We can't upgrade the firmware as the mac wont boot and we couldn't find a bootable firmware upgrade CD.
So, is this a "Back to apple" job or is there something we have not done? Also if it does go back to Apple, should I remove the hard drive. As far as we can tell the drive itself is fine and there's confidental data on it.
Thanks,
Sandy
mac mini intel Mac OS X (10.4.7)

... Both the installer and disk checker tell me
the machine has no hard drive - it just doesn't see a
hard drive as present.
All the indications are that the logic board has failed, and after discovering the drive wasn't recognised, your first action should have been to contact Apple since the system is new. Unless your work IT people are Apple authorised, having them open your system and work on it will certainly have endangered your warranty should Apple have any indication that such work was done on it.
I think your best course of action to have this resolved is to contact Apple and explain the symptoms that you see - the flashing question mark at startup, that you are able to boot to a valid CD, but reinstall of MacOS results in an error indicating no hard drive is present. They will likely lead you through a couple of basic troubleshooting steps to confirm that you have a hardware failure that can't be resolved, then advise you on your options which will to some extent depend on where the mini was bought and whether there is an authorised service provider or Apple store in reasonable reach.

Can't get beyond the flashing question mark

I can't get beyond the flashing question mark on grey folder, on starting up.
I have tried starting with option key down, but still get the question mark.
I have tried starting with the command, option, P and R keys down but still get the same question mark.
I have put the No 1 Installation disc in, and started holding down the C key. The disc was immediately ejected with no change on the monitor.
Can anyone please suggest what else I could try?

I would suggest taking the faulty hd out of the Mac, putting it in an enclosure and seeing whether you can get anything off it. Alternatively,there's an application called Data Rescue Data Rescuehttp://www.versiontracker.com/dyn/moreinfo/macosx/211375 that has an excellent reputation for retrieving data from a bad disk.
If you do manage to get your data off, and then onto your MacBookPro, you should have no trouble putting it on a new drive in your iMac.

Boots to flashing question mark folder and disc utility cannot locate internal hard drive

Bottling my MacBook Pro I end up with a flashing question mark folder. I reboot holding the option key to select discs and there were no options at all. I plug in an Ethernet cable and it shows a internet recovery option. I click and it downloaded a temporary recovery mode. From there I open disc utility but it doesn't find any internal hard drives. I reset the pram and I still get the flashing question mark folder. Thinking it was my internal hard drive that failed I bought and replaced the internal hd with a new one and repeated all the processes and still no internal hard drive was found. I'm stuck with the flashing question mark folder. Therefore I've concluded that it was my MacBook pros internal hard drive CABLE that had failed. Does anyone know of any other possible problems that is causing this for my MacBook Pro or know of any solutions? Or is replacing my internal hd cable the only solution? Please help!

It was the internal HD cable. I replaced it and now my MacBook Pro works

PLEASE HELP- flashing question mark in folder

Hi everyone,
last night I was just on my macbook as usual and suddenly it froze, so I turned it off. When i went to turn it back on, all that appeared was a flashing question mark in a folder.
I have tried all the suggestions on this page http://docs.info.apple.com/article.html?artnum=58042 , but none of them worked because it didn't even recognise/find the harddrive in the disk utility section. I don't have apple care ($419 is a lot of money for a student!) but I only bought the macbook about 6 months ago, so it is still within warranty. What should I do now?
Any help is much much appreciated!
Melissa

Melissa,
I just had the same exact problem last night too. I called the apple technical service number and nothing they did helped because the hard drive wasn't found. I even got a fire wire cable and tried to hook my MacBook up to another Mac and tried the target disk mode hoping I could pull off data that I needed, but the other mac couldn't find the disk either. I'm kind of worried about losing some of my data. If you could let me know if you find any solution that would be awesome! I plan on going to the apple store this weekend to get it looked at.
-Michelle

I,m getting a flashing question mark in a folder on startup

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